Wednesday, October 14, 2009

Midnight 9/15/1995-10/14/2009

I am apparently no good at this whole blogging thing! It's been about two months since I last posted. Eek! With school starting up again, interning this semester, and trying to get some hours in at the clinic I've been wicked busy!! I'm going to try harder--I promise!!

So this post is, in all honesty, going to be all about me and the love of my life.

On Tuesday October 13th we decided to start my 14 year old labx, Midnight, on Tramadol. She had previously been on Rimadyl but after a bought of bloody diarrhea I decided to take her off the drug, knowing the effect it has on a canine's tummy and intestinal tract. We decided to put her on Tramadol at 50mg BID and Meloxicam at 7.5 mg SID. We started the Tramadol Tuesday morning and later in the day noticed she had not eaten her breakfast and seemed quite lethargic. By Tuesday evening we made the choice not to give her the second does of Tramadol due to her severe sedation and lack of ability to walk and obvious discomfort.

By Wednesday morning (today) we realized we needed to take her in. The Tramadol was given on Tuesday at approx. 6 AM and it was now 8AM the following day and the symptoms were persisting. We took her into see my vet and immediately the vet looked at her eyes and gums, something I had done the night before and not noticed anything out of the ordinary, her gums and the white's of her eyes appeared yellow--jaundiced. We decided to hospitalize her for the day and give her fluids as well as run some blood work.

At about 2 PM we received a call from our vet who told us that her blood work results were all over the place and the results of an ultrasound showed her liver which looked terrible. He also stated that she was extremely anemic and the fluids we were giving her weren't doing anything.

We decided as a family to go visit her at the clinic. The second she saw us she began wagging her tail and smiling. We decided to bring her into a room so we would be able to spend time with her and say our goodbyes. Our decision was made by viewing how uncomfortable she was as well as hearing the testimony of the vet, who I trust, saying he would make the same decision if it was his dog.

Today has definitely been an awful day; to say goodbye to the dog that has been with me since I was in the 5th grade is absolutely heart breaking. And the hardest part has been to come home and not have her waiting there for me, wagging her tail.

It's good to know that she wasn't in a lot of pain over a long period of time and that she is happy now.

Tonight I plan on reading through Rainbow Bridge and thinking of my sweet girl.

I know many may not read this, but thanks to all who have supported my family and I.

Today's pet of the day is my sweet girl, Midnight:

She was born approx. September 15, 1995 and she died October 14, 2009. She will be missed!

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