She's gone

After four days of giving my Shadow girl alot of love and attention (which is nothing new) I made the difficult decision today to take her in and have her put to sleep. I was going to just let her pass naturally but after coming home today and seeing her not be able to walk or even get up I could no longer allow her leave this earth without dignity and respect due to her. I will miss my girl but know she will now go and play with Buddy in the wildflowers. Shadow will always remain in my heart. Sixteen years she has blessed me with and my life has been fuller because of her.

My Baby Girl

This is my baby girl, Shadow. She's 16 years old. And dying. I've been watching her act strangely the last couple of weeks. This girl rarely goes outside. I'm talkin' 2 or 3 times a year. The last two weeks she's gone out every day, multiple times each day. The kids and I thought it strange. But over the last three days I think I know why. It's warm out there. And she's cold. Her little paws are cold and the outdoors warms her up. Today a friend suggested a heating pad. That has worked wonders. She likes it alot.

The last few days I've watched her deteriorate. She hasn't eaten in three days. Not even ice cream or french fries - her two most favorite foods in the whole wide world. She's not in any pain but her eyes are sinking, her body isn't maintaining temperature and today she's not had any water. I'm just trying to keep her comfortable. If she shows any sign of pain I'll do something different but for right now I'll just let nature take it's course. But it's hard to watch her die. I snuggle with her, pet her and hold her close. That's about all I can do.