My Fair Lady: A Short Story - Love For Our Dog

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Lady was found wandering the streets by the Humane Society without tags or a micro-chip. She was rescued by a military family who kept her for about 5 months until the husband received orders that he was being transferred from Hawaii to a base on the mainland. Lady was put on Craig’s list by this family in hopes of finding her a good home. Despite all efforts to find someone, they had no luck finding anyone to take her. The family then made one last ditch effort, to have her adopted with a strong plea, to save her from being put to sleep. After seeing her ad on Craig’s list, I told my daughter we had to save her.

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“Perhaps the greatest gift an animal has to offer
is a permanent reminder of who we really are.”
— Nick Trout

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So we adopted lady from this family at the age of 5 ½ years old. She seemed skittish at first and it took some time for her to warm up to us. She had a major fear of men, so we assumed she had suffered abuse by a male at some point in her early life. Eventually she began to gain more trust in us and showed a lot more affection. Lady is now 15 years old and the love of our life. She is part of the family, always faithfully there when we were sick, when we lost family members, & when we were dealing with major stresses in our lives.

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The love for an animal can be so deep that you hurt when they hurt, you cry when they are sick, you fret when they seem lethargic and you get devastated when you hear news that your dog has lymphoma cancer cells in her lab results. Your first reaction is a massive shock reaction that sends you in a tail spin, making you useless to those around you. Your mind fails you because you just sit there in total disbelief. You are numb, you breathe more rapidly, you get that queasy feeling in the pit of your stomach, and you feel that your world has come crashing down around you.

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"Until one has loved an animal,
a part of one's soul remains unawakened." - Anatole France

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Eventually the realities of the situation come rushing in, so unbelievable that you literally go into a deep feeling of despair. The despair can only be described as a feeling of pending loss of a dear friend and family member. It becomes harder to look at your dog while she lays there with her eyes connecting to yours, wondering why you’re so sad. Just the thought that she might not be there with you and your family to celebrate her umpteen Christmas becomes a knife stab right into your heart. You get sadder and more depressed.

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You cope by writing one post after another in an effort to release all the pent up emotional feelings you are feeling. At the back of your mind you know you have to deal with the reality of a devastating loss but it’s hard to face it. You write more, hoping to alleviate the sorrow.

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"Animals are reliable, many full of love, true in their affections,
predictable in their actions, grateful and loyal.
Difficult standards for people to live up to."
― Alfred A. Montapert

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Many people would say she’s only a dog so why waste your money on vet bills. I would say that unless you have experienced a love so deep for another person or animal, you will never know the true value of loving and being loved. Life is precious and love is our capacity to feel, to care, to give, to cherish, to connect to another person or living thing. It is what makes life rich and precious. It gives us purpose and meaning. It gives us more connection to our inner being. And most importantly, it makes us real not plastic.

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"Animals are the bridge between us and the beauty of all that is natural.
They show us what's missing in our lives, and how to love ourselves
more completely and unconditionally.
They connect us back to who we are, and
to the purpose of why we're here."
― Trisha McCagh

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Lady’s vet informs my daughter and me that it would be best to have our dog evaluated by the only oncology specialist in Hawaii. We call, but because of the great demand for this doctor’s service, we have to wait over a week to see the veterinarian. The wait is unbearably long and painful. Days go by slowly and we actually start mourning our dog’s decline. We spend more time with her and give her, her special treats. We hug her and caress her whenever we can. We begin to try to accept that her days are numbered.

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We finally take her to the oncologist specialist and are told that there are two types of lymphoma outcomes. One is a slow growing one and the other one is rapid with the dog living for 5-7 months. She tells us that in order to determine which type of lymphoma she has, they have to do x-rays, blood tests and take samples from the lymph sites. The cost would be $1,800. We had no choice but to tell the vet to go ahead with it.

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"If having a soul means being able to feel love and loyalty and gratitude,
then animals are better off than a lot of humans."
―James Herriot

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The vet informed us that we would have to wait for the test results which would take time, because the tissue samples would have to be air flown specially to a lab in Colorado. This would be another agonizing wait for us. We are held in suspension again. After a while, we get that dreaded phone call. My daughter takes it because I’m unable to take the call. I don’t want to be in the room when she hears the news. Another painful moment of waiting.

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“A dog is the only thing on earth that loves you more than he loves himself.”
—Josh Billings

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Then my daughter enters the room and I couldn’t tell what the outcome was. She explained that Lady’s test result showed that it was the less aggressive cancer and we could put her on an oral chemotherapy drug. Through the fog I remember slowly realizing that we would have Lady with us for a longer period of time than expected. I almost cried in relief. The chemotherapy would be expensive but to have our special dog for a bit longer would be worth it. The feeling of relief was so enormous I was literally in a state of tears.

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“Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole.”
—Roger Caras

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So for all of you who have ever loved someone, especially an animal, I say that you are very special people who have the capacity to go beyond yourself. You are caring, loving, deeply in tuned to others and have a great capacity to give.

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"The love for all living creatures is the most noble attribute of man."
-Charles Darwin

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Just to let you know, we just found out this great news earlier today. I decided to make this post for Lady, our beloved dog, and to find a much needed way to release my pent up anxiety I’ve held for two weeks. I know most people will never read this story but it does give me the ability to release all the turmoil I was going through.

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“A dog is the only thing on earth that loves you more than he loves himself.”
—Josh Billings

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If you read this post, I thank-you from the bottom of my heart for doing so. Our Lady is very special to my daughter and me and I’m so glad we will have her for another year or two. Again thank-you!

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All photos were self taken.