Maybe it will be twice a year...

Well, it does seem I only post twice a year. Here it is almost December and I am just now getting around to posting again in 2010.

I feel the need to notate the passing of our sweet boy Petey, so that I never forget him. He was my very first dog and for that he will always be in my heart. I never knew what it was like to have a pet who could hold your heart. Petey, or as his paper's say "Rutherford's Pete", was born on September 19, 2000 and joined our family the day after Thanksgiving that same year. He was a tiny little thing and as cute as could be! We doted on him that whole first day and was completely in awe of him, until the next day. Both Davin and I were not feeling well and having a new puppy was proving to be exhausting. Plus, we had to keep him as quiet and unnoticed as possible as our apartment didn't know we had him. We were close to moving into our new home that was being built, so we only had about another month in the apartment. Although this is hard to admit, Davin and I ended up with a bit of buyer's remorse the next day. We laugh about it now, but we actually tried taking Petey back to the place we got him. Due to their policy, once a dog has left their facility they cannot take them back. So our only option was to put an ad in the paper. Since it was a holiday weekend, the ad didn't get into the paper until Tuesday and we were not at all prepared for the number of phone calls we would receive nor the fact that after that many days with Petey, he completely stole our hearts. We are so glad that we did not sell him or give him away! I know I had no idea what an impact that little guy would make on me. How much I would love him and snuggle with him in the years to come. I look back and cannot imagine a life without him for so many different reasons.

Davin had always told me that the day would come when we would have to say goodbye, but I never thought that day would come as soon as it did or as fast as it did. Petey hardly ever felt bad or wasn't the typical hyper Jack Russell that they are known for. Yes, he was getting older and may not be as hyper as he used to be but neither were we! I do know what it is like to lose someone special and dear, more times than I would like to remember, but I had never gone through losing a pet. I knew it would be hard, but never imagined it would hurt as much as it did. Petey was my little boy who was always happy to see me, always gave an abundant amount of love and would stick by my side when I didn't feel well. I could always count on him and loved seeing that little face when I would walk in the door everyday. Which is why I knew something was wrong the minute I saw him when I got home from work on Friday, October 15th. Although he was waiting for me, he didn't move an inch once I walked through the door. He didn't run to the door to go outside or put his little paws on my legs to let me know how excited he was to see me. He didn't even follow me to the bedroom where I went to put my stuff down. So, I picked him up and immediately went to find the Vet's number. He was absolutely burning up and laid so still in my arms. If you knew Petey at all, you knew that was not him in the least! I told the Vet I was coming right over and once there I called Davin to come and meet me. The Vet monitored him and said there was definitely something wrong, but that we needed to get him over to the Emergency Vet as soon as possible. The last thing she said to me was to prepare myself as it wasn't going to be good. Right then I started to cry, as I never imagined that it would be anything that horrible. I was thinking he had some kind of virus or got into something he shouldn't have. I never thought it would be something life threatening.

So we arrive at the emergency vet's office and they put us in a patient room. Davin held Petey, as I was sick with an cold/upper respiratory infection and was literally in the thick of it. So much so, that I used about all of their kleenex in the room and was coughing so hard that I thew up in the little sink that you see in a doctor's office. Not a pleasant time, but then again it usually never is. They took x-rays of Petey and the doctor showed us the results. There were 2 large masses in Petey's abdomen and while they could not tell where it was stemming from or what it was attached to, he stated our options were to have an ultrasound done that would give them a better picture of what it was or to go straight to exploratory surgery. Knowing that one would eventually lead to the other, we went straight for the exploratory surgery. The doctor said it was pretty slow that night so he would be able to start surgery in about an hour. For us to go home and he would call when he knew more. As hard as it was to leave Petey there, we came home to rest and eat a little before heading back. I want to say it was around 9pm or so that the doctor called and stated that the mass was so large that he couldn't get his hands around it. That is was encroaching on other organs and there was nothing he could do. My heart literally dropped and I couldn't contain my emotions. Our options were to have him put to sleep or for them to wake him so that we could say our goodbyes. Knowing that he had already been in pain for who know's how long, although until that day he had never showed any signs of being in pain. In fact, he was playing with Davin the night before just like he always had. So, we didn't want to put him through anything more for our own selfish gain. So, we opted for the doctor to put him to sleep while he was still under from the surgery.

Crying from typing this...so will finish later.