Today We Mourn the Death of Dunkin and Celebrate His Life and Legacy

Dunkin has departed this world for the Rainbow Bridge, but the once-brutally abused dog leaves behind a message of love and kindness.

It is with a heavy heart we announce the death of rescue dog Dunkin the Rhodesian Ridgeback. Suffering from neurological damage, he had probably been used as a bait dog. He had to have a bunch of metal nails removed from his belly, as well as surgery to fix his eyes. He needed a wheelchair for mobility and a strict diet to keep his megaesophagus in check.

The odds were heavily stacked against him, and yet Dunkin embraced the world with a certain kindness in his eyes and his human friends spared no expense in making his life as comfortable as possible for however long it would be.

According to his Facebook page, Dunkin passed away surrounded by friends and family in the comfort of his home when his lungs failed.

While it is always sad to watch our animal friends go to the Rainbow Bridge, Dunkin's final message leaves us with a call to action to continue to be kind and gentle to each other.

Please don’t be sad…while my body may be gone, my legacy is just beginning. All of you have lots of work to do to protect and care for other animals in need…just like you did for me. Please continue to work together to be kind, to be compassionate, and to educate those around you. It would mean the world to me if you could help my mom continue to give those in need, another chance.

My heart swells with love, pride and appreciation for all that each of you have done for me and for each other. Your cards, letters, pictures, prayers and encouragement gave me the strength to live each of my days to the fullest and while my life was short in time, it was rich with your friendship. I love you all.

You can read the rest of Dunkin's touching message here, but make sure to have a tissue handy.

We offer Dunkin's family our deepest condolences, and while these are difficult times, they are also a reminder of the power of compassion. Dunkin died in a warm circle of love -- a far cry from the fate that could have been his had someone not stepped in.

Photos via Dunkin's Facebook page

Read about other Monday Miracles on Dogster:

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Terrible: Death Sentence Upheld for Charlie the AmStaff

The San Francisco dog attacked a police horse but had no history of violence. His appeal is rejected.

A San Francisco court has upheld a dog's death sentence, and we believe it's wrong. An American Staffordshire Terrier named Charlie had been sentenced to die because he attacked a mounted patrol horse named Stoney during the summer. The attack left Stoney with injuries to his leg and belly.

Still, Charlie had no history of aggression, and his owner promised to comply with any conditions the court put forth. But on Wednesday, San Francisco Superior Court Judge James Robertson II denied a writ that was filed by Charlie's owner, David Gizzarelli. That writ had triggered an automatic stay, giving Gizzarelli an opportunity to appeal the decision to put Charlie down.

The San Francisco City Attorney's Office, which represents San Francisco Animal Care and Control, is arguing for Charlie's immediate euthanasia, claiming his aggression is beyond reasonable intervention because of the Aug. 6 attack.

Gizzarelli says he and Charlie were in an off-leash area of Crissy Field and that his dog had never seen a horse before. He insists that Charlie had an unfortunate but typical reaction to charge and bark at Stoney, and he says it was a one-time mistake that could be easily corrected if the judge had given Charlie a chance.

At the time of the attack, Charlie was 18 months old and had no history of aggression. Most dog behaviorists contend that dogs, which are predators by nature, will have an aggressive reaction the first time they're confronted with prey animals such as cows, horses, and deer. This reaction, according to behaviorists, is common and quite within the boundaries of rehabilitation.

What has not been examined and certainly not explained by City Attorney Dennis Herrera is whether the U.S. Park Service had properly trained Stoney and whether Park Service Officer Eric Evan, who was riding Stoney at the time, had any experience in responding to the likelihood of a charge by a young dog such as Charlie.

What is certain is that Stoney, who was a retired thoroughbred racehorse, did not react in the way a trained police horse should have. A trained police horse would have stood its ground until the dog had exhausted its initial, excited reaction. This is a fact well known by the San Francisco Police Mounted Patrol, which has encountered similar situations in which dogs become excited by the presence of a horse.

But Stoney reacted by throwing her rider and fleeing, which further excited the dog to chase her. Park officials must admit Stoney's reaction could not have been unexpected given that racehorses are given to skittish behavior. The incident further raises the question of whether the U.S. Park Service selects patrol horses based on their policing skills or for their public relations showmanship.

There are other unanswered questions such as why Charlie was initially declared "not aggressive" by Animal Control Officer John Denny, who days later reversed his opinion and ordered the dog's death. The flip-flop suggests political influence, which might be easy to expose given the controversial political stance of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area against dogs. In January, U.S. Rep. Jackie Speier chastised the National Park Service after a park ranger was promoted after wrongfully Tasering a dog owner. Furthermore, the GGNRA has been criticized for moving to reduce the number of park areas that allow dogs.

All too often government officials order the euthanasia of dogs to expedite their own political agenda. If that is the case with Charlie, government officials could be facing a tremendous backlash. For example, more than 90,000 people have signed a petition calling for a second chance for Charlie, and many of them have contributed money to hire an attorney to represent Gizzarelli in his quest to save his beloved dog. If the city attorney's office is not absolutely sure of its argument, it could harm the ability of the city to protect residents from real threats.

To follow Charlie's case, follow the Help Save Charlie Facebook page. Look for follow-up stories in Dogster.

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Hero Dog Saves Her Owner from Choking to Death

Sheba the Akita slammed a paw on her owner's back, saving her life. This dog is simply amazing.

Eighteen-year-old Aysha Perry was home with her Akita named Sheba at her flat in Sutton-in-Ashfield, Nottinghamshire, England, when she choked on a piece of chicken. No one else was home. Sheba was in the other room, asleep. Perry fell to the floor, struggling to breathe and trying to get to her phone. 

"I was at home on my own, and genuinely thought I was going to die," she told the Daily Mail.

Sheba must have thought so, too. Though Sheba had lived with Perry only two weeks, she woke up and knew exactly what to do. The dog heard her choking, bolted into the room, and promptly took action with all the skill and speed of an EMT who'd just completed a refresher course on helping choking victims. 

"I was on the floor trying to get to my phone when she came running in," Perry said. "She whacked me on the back with one of her huge front paws and the piece of chicken flew out."

That's right: A dog performed a life-saving maneuver on her choking owner, and it worked.

And Sheba might know more than many humans. Public health organizations at one time discouraged the back-slap in favor of the abdominal thrust of the Heimlich maneuver, but many now advocate trying a back-slap first.

"It’s a good job she has such big paws, otherwise I don’t think it would have dislodged the chicken," said Perry.  

Perry is fine, and she gives all the credit to her dog. "She could obviously sense I was in distress. After she helped get the chicken out of my throat, she began licking my face to make sure I was okay."

Akitas are known to be smart, loyal companions. In 1931, Japan declared the dog a "national treasure." Perry, who works as a tattoo artist, believes the dog knew that she was choking and knew what she had to do to save her.   

"There’s no doubt that she knew what she had done," Perry said. "She knew she had saved my life. I could tell by the way she looked and wouldn’t let me go ... I think she deserves some recognition because it was a very heroic act. I don’t know anyone else whose dog would do something like that.

“I just feel so lucky to have her. This has all happened in such a short space of time. I’ve only had her a couple of weeks and already she has saved my life."

Via the Daily Mail 

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Watch the Trailer for Jake Torem's "Letting Go," a Film About Life, Death, and Dogs

When the filmmaker lost his beloved Rottweiler, he made a film to cope with his sadness.

One aspect of sharing our lives with dogs that is particularly painful is that their lives are so much shorter than ours. It is pretty much inevitable that we will outlive our pets; we experience all the pleasure of watching them grow and all the pain of letting them go. It teaches us about our own mortality -- and that life is short but sweet, and that we should savor every moment of our own lives and our lives with dogs.

For filmmaker Jake Torem, the loss of his beloved Rottweiler was a deeply emotional experience. To commemorate the life of his canine companion, the Los Angeles actor decided to produce a film about life, love, and loss. Called Letting Go, the independently made movie revolves around Joel Slater, whose life is in turmoil as it reaches a critical turning point. At the eye of the storm are his three dogs, who all happen to be large breeds.

The dogs vie for his attention along with his girlfriend, boss, and mother ... but the one thing Joel really needs to do is properly mourn the death of his father. Will he have to give up his dogs in order to do so? Or is there something else he's holding onto?

Have you ever had to choose between your dogs and something else? Then you might just identify with this charming comedy.

For more information, check out the Letting Go Facebook page.

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Photographer Tou Chih-Kang Captures Dogs on Death Row

Taiwan, springtime. Outside, the world bursts into new life, but within the confines of a dark animal shelter, life pads quietly to its final destination.

En route to the euthanasia room, there's a visit with a man and a makeshift photo studio. With a classic portrait lighting setup, photographer Tou Chih-kang -- who works professionally as Tou Yun-fei -- works with a small dog. The dog has no home and will never have a home. The dog is just another statistic in a distressing pet overpopulation problem, and is scheduled to be destroyed. Though he has no name, he is allowed a final, immortalizing moment of dignity in front of Tou's camera.

Photographing the dog from various angles, Tou captures a hint of his soul -- a glance, a gaze, a certain tilt of the head -- and that's it. The dog is taken away for a final stroll around a grassy courtyard and is then put down, his last living moments caught like a ghost on the memory card in Tou's camera. Some of the dogs are young and clean -- obviously freshly abandoned -- while others are older and wilder, more accustomed to life on the streets than life in a home.

 

The photo is one of a series of thousands of images of death row dogs in Taiwan, which Tou hopes will bring awareness to the responsibility of pet ownership on the island. Every year thousands of pets are abandoned by naive pet owners who never realized the immense undertaking of bringing an animal home. With so many homeless dogs competing for resources, about 70 percent of all shelter strays are euthanized. Believing that the Taiwanese media does not give the issue enough attention, Tou set out to photograph the animals in their final, bleak moments. The results are images that are brutally honest and haunting, forcing us to contemplate our own mortality as we stare into the eyes of a creature who is one of very few species to form such a close and profound connection with us.

Beginning in August, a selection of Tou's work will be on display at the Fine Arts Museum in the southern Taiwanese city of Kaohsiung.

You know that feeling you've got rolling in your stomach right now? That eerie unease? That bit of anger? That sickness? These dogs' lives won't be in vain if you take that feeling and let it act as an impetus for change. Hug your dog extra tight, volunteer at a local shelter, and lead by example. Let the compassion flow toward your fellow humans, who are suffering as well. Make the world a better place for animals and people alike. That's how we all win.

Story via Yahoo! News, header image via Yun-Fei Tou's Facebook

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Lennox the Dog Seems Headed to His Death in Northern Ireland

Lennox, the nonviolent dog in Northern Ireland who committed the crime of looking like a Pit Bull, might be put to sleep in the coming hours, despite the efforts of an international campaign to spare the dog. Tonight (Tuesday) at midnight -- about 4 p.m. Pacific and 7 p.m. Eastern in the U.S. -- is the deadline for legal appeals.

Members of Lennox's family have made their peace. It's a ridiculous, heartbreaking situation, made all the more insane by the ineptitude of the Belfast City Council. In Northern Ireland, being a Pit Bull is death sentence, according to its Dangerous Dogs Act. But Lennox is actually an American Bulldog and Labrador cross, not a Pit Bull. The dog has even been DNA registered, and "DNA registry evinced no trace of Pit Bull in Lennox's ancestry," as Dogster reported last month. ("Will Lennox the Dog Be Just Another BSL Statistic?")

But don't tell that to the Belfast City Council Dog Wardens. They believe Lennox is a Pit Bull-type dog because they measured him with measuring tape, and the measurements of Lennox correspond with the measurement of a Pit Bull.  A measuring tape -- Belfast City Council Dog Wardens, on the cutting edge of Victorian-era dog research. 

The battle to save Lennox has become an international campaign since the dog was seized in 2010, picking up steam considerably in the past few weeks, with protests in New York and Ireland. On July 9, Northern Ireland First Minister Peter Robinson joined the fray, as reported by the BBC. He called for the animal to be spared, via Twitter. 

"Spoke to Lord Mayor about Lennox," the first minister tweeted. "Suggested BCC should seriously look at re-homing option. Why exercise the Order if there's an alternative?"

Junior Minister Jonathan Bell jumped in after, tweeting, "Have to say I agree with First Minister re-homing Lennox outside the jurisdiction is best. Why would courts or BCC not be content?"

The Belfast City Council released a statement Tuesday, stating that it remains convinced the dog is dangerous, despite Lennox never having bitten or harmed anyone in any way. 

"The council acknowledges the goodwill on the part of a significant number of people who would wish to have the dog Lennox spared from being humanely put to sleep," says the statement, reported by the BBC. "The council has a duty which it performs reluctantly in order to ensure public safety. Re-homing will not deal with the issues in this case -- the dog has been found to be unpredictable and dangerous by experts. That view is shared by the courts and the dog is now the subject of an order by the courts." Yesterday, Lennox's human family posted this message on the Save Lennox Campaign on Facebook. 

We would like to take this opportunity to thank you all again for your messages of support. We are sorry to say at the present time Belfast City Council seem to be intent on killing our boy. Despite previous assurances otherwise, we have been denied the opportunity to say goodbye. We have also been told that we cannot collect his body and bring Len home. We have been informed however that we will receive "some" ashes in the mail.

We wish we could report that there's still something someone can do, but it appears that time has run out. We're bracing ourselves for the heartbreaking, terrible end to this story that the Belfast City Council seems intent on, and we send our thoughts out to Lennox in his final moments. Please take a moment to do the same. 

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What Kind of Guy Punches a Toy Poodle to Death?

Among my circle of friends back on the grade-school playground, the way to characterize any bad person was to say that he or she probably kicked dogs. 

"That new music teacher is so mean -- she probably kicks dogs."

"My Little League coach! What a jerk -- I bet he kicks dogs."

In our imaginations, kicking dogs was the ultimate cruel act. But even kicking has a somewhat detached aspect about it. Feet, after all, are way down there at the far end of the body and usually clad in shoes. Our young minds could not have even imagined the otherworldly horror of people punching dogs with their bare fists.

Ted Shuttleworth. Photograph courtesy of Gawker.

Yet a former Hollywood scriptwriter was arrested last weekend on suspicion of doing exactly that.

Ted Shuttleworth, a former scriptwriter for the TV series NYPD Blue, was arrested in New York City on Saturday. Authorities believe Shuttleworth killed his Toy Poodle, Lola, by punching her in the face.

Shuttleworth is accused of punching the tiny 5-year-old dog "after being annoyed by her while at his home in Queens," according to CelebrityCafe.

As the New York Post put it:

"A 230-pound, washed-up TV screenwriter took out his anger on his four-and-a-half-pound poodle — punching the pooch in the face so hard that it died from a brain injury, police said."

Small poodle by Shutterstock.com

The alleged assault took place on May 29. 

Shuttleworth, 51, formerly worked for Steven Spielberg. His NYPD Blue gig was the type that any writer would envy, and he also wrote an episode of the series Cover Me: Based on the True Life of an FBI Family, according to IMDb. But Shuttleworth had fallen far down the status ladder lately, working as an administrative assistant at New York University and not writing scripts but reading other writers' scripts "for $300 a pop," according to the Post. 

After growing angry at the tiny dog that day, he is believe to have punched her in the face, sources say -- and then took her to a local veterinarian, "where her death raised suspicions. The hospital called the ASPCA, which took Lola’s remains for a necropsy."

Oddly, the former celebrity hobnobber who envisioned fictional scenarios involving New York City police was arrested a few days ago by the real NYPD.

He could face a year behind bars for the crime. 

“Lola sustained a traumatic brain injury secondary to the application of blunt force to the right side of her head at the hands of the suspect, her owner,” said ASPCA spokesman Joseph Pentangelo, as reported by the Post.

The alleged puncher's wife, Isadora Monk Shuttleworth, called it “a horrible accident," also according to the Post.

Hmm. An accident is when your hand knocks a pitcher off the shelf while you were trying to swat a mosquito. And conceivably you could punch someone in the face by accident -- say, if it was dark and you mistook the person for a burglar, or if the person leaped in front of your punching bag. But punching a dog square in the face by accident seems nearly impossible to do by accident.

Poor little Lola can't tell us her side of the story.

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Death, illnesses from salmonella, but no recall

August 2, 2011

You think the way the pet food industry and FDA handle pet food recalls stinks? Take a walk on the human side, where the Centers for Disease Control have been investigating ground turkey contaminated with salmonella that has caused one death and at least 76 illnesses in 26 states since March, and the government agency still hasn’t announced a recall nor identified the producer of the contaminated food.

From the Associated Press:

The illnesses date back to March, and the CDC said Monday that cultures of ground turkey from four retail locations between March 7 and June 27 showed salmonella contamination. The agency said preliminary information showed that three of the samples have been linked to the same production establishment but did not name the retailers or the manufacturers.

The Agriculture Department oversees meat safety and would be the agency to announce a recall. The department sent out an alert about the illnesses late last week telling consumers to properly cook their turkey, which can decrease the chances of salmonella poisoning. But the department has not given consumers any further warnings about the source of the tainted meat.

The USDA has not responded to requests for comment on why there has not been a recall. The CDC said it and the USDA were “vigorously working to identify the specific contaminated product or products that are causing illnesses and will update the public on the progress of this investigation as information becomes available.”

Food safety advocate Bill Marler, an attorney who has represented victims of the nation’s biggest food-borne illness outbreaks, said he believes the three positive samples should prompt a recall.

“Consumers have no idea what to do except not eat ground turkey,” he said.

Remember during the 2007 pet food recall when we kept saying, “If this was people food, you’d be doing a better job?” Not so much.

Read the whole story here.

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Panicked Dog Dies Terrible Death on Airplane

I’ve written about dogs who die on planes because of mishandling or misrouting or excessively high or low temperatures. But I’ve never heard of anything like what happened on an Air Canada flight Wednesday.

It appears a panicked dog died trying to free himself from his travel crate. (I will use the masculine here even though news reports just say “it.”) At the end of a flight from Toronto to Calgary, crew members unloading the cargo hold were horrified when that they went to unload the dog. The dog had lost his teeth while trying to escape the crate, vomited, and had died during he four-hour flight, according to the Calgary Sun.

“Everyone was completely heartbroken … our employees are animal lovers and owners and they always take the utmost care in transporting animals,” Air Canada spokewoman Angela Mah told the Sun. She said the airline is arranging for an autopsy, and is talking compensation with the owners.

Poor, poor dog… If I hadn’t already vowed never to put Jake on a plane, this would do the trick. Dogsters: How about you? (The commenter “flyer” below did make a good point: If you’re moving and flying is the only way your dog can be with you, then of course it’s far better to fly her out than leave her behind.)

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Before You Go To Heaven: Helping Terminally Ill Dogs on Death Row

Annie, who finally lived

Two weeks ago we ran a poignant, inspirational guest blog by Ashley Owen Hill, of Lucky Dog Rescue. We’re back again with another powerful post from her.

Maria Goodavage

____________________________________

I was asked to share the story about what I do for special case dogs on death row in shelters. I do realize that this might not be the most popular idea with all of you, but I’m hoping that maybe it will inspire someone to do the same. If you ever have the chance to do this, it will change your life.

When there are terminally ill dogs on death row, I’ve made the decision to do something very special for them. Because treating these dogs for their conditions would cause them immense suffering, I choose not to treat them. However, I also choose not to leave them in the shelter to be killed. In short, I bring them into my home for a few days. I adopt them into my heart. I love them with all that I have. And then I do what’s best for them, and let them go.

Annie had never known happiness. She had been beaten, neglected, and starved all of her life, and then she was dumped at a shelter to die. Annie waited on death row, terrified and lonely, crying every night for someone to help her. She was very ill, and the pound asked if I was willing to take her. Yep, I’m on my way.

When I saw Annie, it was obvious that she was very sick. She was underweight, coughing, and having trouble breathing, in addition to skin and eye issues. The vet told me that Annie had advanced heartworm disease, congestive heart failure, and several other severe medical conditions. It was highly unlikely that she would pull through any of the treatments, and she would suffer tremendously throughout the process. The vet asked me if I wanted to go ahead with euthanasia. “No. I’ll bring her back next week. Before she goes to Heaven, she needs to know love.”

That day, I brought Annie home with me. I looked at her — so broken, so sickly, so unsure of whether she could trust — and I cried. I sobbed uncontrollably for Annie. Over the sad life she had led, the abuse she had endured, and now the life she would never have, thanks to the worthless people who never cared for her. And while I was bawling like a baby, Annie walked over and licked my tears, as if to say, “Don’t be sad. It’ll be okay.” This precious, wounded soul was comforting me. This girl, who had never known compassion in her life, was consoling me.

Annie with Ashley

And so, I got up, stopped my crying, and vowed to give her the best week of her entire life. No more crying. Not around Annie. She deserves to know only happiness now.

That week, Annie slept in the bed with me. She ate the best food. She played as much as her little heart could stand. She laid next to me on the couch for belly rubs. She laughed at funny movies with me. That week, Annie was home, for the first time in her life.

Every day, Annie and I sat on my special bench by Rudy’s grave and talked to him. I told Rudy that he would have a new friend in Heaven soon, and asked him to take care of her. I told Rudy all about Annie, and Annie all about Rudy. Annie loved our talks with Rudy. She loved anything that involved love. She’d never had it before.

When Annie got so weak that it was painful for her to live, I took her to the vet to end her suffering. I stayed with her, comforted her, and Annie wasn’t afraid. She was happy because I was there with her. Her mom was by her side — the only family she had ever known. The only person who had ever truly loved her. She felt safe.

Annie knew it was time — it hurt too much to go on. And I was there to hold her, to love her, to say, “It’s okay. You can go now, baby girl.” And as they stuck her with the needle, I whispered into her ear, “Know that I loved you. Know that you mattered. Know that you finally belonged to someone — you were everything to me. You will never really be gone, because you will live forever in my heart. Thank you for sharing your last days with me. It was truly an honor to love you.”

As the drugs entered Annie’s veins, she looked up at me one last time, and her eyes said, “Thank you. I love you.” And before she closed her eyes forever, I said: “When you get to Heaven, ask for Rudy. Tell him I sent you.”

And then, she was gone. I buried Annie in my backyard next to Rudy. She died on September 14, 2010.

But the week before her death, she finally lived.

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Dog Mauled to Death at Boarding Facility

Annabelle, the poor five-pound dog in this video, was mauled to death by two 20-pound beagles at a doggy daycare center. Her owners say they didn’t know she was going to get play time with other smallish dogs, but the boarding facility owners say it’s right there on the paperwork. In fact, it’s a feature a lot of dog owners probably love.

Annabelle

It’s a tragedy any way you slice it. A dog died a horrific death, her family — already having a hard time because of some life events– is bereft, and the dog facility owners aren’t exactly jumping for joy about the event or what it may mean for their business.

When you spend the money for a doggy daycare or boarding facility, you expect to be able to pick up a healthy, happy dog at the end of her stay. What happened to Annabelle was a freak incident, but was it preventable? With some homework on her owners’ part (if they didn’t want her playing with other dogs, they could have found out that this was part of the deal there, and requested otherwise), and much more vigilance on the facility owners’ part, the answer is yes. But really, who would have ever expected something to go so terribly awry? Her owners clearly care deeply for her, and would never have dreamed she was going to her death when they delivered her the day before.

What can you do to make sure your dog is safe and happy if she stays at one of these facilities while you’re at work or on vacation?

• Get recommendations from others with dogs like yours. If Annabelle’s other small and delicate friends had stayed there, her owners may have known that playtime was part of the program, and requested her to just have contact with humans.

• Ask about the ratio of dogs to workers supervising playtime. Situations with lots of dogs in a small area can go from normal to scary in a matter of seconds, even if the workers think they know the personalities of all the dogs. Having many eyes and hands available can nip problems in the bud before they escalate.

• Check out a facility’s reviews on places like Yelp, and ask for general recommendations around your dog community. And be sure to inspect the place yourself, and know exactly what goes on during your dog’s day there. You don’t have to sign on the dotted line for everything. If you prefer your dog not have group playtime, that can be accommodated most of the time. (Although you may have to pay for extra one-on-one time with a human.)

• If the facility has web cam service available, take advantage of it. You’ll be able to see what your dog is up to, and how she’s faring, whenever you go to “her website.” If she’s looking droopy or scared, you can call the facility to see if you can make her stay better for her.

Do you have any other suggestions, Dogsters?

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Palliative care: Embracing the idea of a good death

I seem to be working with a theme here after my last post, but  I believe that end-of-life, palliative care, and hospice  are such important concepts and techniques for veterinarians, veterinary health-care team members and pet-owners to embrace.

I had a deeply personal encounter with all of this in May of this year. In spite of nearly seven years of preparation for my mother’s death, knowing that she would ultimately succumb to the ravages of ovarian cancer, it still came as a shock when it was her time to enter into hospice care in the final days of her life.

My mother had never been a patient of a physician here in Northern Colorado during her journey with cancer.  Her medical oncologist has his practice many miles away, and she “commuted” between Colorado and his practice during her illness.  She was committed to remaining his patient as he had demonstrated his commitment to helping her achieve her goal of long-term survival in spite of disseminated ovarian carcinoma.  When the time came for her to enter hospice, I worried that having her previous oncology care so far away might be a barrier to her receiving her end-of-life care close to my home.  My mother’s greatest fear as she faced her final days was that she would experience unrelenting pain.  As a pain-management expert who just happens to be a veterinarian, my greatest fear was that I would not be taken seriously by the physicians involved in her care as I advocated on her behalf.

I can never adequately express my relief and gratitude that my worries were unwarranted.

Once it was clear that my mother needed an interventional approach to hospice, I began a dialog with the medical director of the hospital-based hospice.  It was important to me to establish open communication about my involvement in my mother’s care as she approached her death.  It was her request that I be actively involved to help mitigate her pain, discomfort, and distress and to act as her medical advocate.  The medical director could not have been more supportive of my assuming that role on my mother’s behalf.

My mother entered hospice on a Tuesday and she died peacefully, quietly, and free of pain 11 days later.  During that time, I and my family had the privilege to witness the incredible team of hospice workers –  nurses, CNA’s, social workers, chaplains –  weave their comprehensive “quilt of caring” with which they surrounded my mother.  At every step of her process, my mother reaped the benefit of their many years of collective experience.  I was welcomed to participate in every aspect of my mother’s day-to-day care.  For this I shall remain forever grateful.  In addition, at each stage of my mother’s escalating pain and discomfort, I was “heard” in my requests for a matching increase in her pain management strategy.  Working together, all of us empowered my mother to achieve the balance of adequate comfort with mental clarity – - a balance that was critically important to her.

What an inspiration this experience was for me as a provider of advanced pain management, palliative care and hospice to animal patients.  It was heart-breaking to lose my mother.  But it was a blessing to participate in her final journey here on earth.  It gave me new perspective to imagine how it can be for our animal companions whose curative care is behind them but whose lives truly are not yet over.  Intercepting and defeating escalating pain for my dying mother, particularly once she lost the ability to communicate by speaking, makes me fearless in my pursuit of advocacy on behalf of those beings we in veterinary medicine serve –  advocacy on behalf of beings who cannot advocate for themselves.

This experience, unlike any other so far in my life, fuels my passion for outreach –  to veterinarians, to veterinary technicians, to students, and to pet owners – - to educate about what is possible in the face of the inevitable.  We have so much to learn, but examples are out there for us to follow.

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