[C.J. Moof]

I about never start lounge topics, but I need to talk. We're taking care of Jake this weekend, the 110lb chocolate lab of some friends while they're away in the twin cities. This morning Jake brought me a tennis ball while I was in the driveway, bringing the hose from the back garden out front. I accepted it and lobbed it over the corner of the garage to the middle of the backyard.

Jake and Harley (my dog) both sprinted out after it. A moment later, I hear a yelp and a howl, so I drop the hose and step onto the porch to see what they're doing. Harley is trotting back my way, but Jake is sitting there, is a most awkward position that you've ever seen a dog in. His front legs are stiff, his nose is craning towards the sky, and he's trying to move, but his hind end isn't going anywhere.

I run up to see, and he's straining to stand, but can't. Neither leg moves for the big dog, he's just slowly turning around the same point, and starting to tremble. I persuade him to lay down, shovel Harley inside, and start figuring out how to deal with this through the adrenaline rush that's now starting. We don't know who his vet is, so it's off to the emergency clinic for animals. I look up the number and put dial it into my cell.

I scoop Jake up, and carry him from the backyard to the car. I don't really remember doing it- it's all adrenaline. Then I realize I should have put the back seats down first for a bigger place for him to lay on. Jake goes down, seats go down, Jake goes up and into the car. I hit send on the phone, and tell the clinic what I'm bringing them.

We get there, and it takes a good effort to get him onto a stretcher and inside, he's in a lot of discomfort, trembling, and isn't very cooperative. They get him some painkillers, IV and off to xrays. As he's being prepd for that, the vet tells me that so far they can tell this is a neurological problem, as he doesn't respond to his legs being squeezed forcefully.

The xrays come back, but they can only do one view because he's in too much discomfort to turn on his back. The side view doesn't show any broken vertabrae, but it's not a complete investigation. He's been given heavy doses of steroids to control inflammation, and other drugs to counteract the effects the steriods will have on his digestive tract.

His prognosis is basically 50/50 that
1) The loss of his legs is due to swelling, and he'll be better with time.
2) This is permanent, and he'll never walk again.
There's a small, but valid chance that there can be bleeding in the spinal column, which can neither be seen nor treated. If this is the case, his nervous system will slowly shut down, and he'll cease to breathe.

The worst part of all of this is that we only have his owner's cell to contact them with, and it's powered off. We've called every mutual acquaintance we have, their employers. co-workers, ect, looking for anyone who might have had a conversation with them about exactly where they're staying, but we haven't found that info, and we were never informed.

Today has been a very, very bad day. My friend's dog might have to be put to sleep, and his injury happened under my care. I know I didn't do anything wrong or irresponsible (he lives to chase tennis balls), but I'm sick and miserable over this. Jake is our friend too.

Dog lovers, go pet your friends. One minute you're playing together, the next you're at the dog emergency room praying he'll walk again.

[wilsonX]

Wow, I hope this all turns out well. I'd be sick with worry too. Sounds like Jake is in good hands though. I think you've done all you can. Maybe you could leave a message on your neighbors answering machine or on their work voice mail. There might be a chance they would pick up the message.

[C.J. Moof]

I've called both their offices, but nobody is around. They're not well acquainted with their neighbors, and its' a long shot they mentioned where they're staying anyway.

It's technically possible to call every hotel in the Twin Cities until they're found, but not very practical. The reality is that at this moment, there's no life and death decision to be made regarding Jake's future that can't be made on Sunday evening... unless the small probability of him bleeding into the spinal column comes true. Well, that's not really a decision, I'd just rather they have the opportunity to be with him if their pet is going to pass on. If that comes to be, I'll be there with him if they can't be found, and we will be calling every hotel.

Jeez this is awful. I was gonna spend this weekend playing with the dogs, take out another basement window and replace it with glass block.... I can't concentrate on anything right now.

[philzilla]

ouch. total bummer.

[C.J. Moof]

Well, we just got back from visiting Jake. They took more xrays from a different view, and they clearly show where the spacing in his 3rd vertabrae is wrong- he slipped a disc, damaged his spine, and his brain and his back end can't communicate any more.

Surgery is expensive, and a flailing grasp at hope. He's almost definitely going to have to be put down.

And his people still don't know it yet. I can't wait for this evening... "welcome home, now let's go visit your dog one last time so he can be put to sleep."

Can we just have a do-over on this weekend?

[starman]

OMG, that's terrible. How in the hell could it have happened?

Mike

[lil'babykitten]

What a sad story, like Starman said, any idea how it happened?

[wdlove]

I'm so sorry to hear this C.J. Moof. The owners are so lucky to have such a caring person with Jake in his time of need. I know from experience how difficult a decsison it is when a dog gets to this point. Keeping the dog comfortable is the most important thing. Just try to be there for the owners!
My 3 dogs will keep Jake in there thoughts!

[alpha rays max]

[Fyre4ce]

I am on the verge of tears reading your account, and I don't even care for dogs that much. I hope you'll be able to contact Jake's family soon.

[C.J. Moof]

He's decently medicated, he doesn"t appear to be in discomfort. He doesn"t understand why he can't get up to visit with people- he keeps trying, but his rear end simply can't move.

As for how it happened, the xrays show some abnormalities which look like the result of arthritis in his vertabrae. This abnormality could have contribuited to weakening the disc between the vertabrae. He probably jumped to get the ball on a bounce, he might have twisted to follow it on an unexpected hop, he might have just slipped on the grass when he landed. Somehow, everything aligned just right for the disc to slip and damage his spine. It's the kind of situation you couldn't reproduce if you tried.

A particularly sad part for us is that we kept joking about his tail- it's this thick whip that he thrashed around liberally. We played a game at dinner on Friday where we just looked at Jake lying on the floor and THUMP-THUMP-THUMP, the tail would start beating the floor. Look away, he'd stop. We woke up Saturday morning from him beating the wall with that tail, just wagging because it's a new day... nothing more.

What I'd do to see that tail wag again. *sigh*

Thanks for the kind words, folks. They're needed and appreciated. His people are expected back by dinner. I really wish they'd turn on their cell, but at this point, it can only influence their return by a couple of hours.

[starman]

So you're saying that it could have happened for ANY reason? I only ask because you must feel awful that it just happened to happen while he was in your care, and it seems like it wasn't even your fault. It's great you're taking care of him. No matter what, we have our cell phones on all the time. It's gotta be frustrating.

Mike

[C.J. Moof]

Yep, that's what I'm saying. This coulda happened at any time, but it ended up happening on our watch. Some luck, eh?

At least it happened during the most basic play a dog has. Jake also has some excited reactions to water from the hose- he jumps and twists amazingly high for a stocky dog his size, and if you show him a flashlight, he wants to get the spot of light- it drives him nuts. I'd feel extremely guilty if I was enticing him to jump around when this happened, but it was just throwing him a ball, like dogs do every day.

When you meet Jake, "fragile" is not a term that comes to mind.... but yet here we are. It's one of those weekends that reminds you life can change in an instant. Literally.

[wdlove]

How old is Jake? I'm glad to hear that he is resting comfortably. I hope that you will keep us informed. The owners don't know us, but please let them know that a lot of dog owners are aware and empathize. This is all so sad. What is the veternarian reccommending at this point?

[Face Ache]

Sorry to hear about your troubles. Dogs can get around on trolleys if their back legs fail, so maybe that's an option?

I've fortunately never had to have a pet put to sleep but when my parents split up my dad had our dogs put down to teach us a lesson. Sally was seven and Ugly was four. I only found out after the fact.

[Shaddim]

Originally posted by Face Ache:
I've fortunately never had to have a pet put to sleep but when my parents split up my dad had our dogs put down to teach us a lesson. Sally was seven and Ugly was four. I only found out after the fact.

Teach you a lesson? A lesson about how much of a pr!#k he is?

Sorry, that kind of s*** really boils my blood. Grrrr... Sometimes I'd like kill people like that with my bare hands.


*sigh* At any rate. My neighbor had a dachshund with a ruptured disc, it would get around in a little wagon (or trolly), it lived for about 2 years that way. Seemed to be a happy little dog in spite of that. Though, it was a bit sad to see.

[C.J. Moof]

Well folks, Jake got to see his people one more time before he passed to the other side tonight.

His people turned on their phone mid-day today, heard our messages, called us, and we got to tell them what went on this weekend. I have to admit to being very relieved when they called, at least I could tell them of this serious situation before they walked up our driveway expecting their pet to come bounding out the door to greet them. Not that it made it very easy to tell them this news. It's terribly selfish, but it's how I feel.

They went straight to the animal hospital, where they got to see Jake and spend time with him. They discussed their options with the vet, but once they added the facts that he'd been hit by a car, survived stage 3 heartworm, and once fell off a cliff, the vet moved his assessment of the probability of surgery being successful from unlikely to very unlikely. Between having little chance of success and the thousands of dollars of expense they're not in position to pay, the only humane choice was to let Jake go. He's a 100+ lb of romp in the fields kind of dog... wheeling along with his rear in a sling simply is no quality of life for his personality.

Jake's people came over afterwards. We raised a glass of wine (or 4) and toasted to Jake, reminicessed about him, dogs, and wherever conversation wandered. It was very relieving to know they feel we did everything right, and made the same choices they would have. They understand Jake's fate was to be this way, and felt sorry for us that it happened while he was under our care. They'll have a hole in their lives for a while, but we'll all go on.

Tonight there's one less cool dog in our midst, but we all beliveve he runs free in another place.

--

Face- you're dad is a pr!#k. I truly feel sympathy for those who don't accept or understand the unconditional love a dog gives. Teach kids a lesson by killing their pets... sick and pathetic.

[Face Ache]

Sorry to hear Jake has gone but glad to hear your friends handled it well.



And yeah my dad's a prick. That was just one of the minor things he did. Haven't spoken to him in over 12 years now.

[wdlove]

I was anxiously waiting to hear the news, of which I didn't want to hear. It was the best decision for Jake. I hope your friends will be able to get a new pet soon!

[typoon]

Sorry to hear about Jake. Hope your friends will get a new Pet soon.

[ThisGuy]

damn that is a sad story. it really hit me hard because just this morning i was curled up in bed with my pooch and i realized how good of a dog he is. if we lost him it would really be like losing a family member.

[C.J. Moof]

They will. We were already discussing what kind of dog would fit into their lives best.... they're looking at him finishing his PhD soon, and moving back to their native California, most likely into an apartment first. So we pondered the pros and cons of smaller dogs. They're leaning towards Boston Terrier right now.

They're still in the "no dog can be as cool as Jake" stage, but when the time is right, they'll bring home a new shelter dog, and he'll become the darn cool dog in their lives on his own merits. There's no doubt.

Thanks for being an outlet folks- this place has helped me cope with this.

[typoon]

Originally posted by C.J. Moof:
They will. We were already discussing what kind of dog would fit into their lives best.... they're looking at him finishing his PhD soon, and moving back to their native California, most likely into an apartment first. So we pondered the pros and cons of smaller dogs. They're leaning towards Boston Terrier right now.

They're still in the "no dog can be as cool as Jake" stage, but when the time is right, they'll bring home a new shelter dog, and he'll become the darn cool dog in their lives on his own merits. There's no doubt.

Thanks for being an outlet folks- this place has helped me cope with this.

That's what I like about these forums. Even with all our disagreements and quirks, when someone is in need Everyone is always there.

Remember to give your Dog Harley an extra squeeze everyday.

[digimage]

Originally posted by Face Ache:
And yeah my dad's a prick. That was just one of the minor things he did. Haven't spoken to him in over 12 years now.

If that had been my dad, that would be because I would have ended his worthless existence right when I found out he had murdered 2 living things out of spite.

People like that are here for one reason.

[Jim Paradise]

Aww...... Reading this thread makes me wanna cry and go and run and play with my dogs all day now. That's so unfourtunate that had to happen while he was under your care, hipcat. *raises a glass of wine to you*

[davesimondotcom]

Sorry to hear about Jake. One less Labrador means a world less bright, IMHO.

Tough weekend you must have had.

Jake, here's to hoping that Doggy Heaven is one long game of fetch and endless bowls of food. Rest in peace, buddy.

[AB^2=BCxAC]

There's a great Farley Mowat book, "The Dog Who Wouldn't Be"... great read for times like these.

[suprz]

a toast to jake, long may he romp. <raises a glass>

[Mars_Attacks]

http://rainbowsbridge.com/Poem.htm

[DeathToWindows]

Originally posted by digimage:
If that had been my dad, that would be because I would have ended his worthless existence right when I found out he had murdered 2 living things out of spite.

People like that are here for one reason.

Seconded... but I'm far more evil...

lobotomize him with a chopstick. He'll live... sorta.

[wdlove]

I'm happy to hear that your friends are considering another dog. Please keep us posted as to what they decide to purchase. What is his PhD. subject?

[C.J. Moof]

He's cell biology... his work is at least tangentally related to investigating cancer. Somethin' like that.

A question I overlooked from before: Jake was 6 years and change. Far from an old dog.

Endless fetch and food would be Jake heaven. I think that's what he's doing right now.

[C.J. Moof]

Well, a followup on this story. Last week, one of the couple found a puppy on petfinder.com, and emailed the url to the other. Without talking details, they both got the vibe that this was the dog for them, and independently contacted the foster family taking care of her. They drove to Indiana (we're in Madison, WI) on Saturday and brought the new puppy home.

Meet Lulu:


She's allegedly a great dane mix, but it's not sure, she was found on the streets. She's very sweet and affectionate, and got along great with our Harley, there in the background.

The odd thing is that she has the same white cross on her chest that Jake did (I referred to him as a lab... he was actually a lab mix). We think it's a sign that she's meant to step into his void. So in the end, a dog that needed a home got one, and life goes on.

[AKcrab]

Excellent.

[mitchell_pgh]

I have a wire hare dasher and I'm constantly trying to potty train the animal. Some days she drives me crazy, others days are full of joy... what a character...

I don't know what I would do without her...

[skyman]

Originally posted by C.J. Moof:
The odd thing is that she has the same white cross on her chest that Jake did (I referred to him as a lab... he was actually a lab mix). We think it's a sign that she's meant to step into his void. So in the end, a dog that needed a home got one, and life goes on.

A happy ending to a sad story...

[rampant]

I'd have given the dog hind wheels as opposed to having him killed but that's just me. I think animals with wheels are cute.

[digimage]

Originally posted by C.J. Moof:


Meet Lulu:

Whoa! Nice cross! What a cute dog!

Lulu, Meet Maggie!

[Face Ache]

Originally posted by mitchell_pgh:

Are you sure that's not a Womble?

[oVeRmInD911]

Princess:



And Jordan, too:



Just thought I'd show 'em off while we're on the subject of dogs.

[IUJHJSDHE]

Originally posted by rampant:
I'd have given the dog hind wheels as opposed to having him killed but that's just me. I think animals with wheels are cute.

I wonder if they think that
I also would go for the wheels, if I had to sit in a wheelchair for the rest of me life or die, I would go for the chair. But I am sure there are people who wouldn't.

Originally posted by Face Ache:
when my parents split up my dad had our dogs put down to teach us a lesson. Sally was seven and Ugly was four. I only found out after the fact.

If someone I knew did that to me, a friend, an enemy, whoever, god knows what I would do to that person.

[Spheric Harlot]

Originally posted by Face Ache:
Are you sure that's not a Womble?

Now *that's* a flashback.

(grew up in Hong Kong with Brit TV)

-s*

[cms]

Originally posted by Spheric Harlot:
Now *that's* a flashback.

(grew up in Hong Kong with Brit TV)

-s*

Mmmm...so did I. It's entirely possible I might know you, depending, of course, on when you were there....

[mitchell_pgh]

Originally posted by Face Ache:
Are you sure that's not a Womble?

Awe, come on... that dog is adorable...

[palmberg]

Jesus, I can sit for hours, stone faced, and read accounts of babies being blown up on busses, and the minute I read about a dog being put down I start to tear up. WTF is wrong with me?

My beagle, Maggie, is going on 13. I've been thinking lately about what it's going to be like to have to put her down. God, I almost hope she gets squashed by a car instead, or something else fast and unexpected.

[tooki]

Just a thought on this topic: keep in mind that there are vets who make house calls. When my dad had to put the cat to sleep, he had the vet come over so that the cat would pass on in an environment he was used to. (In fact, my dad held the cat.) It costs a lot more to have the vet come, but I think it's just the right thing to do, rather than have the animal's last experience be in a white vet's office.

tooki

[C.J. Moof]

Originally posted by tooki:
Just a thought on this topic: keep in mind that there are vets who make house calls. When my dad had to put the cat to sleep, he had the vet come over so that the cat would pass on in an environment he was used to. (In fact, my dad held the cat.) It costs a lot more to have the vet come, but I think it's just the right thing to do, rather than have the animal's last experience be in a white vet's office.

tooki

Yeah, that was a particularly bad aspect of this whole animal hospital thing. After the initial exam and stabilization, Jake's accomidations was a pen at ground level. It was effectively a bookshelf with a gate to close and latch. It was right in the midst of the care area where the Vets and assistiants were mullling about, doing their work, as we're trying to pet and comfort him, while doing plenty of weeping ourselves. It was a very awkward situation- we're trying to be with the dog, but we have no choice but to be interrupting the traffic flow of the workplace. We're sitting on the ground to lean in to be with him, which isn't so easy on your wife when she's 8 months pregnant.

It was the same when his people arrived, and it was the place Jake was euthanized. Of course, it wasn't practical to relocate him to home for this, but if my dog needs to be put down, I'd definitely want it to be at home.

[mitchell_pgh]

Originally posted by palmberg:
Jesus, I can sit for hours, stone faced, and read accounts of babies being blown up on busses, and the minute I read about a dog being put down I start to tear up. WTF is wrong with me?

My beagle, Maggie, is going on 13. I've been thinking lately about what it's going to be like to have to put her down. God, I almost hope she gets squashed by a car instead, or something else fast and unexpected.

Ugh, thanks... now I want to go home and play with my dog... I can't imagine having to hold her as a vet puts her down. Her not understanding what was happening would just kill me inside.

Ugh...