Mollie Has Passed On

About ten days ago, Mollie passed on.  She had been failing for some time, and we were very aware of her age of fourteen years.  She was wandering aimlessly, bumping into walls and heading into corners.  Her appetite had declined so we coaxed her into eating by feeding canned salmon or tuna.  Sage, our newer dog, ate what Mollie didn’t, so was gaining weight.  Mollie also didn’t like to go out for walks any more, so Sage didn’t get as many either.  Plus I had injured my sternum  7 weeks ago, and was limited in walking the dogs.  Mollie didn’t mind; she mostly slept.  I read Deb’s book Caring for an Older Dog and tried to be compassionate.  It reminded me of several of my friends who are caring for aged parents.  On Saturday Nov. 2, Deb was off work and I headed up to Red Deer for a church conference.  Deb saw the behaviour that was worrying me, as Friday I noticed further deterioration in Mollie’s behaviour.  However, she is Deb’s dog, so needed to be present with her to assess her conditon.  In the afternoon Deb took Mollie to Fish Creek Animal Hospital, carrying her in a slinged towel.  The vet ran some tests, and concluded that she likely had a brain tumour.  So Deb decided to help Mollie into the light, and stayed with her until she passed.   When I arrived back from my church conference Deb was home shortly after, an empty collar and leash in her hand. We miss her.  She was a good dog.  She was an excellent mother.  She is with her children now, up in Doggie Heaven.  That’s the best way for us to cope with her loss.  Meanwhile, Sage has been sniffing where Mollie was.  We take her for walks, and can go further than we did with Mollie.  Rest in Peace, dear dog.

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