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I had a white shepherd for 10 wonderful years, her name was Natasha. I got Natasha when I first got married, so she was my first child so to speak. Tasha was a
constant companion, always by my side, where ever I was she was. She was a playful, happy and protective dog. When she was 2 she had 8
beautiful puppies and was a great mother to them all. Natasha was never sick. As she got older she still had
a lot of energy and spunk, she loved to chase me around the house , kind of like playing hide and seek.
When Natasha was 10 I noticed that her belly looked a little swollen and she was drinking
a lot of water, also she started to urinate in the house( which she never did, I think she would have held it forever). I called the vet right away and took her in. A whole blood work up was done and we
received the results a few days later. Her liver function test was not right, so she was back to the vet for an x-ray, we were told she had
cirrhosis of the liver. I was very shocked to hear this because she wasn't a drinker (
I need to make myself laugh here) the vet informed me that dogs do get it and they
aren't sure why. My vet gave her some meds and I took her home with the thought everything would be fine because he never said that this was life threatening. Within about 2 days Tasha
wasn't getting better, she didn't have the energy she always had, she didn't want to eat and I even made her a steak which she turned away from.
Later that evening she got sick to her stomach, threw up what looked to be
black liquid, which I quickly picked up and put in a plastic bag. All of a sudden she had a burst of energy, she chased me around the living room and played with me for
awhile. I knew then she was saying goodbye, she gave me one last night of the loving friend I had for so long.
I took her and the sample to the vet first thing in the morning and was told what she vomited was mostly blood , and was told she might be having a reaction to the medication.
This wasn't her regular vet, he was his replacement when he was off. He sent me home with Pet-tabs. I noticed her gums were pale and he said it was
probably from the blood she threw up the night before. I knew he was wrong, something was going wrong and fast.
That evening she was just laying around , didn't want to eat , wasn't barking at people walking by, it was obvious she was leaving me. I took her outside in front of the house and she
laid down next to where I was sitting. A young guy walked by with his dog and she jumped up barking at him and then collapsed. I rushed her to an emergency vet, her gums where
completely white by the time we got there and she had a high fever. He took her in for an x-ray because after she collapsed we noticed a
bulge on her side. When the vet came out the news was worse then I ever thought, she had a tumor on her spleen that was cancer and had burst. He told me the reason her belly had been swollen was because she had been bleeding internally. This type of cancer is common in GSD's , which I
didn't know until then. I was given choices for her, I could have surgery done which she probably
wouldn't make it through and if she did her chances of recovering were very slim. The vet, a very honest good man told me at her age and if it was his own pet he would put her down. He told me if I took her home she most likely would pass during the night. I made that heart wrenching decision to let her go.
Natasha and I spent quite awhile alone together before the vet would start. I talked to her and told her what great happiness she had given me and how much I loved her, she just
laid still looking at me as if she was trying to tell me it was okay and she needed to go. Funny, Tasha was always scared of the vet but this night walked right in on her own.
I made the choice to stay with her while the vet put her to sleep -- we were face to face nose to nose. We had been through so much together I would never let her go alone , I was gonna be there for her like I always was. She
received her injection closed her eyes and left me. For a minute
I thought " what did I just do, can I take it back" but I know I made the right decision for her as hard as it was . I stayed with her for almost a half hour after , petting her and remembering all the wonderful times she gave to me.
As in "Q's Story" , when I went home it was so quiet, too quiet. I grieved for her what seemed like forever , missed her by my side more then anything, but I knew she was not suffering anymore. The sad thing to me was she was fine and then gone within 2 weeks.
Natasha gave me 10 years that I will never ever forget. I have since bought another White shepherd, she is a joy but Natasha will live on forever in my heart.
Thank you for letting me tell you my story of a wonderful dog.
Kim Biazzo
Brooklyn Ny
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