A Sad Goodbye to Winfield

We lost our sweet Winny-dog last night.

He was very sick when we got home after work - I guess he walked around a bit in the yard, then just couldn't climb the stairs. There was also evidence that he'd vomited earlier in the day. He lay on the back porch for a good while, breathing hard and trembling, so we gathered him up and took him to the emergency veterinary clinic. He took the ride in the car far too calmly, worrying us even more, and when the technician took Winny's temperature it was 104.7F - quite high. His abdomen was distended and hard, so they took him back for x-rays which showed that either his kidney or spleen was extremely enlarged. In a dog Winny's age, chances were very high that that spelled cancer. The only treatment options are very heroic and would include exploratory surgery. He was miserable and we didn't want to put him through any more pain, so we chose to have him put down. Catherine and I stroked him and told him what a good boy he was while he received the injection. It's definitely one of the saddest and most difficult things I've ever done.

We'll always remember our "wild dog of Bornio" who loved to play-fight with our feet and who was always cheerful and loving. It's been a sad year for us -- we also lost our kitty, Hermione, in April.

Goodbye Winny.