Patches was a great dog. She didn't bite, never ruined the sofa, and didn't bark in the middle of the night. She would do anything for a treat and loved to play fetch.
As she got older, she slowed down as would be expected. She played less, slept more, but was always the same dog.
About 2 weeks ago though, we noticed she wasn't herself at all. Her back legs kept going out, even when she tried to go down the ramp we had built her in the back yard when the vet had said she couldn't use stairs anymore. Her front legs seemed to be sliding out from under her. Her tail had stopped it's constant wagging and her eyes had lost their friendly sparkle. Slowly she got worse and worse, to the point when she stopped accepting treats and didn't even whine when we picked her up (she always hated being picked up). We took her to the vet again and again and they said it was pancreatitis. So we got medicine for her, left her overnight at an animal hospital, spoon fed and watered her, and carried her outside.
But the medicine wasn't doing anything for her. She stopped eating altogether, only drank when we made her, and was completely listless.
So we went back to the vet. That's when they told us her heart was failing, and we could either put her on medication (which would help her heart, but her pancreas and kidneys would be in danger, plus her legs would still be going out) or put her to sleep. The latter was chosen.
So here's to a best friend for 14 fabulous years. Patches may be gone, but she will never be forgotten. She was the best dog I ever could have asked for.
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