Dee Dee has left us...
Our Dee Dee girl passed away this afternoon. Her last moment was spent in one of her favorite place, in her car seat in the car.
After miraculous recovery from her brain tumor back in August, she was doing really well. She was almost back to normal except for her shaved head. But it changed this past Sunday when we were woken up by her violent seizure at little after 1 am.
We immediately called the emergency vet in the area (VCA), and was told that one seizure is ok, and perhaps, we can make an appointment to see the neurologist on Monday. We said we would call back if that's the case. Soon after, she started to have another seizure. We instead, called the vet at UC Davis where her last MRI was taken back in September. They have neurologist on call 24/7. Their neurologist told us that having one or two seizures is ok but if she starts having more seizures or any seizures lasting 5 minutes or longer, then she needed to be seen immediately. We hung up the phone. She had two more seizures before we called him back. In between major seizures, she was having smaller scale (just her eyes, head, and mouth, but not legs or body). By the time we arrived to UC Davis at around 2:50 am, she has had 7 major seizures and numerous small ones. They took her in immediately and gave her anti seizure medication.
We left her there that day, but she was doing well, and was moved from ICU to regular ward that afternoon. She had an MRI done next day. They said that there was swelling around left cerebrum, where she had an issue last time. But they were not sure if the swelling caused the seizures or seizures caused the swelling. On Tuesday, she came home with anti seizure medication and steroid (anti inflammatory). She had issues walking since her back legs were trembling a lot and not functioning well. But she recognized us and responded to her name. She was excited and happy during meal time. We thought she was getting better. It might take a while, but she is getting better.
This morning when I gave her medication and fed her, she looked normal. Excited, happy to see me and food. It was around 7 am. At around 9:30 am, when I flipped her to her back, she started coughing and almost sounded like she was going to vomit. The cough sounded very mucous-y and did not sound good. I was concerned, so I took my stethoscope out and tried to listen to her lungs to make sure they weren't wheezing. I couldn't hear her lungs, but I noticed her heart was racing and she was starting to whine.
She walked towards the sliding door, signaling us that she needed to go out. She has been wearing diaper since we brought her home on Tuesday, but she hadn't really been using it. But when I was about to let her out and took her diaper off, she had already pooped. We took her outside, and she peed. She also has been walking and walking and walking. That was one of her neurological symptom, but she would sit and rest when she gets tired. She was walking around the back yard as usual, but didn't seem right. She seemed sad, and was walking slow. We brought her back in, cleaned her, and put a new diaper on.
She was breathing hard, and didn't want to move. My husband tried to calm her, but she didn't seem to get better. We took her back to UC Davis. They put her on oxygen immediately. They said that her oxygen level was down to 86%, which itself is not that bad. The thing was that she didn't seem to be getting any better. She was put in oxygenated cage. We left her there, but I had a feeling that we needed to be nearby, so we just went to downtown Davis instead of driving back to Sacramento. They said they would try to get xray once she is more stable, and give us a call around 4 pm with update.
At 2 pm, we got a call. Her condition was deteriorating. They did take xray and showed she is suffering from acute pneumonia. She is almost in comatose state, and they needed to intubate her. We told them that we would be there in 5 minutes. The doctor said that she may not make it till we get there. We ran up to the emergency clinic. We were led to the ICU where Dee Dee was laying in the cage with oxygen mask. She was breathing heavily. We called her name, and saw her ears react, but faded very quickly. We knew it was time.
My husband and I discussed previously that when the time comes, we wanted her last place to be either at home or in the car which she loved. So we asked if we can move her to the car to let her go. They agreed. We took her to the car, put her in the car seat, and said our good byes. We thanked her for all twelve wonderful years, we are sorry we couldn't fix her, and I told her that she was going to sleep like she does every night. I held and kissed her forehead, and told her "night-night" as I usually do when we are going to bed. In a few seconds, she was gone.
We got Dee Dee from a breeder in Ocala, FL when she was 8 weeks old. She moved with us from Orlando to Atlanta, then to Akita, Japan, and to Sacramento. She loved her meal time, cookies, and car ride. She was very passionate about getting food, and did anything for food (lots of tricks).
We will miss you very much our little girl. You will always hold a special place in our hearts. You are and always will be our first dog. No one can take that away from you. Thank you for 12 wonderful years. We will meet again someday. Until then, enjoy endless cookies and peanut butter, and squirrel chasing. We love you very much.
RIP - Dee Dee, April 11, 2000 - November 3, 2012
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Nora on
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I'm so sorry for your loss...
There were tears in my eyes when I read the last paragraph and looked her beautiful smile in the photo --- She was a happy and lucky dog to be with you in the past, and will watch you from above in the future.
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Permalink Reply by Chloe's parent Liz on
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After I lost my Rusty in 2006 vacuuming made me cry. We had such a ritual. Rusty would follow me around while I vacuum then eventually would sit and wait to be vacuumed. I completely can relate to what you are feeling. I am glad you have those wonderful photos of her. She lives on in your hearts.
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Permalink Reply by Wilson Waddlepants and Joyce on
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Alex,
My heart aches for you and your husband because we know how painful it is. We love our Winston like you love Dee Dee. I just tried to read again how you held and kissed Dee Dee's forehead and told her "night night" and tears started streaming down my cheeks. It is so hard parting with our beloved pets. What I can tell you is that it's been 12 weeks since we went through our ordeal with Winston and we are adjusting to him being gone. I'm sure there are people who can't imagine how a dog could be missed so much, but we can't help how we feel. I agree with Sam Tsang; it's OK to cry. It really helps. Every day it gets easier. I still hear Winston running to be by my side, but when I look down, his dark, flashing eyes aren't there. I wish they were. I believe it won't be long and you and your husband will be thinking about getting a new little girl and she will be the luckiest little dog in the world to have your for parents and you'll tell her how wonderful Dee Dee was . . . .God Bless You Both. Joyce
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Permalink Reply by Danielle and Sophia on
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Sooo very sorry about Dee Dee, may she RIP.
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Permalink Reply by Rosanne & Deuce on
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can't help tearing up reading this. Dee Dee will be forever remembered. RIP.
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Permalink Reply by Chris Payerl on
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I'm so sorry for your loss. It's always so difficult to lose a good buddy. Hoping you will soon find comfort in your happy memories of good times spent together with sweet Dee Dee.
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Permalink Reply by Alex on
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Yesterday, I was at Target, and in my "coupon purse" I found a coupon for dog food and Milk Bone. I almost started to cry in the middle of the store. But held myself together. When I got home, I smelled her blanky. This is the only thing that's left smells like her now. Well, smells like her toes. The dry, dusty smell. She used to growl at us when we sniffed at her toes. I even miss her growling. It was teaser growl. She would growl, and I would poke her lip. She would give me a kiss as she was saying "sto~p it!" Never thought I would want to smell her toes again. Weird things I miss.
Please hug your furry kids a little tighter tonight for me. I would be hugging her blanket.
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That's a sweet story about Dee Dee's blanky, her dry dusty little toes and her teaser growl. She must have been an absolute delight. I know a hundred things run through your mind that make you think of Dee Dee. Those mental images are difficult because you desperately want to connect them with the real thing, and you can't. After our almost 15 year old West Highland Terrier had to be put to sleep in February of 2010, I put his little old man sweater (which I purposely did not wash), on a stuffed dog, as well as his collar and tags, and to this day it sits on a shelf where we can see it all the time. In the beginning I used to pick "him" up, smell "him", hug "him", and cry and I know that makes me sound like a complete psycho but it's the truth so I might as well confess it. : ) My husband and I cried like babies for days after we had to say goodbye to Sparky and I thought the pain would never go away, but it finally did. It wasn't because we didn't still miss him, or because we had stopped thinking about him, or because we had stopped wishing we still had him. It was simply because enough time had gone by for us to accept that he was gone. Eventually the moments in our day that we spent with him, were spent doing other things and our minds began to think about him less and less. When we first realized that was happening it made us sad and a little guilty. It's been almost three months since we lost our Corgi, Winston, and I still cry. We're getting a new little boy in about a month, and I know I'll be crying when we get him. The only solution is to never have pets, so there's no help for any of us, because, if we're honest, we know we'll always have them. To have them, we have to also part with them; sadly. I know you'll be feeling a little better each day.
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Permalink Reply by Melissa and Franklin! on
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I know exactly how you feel. It is so difficult losing a pet. When I lost my big shepherd mix it was the hardest thing I have ever gone through. Its been 3 years and I still have his collar and refuse to wash it. I put it on a stuffed animal I have and used to sleep with it by me because it still had his smell. To this day it still smells like him. While I can now think about him and talk about him without feeling overwhelming grief, I still miss him terribly. Franklin has helped fill the void he left behind and we are creating new loving memories together. While my big teddy bear can never be replaced, I now have a new best friend and we are making new happy memories together. Please allow yourself to grieve, pets aren't just animals, they are a part of our family and love us unconditionally like no human can. Each one of them shares a special bond with us and will always hold a special place in our hearts. Just know that with time you will be able to look at the pictures of her photoshoot and be filled with happy memories of what a special little dog she was. For now, hug her blanket tight and breathe in her smell and allow yourself to miss her.
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Permalink Reply by N a t h a n & L u f f y on
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This made my throat knot up a bit.. Im sorry for your loss.. Im sure Dee Dee knew she had the best owners in the world and every single moment of that was cherished, she loved you guys and couldn't have asked for anything more.
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