My Best Friend!

Yesterday I picked up Ruger's ashes.  And now that I have picked them up I can't seem to think about burying them.  Having them makes me feel like he is close to me, I know that sounds really weird but it is how I feel.  Our house has seemed empty since we lost him and I miss him so much.  It is amazing how the void of one spirit can really affect the feel of a home.
Per my previous post Ruger was diagnosed with Lymphoma but we had hope that we could have him longer with the use of steroids.  We were lucky to have him for a couple more months before the cancer had taken his whole body.  He started not eating well again and he stopped sleeping in our room where he always had slept, and when he would sleep he would breath really face and shallow.  He also stated to have more pain even though he would hid it well, (my Buger-Man always smiled). The day before we put him down I discovered some sores on his back where the hair and skin just started to sluffed off exposing these horrible sores and I came to the realization that it was time and no matter how hard it would be for me to not have him that it wasn't fair to let him suffer and waste away.
I really felt it important that I wanted to be there with him so the last thing that he remembered was me and not a stranger and upon arriving at the vet, Dr Bingham took one look and Ruger and said that the sores were from the Lymphoma and that his liver was enlarged and said if we took a X-Ray of his chest it probably would be covered with cancer.  It was time!  The process was very quick and painless for Ruger, however not for me and Monroe.  We where blubbering babies, he and Mesa were our first kids.
Mesa has done better than I thought she would she has connected more to me and the kids, which I am so relieved.  Another dog is in our future but not for a while, I don't want to get a puppy this summer with us leaving for vacations.  And I think that we are still morning our Buger-Man.

OH HOW I MISS YOU RUGER!
(?-JUNE 11, 2012)

Chicks, Chicks, and more Chicks!

We decided that it would be a fun and educational experience for our family if we added chickens to our pet list.  We have friends that have had chickens for at least a year and they have enjoyed the egg that the get from the chickens.  As many of you know that I love animals and always enjoy an opportunity to welcome more into our home.  We got 7 chicks, they are so cute, fun, and the  kids and even my dogs are constantly checking on them.  For now they are in the garage but I know that they are going to grow fast and will move to a dog kennel outside that we already have set up for them.

The kids have named them Cupcake, Dora (obviously Madelyn's chicken), Spike, Cheetah (obviously Mason's chickens), and KFC (obviously Monroe's Chicken.  Other than than the other 3 remain nameless, I am sure more names will surface as time goes on and we learn more about our chickens.  For now they are lost of fun and are eating lots and lots of feed.  Maybe they will lay eggs faster!

Buger-Man (AKA Ruger)

About three weeks ago our dog Ruger started to go down hill, he stopped eating and started swelling up in his neck area so I took him into the vet.  The vet took one look and him and said he probably has Lymphoma (cancer in the lymph nodes).  After taking a biopsy of his lymph node and testing it he said that it was defiantly cancer.  Of course we were all devastated and we started to look at the best option for our Buger-Man with the least amount of suffering.  The vet said that the best option for him was to put him on Prednisone a steroid that often causes the swelling to go down, for his appetite to increase, and to give him a few more months of quality life.  We decided that was the best option for us and within 12 hours Ruger was back to his old self.  I mean literally he is 12 years old and likes to lay around, eat, and gets lots of love. 

(Ruger Likes to Sleep in Weird Positions)

So far Ruger is doing really well and we feel very thankful to have him for a while longer.  I just hope that I can make the right decision when it is time for him to go on.  Ruger has been part of our family for almost nine years and was our first baby.  We got him and Mesa from the Humane Society of the Palouse where I worked while Monroe and I went to school in Moscow.  We all four lived in a little apartment and spent much time going to the dog park and walks in the nearby hills.  He has fit into our family so well and Mason and Madelyn love him so much.

Mesa our other dog and Ruger are inseparable and worry the affect on Mesa when it is Ruger time.  We have decided that another dog is in our future to help all of us morn Ruger.  But for now we are so thankful to have had him in our family and count the days that he remains with us.

(Mesa)