Tribute to a Noble, Loving Soul

TRIBUTE TO A NOBLE, LOVING SOUL


Our dear sweet boy Wally crossed Rainbow Bridge on Thursday, August 19, 2010. Our hearts are completely shattered as Wally was such an integral and loving part of our family. We are struggling to understand why this had to happen and how we go on without him. I have never met another pug like him and I am sure I never will.

Wally was rescued on December 27, 2007 after being taken from horrid conditions. He was brought to the San Jose City Shelter along with a number of other pugs that had been tortured by the same backyard breeder. Once Gena Austin from Pug Pros heard of the dire situation, she immediately found foster homes for all the babies including our Wally. Wally was lovingly fostered by Rex Winchester and Tony Tiu who are no strangers to Pug Pros. As a matter of fact, at that point in time, every pug that Rex and Tony had fostered had become a part of their permanent family. Rex and Tony showered so much love and affection on this poor baby in his fragile state. When Wally was rescued, he was completely deaf, blind and afraid of people. His teeth were rotted and he was terribly malnourished. When he was rescued, it was believed that Wally was a senior dog between 9 and 11 years because he looked so bad. However, once he was cared for and loved, it became apparent that Wally was probably only about 5 or 6 years old. Wally experienced such love in Rex and Tony’s home and I know it was a heartbreaking decision for them to have Wally adopted. We thank God every day that they made that decision because it changed our lives forever.

My partner Nilo and I met Wally for the first at Rex and Tony’s home in February 2008 after he had been there several weeks. It was immediate love at first sight for us. Wally sat on my lap the whole time I was there and I was hooked. I had never met a more loving, sweet baby in my life. All he wanted to do was nuzzle, kiss and cuddle. He did not want to get down. It was clear that he had been starved for affection throughout his life and he was eating up every bit of it. We were hooked then and there and knew we wanted Wally to join our family with our other baby Niko who was waiting for a baby brother.

Wally came to our home on March 15, 2008. He really made himself at home right away. There was no hesitation on his part at all. Despite his hearing loss and blindness, he quickly mapped our home, identified his favorite spots and immediately began working on Niko, who at 11 years old and used to being an only child had some adjusting to do. Each and every day since he arrived, Wally has brought us nothing but complete joy and happiness. Everyone who met him fell in love with him. He was such a sweet, affectionate baby. He would follow us until we sat down and then would sit down on our feet and push his body against our legs. He would lie there like that until we got up and then begin following us until we sat down again. Wally also possessed an infinite amount of patience. While preparing meals, Niko would be jumping and barking and carrying on as we prepared breakfast and dinner. Wally would simply sit there quietly and patiently. He developed such an appreciation for everything in life that perhaps other dogs take for granted in their home. Unlike his brother, he loved getting a bath. I would put on my bathing suit and get in the tub with each of them. Wally loved it. He would stand there and enjoy the water and the gentle rubs. He equally enjoyed the blow dryer and then the Dyson. Yes, we used to vacuum Wally after his bath. He was a real shedder and we could often fill up a bag with his hair after a bath. He loved it!

Wally had a wonderful, very distinct personality and a way of looking at you that made you know he was looking into your soul. Niko and Wally share our bed. Our bed was one of Wally’s favorite places in the world. I believe it is the space he felt the safest and the most loved of any other place in our home. He would crawl in between Nilo and I and wedge himself in tightly. He slept like that every night until this past Tuesday. I will never sleep the same way again and my heart breaks even having to write the words.

We discovered a tumor on Wally’s hind left leg two weeks ago. We brought him to our family vet, Dr. George Marmelejo who took an aspirate. It turned out that the tumor was a mast cell tumor. George referred us to Veterinary Surgical Associates where we learned that the tumor was too large to remove. They recommended that we proceed with chemotherapy treatments along with prednisone to shrink the tumor so that it could be surgically removed. After weighing all of the options and knowing that mast cell cancer, if metastasized would cause Wally a great deal of suffering, we agreed to begin the treatment. Wally had his first and only chemotherapy treatment on Tuesday, August 10, 2010. When I brought him in for his second treatment on August 17th, I was elated to learn that the tumor had shrunk by more than 50%. The oncologist and surgeon said that was exactly what they were hoping for and scheduled surgical removal for the following week. We were so happy and relieved. I took him home that day, gave him extra love and pug treats and just basked in the relief that he was going to be okay. I posted triumphant messages on Facebook that Wally was going to be okay! Our Facebook family celebrated with messages of support for Wally. We all had a great dinner that night and Wally spent the evening curled up on my feet as we watched TV. He came into bed with me that night at about 9PM as it was always his habit to go to bed when I did. Everything was fine. A few hours later, Wally was on the bed wheezing and gasping for air. I rushed him back to the animal hospital where he was being treated. He was immediately admitted with a diagnosis of pneumonia brought on a side effect of the chemotherapy. I went there on Wednesday afternoon to find that his breathing had not improved much. They allowed me to take him out of the oxygen tent to hold him for a short while. When I did, he began to calm and relax. He knew I was there and that he was so loved. I was so afraid for him not knowing how this could have happened or what was going to happen next. That night was so difficult. His kidneys began to shut down and the doctors called me to tell me that he had sepsis. They aggressively worked on him through the night and were able to get his kidneys functioning, his fever down and his blood pressure and sugar stabilized. On Thursday morning, I felt cautiously optimistic that he was heading in the right direction and planned to go over and see him.

I went over to be with him early Thursday afternoon and was shocked that his breathing actually appeared worse than when I brought in the prior morning. His eyes were open and it was clear that he was struggling to breathe. I put my hand in the oxygen tent and just caressed him for hours. His fever began to go up rising three degrees in the matter of an hour despite the two antibiotics he was receiving. The oncologist told me that it was time to intubate him as his breathing had fatigued his chest muscles. I called my partner Nilo along with Rex and Tony to come see him and talk to the doctor with me. The doctor was painting a very bleak picture of what was to come and I was in no rational mind to hear it no less make any decisions. After talking with the doctors and then amongst ourselves, we decided that we had to let Wally go. Nilo and I wrapped ourselves around him in the oxygen tent and held him tightly until he fell asleep.

Our hearts are shattered; Wally deserved so much more than this. While I know that we did the right thing by bringing him in to treat the tumor, I will always wonder what would have happened if we had not. Our lives and our family will never be the same. As I write this, Niko is wandering from room to room looking for his baby brother. He is supposed to be home here with us where we could love and protect him. Words will never be able to express the joy and happiness he brought us in the just over two years he was here with us. He had such a miserable life before Rex and Tony and then Nilo and I came into his life. I can only pray that the short time he was so loved made up for all the years of neglect and abuse. I pray that his beautiful soul is in a place of peace and happiness where nothing can hurt him again.

Rest in peace my sweet, sweet angel. I pray that the Rainbow Bridge poem is true and that we will see you again. I will miss your cuddling, your kisses and the unconditional love you gave us all. Goodbye my sweet boy until we meet again.