Sunday, March 11, 2012

Dear Thisbe, our 14 1/2 year old beagle, died last night, or this morning. It was very peaceful, but very sad. She had been very sick for the past year or so, having little, and not so little seizures which sent us to the vet, Animerge, specialists in PA etc. Last July, she had a bad episode which left her with one leg paralyzed , and a terrific daily pill regime. We had thought that that was it, but the vet said we could bring her home for what we thought was beagle hospice. She actually made a full recovery thanks to Plavix at $7 a pill, but it was worth it. For the past six months she has seemed comfortable and happy. Recently she has had what looked like small seizures, but she recovered quickly from each. We knew we would not take her back to the vet again. She was slowing down a lot, and sleeping more and more deeply, with less interest in eating or walking outside. We knew she could not go on like this indefinitely, but we told her that Emily was coming home this weekend and she had to be around to see her big sister. Saturday night, as we were getting ready to leave the house for a PUO concert, she looked strange and out of it. We had to leave so Michael could conduct the concert. We left her in her bed in the back hall, and hoped she would be OK when we got home with Emily who was meeting us at the concert. When we got home several hours later, Thisbe was still awake, but she hadn’t moved. I tried to take her out, but her legs wouldn’t support her weight. We sat with her and stroked her, and she threw up what little dinner she had eaten. We cleaned her up and held her. She was very happy to see Emily and be held by her whole pack. We told her we loved her and she had been a great dog, and it was OK to relax and let go. Finally, we all went to bed and left her in her familiar bed in the laundry room. When I got up the next morning and came to check on her, she was gone. She hadn’t moved, and probably died soon after we left her alone. As sad as it is to loose her, I’m so glad she died on her own. She didn’t seem to suffer too much. She was at home with her pack, surrounded by those who loved her.