Coming at you guys with another sad post...
Heckler and I had to put down our beloved Trinity today
Barkley hardly left her side all week. Our vet suspected Trinity's liver was failing several months ago, and treated it aggressively with medication. She improved greatly and was doing really well until about two weeks ago when her symptoms returned. It started with her urinating in her sleep, and having accidents in the house - something she would never do unless she couldn't help it, she was always really good about not messing in the house. Then she started throwing up pretty much everything she ate & became severely jaundiced. Our vet refilled the prescriptions, but made sure to tell me that "it might be time to make a decision." The meds seemed to stop the vomiting, but only for a couple of days. This weekend was really hard... she was barely moving and really wasn't herself. Yesterday afternoon, she had a bowel movement that looked like black sludge (black is a huge red flag when it comes to stool, because it means that there is blood somewhere in the digestive tract). We knew then that we would have to take her in as soon as possible. Last night was spent on the telephone, trying to get in touch with my mom who is away in Arizona.
Back in 2000, Ranger was a puppy and my mom & brother decided it was time for them to get a dog as well. Labs had always been my mom's favourite, and when I told her that my boss' sister had a litter of chocolate lab puppies she was all for it. I went on the two hour trip up island with them to pick out their puppy. She was so cute and had such silky fur! She was to be my 10 year old brother's dog, and he named her Trinity after the character in The Matrix. Trinity was about 10 weeks old the day we picked her up, and she cried so much on the way home that my brother wondered if we shouldn't take her back; he slept with his head in her crate for at least three days until she was settled - so cute! My brother loved Trinity, we all did. Trinity and Ranger were only six months apart, and loved to play together. Even when they got older, they still played (just not as rough). Trinity and Range had a great system when it came to playing fetch in the water - when a stick or ball was thrown into the water, Trinity would leap in and swim for it, Ranger (who was scared of water) would steal it from her as she was getting out of the water and run off with it
She was so great with kids too! When my daughter would go out into the fenced back yard, my mom would tell Trinity to go with her, and Trin would not leave her side. We never had to worry about a leash with Trinity when we were camping, because she never went far. I have honestly never known such a loyal dog. I'll never forget the day that my mom and I swam across a bay on the Okanagan Lake - Trinity came with us, even though she could have walked with the rest of the family & Ranger; she swam back and forth from my mom to me, trying to grab us and tow us back to shore. She would have made a good rescue dog.
I moved away for a few years, but returned to live with my mom & brother in 2008 after my divorce. Ranger came with me, of course, and he and Trinity were happy to be back together. We moved from my mom's small-ish home to a great big one out of town. My grandmother remained in town, so my mom spent half of her week in town, as a rule. Trinity was in our care a lot of the time, and we used to walk Ranger & Trinity to and from the kids' bus stop every day. Heckler, especially, became a big part of Trinity's life - he walked her so often and she was always so happy to see him. When we lost Ranger just before Christmas, Heckler's bond with Trinity intensified. We loved having Trinity as a role model for little Barkley, because if ever there were a dog we'd want him to turn out like, it would be our Trinity.
My brother is living in town now, and didn't want to come out to say goodbye to Trinity. Yes, I do think that is kind of selfish, but I also realize that everyone deals with the death of a loved one differently. Three years ago, my brother & I lost our grandfather; because our own father was a flake, our grandfather was the only dad we ever had. Just a couple of days before our grandfather passed away, my brother and I sat at his side and our grandfather sobbed and held onto us and told us he wished he could be with us forever. My brother is 10 years younger than me, and that affected him a lot differently than it did me. He has shied away from anything to do with the subject of death and loss, including our mom's will and plans for Trinity when it was time.
We did contact both my mom and brother to let them know it was time for Trinity to go - and it didn't come as a surprise to either of them. My mom even had a fund for us to draw from when it was time to put her down. Heckler dug the grave yesterday, and today he laid her to rest right next to Ranger. They are together now, both here and in doggy heaven.
Heckler and I had to put down our beloved Trinity today
Barkley hardly left her side all week. Our vet suspected Trinity's liver was failing several months ago, and treated it aggressively with medication. She improved greatly and was doing really well until about two weeks ago when her symptoms returned. It started with her urinating in her sleep, and having accidents in the house - something she would never do unless she couldn't help it, she was always really good about not messing in the house. Then she started throwing up pretty much everything she ate & became severely jaundiced. Our vet refilled the prescriptions, but made sure to tell me that "it might be time to make a decision." The meds seemed to stop the vomiting, but only for a couple of days. This weekend was really hard... she was barely moving and really wasn't herself. Yesterday afternoon, she had a bowel movement that looked like black sludge (black is a huge red flag when it comes to stool, because it means that there is blood somewhere in the digestive tract). We knew then that we would have to take her in as soon as possible. Last night was spent on the telephone, trying to get in touch with my mom who is away in Arizona.
Back in 2000, Ranger was a puppy and my mom & brother decided it was time for them to get a dog as well. Labs had always been my mom's favourite, and when I told her that my boss' sister had a litter of chocolate lab puppies she was all for it. I went on the two hour trip up island with them to pick out their puppy. She was so cute and had such silky fur! She was to be my 10 year old brother's dog, and he named her Trinity after the character in The Matrix. Trinity was about 10 weeks old the day we picked her up, and she cried so much on the way home that my brother wondered if we shouldn't take her back; he slept with his head in her crate for at least three days until she was settled - so cute! My brother loved Trinity, we all did. Trinity and Ranger were only six months apart, and loved to play together. Even when they got older, they still played (just not as rough). Trinity and Range had a great system when it came to playing fetch in the water - when a stick or ball was thrown into the water, Trinity would leap in and swim for it, Ranger (who was scared of water) would steal it from her as she was getting out of the water and run off with it
She was so great with kids too! When my daughter would go out into the fenced back yard, my mom would tell Trinity to go with her, and Trin would not leave her side. We never had to worry about a leash with Trinity when we were camping, because she never went far. I have honestly never known such a loyal dog. I'll never forget the day that my mom and I swam across a bay on the Okanagan Lake - Trinity came with us, even though she could have walked with the rest of the family & Ranger; she swam back and forth from my mom to me, trying to grab us and tow us back to shore. She would have made a good rescue dog.I moved away for a few years, but returned to live with my mom & brother in 2008 after my divorce. Ranger came with me, of course, and he and Trinity were happy to be back together. We moved from my mom's small-ish home to a great big one out of town. My grandmother remained in town, so my mom spent half of her week in town, as a rule. Trinity was in our care a lot of the time, and we used to walk Ranger & Trinity to and from the kids' bus stop every day. Heckler, especially, became a big part of Trinity's life - he walked her so often and she was always so happy to see him. When we lost Ranger just before Christmas, Heckler's bond with Trinity intensified. We loved having Trinity as a role model for little Barkley, because if ever there were a dog we'd want him to turn out like, it would be our Trinity.
My brother is living in town now, and didn't want to come out to say goodbye to Trinity. Yes, I do think that is kind of selfish, but I also realize that everyone deals with the death of a loved one differently. Three years ago, my brother & I lost our grandfather; because our own father was a flake, our grandfather was the only dad we ever had. Just a couple of days before our grandfather passed away, my brother and I sat at his side and our grandfather sobbed and held onto us and told us he wished he could be with us forever. My brother is 10 years younger than me, and that affected him a lot differently than it did me. He has shied away from anything to do with the subject of death and loss, including our mom's will and plans for Trinity when it was time.
We did contact both my mom and brother to let them know it was time for Trinity to go - and it didn't come as a surprise to either of them. My mom even had a fund for us to draw from when it was time to put her down. Heckler dug the grave yesterday, and today he laid her to rest right next to Ranger. They are together now, both here and in doggy heaven.
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My sister named her's Delphine; after the flower. Updates and pics to come!