Cheeseburgers for Ellie

Monday started out like any other day. I hopped on the computer, knocked out emails, worked on some editing, headed to the barn, then met up with a lovely pup to do a DNA test for his breed reveal. Out of nowhere on the drive home I thought to myself that it had been one year and one day since we lost our last dog, Fletcher. I had the gall to think to myself “maybe the streak is over” and we’ll get a little bit of a break from the Rainbow Bridge. Losing four in 24 months was rough.

When I got home there was blood and vomit everywhere. I checked the cameras to figure out who it was and rushed Ellie to the vet where they bolused IV fluids. X-rays didn’t show any significant abnormalities. Her chest was clear, there were no blockages. They sent her home with some meds, but the blood didn’t stop. At 11pm she got an injection of Cerenia and finally she relaxed. We bundled her up on a pile of beds in our room for the night and took her back to the clinic in the morning. Then her white blood cells and albumin came back elevated. The vets did an ultrasound in advance of exploratory surgery and found it. A mass in her bowel, enlarged stomach lining, and an affected lymph node.

She was supposed to turn 10 in two months. We raised her from a freckle-bellied pup and she was the HBIC of our pack. Her resting bitch face was second to none, but she had a heart of gold. She loved sunbathing and LIVED for food. We always said she was too smart for her own good. You could see the wheels turning in her head calculating her next move. When we’d take the dogs to the lake to swim, she would chase after the toy once or twice before hanging back on the shore, waiting for the others to rush out to get it. Then when they were within feet of winning the race to bring the toy back to us, Ellie would pounce on their head, push them under the water, and snatch the toy triumphantly.

The weekend before we lost her we took Ellie and Valor shopping at Lowes. I told her we’d get cheeseburgers on the way home, but so many people wanted to stop and love on her at the store that by the time we headed home it was later than expected and we had other things to get done. I told Adam to skip the burgers, we’d get them another time.

Yesterday we sat in the sun for a few minutes and tried to feed her a double cheeseburger, but it was too late. She felt too sick and didn’t want to eat it.

Please don’t skip the burgers. We had no idea this was coming and I wish so badly I could rewind just one week and stop for the dang burgers. Give your dog an extra treat today for Ellie and don’t take the moment for granted.

Ellie

Ellie Belly

Smelly Ellie

We will always love you. I hope there are endless cheeseburgers in Heaven.