Before I could start blogging, I had to create a new header and change Anna's picture for Mehmet. Crap, that was hard! Now she has her own spot on the sidebar.
I loved my childhood pets and I love my current puppies but there was something special about Anna. She had such a gentle soul. She didn't need constant attention but always kept her eye on me. When I was upset or crying, she was the first to notice and would come to my side and just look at me with those eyes.
Polly & Anna came to me as a package deal 9 years ago and literally changed my life. When they both came home with me as puppies, they had a bad case of kennel cough which a vet originally mistook as Anna having Parvo and told me then she might not live long. It was an emotional and an expensive start to our fabulous life together! Given her original prognosis, I guess I should be happy we had almost 9 years together -- but it was just too short.
A year or so ago after coming back from a teeth cleaning procedure, Anna's IV spot was slow to heal. And then we noticed that months after her summer haircut, her bountiful curls never grew back. It was then that the Vet diagnosed her with Cushing's Disease. We spent the next year battling it and trying treatment and watching her get thinner and thinner. Unfortunately she just didn't respond to the treatments that normally work for canine Cushing's disease. But even when battling it, she still maintained a zest for life and a love to walk. Right up until the day she spiraled downward. A day before my birthday this year, I had to make the hardest decision of my life and we said good-bye to her.
I'll never know if the disease and maybe a pituitary tumor had taken over or if we had slowly poisoned her with the last treatment dose - and that really kills me. But I can't go back and change or fix anything and so I just focus on the good times, the memories and all the love she gave me.
There is such an empty hole without her - wow! Thank GOD for Polly and Mehmet. I have no idea how I would have made it through those first few weeks if I didn't have two other furry family members to cuddle with and giggle at. I still feel like she's with us when we're walking in the park. She was a great dog - great companion and is greatly missed. I couldn't resurrect this blog without her remaining an important part of it.
Love you, Annabella!! xoxo
