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Update 3/10/11
Today a beautiful cream colored Frenchie trotted across the bridge. His back and legs were perfectly formed; his coat glowing with good health. He yodeled happily when he saw my boy Juice, who said goodbye to this earth last October. Leaving behind his sad, crooked body, the new arrival will never feel illness or pain again.
My heart is broken; this was my Sammi whom I set free this morning. He had been struggling since December, when various tests revealed nothing definitive, possibly stomach cancer. He had good days and bad days until recently when the bad days became unrelenting.
Until his last moment, he was the kindest, most gracious little boy and I will never forget him. My thanks to the Board who allowed him to remain in my care as a hospice foster. Thanks also to the wonderful volunteers who helped make his last year happy, sending him gifts and well wishes.
My vet had given Sammi a March 1st "birthday" based on his old vet records. Yesterday, he was eleven years old and suffering. Today, he is forever young.
In lieu of messages, if you would like to remember Sammi, please PayPal $5.00 to FBRN today. If a lot of folks do it, another little hospice dog can live out his time surrounded by love.
Update 9/2/10
Sammi was hours away from being euthanized. His owner said he was “too old.” When he came to us he was in terrible condition and we thought it was “too late.” He was emaciated, hunch-backed, and his eyes--afflicted with glaucoma--bulged from his head. Our expectation was that we would make him as comfortable as possible for the few months he had left.
Happily, it is nine months later and Sammi is still with us. He went from eighteen to twenty-six pounds. His optic nerves were so damaged he can barely see, but he is no longer in pain from the pressure. He enjoys days in the sun, belly rubs, eating raw food off a flat plate and chiropractic adjustments.
Sammi is very loved and wanted in his foster home. He will spend the rest of his days there in peaceful retirement.
Sammi is a super sweet senior who, after 9 years with the same family, has been relocated into rescue. Sammi's is an old story; when a new baby arrives, the family has far less time for a dog. Our elderly gent is a bit confused, but is now safely ensconced in his foster home getting all of the hugs and love he's been missing and having his medical problems addressed.
First on the agenda is getting some weight on our boy! At a mere 18 pounds, Sammi is emaciated and needs some well needed meat on his bones. His foster mom is lovingly preparing a home-cooked diet which Sammi is lovin'! With his great appetite, putting the weight back on should be easy.
Sammi has already seen the vet and we are awaiting test results. He drinks and urinates a lot, he has a dry coat that drops out while he's being loved on, and he has sores on his feet. Hopefully these are mostly just nutritional issues that will resolve with a better diet. We're hoping for nothing serious! Sammi also has a hunched appearance and has some difficulty walking as if it's painful to move. Poor old guy! Keep a good thought that some glucosamine and chondroitin will fix him right up.
The vet says that Sammi is totally blind in his right eye and mostly blind in his left, but Sammi doesn't let a little loss of sight change his affable disposition. When he figures out where she is, he tries to climb into his foster mom's lap for loving snuggles.
Can you spare something for a displaced old boy? It's hard enough to lose a home as a young and healthy dog, but to be visually impaired and stiff and in a strange place--that's really tough. To sponsor Sammi, just click on his photo. He will appreciate anything that comes his way!
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