Cody had a rough life but we did everything in our power to nurse him back to health. I think we did ok but his health continued to deteriorate. Cody developed a grade three heart murmur, had high calcium levels, developed growths on his neck, lost fur, etc etc. Cody didn't care though. He was a grumpy pup, loved his bed and was my alarm clock on time every at 4:00 AM and 4:00 PM when he wanted food. He got confused sometimes and got lost in the house but never forgot where his food bowl was.

Miss Daisy's health had been deteriorating since about June, as she had developed a cataract in one eye and was losing sight in the other, as well as losing muscle mass in her rear legs due to arthritis. She was losing her mobility and I would carry her outside as she needed. We spent a lot of good days outside sitting in the grass together and when she wanted to walk, and was able to, she would walk and play with Peaches until she just had to sit. In her last months, she was only able to eat canned food instead of dry kibble. I took her to the vet when she could no longer stand on her own to relieve herself as I would have to hold her up to help her. She got very lethargic and did not want to get out of her little bed or even go eat from her bowl, so I would sit by her bed and hand feed her.

When I took her to the vet for the last time, I held her in her favorite blanket. The vet told me she was in her final days, there was nothing he could do to help her, and that she would only get worse. After making the difficult decision to let her go, I comforted Miss Daisy through the entire process, always letting her feel my touch and hear my voice, so she would know I was with her to the end and after. As the vet left me to be alone with her, the sadness and my grief for her loss became overwhelming. I said prayers over her and told her how much she had helped me and Peaches and how much we loved her.

It broke my heart to see her pass, even though I know she is now a young, vibrant playful, fully functional little girl once again, with many beautiful friends to love and play with in Heaven. Thank you for the opportunity of being able to care for and share a part of my life with Miss Daisy Durango. She was a very good and sweet "child".

We are absolutely lost without Digby. Even though dogs depend on us to take care of them, we didn’t even realize at the time that Digby was really taking care of us. He mostly liked to sleep next to us, be in his own bed, or follow us around the house (we said he was helping us.) Now I’m like “How do I brush my teeth without Digby helping me? How do I get ready for bed without taking him outside and then tucking him in first?” If we were sick, he took care of us. If we were happy, he was still taking care of us and part of the happiness.

I almost wonder if him waiting until we left the vets office to crash was part of him taking care of us too, so that we wouldn’t have to see them working on him. He was always nervous to go there, but he was calm this time, so I find a little comfort in that. We were able to go to the vet’s office to see him and say our final goodbye’s.

Jones' foster took him to the vet because he started acting lethargic and just didn’t look well. She thought he might have another stomach issue because he was always eating things outside. They had just gone on a long walk the previous night, he ate breakfast in the morning and seemed fine then. The vet did an ultrasound and found that Jones had a liver tumor about the size of a tennis ball that had ruptured and was bleeding into his abdomen. He had to be euthanized. His foster is absolutely devastated. Jones adored Lori and she said he was her comic relief. He was so full of love and life right up to the very end.