Enough is Enough

Ideally we would like our pets to die peacefully in their sleep instead of making a difficult and painful decision. However, rarely does this occur when a pet is suffering from an illness such as lymphoma. We believe Stoli is trying to tell us he has had enough. He still tries to please US but HE isn’t happy. I don’t hate many things in this life but I HATE this. I hate that we have to make this decision even though it is the right one.

Overnight, Stoli has had some issues come up that has made it impossible for him to be comfortable. The lymph nodes in his neck are HUGE (almost grapefruit size) and it is hard for him to breathe. The lymph nodes in his legs are the size of golf balls which makes it hard for him to walk, although he does his very best to get in that walk he loves so much. :) He also developed a nasty rash around his groin area and some new “tumor” like bumps on his back. :( The vet thinks he is definitely in his last days and thinks we should make the call now rather than waiting for his body to shut down on his own. Remember when we first posted about Stoli’s illness, it was always our intention to do what was best for Stoli and not us, including THIS decision.

There is an old adage that if you really love something, you will let it go. This is pretty much the decision we are facing with Stoli. The inevitable is upon us and we have recognized that Stoli is under a lot of distress but is still trying to make us happy. While we can’t bear to think of losing him, we aren’t selfish either.

This week is going to be hard as we say our final goodbyes to Stoli. You betcha we are going to spoil the ever loving snot out of this Champion of a dog. In the meantime, I ask that you all pray for our emotional strength because IT ISN’T GOING TO BE EASY! :(

~ Elizabeth