The Search for Witnesses Continues…

The Pasadena Star News and the Pasadena Weekly both carried my letters to the editors asking for witnesses to come forward. A dog died. A person was injured. I hope in the future it won’t be the reverse–a person dies and the dog is injured. Why? Because of a careless dog owner. Right now, I’d like to be reimbursed for the cost of my doctor and the cost of care for my dog who had to be put down.

Update on Josie, the collie puppy

Josie doesn’t need hip surgery, but the cutie does need dental. I’m sure the collie rescue taking care of her can use some financial help!

Pasadena Star News Item: Search for Witnesses

The Pasadena Star News printed my letter searching for witnesses. The Pasadena Weekly will publish the letter on Thursday.

Happiness Is Fleeting

Kumori is gone. I can only remember how one moment in the sun turned into a disaster, but dogs can teach us how fleeting happiness really is. Happiness is something that cannot be put on hold because is can so quickly disappear and love should never be taken for granted.

I am glad that I was able to spend so much time with him on his last days and that so many people were willing to help. Kumori cannot be helped and I do not have that many photos of him.

Disabled Dogs

As you might have guessed, I really love my dog Kumori.

Some people have been quite kind when they see him. On Sunday, a man came up to me and told me how he once had a Great Dane. It got hit by a car and he had three small children and a very sick dog. He had to make a choice, but he always wondered if the dog could have been saved.

I often think that. If I was busier or poorer, or if I hadn’t had a head injury, would I have been so patient?

There are resources we are looking into for Kumori. I thought they might help other people, too.

I haven’t tried any of these, but perhaps these will give you some ideas even if they are a bit pricey!

Wheelchair and Nursing Care Items from K9 Carts

Eddie’s Wheels for Pets: Both front and back support carts

Dog Wheelchairs

K9 Carts West

DogGon

Sunday at the Dog Park

What do you do when you see the owner of the dog that injured you and your own dog? I’ve been going to the dog park looking for witnesses. I was sort of suspicious when the poster I put up was torn down but the others were not. I think I saw one witness, but I also saw and recognized the person who owned the dog and has not returned an email nor responded to my letter. Kumori was really tired though by the time I got him into the dog park.

Save A Collie: Puppy in Need of an Operation

If you could save a young life, even if it’s a furry one, wouldn’t you want to give even a dollar to do it? All one dog needs is a couple thousand dog lovers sending in $1, particularly collie lovers to get better.

Old dogs die all the time and a lot of puppies as well. This one already has the advantage of being rescued by the Minnesota Wisconsin Collie Rescue. She is halfway there, but needs a little more help.

With Kumori being sick, I’m been cruising the collie rescue Web sites, looking for a companion for him because I know he’s been depressed since Bodhi died in July.

I can’t be here all the time. As it is, I wake up most of the time when he stirs and try to take him out. I hand feed him and give him liquid from a bowl (otherwise he falls and over turns the bowl). I still hope for miracles. His injury is neurological.

This cute puppy, Josie, has orthopedic problems that can be cured with surgery. When you look at those cute brown eyes and alert puppy face, how can you say no?

I’m struggling with Kumori’s bills and it is unlikely that the owner of the Doberman will separate with his money easily, so I’m already maxed out, but if you have some spare change, donate a little to Josie.

She needs surgery that costs $2,500 to correct her hip problem and additional money for dental.

I know America loves puppies so in the name of puppy love, donate a dollar or two to Josie.

Dog Park Disaster: Kumori’s condition timeline

19 December 2008: I was knocked over twice by the Doberman. The second time, Kumori was around when I got up. I wondered where he had gone, but went to a bench.

On 19 December 2008, a man handed me his business card. I told him that it was likely that I was going to need to see a doctor and I hadn’t even considered what might be wrong with my dog. The business card was for Jason McFarland with Old Pasadena Vintage Lighting.

Head trauma and whiplash aren’t conditions that are immediately apparent.

20 December 2008: I just took Kumori out a short distance because I wasn’t feeling well.

21 December 2008: Ian and I took Kumori out to the Redondo Beach dog park. He seemed unsteady when he was trying to poop. He did not show interest in herding any dogs. He seems hesitant to get up in the car and out. He was really hesitant to get down the stairs.

22 December 2008: I had an appointment with Tudor. That night, Kumori got up on the bed to be with me that night.

On 23 December, I sent an email to Jason McFarland, but got no response.

23 December 2008: I called Kumori to get off the bed. He seemed disoriented and his head was tilted. He had trouble walking.

24 December 2008: I took him to the vet. He was willing to get into the car but not without assistance. The doctor said she thought it was old dog vestibular syndrome. If he didn’t get better, I was to take him back in in three days. She prescribed Meclizine (Bonine or Antivert). He began this habit of waking me up every few hours for a massage.

29 December 2008: Tudor took a look at him after my appointment. He seemed a bit better after that. He could fast walk, but had a hitch in his right foreleg.

10 January 2009: Kumori got up on my bed so I thought he was getting better. He seemed fine doing his uneven trot, but unsteady in his slower movements. He was starting to sway. His lifting of his right foreleg was becoming more pronounced.

12 January 2009: Kumori seemed to have a setback. At night, he made a sudden movement and I looked. He was on his side, his legs straight out and I comforted him. He later got up, fell down and decided to stay down.

13 January 2009: Cindi saw Kumori. He doesn’t like getting up at all.

17 January 2009: He was not eating or drinking.

18 January 2009: Went to vet. Had an assortment of tests run. The vet gave him Metacam. He came back and had a good appetite and got up by himself.

19 January 2009: He was unable to get up at all. He did not eat or drink. I gave him a dose of Metacam in the morning, but wondered if this wasn’t also causing his incoordination. That is one of the listed side effects.

On 19 January 2009, I sent an email to Jason McFarland about the total bills. As of 23 January, I’ve received no response. I asked my friend at the dog park what he thought. Doesn’t it seem strange that there was no response? If the person who owned the dog had not been Jason McFarland, wouldn’t he have immediately denied it?

On the advice of an attorney, my next stop is the post office to send a certified letter. After that, it will be small claims court. My friend at the dog park says he hasn’t seen the black Doberman at the dog park so perhaps the dog’s owner is lying low for now.

20 January 2009: I was able to get him outside by lifting him only. Was able to get him to drink rice milk. I didn’t give him Metacam. He ate some kibble covered with a carob sauce. Saw Eric.

On 21 January, Kumori received therapy.

My fiance wrote:

After I carried him into the apartment, it took some bribing (with doggie
jerky) to get him into the kitchen. He plopped down in the middle of the
kitchen floor. After a twenty minutes or so he got up. I helped him put
his feet under his hips as he kept sliding. After ten minutes of standing
he maneuver himself to his bowl where he drank, had more doggie jerky, and
carob covered kibble. Once he finished he came into the bed room and lay
down until Jana came up then he moved his head and then went back to
laying on the ground. I think this is slightly better than before.

On 22 January 2009, Kumori went outside after a lot of cajoling. He pooped. He did not pee. We came back in. About 3 a.m., he got up by himself, woke me up several times, but I thought he wanted a back massage, but he pulled away. I went back to sleep. I later woke up at 4 a.m. and he was waiting for me by the door and knocking on it (the noise woke me up). He had taken a pee in front of the door. He still sways. He came back in by himself. He has gotten up and set himself down.

He had some rice milk this morning already.

I was actually quite surprised that he got up by himself and then went to the door by himself when I wouldn’t follow so I take that as a good sign.I woke up tired. I spent a sleepless night as my dog woke me up. He can barely walk, but after treatment he is better today than he was yesterday. Yesterday, he couldn’t even get up.

23 January 2009: Kumori had some rice milk. No kibble. Some oatmeal. He got up at night and fell and peed on the kitchen floor. He seems to tremble/shudder when he inhales.

24 January 2009: I mailed a letter to Jason McFarland then went down the street and realized that he had given me an old business card…and not mentioned that to me. Although according to the sign, he was supposed to be open, the gates were locked. I think this means I need to send another letter to him. Sigh. Spent most of the day trying to get Kumori to pee.

26 January 2009: I noticed that the sign I put up looking for witnesses has been taken down. I don’t think any other sign has been taken down. Kumori soiled himself last night. I put him in the car and took him to the park but couldn’t get him to talk to the small dog park area. One lady said it was obvious that there was some kind a brain trauma. I guess it’s only obvious AFTER you pay several hundred dollars for tests to show that everything else is normal. Sigh.

I struggle with my dog’s disability now and worry about the bills. I’ve several times considered putting him down, only to have him rally. Will he ever be normal? Will he ever run again? I don’t know. I can only hope.

The Dog Park Disaster

Today, my blue merle collie won’t even stand up.

He doesn’t seem to have an appetite.

I’ve been to an osteopath twice for a cost of $350.

The dog has racked up $811 in bills with no cure in sight.

I’ve been advised to see a neurologist.

The email I sent to the person who owned the Doberman that caused this all has not received a response.

The total cost of one day in the dog park so far is: $1161 and most likely the very life of my dog. That’s more than my rent. And I don’t have insurance.

One day in the sun has become a dog park disaster. I don’t blame the Doberman. I blame the owner.

A Moment in the Sun: From Gallant Lad to Grey Ghost

I often think back to that one Friday in mid-December. We are now in the midst of 80-degree weather although it is still winter. A month ago, we were having rain, worried about hard, drenching rain bringing mud sliding down a hill instead of Santa Ana winds whipping up fires. I remember it was a beautiful day. The grass wasn’t too muddy. I wore black boots. I was turned facing my beloved and only collie, Kumori, who was running off leash beside me to my left. He was happy to be in the cool late morning light of a Southern California winter. I remember his joy and my happiness on that day, a moment before disaster came that would leave me in pain and in doctor’s bills and him a mere shell of himself.

A dog doesn’t understand weather, and the closed walls of my small apartment seemed like a prison. Kumori had been depressed since I had to put down his friend, Bodhi, in early July. I had been expected Bodhi’s death for the last two years. In July, he was 15 and a half–a grand, old age for a collie, particularly one who had been severely deprived and abused in his first year of life. Bodhi was a smooth collie–sable and white–and he was the one who chose Kumori to join our pack after the death of the brave 10-year-old Laddie, my first collie.

Kumori’s original owners had named him Arthur. He did not, at the time I first met him in a fast food restaurant parking lot near Lancaster, display any of the nobility of a king Arthur, nor did he particularly attract me as Laddie had. We had already met several other dogs, none of which Bodhi had liked, some of which he had politely turned away from for their boorishness. Upon meeting Arthur, Bodhi made a play bow–something rare for the retiring Bodhi who often seemed to prefer people to dogs, a trait that became more markedly apparent as he aged.

A quick walk across the parking lot and back provided only one significant clue. Arthur did not rush back to his owners, who had called Southland Collie Rescue, needing to surrender two blue merle collies, a male and a female. Instead, he sat facing them on my foot, leaning against my legs. His owners wanted to keep him until the end of the month. I agreed to this and went back home, a drive that was over an hour.

A few days later, Southland Collie Rescue received a call as this couple threatened to leave this dog at the Lancaster animal shelter. A temporary safe house was found for him and I was soon on the road there. It was a cloudy January day about seven years ago, the kind of bright cloudy day that makes you want to paint skies, take photos or just gaze at the beautiful white clouds and dream. I got a ticket and the collie who was renamed Kumori, meaning cloudy in Japanese. A blue merle is predominately grey with white, black and tan markings–very different from the gold, tan and white of a sable and white, markings made famous by the movie and TV depictions of Lassie.

Kumori was not used to so many things, including being brushed. Bodhi for a brief period felt a bit smug and superior. He at least knew simple commands like up, down, sit, stay, shake, bedroom and the like. Kumori soon caught up and was the new male alpha.

Unlike Laddie, who preceded him in that position, he had the much sought after semi-prick collie ears. His paws were big and his enthusiasm boundless. Laddie had been reserved before strangers. Kumori eagerly sought out people. Where Laddie had on several occasions stepped in front of me, most notably when a pit bull mix attacked us, Kumori boldly sallied forth–ears at attention and tail held high like a grand plume.

At the passing of Heidi, Kumori has quieted down. He didn’t sleep next to Bodhi and at times seemed a bit impatient. The rules of Darwin and a pack would have dictated that Bodhi who had aged rapidly in the last two years, be left behind. Stiff with arthritis and tottering and tired, they had ceased being a pack. Yet when Bodhi gave up and I put him down, Kumori waited for his return for almost a week and then began sleeping in those places Bodhi had favored.

I had stopped taking Bodhi and Kumori to the dog park because Bodhi could no longer get up in the van, even on the ramp I had bought him. He didn’t like being carried and his balance made his walk up a precarious feat. The last few months, to cheer Kumori up, I took him to the dog park.

Kumori was true to his collie breed, selecting a dog, usually a Labrador retriever, and herd that dog until his tongue hung down and he was shaking–deliriously happy. He’d come home, reluctantly and too tired to eat. He have, over the last weeks, chosen a select few dogs that he would herd.

On this particular morning in December, none of those particular dogs were there. There were very few dogs out. He moped and seemed so disappointed that he wanted to leave, but I urged him in. After a few hellos, he remained diffident and we began to run. I am not a fast runner and who would run fast on damp ground? So at a slow jog, we began and soon stopped. I was bowled over by a Doberman. I got up, the Doberman wandered away and Kumori checked on me. My ankle was a bit twisted, but luckily, I had been wearing boots. We began again.

What I remember last was looking at Kumori and his smiling face in the sunlight, a healthy, happy dog framed against the green of the lawn. My next memory is being on the ground and two boxers surrounding me. Their owners came up to see if I was OK. As I shakily got up and went to a nearby bench, I recall thinking, where is Kumori. I was later told that the Doberman has ran after me, knocking me down at full speed. The owner of the dog was busy talking on his cell phone. Others told him about the incident, but he did not approach me. I waited to approach him.

I was given his card. I’ve emailed him. I’ve phoned.

I was in a bit of a haze that day and it wasn’t until later, that I began to feel the whiplash. I had basically sprained my whole body.

I noticed that Kumori seemed having problems with his balance the next day, when he was attempting to poop. He seemed more tentative, getting up or getting down from things like the car to the ground. Going down steps, which he had always hated, now seemed a challenge. I saw a doctor on Monday. Monday night, I was in great pain. Through it all, Kumori slept with me, uncharacteristically sleeping with his head on my ankle. Tuesday morning when I woke up, my back felt better, but when I called Kumori to get up, he could barely walk and his head was twisted awkwardly to the right. His right ear pointed straight up. It was as if he had taken all the pain from my body into his own.

I took him to the vet on Wednesday. Her diagnosis was vestibular syndrome in an old dog, yet I wonder if the head trauma from the bruising Doberman wasn’t the cause as he and I both leaned in the same direction. That night, he seemed to be in extreme pain. He has to be carried up and down stairs.

While alternative medicine has righted his head, both his ears are back to semi-prick and for a while he seemed to improve, this week, he worsened. I almost immediately regretted two things: I had taken him to the dog park at all and contrarily, that I had no photos of him at the dog park in his joy of herding.

When his head was finally righted, he strode about on the sidewalks with a slight hitch. His quick trot was a result of a problem with his right foreleg and that has become more marked this week. Now the skipping step has become a pawing motion; he “high steps” with his right foreleg when he is willing to walk at all. He no longer wants to leave the house. He stumbles. He no longer claims the bed as his own nor gets up to greet me.

I bought a camera, in the deluded hope that he would become much better and I would photograph him as he was true to his collie heritage, herding Labs and a certain border collie mixed named Bandit. Today, I will photograph him at home, while he still can summon his regal collie-ness.

At eight, he is in his decline though I thought I had at least two good years ahead. My gallant gentleman collie has become a ghost of himself and the question lingers: When shall I decide a certain day is his last?

UPDATE: The answer did come on February 7, 2009. Kumori was in extreme pain and no longer had the will to live and even my coaxing could bring anything but a blank stare. No food. No water. A sad end to such a gallant gentleman.