# watching my dog die



## performanceknls (Apr 4, 2009)

Onyx is co-owned locally but she is spending the last few days with me. She is the daughter of two of my dogs and is about 85 years old. super long story short she stopped eating about 2.5 weeks ago. Took her to the vet and her liver was off and not a huge amount just not normal so he wanted to put her on a special diet. Well she still is not really eating but drinking water. I told her owner to bring her to me so i can watch her all day while she was at work and she looks like a skeleton!! She can barley stand or walk and it is killing me to watch her. She did have a tooth removed we thought could be the problem on Friday but she is still not doing better. Removing a K9 tooth is a big procedure and really painful so I am holding out hope that she still might improve. I am taking her back to the vet tomorrow for more suggestions. She has had a complete blood panel done along with x-rays and still no real clue what is going on. her liver was not that bad so I do not understand what is going on!! I did get her to eat raw deer meat last night and a few bites today but I am still really worried.

Anyone deal with anything like this before? Any ideas on food to feed her? She wants to eat but doesn't feel well enough to eat. We have tried chicken, hamburger, deer, yogurt suggested by the vet, canned food, and now we are running out of ideas and I am just watch her die! I feel helpless!!


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## GTR (Mar 5, 2010)

Oh that's a tough one....sounds like she's a pretty old girl though. I bet her not eating was due to the tooth, it makes perfect sense. and it's good news she ate the meat.


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## HappyPuppy (Oct 11, 2007)

Wow - no advice - just a sincere hug and hope you can get to the bottom of this!


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## American_Pit13 (Apr 23, 2007)

I am sorry Lisa. I have no advice as I have never dealt with anything like that, but I wish you the best.. Well the best it can get I guess.....


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## DueceAddicTed (Sep 28, 2009)

Oh man Lisa, I'm so sorry your going through this. I will pray for her health and in hopes that you get some answers tomorrow, so that you can be pointed in the best possible direction to help her. ~Hugs~


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## Chinadog (Sep 14, 2009)

Im so sorry. That must be so hard... But before she starves to death may I suggest ending her misery? Is that an option? I hope she starts eating before that becomes an alternative.


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## ImPeCcAbLePiT$ (Apr 11, 2010)

Maybe try some nutri-cal and pedialyte to put some weight back on her. Then hopefully she won't be to weak to eat. Don't give up on her!!!!! Get a syringe for the milk since you might have to light weight force it. She isn't throwing up is she?


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## smokey_joe (Oct 14, 2005)

If she's trying to eat a little she's not starving. And it sounds like she kept it down. Maybe they could put her on an IV until she gets enough strength built up to want to eat. The main thing is figuring out what is going on. I'm so sorry, Lisa.


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## pitbulljojo (Apr 2, 2009)

Thats Rough. The only thing thing that got my bitch to eat after whelping was wet cat food. She stopped eating and lost about 20-30lbs - a third of her body wt. Her mange came back with a vengence. I had a cat at the time and the only thing I could get her to eat was 9 lives liver and bacon wet food. Its smells stong and is kind of oily.I fed her one small can 2x a day. Maybe if its an oral problem eating the cat food will be easier - its a kind of pate. Good luck. You never know how long to keep pushing and when to let go


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## performanceknls (Apr 4, 2009)

I had thought about the cat food and I did try nutri-cal. I have some from Siren having her puppies but she just turned away. A bit of good news..... I got dog food last night and got a case of canned from costco. We had tried to give her canned of the special diet the vet wanted her to eat but I do not think she really liked it. I mixed about 1/2 a can with some warm water and she seemed interested but like everything else she turned her head. I was at the end of my rope so I opened her mouth and put it in and SHE ATE IT! She ate what I made her and while i had to force feed her kind of she got it down. She is drinking a ton of water so thank god I do not have to worry about dehydration and I think the only reason she is still alive! I also got her some pain pills yesterday for her mouth and that also seemed to help. They didn't send her home with any because of her liver but when I demanded them they gave me tramadol. After force feeding her this morning she could walk better and had more strength. She was in bad shape yesterday and PTS was really an option at that point. She could barley walk and was swaying side to side and even fell and sprawled out once.
This morning I feed her just over 1/2 a can the same way so I hope to see an improvement in her later on, we also have another vet appointment later today so wish us luck!!

Oh and Shana called me last night and suggested some lard and that is what I was going to try next if the canned didn't work.


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## DueceAddicTed (Sep 28, 2009)

I think the force feeding is a good thing as long as shes keeping it down thats great!
Smh we did that for 3 years with a cat here at work. But if her mouth pain was really bad, and eating caused it to hurt more she can be associating eating with pain so hopefully the pain meds help ease that. Gosh Lisa with all thats going on I send you many blessings for not giving up on her. I just hope your taking care of yourself as well!!!
Maybe you can start her on some Milk Thistle either capsules or Tincture ( NON Alcohol )
to help with liver function. Duece is on it ...... and so is someone very dear to me with severe liver disease ... I use it when I'm on antibiotics or pain meds.
I would go with the tincture since she's not eating if you can't find it and want to try I can send you some.


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## beccaboo (Dec 27, 2009)

wow u really do have ur hands full!!! i just keep thinking of tube feeding. when little old people (and some younger ppl) stop trying or can't physically eat for some reason they get all the nutrients their body needs fed into their stomach or lower thru a tube. there has got to be a complete liquid diet for dogs i'm assuming, right? i mean if she will drink water she may drink that too. good to hear she is tolerating food, and letting you force feed her. at least she's not fighting it or giving up. fingers crossed that the only problem was the tooth buggin her!!!


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## dixieland (Aug 14, 2009)

You could also try the cans of potted meat.I had to use this with Pretty Girl when she got real sick as a pup.I force fed her this and she would keep this down better then can dog food.
My thoughts are with you right now.Good luck!


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## Black Rabbit (Nov 14, 2009)

Oh Lisa *hugs* I'm so sorry to hear this. Keep your head up I'm sure the vets can help.


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## chrisandpits (Feb 9, 2010)

So sorry to hear you are going thru such a hard time. Big hugs and best wishes for you and your family. Hope things get better.


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## pittybull01 (Dec 2, 2009)

sorry to hear that she is bad, but hopefully she will get better, but diffently give pedialite since it has vitamins in it. Good luck and I hope she get bck to her usual self.


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## pitbulljojo (Apr 2, 2009)

Yeah I did the spoon feeding thing. Sitting on the floor with a bowl of dog food mush {dry food , boiling water and a sprinkling of gravy powder} spoon feeding two grown female pits who took VERY badly to a move we took a few years ago. They stopped eating for about a week so spoon feeding was the only way to get them to eat. I felt like I was feeding the kids again !!! One spoon for Butt one spoon for Penny. Luckily the other 3 didnt need it otherwise I would have been up all night


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## Bethb2007 (Jul 5, 2009)

I am so sorry to here this Lisa. No one should have to go through that. Could it be some type of auto-immune disease? Or could it be a poison that the dog got into? Has she eaten any toadstools or anything like that? It seems like that would disrupt the liver levels for the bloodtest, but maybe not if it is getting out of her system.


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## performanceknls (Apr 4, 2009)

Went to the vet and he was really worried too! We did follow up blood work because he was worried about liver failure or some sort of cancer we missed. Good new I guess when he did the blood work. Onyx had developed a massive liver infection and possible hepatitis. We caught it late so prognoses is guarded but at least we know what is going on now. She is on massive amounts of injectable antibiotics and we are going to put her on fluids when Leonard comes home. With supportive care and antibiotics the vet is hoping she can pull through but it will be touch n go for 4 days he said. Instead of hospitalizing her we are fortunate enough to be able to do hat here and save some money that way. Between my other dogs and Onyx's owner we have spent about $1700 at the vet in the past 3 weeks on Onyx, Trinity, Justice, and the new puppies. You know ppl talk all the time about not being able to afford vet care and i can totally understand but where there is a will there is a way. We are fortunate enough to be financially ok to pay for all of this but it was not always like that. I can't tell you how many times I took out big payday loans to pay for vet bills because I had no other choice! Yeah I paid out the nose in interest but these guys are are worth every penny!!!
Most of the stuff I did was all voluntary with my dogs but I really feel bad for Onyx's owner and her unexpected 900 vet bill. I'm helping her pay a portion because she is co-owned and I feel it is only right. ok now I'm rambling.... I am just stressed about having such a sick dog with an already demanding schedule. Sorry but you guys are going to have to hold on for more puppy pictures, let me take care of this and I will update but not be on much. just keep my sweet Onyx in your prayers!!
Onyx has been a therapy dog for years and her owner just got her certified to go to he children's hospital so i pray Onyx can recover and go bring comfort to those children who really need her.
Here is a picture of Onyx with Rogue (RIP) for Halloween 2005 when they were Playboy bunnies. Onyx of course is the black one.


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## American_Pit13 (Apr 23, 2007)

Hopefully she can over come it and pull thru


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## MISSAPBT (May 10, 2009)

Hope she pulls through! Hehe that pic is so cute.


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## smokey_joe (Oct 14, 2005)

Sounds like she is doing better and I hope everything works out for her. Poor baby must be scared.


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## Black Rabbit (Nov 14, 2009)

Lots of love and prayers coming your way. I hope she pulls through and gets better really soon.


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## GTR (Mar 5, 2010)

I am glad you know what's going on. That makes it a little easier to deal with. Sending good vibes Onyx's way! Love the picture, both are beautiful girls.


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## boogiebot (Oct 7, 2009)

man so sorry to hear this lisa. i know how much you love the dogs. i wish i had some food suggestions for you but it seems like you tried everything possible. please keep us posted on the progress and as i am sure we all hope that things get better.


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## meganc66 (Mar 6, 2009)

She's such a beautiful girl, I hope she pulls through


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## pitbulljojo (Apr 2, 2009)

That is rough. Luckily my dogs are co-owned by my by my son in law and he has fairly deep pockets. He pays for all the vet bills,food and misc stuff that comes along with 5 dogs. I tell him what we need and he takes care of it.I dont think too many mother in laws have breeding , heat cycles and bloodline discussions with their son in laws !!! I'm very lucky to have a dedicated " dog man" in the family


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## Sampsons Dad (Jul 4, 2008)

im glad you have a diagnosis....i hope he recovers quickly.


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## performanceknls (Apr 4, 2009)

Update... She is not any worse so that is good! lol What a long night!! to top it off when we moved my dogs picked up some sort of bug and I have 6 dogs with diarrhea! I was up every 2 hours taking dogs out side to go potty. I have to get a fecal to the vet so i know what to treat with but man what a pain in the butt and I worry about the puppies a little bit too. I am thinking it could just be a change in well water from our other house or it could be something else who knows!!

Anyway Onyx is doing ok and she threw up dinner last night and I think I tried to feed her too much. I am going to just do a 1/4 cup of canned about 4 hours apart and see if that helps.
You know when it rains it pours and a house full of pooping dogs, one litter of puppies, and a really sick dog make for a really long day! {sigh}

Hopefully next time I come on line I will have better news!


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## Black Rabbit (Nov 14, 2009)

Awww I wish I lived closer I'd come help you shovel poo.


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## performanceknls (Apr 4, 2009)

At least she is no worse right? We are still in for a long road with her and she is still hanging in there. We backed off the fluids but still have her on antibiotics and now it is up to her to pull through. The vet is very guarded about her recovery but at least yesterday when I was force feeding her she took one bite on her own. That gave me a little hope that this is going to be a long road but little improvements like that are going to keep me going. I am going to really try and get some stuff done today around the house but we will see how this goes.

Please still keep her in your thoughts and prayers she is going to need them!
I do have some puppy pictures and I will try to get them posted I promise.


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## ThaLadyPit (Oct 12, 2008)

I'm so sorry Lisa. I'm just now seeing this thread. I wish you all the best and hope for a speedy recovery for Onyx. If I was closer to you, I'd definately come and help you out. Hugs and my prayers are with you and the dogs and the rest of the family, extended or otherwise. Please do keep us posted.


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## FloorCandy (Feb 19, 2009)

I'm so glad she is still hanging in there, I hope the baby step continue and she manages to recover.


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## jayandlacy (Sep 21, 2009)

How sad so sorry to hear about this! We had dog named Chico die last July, he also stopped eating, but would drink water, when we took him to the first vet they said that he had a UTI because they found blood in his urine. Lets just say that wasnt it, there was no improvement with the antibiotics, so we went to another vet on the 4th of July, and had blood work completed, still nothing, other then these unusual purple dots in his red blood cells. The vet coudnt figure it out. We force fed him baby cereal, soft dog food, and tuna fish anything that would seem tempting. By July 7th, he had seizures, couldnt walk to the point of making it halfway to let us know he had to go out before urinating on the floor, but still tried to walk to our room for bed time, falling and collaspsing half way...we carried him the rest of the way. Makes me want to cry. We had him put down that Tuesday the 7th. We couldnt bear to see him like this suffering.

Good Luck.


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## Firehazard (Dec 4, 2009)

I had to put Hooch down finally; it didn't hit me until Duma from frustration due to the loss of Hooches company I expect, destroyed a pillow and ate the fuz in the middle. Well she had all the syptoms you describe and for whatever reason it didn't show in the first xray, but Duma was very thin and weak. Well that was with in the week of putting Hooch down. So Now my Abishai Line of Dogs is almost gone. I was relying on having her to keep my line strong. I decided to have her put down as well as oppose to the 1300 dollar surgery. So I hope it isn't that severe, foreign objects are no good, anti freeze could will do the same and and there is no cure. peace and blessing be with you~ I don't have the heart to continue from my experience over the last week, it killed me to have my best friend and foundation male along with his daughter my who was trip bred hooch put down. Having my two young males I have left neutered and using them straight for hunting.


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## SweetMelissa (Apr 23, 2010)

Sooo sorry to hear bout your baby! I know that my folks made a soft dinner of boiled chicken, and rice in chicken broth with a bit of hard boiled egg when their dog had a canine removed. That IS really hard on a dog. Don't give up hope! Keep trying... You just never know when they will turn a corner! 
Thinking of you and yours!
Melissa


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## performanceknls (Apr 4, 2009)

Firehazard good to see you buddy!! I am so sorry to hear you lost both your dogs I know how much they meant to you. WOW if you need to talk pm me I would like to see how everything else is going.

I just gave her a can of A/D and I will feed her more tomorrow, I really hope she can pull through! Her vet bills are around 1300 at this point and it would be salt in the wound to lose her after everything we have tried....


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## TTMF (Apr 8, 2010)

sorry to hear. i feel your pain. i spent a little over 3 grand to try and save my dog last year from pneumonia that later turned out to be lung cancer. we were willing to spend up to 10 to save him but we all knew we were fighting a losing battle. he was my first dog i ever owned. at least i had him for 7 good years. some people shake their head when they find out about how much we spent, but we just tell them it's not just a dog, but a family member. hope everything works out for the better.


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## dozer (Jul 11, 2009)

just a suggestion at the vets they sell a paste that comes n a syringe its got all the vitamins a dog needs i think its pretty expensive but worth it if its a tooth problem but i also seen on a show where a dog ate something and the object got stuck i the dogs intestines and he wouldnt eat but u said she had x-rays done i would try the paste though good luck hope she gets better


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## dozer (Jul 11, 2009)

oh the paste is very tastey comes n different flavors like beef chicken pork ect......


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## dozer (Jul 11, 2009)

yes their is a cure a surgery they cut the object out of the intestine if this ever happens to one of my dogs i will pay they r worth it anyway thats the least i could do:curse::curse::curse::curse:


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## Lex's Guardian (Aug 8, 2009)

Has he checked her white blood count for infection? My Vet ran x-rays too but that showed nothing until he ran blood tests - including white cell count. The symptoms your describing match what my cat was going through. 

My vet did an emergency surgery on her to remove the uterus because he was 99% sure on a hunch it had to do with her uterus because he tested for everything else. Not to mention took her home over the weekend to keep an eye on her. This was 2 years ago & she's doing great & going on her 11th birthday this June. The procedure may be less harsh for a dog opposed to a cat but that's something you may want to look into.

Basically from what my vet told me it's quite common for female animals to get yeast infections - cats are more difficult to treat & typically need surgery... Dogs they can perform other methods unless it's something else - but typically have the same symptoms when their white cell count rises

Hope everything works out.


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## Patch-O-Pits (Jan 12, 2008)

Hugs and prayers!


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## performanceknls (Apr 4, 2009)

I thought I already posted it but she has a sever liver infection and that is what we are batting. She is still the same no big improvement yet, I did but her some canned A/D and she was force fed 1 can last night and half a can this morning and I am going back to give her the other half now. We had a hard time giving her IV antibiotics because she has edema now in the legs and we were having a hard time hitting a vein. I took out the catheter last night because I wanted to change sides since it had been in there since early this week. Now I am regretting that decision because I do not think I can get another one in with all that fluid in the legs.

 I just want her to improve even just a little.


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## performanceknls (Apr 4, 2009)

If she does not seem to do better tomorrow she will be PTS in Monday. I just lost her dad and I can't really talk about this now......


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## meganc66 (Mar 6, 2009)

im really sorry Lisa  if you need anything you can text me or call. I'm rooting for her!


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## American_Pit13 (Apr 23, 2007)

I am so sorry Lisa.


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## Elvisfink (Oct 13, 2008)

$hit Lisa this sucks! My heart goes out to you and your entire family. I just hope things turn around and start to improve by tomorrow morning. Hang in there!!!!


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## performanceknls (Apr 4, 2009)

Thanks everyone for the kind words, We had Onyx PTS today and when I can I will put a RIP thread because she truly was a great dog and the children at the children's hospital will miss her very much! RIP my little girl


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## Black Rabbit (Nov 14, 2009)

OMG Lisa I'm so sorry.  
R.I.P Sweet Onyx run free at the Rainbow Bridge, one day you will see her again.
My heart goes out to you and your family at this hard time *hugs*


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## MISSAPBT (May 10, 2009)

Im so sorry for your loss Lisa! My thoughs are with you guys.


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## meganc66 (Mar 6, 2009)

Awwww  I'm very sorry for your loss, Lisa. RIP Onyx


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## DueceAddicTed (Sep 28, 2009)

R.I.P Onyx , I'm so sorry for your loss Lisa, she is just another one of your special angels sitting high watching you. I pray for you and your family. I hope your taking care of yourself cause all of the emotional stresses of life can wear a person down more then they think. ~Hugs~


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## smokey_joe (Oct 14, 2005)

I'm so sorry, Lisa. I know this had to be a very hard decision to make. RIP Onyx.


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## FloorCandy (Feb 19, 2009)

Oh no, I'm so sorry.


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## Patch09 (Apr 23, 2009)

You went above and beyond and truley did everything in your power to give Oynx a chance, I wish I was half the dog owner you are.


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## Elvisfink (Oct 13, 2008)

I am so sorry for your loss Lisa, you have my deepest sympathy.


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## brandicookie (Feb 3, 2010)

on no im so sorry =[ i really am


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## ThaLadyPit (Oct 12, 2008)

I'm so sorry Lisa. R.I.P. Onyx! Go and run free at the Rainbow Bridge! Lisa, I'm sure she'll be waiting and watching over you from here on out. If you need me, you can always PM me for any reason.


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## dixieland (Aug 14, 2009)

Sorry for your loss.My thoughts are with you and your family


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## outlaw josey (Jun 20, 2009)

Just read about Onyx on the other thread - RIP 
I felt so bad hearing about the struggle - the joy of new puppies and the loss of a good friend. Circle of life.


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## TTMF (Apr 8, 2010)

so sorry. sincere condolences to you and your family.


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