The last time I wrote about Tucker I was a little concerned about the way he was eating—or not eating. He was still gobbling down people food with no problem, and even eating his dog food if it had only the tiniest bits of "goody" in it. So I wasn't really sure what to think of him. He might snub his food for a couple of days, and then I'd get worried and break down and give him something yummy to tempt him into eating. I was kind of frustrated that he was being so stubborn and naughty, but in the back of my mind I kept worrying that this really wasn't normal. Then I discovered that if we put his dish on the kitchen counter, poured in a little water and let him hear us stir it in with a spoon he would eat the dog food. So I went a couple more weeks thinking he was just silly and stubborn.
But by the end of last week he started vomiting all his dog food. From Friday night to Saturday morning Bruce and I could see a dramatic change in Tucker. He was very listless and he didn't even show any interest in his food—or anything else; he didn't even bark or growl at a knock on the door. We couldn't take him to a vet, so I looked online to see how to treat a starving dog. Mild people-foods like rice and eggs—about 1/2 cup every hour, and after a couple days we could try some high-quality puppy food. We did the rice and eggs for him, but we had to coax him to eat the first dish. That perked him up a little, and the next hour he was very happy to eat more of his special, home-made food. But by Sunday morning he didn't want to eat, he vomited all his rice, and he wouldn't drink his water either; he was stiff and seemed disoriented. He was vomiting again this morning.
4 comments:
I'm so sorry, Loralee. :( My heart aches for you and your family.
I'm sorry.
The truth is, we weren't ready for a dog.
First of all, nobody in the house was willing to really take responsibility for him. Even though I was the one who hadn't wanted a dog, I became the care-giver—or at least the one who worried most over what kind of care he got. I made sure someone fed him, let him outside, took him for walks (although Jason would—on his own—walk him sometimes). I told the kids to brush and bathe him, told them to take him out to play with a ball, worried when his nails got too long . . .
And even though I never wanted a dog to live in the house, and was annoyed by all the "stuff" that comes with a dog living in the house, I could still see and appreciate that Tucker was a pretty sweet dog.
Then, our finances have been too sketchy for too long. I couldn't afford to go to the dentist when I broke a tooth; I certainly couldn't afford a trip to the veterinarian. I'd hoped Tucker could last until our tax return got here, but finally I could see that he wouldn't.
If I'd had the guts to stand up to my family and stand up for Tucker we might have sold him long ago. Or we might have taken him someplace where he could be adopted by a nice family, or just given him to a nice family who could take better care of him.
Now I am just very sad. And, yes, I think I actually miss him.
They really get into your heart. I am so sorry for your loss. He was such a sweet dog. Maybe someday you'll be ready for another one.
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