GABIT attendees thread

[Chelle DB]

well, this has been a very dark, sad day for me. my dog Mocha, had a sudden onset of illness yesterday and they found his liver enlarged and stomach displaced on x-ray. tried some meds at home but was up all night with him as he panted and puked and had diarrhea all night long. took him back this am and he died at 10:15am
my heart is breaking. i miss my friend so much. keep expecting to see his nose in my face looking for a treat, or to see him outside on the side of the house with belly up as neighborhood kids rub his belly. i miss my little boy.

Huge huge hugs to you Mocha...so sorry for the loss of your beloved Mocha. xo

[clairec007]

Sorry to hear of your loss Mocha

[EH-T]

Sending you loving hugs Mocha.

[SWMBOTGSG]

Warm Mumsey Huggles, Mocha.

[Nolamom]

The sudden loss of those dear to our hearts leaves such a hole. It doesn't matter if they have two legs or four. Hoping you find comfort in your time of sorrow.

[lame moose (mocha)]

thanks everyone for the moral support. it's been really hard for us. did not plan to get another dog-mom's too old to help train and i'm not very mobile, but my family is trying to talk us into getting another dog. they know how attached i get. so mom and i have some talking and thinking to do. my sis-in-law even offered to keep the dog till it was potty trained. she's really great. so, there is a hope for us. otherwise, i don't know how to live without a dog. even when i went away to college, i latched on to a dog in the neighborhood and spent a lot of time playing with him. i do better with dogs than people. it's that unconditional love that they have. wish people could be more like dogs, except for the butt sniffing. thanks again.

[MidwifeOnBoard]

thanks everyone for the moral support. it's been really hard for us. did not plan to get another dog-mom's too old to help train and i'm not very mobile, but my family is trying to talk us into getting another dog. they know how attached i get. so mom and i have some talking and thinking to do. my sis-in-law even offered to keep the dog till it was potty trained. she's really great. so, there is a hope for us. otherwise, i don't know how to live without a dog. even when i went away to college, i latched on to a dog in the neighborhood and spent a lot of time playing with him. i do better with dogs than people. it's that unconditional love that they have. wish people could be more like dogs, except for the butt sniffing. thanks again.

Consider rescuing an adult dog. I know many people who have done that, it's a wonderful thing. Many of them are already housebroken and trained to some (or many!) commands. Hugs to you again,

[llp]

Consider rescuing an adult dog. I know many people who have done that, it's a wonderful thing. Many of them are already housebroken and trained to some (or many!) commands. Hugs to you again,

Excellent idea especially if you get a mixed breed - they tend to live longer and have less problems. It doesn't have to be 6 or 7 years old. Even one that is around 3 or so. They make wonderful pets, are usually house broken - the shelter will let you know - and by rescueing them and giving them a loving home you have guaranteed a most fantastic friend. These dogs seem to realized what you have done and will be forever lovingly thankful.

[Chelle DB]

All this talk about dogs makes me sad when I think of the two dogs that one of the councils had destroyed the other day because they "looked" like they might have pit bull in them - the owners say they are a Mastiff x breed and even tho the dogs had done nothing wrong they were destroyed because of the way they looked - I really really hate the new laws our state government has implemented to eradicate pit bulls.
My son wants to get a Beagle after they found one in the bush last weekend...it had a tracking device on it's back as it's owner had abandoned it after a hunting trip - stupid owner went back to town to the pub & left the poor dog in the bush. Tom said the little pup was hungry & cold so he was reluctant to give him back....some people should not be allowed to own animals.
My dog Bill is my baby - even with his health issues, I'd do anything for him to keep him happy & safe.

[lame moose (mocha)]

Mocha was a rescue dog. i just really miss the puppy times of the dogs life. but we still need to figure all the pros and cons of getting another one. i think a puppy would be too hard for us right now, but need to think. i would really just like to have my Mocha back, i miss him.

[Cagranosalis]

Big hugs for your loss Mocha.

[NZNeep]

Chelle, any dog that can dent the truck when he wags his tail isn't really your baby Maybe your toddler.

[lame moose (mocha)]

with encouragement from my brother and sis-in-law and the vet , mom and i have decided to adopt another doggie. face it- we are dog people and neither of us wants to go into the house because it seems so dead in there without a crazy animal running around and shaking his toys and acting crazy, which our Mocha was good at. we've never been without a dog for more than 3 days and are going thru withdrawal. now, to find the right dog. can't do a puppy(unfortunately) but don't want one that is a senior because we don't want to have to go thru this again for a very long time-like ever. vet recommends a 2-3 yr. old. rescue research-here i come. i feel better knowing that we are getting another dog but still miss my little boy so much. continuing to mourn his loss.

[Trindajae]

I got my cat Rory about a month after Vala died. I could tell my other cat felt off-balance with just the two of us in the house, especially with me working long shifts and Alex bored by himself all day. It was a really good decision. I know the kitten/puppy stage is a lot of fun, but I've never regretted adopting only adult animals. (My stress load is just too high at this point to really want to add a baby/toddler of any species to the mix.)

One thing I might suggest you consider if you find yourself pining for a puppy (while too sane to think you should get one right now) is that you might look into volunteering with a local shelter. That's how I got my animal fix when I couldn't afford to have one. I thought it would be stressful because I would feel bad for the homeless animals, but it was actually very fulfilling. I could spend time soothing the stressed out doggies, which helped me to relax, too.

[llp]

I got my cat Rory about a month after Vala died. I could tell my other cat felt off-balance with just the two of us in the house, especially with me working long shifts and Alex bored by himself all day. It was a really good decision. I know the kitten/puppy stage is a lot of fun, but I've never regretted adopting only adult animals. (My stress load is just too high at this point to really want to add a baby/toddler of any species to the mix.)

One thing I might suggest you consider if you find yourself pining for a puppy (while too sane to think you should get one right now) is that you might look into volunteering with a local shelter. That's how I got my animal fix when I couldn't afford to have one. I thought it would be stressful because I would feel bad for the homeless animals, but it was actually very fulfilling. I could spend time soothing the stressed out doggies, which helped me to relax, too.

Trin - what are you going to do with your cats while you go to England for your degree?