The BigFoot Club

This is a hard post to write.

We arrived home from our National/vacation on Tuesday, after being gone for about 2.5 weeks.  About 1.5 hours from home, Jade had liquid diarrhea.  The dog in the room next to us at the lodge had diarrhea, and Banner picked it up, whether from him or walking in the potty area I don’t know.  It didn’t last long or get bad, and was resolved within 24 – 48 hours.  We left on Saturday and drove south through California, stopping a few days later at a beach.  The last time we went to a National on the west coast, a friend who lived there advised that if we took the dogs to the beach to not let them drink.  Of course, keeping them from drinking when they walk out into water doesn’t happen.  Jade lapped immediately, but one taste was enough.  Still, she had “smoothies” for one or two evenings.  Then her stools went back to normal again, until we reached about 1.5 hours from home, a few days later.  She had liquid diarrhea.  We bleached the floors and washed her and Banner, and Jade was placed on metronidazole.  The diarrhea subsided within a day, but then she had trouble standing in the rear.  It was worse the next day.  Her appetite was still good, and she was drinking well.  On Friday, she had a temperature of around 103 in the morning and she didn’t pee, then it was 104 a short time afterward.  I confirmed with a second thermometer, then called our vet, who was out ill that day, and she said to get her to a vet school.  Before we left she was at 105.  I drove with the air conditioner fully on, and stopped about two hours later to check.  Her temp. was back to 104.  By the time we got to the vet school, it was 101.8.  They took her in and put her on fluids, but shortly after getting the IV in, her vein ruptured, and again.  The rest of the time is somewhat of a blur.  Her temp. had gone up to 104 shortly after going into the ICU, and her blood pressure and heart rate had become unstable.  They were treating for sepsis, but no diagnostics showed an origin.  There was no indication of cancer, no indication of intestinal perforation, ultrasound and x-rays were clear, her ECG was good, her kidneys were functioning.  She was scheduled for imaging on Monday.  By later on Saturday, and the third change in IV antibiotics, it looked like she was improving.  They were able to back off on the medications controlling her blood pressure and her heart rate and temperature were back down.  The veterinarians had cautioned that for a critically ill dog, the kidneys or the lungs sometimes fail.  In Jade’s case, she appeared to develop an inflammatory process in her lungs.  (The oxygen is drying, and that may have been a factor.)  We were given the option of using a ventilator, with a less than 10% chance of recovery.  I talked with Jade, as I had with Parker, and told her that if I had to, in her best interest, I would make a decision, and that I did not know what the next transition was like, but that I loved her with all my heart.  She was cognizant but very uncomfortable, and she responded with some expression change as I talked.  My Newfs learn to do eye blinks as consent or to affirm in response, and her responses affirmed that she trusted me fully.  We are now struggling to cope with the difference in our lives, as our much loved girl is no longer with us.

When we knew that this situation would be very serious, Greg drove up also, arriving at 2 in the morning.  Given her condition, we were told that we would be allowed to see her even at that hour.  He had to wait for the storms to subside a bit, as the water levels were higher than ever and some roads were blocked.

When we brought her back, we couldn’t get to the family farm for burial, where the others are.  She is right here in the front yard under a tree, next to a bed of flowers, not far from the swing where we sit and listen to the birds and the cars as they passed.

The vet school staff were exceptional, as they have been with Banner.  The “criticalist” was up over 30 hours straight and in the ICU for Jade and one other dog.  We appreciate their efforts and commitment more than I can express.

Jade has been such a wonderful member of our family – very bright, very soft, very calm, very studious, very loving and with a good sense of humor.  She was very independent in most ways, but she learned to trust me, or at least to accept my preferences.  Other than the opportunity to see other Newfs, she did question the wisdom of having to go to dog shows.  She was very elegant, very happy and again, very loving.  Her small gestures, like facial expressions, a slight tail movement or the sparkle in her light gait, had so much more impact than words.  She has been an amazing experience.  She has filled our lives.  We are shaken and it will take a long time for life to reach a new “normal”.

We made each other happy – it was comfortable when she was near.  Her light snore was the sound of peace when we went to bed.  You don’t realize how much space these creatures take up until they are gone.  It builds a little at a time.  The more they learn to communicate with us and the better we learn to communicate with them, the stronger the bonds grow.  When they are suddenly gone, it is like an implosion.

It has been more than a privilege.  I loved taking care of her.  I hope that someone is taking good care of her now.  I wish it was still me.