Yes, the dog house is empty now, or it would be if she'd had a dog house. Our house is very quiet now. No barking to announce the mail, the newspaper, a delivery, or a friend. No clicky nails on the linoleum, no love seat tipping slightly back since she had run so fast to get on it to investigate a sound she'd heard outside. No tags jingling as she stands up, or shakes to get her fur all back into place. No two-part sound heard as she jumped off of our bed, affectionately referred to as "front-back!" I never realized how much all those sounds meant to me as we lived together the last 4 years.

Honey crossed the Rainbow Bridge on Friday after being sick for about a month. She wasn't eating very well about a month ago, so we took her to the vet. I think the vet suspected she was pretty sick, because when Gary asked about scheduling an exam prior to buying her new dog tag, the vet said, "Why don't we wait until we see what the bloodwork shows."

So, the next day, I call the vet for the bloodwork (back in February). Her liver function tests were at very high levels, indicating that her liver wasn't working very well. Her complete blood count showed low red blood cells, white blood cells, platelets, hemoglobin and hematocrit! As we looked closer at Honey, we realized how pale her tongue and gums were and also realized that things didn't look good.

So, we gave her the Amoxicillin and she seemed to perk up. While her appetite wasn't to pre-illness levels, she was eating more than she had been and seemed to be enjoying her life more. Then it seemed after all the Amoxicillin cleared out of her body, it seemed she was going right back to where she was. We just kept living our life, even though, it seemed Honey was a lot crabbier and more sensitive to activity around her than she had ever been before. She would also throw up every now and then and it didn't look like she was digesting her food all that well.

So, after throwing up on Tuesday and Wednesday last week, (3-2 and 3-3-04), I called the vet to explain the situation. The person we talked to on the phone said it was probably the beginning of the end and not much could be done about it. So, we scheduled the euthanasia. for Friday. It was a very long 2 days looking at Honey and knowing she was coming to the end of her life, all the time knowing that her life was ending anyway. She was losing so much weight, since she was barely eating. She was starting to look rather haggard.

So, Friday, we all get in the car and go to the vet's office for the final visit. After waiting for what seemed to be forever, the vet and the vet tech come in to take care of Honey. She was sitting on the table with my arms around her neck and body. Then the vet injected the meds and she went unconscious. It was very sad. We stayed with her for a short time and then quietly left, with her laying on her favorite quilt.

We came home and talked about Honey for about an hour. Then went out to eat. As we got to the stairs, I swear I heard Honey's collar jingle in the way it did when she stood up and then I heard her nails clicking on the steps behind me! It was almost as if she was here to tell me she was okay. I haven't heard it since then.

So, we look forward to seeing her on the rainbow bridge along with the other pets in my life someday and for now, we have a very quiet house.

For more pics of Honey and funny stories, follow the links below!