"Razor" b. 4/18/06 d. 11/10/07

Razor lost his battle last Saturday to bone cancer. It had spread to his lungs fairly quickly. We don't know a lot of details, as we decided not to put him through any further testing, x-rays, or otherwise unnecessary treatment since bone cancer is such a death sentence anyway. We kept his pain level tolerable as best as possible...

Maybe 3 weeks ago, he started an occasional cough. It became more frequent very gradually, but overall he seemed happy and still wagged his tail and loved being with us (typical Lab). That was all that mattered. We continued to work on his pain level, though, as the tumor in his hip had swollen to an obviously uncomfortable size. We kept him on Prednisone throughout, and just in his last week had started him on a pain killer, Tramadol.

On Thursday the 8th, I noticed his breathing becoming more difficult, and I called Dr. Bowman Friday to see if we could do anything to help him be more comfortable. He suggested a fluid pill but couldn't give any promises that it could work, with a maximum prognosis of 2 more weeks to live. I decided the drug wasn't worth the effort. I was upset but started to process this thought Friday afternoon. I got home first, and Jason was late for running errands. Around 5 p.m., Razor started a coughing fit and coughed up a lot of blood with some sort of tissue. I remained calm but realized his end was very near. After he got home, Jason and I started discussing plans for euthanasia the following day, Saturday. We loved on Razor all night and gave him what would be his last rawhide bone. He so enjoyed it!

Razor had a great night. He woke us up just before 7 a.m. coughing and hardly ever stopped. He continued coughing up some more blood. I called the vet clinic to make sure they could accommodate us, and we waited on Jason's parents to come pay their respects (they had done some dog sitting for us). His breathing became very difficult and it was very painful to watch. I felt guilty that he had gotten to that point of suffering, but I was grateful for the timing that it was Saturday, not a Sunday when the regular clinic is closed, or overnight, or while we were at work. So, his suffering was relatively short. Razor went to Doggie Heaven just after 10 a.m. The vet (not his regular vet who did his surgery) and the tech we saw were very kind and acknowledged we should not have waited a minute longer to bring him. It is truly a gift we can give our pets--to humanely end their suffering. The tech (who helped with his luxating patella surgery) expressed that he was 1 of her favorite dogs to work on, and that now he has 4 perfect legs and is chasing balls! I told her that yes, he might be, but is definitely chewing on sticks too--1 of his favorite outdoor activities. :)

We buried him beside Phoebe, who we lost a couple of years ago to a truck on US Hwy 340. I sure miss them both. Phoebe's death was very sudden at her young age of 2. That was a very difficult loss for us. We feel particularly cheated, as well, with Razor's illness that he succumbed to at just under 19 months old. He was so kindhearted without a mean streak in his poor sick body at all. I ask, don't the mean animals seem to live forever?

While we are angry at God for cutting our time with Razor so short, I remain thankful that he could be with us while he could and that we could love him and care for him the best we knew how. I also trust God's timing. Our little one is expected within a couple of months. I pray and trust that this was God's way of taking 1 more worry or burden from our plates in time for the biggest life change and commitment--welcoming a child into our home.

Indy, our Border Collie X, is doing well. He is getting extra attention from us now of course. For several days he acted different. That was difficult to see. The primary behavior was that he still looked for Razor in his crate where his crate was set up in the foyer. So far he is doing fine, though. We told him that he is an "only child" for just several more week now! It seems very quiet in the house now without Razor, but I know that is all about to change very soon!

We sure miss you, buddy! We will see you again... 1 day...

Stay tuned for more pictures of him I hope to post.