200 days ago by ontrose69 | 118 views | 5 barks

Sweet Sasha's Passing

When our first hospice foster Rottie (Grandpaw) passed away on 11/7/06, Chris and I didn't think we could ever take in another "final refuge" hospice dog. They come into your life, steal your heart, then like a shooting star they are too quickly gone. Losing Grandpaw broke our hearts. Yet the rescue group we worked with (Old Dog Haven) needed final refuge homes for their hospice dogs, especially for old Rottweilers. They coaxed us by saying the best way to pay tribute to Grandpaw's memory was to save another aged Rottie's life...and they had one in urgent need.

Sasha belonged to a young mother who was going through a very messy divorce. Her husband used Sasha as fuel for the custody battle, claiming it wasn't safe to have a Rottweiler around their two toddlers. The young mother was heartbroken because she'd owned Sasha since puppyhood; ten-year-old Sasha had nowhere to go. So when we heard of their plight, we knew what we had to do.

Sasha was the sweetest, most gentle and silliest old gal you could ever hope for. She worshipped Chris and would turn into a mass of stumpy-tailed wiggles whenever she saw him, or she would flip over on her back for tummy rubs. Always flirting, always smiling, always loving. If we missed her dinnertime, we'd often find that she'd picked up her food bowl and dumped it in a place where we were sure to stumble over it. Just a gentle reminder!

She needed several medications twice daily for various ailments including arthritis, but serving and caring for her was a privilege, not a chore. She always seemed thankful for everything we did.

Her arthritis worsened as the months wore on. She moved slowly and would lie contentedly in front of any exterior doorway (both guarding and enjoying the drafts), waiting patiently for Daddy to come home from work each day. Then she'd burst into wiggles, giggles and flirtatious smiles.

She developed osteosarcoma in her right shoulder - a form of rapidly-progressing bone cancer that’s common in Rottweilers. The only treatment option for osteosarcoma is amputation of the affected limb before it metastasizes and invades the lungs. However, amputation wouldn’t have been an option for Sasha with her severe arthritis, and the cancer wasn’t caught until it was reaching final stages. The cancer was diagnosed on Wednesday, February 13th, but by that evening she finally showed some signs of distress and she had trouble breathing that night. By morning, we made the hardest decision a pet owner has to make and decided it was time to let her go.

She had a smile on her face and a wiggling stumpy tail up until the very last moment. She let us know, in that psychic way that dogs have, that she was ready and almost eager to embark on her new adventure. Her demeanor was extraordinary at the end: patient, clear-headed and very aware and accepting of what was going on.

We loved our sweet Sasha. Her big gentle presence filled our home with contentment and happiness all the time. The precious times we spent with her on slow walks, sitting by the fire, brushing her beautiful coat, spoiling her rotten, rubbing her tummy, caring for her needs, listening to her snore at our bedside each night, etc., are moments we will always cherish. She is sorely grieved and missed by us. But we know she's now without pain, running in the golden meadows of heaven with our other "kids" -- that never-ending smile on her big happy face.

We'll see you again, Sashi-Bashi. You're our girl!