Goodbye dear Penne

Penne at Ken Thompson Park last December
Some of you know that Penne has been in quite a bit of ;pain in recent days. Through X-rays we discovered this was because she had two compressed disks in her spine.

(In truth this condition probably began 15 months ago when my niece and her boyfriend were visiting from England - there were days on which we had to cajole Penne to jump up into my car).

 Penne has been on Carprofen for just over a week, giving her some relief from pain.

The vet, who had taken blood tests last Friday, called me this morning to say that she should no longer take this anti-pain/anti-inflammation drug, because after only four days on it her kidneys had already been compromised.

I came home from a meeting today and Penne could not stand up.  When I tried to lift her, she screamed with pain.

A bit later she struggled to get up, and she staggered outside to pee and poop.

The time had come.

I wanted  to postpone the hard decision, but she was not going to get better.  My best wishes and love for her could not possibly have exceeded her pain.

I called the vet.

Her Uncle and Aunt, Ron and Char came to say good-bye to her.  She has spent so many very happy hours in their home when I have been away.

I dosed her with a lot of pain medicine, so that she was able to get into the car for her final journey.

At the Veterinary practice I stayed with her until her sedation kicked in.   I caressed her and talked to her until she slumped to the floor.  I left the Clinic before the final euthanasing injection.

The Veterinary Staff  were sweet. gentle and gracious.  They have known her for so long.

As I drove home I wanted to call the Vet and say "no, no, don't give give her the final shot".

And then I remembered her pain.  It could never be cured,  And at 16 years of age  (9 with me) she deserved to be pain free.

I had a friend with me this evening, Deacon Allan Rogers from St. Boniface, so that  I would l not be alone. That was good.

Many of you met Penne.  I am so grateful for the ways in which you showed her such great affection. She won all our hearts.

I have shed many tears.  There are many to come.  I do not relish the thought of waking up tomorrow without seeing her big brown  eyes, and watching her tail wag as she greets me.

DOG  and GOD.    Our dogs are god-like.   They show us unconditional love.

--------------------------------------------------------

My sister in law Ange, my niece Louise, and my friends Susan and Lisa have recently traveled this sad path.   They know and understand my tears.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Shoe insults

Last year I consulted with a local podiatrist: Dr. Robert F Herbold Jr. D.P.M. 4717 Swift Rd., Sarasota , FL – 34231  because I was being bothered with a couple of bunions  (yes I am at that age). I was very impressed with this Doctor.  He agreed that I had bunions, but he ventured that it was much too soon for surgery. (Now there’s a first). Instead he recommended some “arch supports” to relieve the tension for my feet, a tension which was exacerbating the bunions. What’s more -  he told me that he sells these arch supports at the miserly sum of $2.50 each (about 1/5 of the price in the local pharmacies). He is an honest man, and I recommend him to anyone with foot problems. So, a couple of weeks ago, having purchased some new walking shoes, I knew that I needed to buy a couple of new arch supports I took myself to his office. Once there, my mind went blank. I wanted to ask his front desk Clerk if I could buy some “shoe inserts” , as I could not rem...
Read more

It began in Bristol U.K. "A man dies" and "Jesus Christ Superstar"

Image
I well remember the swirling controversy in Bristol, U.K. when a (Presbyterian) Minister the Revd, Earnest Marviin created a ":Rock Opera", called "A Man Dies"  in and for his congregation in the Lockleaze area of Bristol, U.K. Earnest Mrvin I was a sixteen years old member of the Plymouth Brethren Church back in those days, so I most likely disapproved of "A Man Dies" .  We, (the Plymouth Brethren),  disapproved of everything! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I had forgotten all about "A Man Dies" until earlier today when saw these pictures on the "Bristol, Then and Now"  Facebook page.   St. James Presbyterian Church, Lockleaze, Bristol  The Bristol Then and Now page includes the following commentary: Lockleaze, Bristol  -  'Jesus Christ Superstar' began at St.James (Presbyterian) Chur...
Read more

The background, the couple, my friends, the wedding ceremony, the Shaykh, the Priest,

Image
The background   I have known the Keller/Bonsey family since 2000 when I became the Rector at St. James's, Cambridge, MA. They (Elisabeth Keller and the Revd. Steven Bonsey with their four children Noah, Sam, Josiah and Annie) had come back to Cambridge from Hawaii where Steve had been the Rector of an Episcopal parish. Steve had just been appointed as a Chaplain at Tufts University (no Sunday morning duties) so the entire family was able to enrich our common life at St. James's - which they did with great love and joy. I count them as friends and have stayed in touch with them since my retirement.  Noah, the oldest son is eloquent in Arabic (he spent a year in Damascus when Syria was a safe place).  He has developed a super career as an analyst of social media in the near East.    Noah worked in Tampa for a while a few years ago, so he and I were a...
Read more