For several months he had been plagued by stomach issues that we could not determine the cause of... vomiting, and more recently refusing to eat, followed by temperature, dehydration... We had tested and tested, and could not find out what was wrong.
Well, last night he had a bad night, with non-productive vomiting, water, bile... and this morning the weather was nice, so I let him sit out in the cool on the deck to enjoy the morning.� After I saw him change spots and lie down by the sliding screen (he seemed to be unusually shakey in his movements...)... after a bit I went out to check on him, and he had passed on.� Very quietly, in a happy place, he passed away.
On taking his body to the vet, after examination, it was determined that his passing away was not caused by the long-term issues that we had been battling (which were probably intestional cancer which had probably spread to his lungs, guessed at due to his recent development of a cough and a spot on his lung noted on a recent x-ray)... Apparently during the night he had developed a twist in his stomach, which was evidenced by abdominal bloating. This cut off the blood circulation through the vena cava to his upper extremities, resulting very quickly in death (like in 1/2 hour from when it occurred). This is like in the movie Marley and Me.
So, we say good-bye to our wonderful yellow lab, who we adopted when he was about 2 years old, so long ago that my son remembers him always being here.
Our Bailey:
- We love you, Bailey, and hope we see you on the other side.
