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Today would have been our 10th Anna-versary together. But I'm not going to wallow in self-pity or ask for sympathy, even though I'm a little teary-eyed at the moment. Instead, I choose to honour her memory by celebrating all that was special about her: her grace, her kindness, her beauty, her friendliness, her playfulness - in short, her Anna-ness.

I don't know hardly anything about her first year before she ended up at the Ottawa Humane Society - all I know was that she had one litter at the tender age of less-than-one, and that she was picked up as a stray on the road to Hawkesbury. Was she abandoned, or did she make her escape from a puppy mill? At least she had a much better life with me and Sam than she would have had as a baby-making machine. And I know that there are little Annas walking around - in fact, whenever I used to see a dog that looked like her, I used to wonder if it was one of hers. Who knows? They would be about ten years old by now.

So raise your glasses and toast her memory with me: here's to Anna forever!

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Melkor and Ungoliant in need of some relationship counselling.

Dear Jude, I'm honouring the love, loyalty and companionship you shared with Anna.

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"Believe me, every heart has its secret sorrows, which the world knows not;
and oftentimes we call a man cold when he is only sad." ~Robert C. Savage

She was a very good looking lady. I'm sorry you did not get to enjoy her longer. She really was lucky to have you adopt her.

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GNU Terry Pratchett

I like the idea of little Annas scattered here and there.

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I'm very sorry to report that Sam passed away this evening.

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Melkor and Ungoliant in need of some relationship counselling.

So sorry to hear that Jude. Was he ill?

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These are my friends, see how they glisten...

Ooohhh nooooooooo.
Sooo sorry, Jude.

He seemed fine all day, enjoyed his walk with Bud. Late in the evening, he started making as if to vomit, but nothing was coming out. After bedtime, he went into another room. When I went to check on him, he was unresponsive. I carried him into the car and went to the emergency vet, but by the time we got there it was too late.

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Melkor and Ungoliant in need of some relationship counselling.

I'm so sorry, Jude.

Oh no. I'm sorry

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For small creatures such as we the vastness is bearable only through love.
- Carl Sagan



Now that your rose is in bloom, a light hits the gloom on the grey.
- Seal

Oh Jude! I am so sorry

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There is magic in long-distance friendships. They let you relate to other human beings in a way that goes beyond being physically together and is often more profound.
~Diana Cortes

I'm so very sorry to hear this, Jude.

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GNU Terry Pratchett

Oh nooooooo!

Oh, Jude. I'm so sorry.

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I'm sorry. I've gone through it both ways, and I still don't know whether it's better when you see it coming or not.

I'm so sorry, Jude.

I'm very sorry, Jude. I hope you're not beating yourself up thinking the outcome might have been different if you had made it to the emergency clinic sooner. Some things happen very quickly, and even the fastest medical attention is sometimes futile.

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It is this we learn after so many failures,
The building of castles in sand, of queens in snow,
That we cannot make any corner in life or in life's beauty,
That no river is a river which does not flow.
- Louis MacNeice, Autumn Journal

Based on the guess of the vet, and my googling of the symptoms, it may have been caused by bloat (trying to vomit with nothing coming up, drooling). The webmd site said that it can be caused by eating from a raised surface. I got one of those raised dishes for the two of them a couple of years ago because I thought it would be easier to eat from - apparently that's not a good idea. I've gotten rid of it now, and Bud eats from a bowl that is on the floor. I've mentioned it to my dad, since Licorice also has one of those raised dishes.

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Melkor and Ungoliant in need of some relationship counselling.

I didn't know that about raised bowls either, but I do know this is rather common in German Shepherds. So it may not have had anything to do with the bowl at all, Jude. I hope you don't beat yourself up about it. I wondered if this is what had happened once I heard, knowing Sam was a GS.

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I thought it might have been that, too, given the nonproductive vomiting and how fast he went downhill. Why some dogs bloat (and why the stomach twists) isn't really well understood - including the elevated dish thing, i.e., whether it's true or not. Not feeding too close to exercise is a more common recommendation. But even if you don't, they can get it (or vice versa). This is a fairly decent website on it.

http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?c=2%202090&aid=402

It's a nasty condition, and some dogs won't make it even if you catch it early. Various organs/ tissues can get caught up in the torsion, which cuts off their blood supply and kills the tissues.

Licorice might not be prone to it, depending on his size/breed (though even little dogs like dachshunds can get it - it's just not common in them.)

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It is this we learn after so many failures,
The building of castles in sand, of queens in snow,
That we cannot make any corner in life or in life's beauty,
That no river is a river which does not flow.
- Louis MacNeice, Autumn Journal