I know I don't post much but today I feel I must. On February 4, 1996 Charlescote Shoshone was born. The prettiest Ruby Lady I've ever met. She came to live with ny daughter and I as her "Granny". Often I would get to baby-sit for her. A move and divorce forced my daughter to be unable to keep Shonie for for a year so my other daughter took Shonie in. This little Lady thought she had three homes and three Mommies. She didn't really care where she was, she knew she was spoiled and loved at all three places. Whenever we gathered for a Holiday she was in Seventh Heaven--all her family was together and you really knew. She knew whenever they turned to come down our street. Shonie had the most endearing and adorable way of wiggling her butt when she wanted the Lazer light.(Not just wagging her tail and tipping her head, but wiggling her butt as she tried to sit.) Yes she was obsessed with the light so playing with it was really limited.
Shonie was a fantastic eater. Watching her weight was always a problem. She would sneak in true Cavalier fashion any crumb that could be found. We did notice this past summer that she had been losing weight but we thought it was because of better control and reduced portions of her food. She became even more beautiful as she lost the weight. Her face was absolutely lovely. Her dark, dark, brown eyes were so expressive. They were truly an open window to her lovely soul. At the end of August I was baby-sitting for the weekend and while laying next to me on the couch for a couple of hours in the air-conditioned house, I noticed that she was still panting and had labored breathing. Thankfully, my vet does take emergency visits. I got her right in and sadly to say, it was MVD. Probably grade 3 or higher. She was quite congested so medication was started at once. That was August 30, 2002. She went in for a recheck about 10 days later. Things seemed to be better. Her heart rate was down, the congestion seemed to be clearing up and her breathing was a lot easier. Thursday my daughter called and said Shonie had had a really bad night. She was howling like she was in pain. In the morning she had an excessive amount of diarrhea. Dayna gave her a bath and noticed she was having difficulty walking and was totally lethargic. When she took Shonie out to do her duties Shonie put her front paws on the one step up to the deck and just looked up at her as if to say "Please carry me" which Dayna did. Dayna brought Shonie down to me and the moment she walked in the door I knew my worst fear was coming true. This was the day. I always knew she would tell her Granny when it was time. She was still wagging her tail but the spark was gone. I took her to the vet and after a very complete exam and talk with Dr. Sills I made the decision to let her go while she still had her self respect and dignity. Shonie would have been horrified if medication started to cause her to soil the house. I cradled her in my arms and told her how very lucky she was to have a large family that loved her so much. Both of my daughters wanted to be with us but is wasn't possible. This little Lady never did anything wrong. She was never crated, didn't mess up the house, accepted life as it came along. She loved everyone, let our younger puppies chew on her (didn't appreciate the puppy stuff but accepted it.) Always stopped traffic whenever she was out and about. Even the bank tellers missed her if she wasn't along to make the deposits. She visited the nursing homes where my daughter worked and every one loved her. Thursday, when I returned home my dogs were absolutely quiet. They didn't fuss to go out until evening. They have a sense we can only wonder about. Last Saturday, I was watching Shonie for an overnighter and the dogs had all gone out at the usual time. Less than an hour later my dogs started raising a ruckus like I've never heard. Shonie came up to me and just looked up and gave a tiny "wuff". I asked if she had to go out and she "woffed again". My dogs alerted me to the fact that she needed to go potty. I was in awe. My dogs were crated at the time and Shonie was loose in the house. Shonie, you were dearly loved and will be sadly missed. You will never be forgotten. Charlescote Shoshone 2/4/1996-9/19/2002 Judith Atwood Roland Cavaliers [EMAIL PROTECTED] ========================================================= "Magic Commands": to stop receiving mail for awhile, click here and send the email: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?body=SET%20CKCS-L%20NOMAIL to start it up gain click here: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?body=SET%20CKCS-L%20MAIL E-mail [EMAIL PROTECTED] for assistance. Search the Archives... http://apple.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ckcs-l.html All e-mail sent through CKCS-L is Copyright 2002 by its original author.
