Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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At this time 2 years ago, we were waiting for our vet to come over to help Nitro transition to the other side. A few of you remember our story, how we'd had this "appointment" 2 other times and cancelled. Today is a beautiful day, much like it was then.....sunny, not a cloud in the sky, warm. After John had helped him out in the morning, he did a little hopping around the yard, and then just settled in his bed on the patio. He was tired; we could SEE he was tired. And we knew we would not be cancelling this appointment. This was IT, the moment we'd been dreading for over 3 years. The journey - the fight - was about to come to an end. We were scared, and nervous, and stressed. We'd never experienced this aspect of pet ownership before and had no idea what to expect. I wasn't sure if I could handle what was going to happen in little under an hour. I wanted time to stop, to keep my warrior with me forever, but I knew that wasn't to be. I have butterflies in my stomach as I write this, just like I did then.
Our friend came over to give us support - a surprise to us, but so welcome and needed; we were not alone, as we faced the unknown.
When do the sad memories, and the stressful memories fade? It almost feels a little like PTSD....the flashbacks to the worst time in my life. When will my thoughts of Nitro make me smile, instead of bringing tears to my eyes and an ache in my heart? Can anybody tell me?ad
I made a blog post commemorating today, if anyone out there would like to see it....a few pics, his tribute video. (see link below)
For any of you "oldies" out there, who knew us when - if you could spend a second remembering my boy today, I'd very much appreciate it.
Paula and Warrior Angel Nitro
Nitro 11 1/2 yr old Doberman; right front amp June 2014. Had 6 doses carboplatin, followed by metronomic therapy. Rocked it on 3 legs for over 3 years! My Warrior beat cancer, but couldn't beat old age. He crossed the Bridge peacefully on July 25, 2017, with dignity and on his terms. Follow his blog entitled "Doberman's journey"
"Be good, mama loves you".....run free my beautiful Warrior
Oh Paula, with a lump in my throat and a gnawing in the pit of my stomach, I read this and, as one of the "oldies" (in every sense of the word), relived it with you. I don't think I realized until today that you had never had experienced an assisted transition at home. I know that added another layer of stress to an already stressful day.
You stepped into your "Warrior Woman heart"` and put your fear and sadness aside to give Warrior Nitro the gift of release❤ And, if I recall, Nitro sent you a beautiful Cardinal to remind you he is always with you and to say "thank you".
dobemom said
When do the sad memories, and the stressful memories fade? It almost feels a little like PTSD....the flashbacks to the worst time in my life. When will my thoughts of Nitro make me smile, instead of bringing tears to my eyes and an ache in my heart? Can anybody tell me?ad
The only thing I can say, based on my experiences, yes, the stressful sad memories fade with more time of happy memories inbetween, but, they never really go away. When the "flashbacks" come, they are intense and brutal. Physically and emotionally you relive them and "you are there" back in those moments.
For whatever it's worth, I work hard sometimes when those worthless revisits take me over, to divert my focus to a happy time. And as silly as this man sound, I literally will change my "physical position ", change my physiology. And this is something you will know EXACTLY what I mean....for example...stand on one foot😉 Remember that little technique for changing your focus Ms Paula?😉
So, yeah, for me, those awful sad and stressful moments with pets or hoomans, still pop up even years later. When you've already dealt with "the only way through it is through it" over and over, then it's time to change your focus as soon as possible before it gets into your gut. Am I successful? Rarely!! But I am getting better at lessening the time those horrible times visit. Of course, we can't change the past, we can only learn from it and grow. I know with absolute certainty, one thing Nitro taught you was you are sooooo much stronger than you realize. He knew it though.😎
Oh, and I just mentioned you and Nitro yesterday in a post. I suggested looking for a Chiropractor because, if I recalled correctly, it helped him.
Yes, NITRO IS ALWAYS PRESENT HERE❤ And we celebrate the gifts from Nitro every single day here. Yes, we love that sweet boy...and his Mom too! Gonna hop over to his blog now.
(((((((((((((((HUGS))))))))))))))
Sally and Alumni Happy Hannah and Merry Myrtle and Frankie too!
PS....ad???? Did you mean af? Typo???
Happy Hannah had a glorious additional bonus time of over one yr & two months after amp for osteo! She made me laugh everyday! Joined April's Angels after send off meal of steak, ice cream, M&Ms & deer poop!
I'm an oldie who remembers that day crystal clear Paula. We never thought we would see it. We thought Nitro would live forever. And when he got his wings, the entire community mourned.
Of course we are thinking about him today, and always. He is never far from our hearts or all of the present-day Tripawds who have joined us since he became eternal.
Hard to believe it's been two years. Wow.
Thank you for being here, for all you do to help this community in so many ways. We are forever grateful Nitro sent you to us.
Lots and lots of love is coming your way. 
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Interesting coincidence.....the medallion that is pictured in our blog came in the mail today. It had been ordered some time ago, and shows up today - clearly a sign from my warrior
P
Nitro 11 1/2 yr old Doberman; right front amp June 2014. Had 6 doses carboplatin, followed by metronomic therapy. Rocked it on 3 legs for over 3 years! My Warrior beat cancer, but couldn't beat old age. He crossed the Bridge peacefully on July 25, 2017, with dignity and on his terms. Follow his blog entitled "Doberman's journey"
"Be good, mama loves you".....run free my beautiful Warrior
Nitro 11 1/2 yr old Doberman; right front amp June 2014. Had 6 doses carboplatin, followed by metronomic therapy. Rocked it on 3 legs for over 3 years! My Warrior beat cancer, but couldn't beat old age. He crossed the Bridge peacefully on July 25, 2017, with dignity and on his terms. Follow his blog entitled "Doberman's journey"
"Be good, mama loves you".....run free my beautiful Warrior
Ohhhh yeah....huge sign!!! Nope, no coincydink that Nitro made sure you got it today!
Great tee Paula😎😎
Happy Hannah had a glorious additional bonus time of over one yr & two months after amp for osteo! She made me laugh everyday! Joined April's Angels after send off meal of steak, ice cream, M&Ms & deer poop!
Definitely a sign the medallion came today. Nitro probably held it up in the mail to make sure it arrived right "on time."
You hitting an anniversary means I'm not far behind. I don't know if you feel this way, but it's still crazy to me how it can feel like yesterday and 20 years ago at the same time. I'm not sure the ache ever goes away; I'm not sure I really want it to. Like you, I still remember *that day* so vividly. But tangled up with all the awfulness is something beautiful, too. In that moment, the rest of the world didn't exist. There was Rocky. There was me. And there was pure love. And that's all that mattered. I'm sure, buried in there with the fear and the stress you felt that day, that it was there with you and Nitro too. As you remember the bad, remember the good too.
I don't come here as often as I used to, but I do seem to get Nitro's banner a lot when I do visit. And I got it again this morning. He's definitely letting everyone know he's still around.
David and Rocky (and Baxter now too!)
Rocky had his right front leg amputated on Valentine's Day 2017 after being diagnosed with osteosarcoma.
He joined the September Saints on September 3, 2017.
He is the toughest, bravest, sweetest and best friend I'll ever know.
He KNEW!
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Thanks for the kind words everyone....David, I'm glad you see Nitro's banner often - I rarely do. And the fact that you saw it today is so special. When I logged on here this morning to write this, Rocky's banner was up!
I think you are onto something, about pure love being felt along with the stress and sadness...it had to be, there wouldn't have been so much pain without there being so much love. And it does seem like ages ago and yesterday all at once. We will never forget our special pups, will we?
Paula and Warrior Angel Nitro
Nitro 11 1/2 yr old Doberman; right front amp June 2014. Had 6 doses carboplatin, followed by metronomic therapy. Rocked it on 3 legs for over 3 years! My Warrior beat cancer, but couldn't beat old age. He crossed the Bridge peacefully on July 25, 2017, with dignity and on his terms. Follow his blog entitled "Doberman's journey"
"Be good, mama loves you".....run free my beautiful Warrior
Well I'm an oldie of sorts, but not that old . . . That said, Nitro's was always a wonderful success story.
When does the grief stop? I still have flashbacks to losing dogs I lost almost 50 years ago, so in my case, never, but those flashbacks are further and further apart. To me, the key is dog heart, and filling the void left by those we've lost with the heart new dogs share with us so willingly. I know many say "I just can't endure that pain again," and I am sorry for them as what they're really saying is "I'm going to pass on all the joy a new companion can bring me for the next 10, 12, or 20 years."
I'll actually be up your way next week (Born in GB and grew up in Menominee). I'm way overdue for a visit while I've been caring for Jet, but that's my next post.
You lost your boy just before I found all of you. Hard to believe I have been here almost 2 years and yet in some ways, even with Huck, it feels like a lot longer.
I guess we lost both of our heart dogs a day (plus some years) apart, our blogs are just a day apart. I still have trouble with it. I have trouble with all of the circumstances around what happened and I think that makes it even worse. I can smile when I think of my girl, I also cry. Sometimes both at the same time. When I put her tribute video together, I swear it was like I beamed over to some place different and I could almost feel her. The memory of her feel when I petted her, her smell, it briefly all came flooding back to me. I don't know if that's a good thing or not.
So... at the seven year mark I will tell you that my heart still aches, but I can smile finally. I don't think I will ever not miss her. Even though the logical Capricornian in me says "Jackie... you DO realize that she would be like 18 years old now... seriously.."
I have been wrapped up in myself these last few weeks with my thoughts of Rosie, but I really just wanted to hop over and give you a virtual hug. My thoughts have been with both of you, and yes just yesterday Nitro popped up on my screen. Your video is beautiful, you did a fine job of remembering your Angel Warrior
((((Big hugs))))
Hugs,
Jackie, Bo, Andy, Oscar, Phoebe, and the coolest feral tripawd kitty Huckleberry 
Thank you all for remembering Nitro! His video tribute still makes me tear up, and I've watched it dozens of times. Yes, Jackie, I don't think I will ever not miss him - its something that will be with me always. I love and enjoy the "terrorists", but its not the same. There will never be another Nitro for me, and that's ok. Because of him, I am the person I am today. It bothers me that it seems he only became larger than life for me during this journey; or maybe I only thought he became a Warrior after this happened, when he really was one all along.
Paula and Warrior Angel Nitro
Nitro 11 1/2 yr old Doberman; right front amp June 2014. Had 6 doses carboplatin, followed by metronomic therapy. Rocked it on 3 legs for over 3 years! My Warrior beat cancer, but couldn't beat old age. He crossed the Bridge peacefully on July 25, 2017, with dignity and on his terms. Follow his blog entitled "Doberman's journey"
"Be good, mama loves you".....run free my beautiful Warrior
And as I made this last post, his banner came up!
P
Nitro 11 1/2 yr old Doberman; right front amp June 2014. Had 6 doses carboplatin, followed by metronomic therapy. Rocked it on 3 legs for over 3 years! My Warrior beat cancer, but couldn't beat old age. He crossed the Bridge peacefully on July 25, 2017, with dignity and on his terms. Follow his blog entitled "Doberman's journey"
"Be good, mama loves you".....run free my beautiful Warrior
<3 <3 <3 Hoppy Angelversary Nitro. Paula those memories fade some but they still come back. I remember everything when Sassy passed to a T. I so love Nitro's memory video. I have watched it multiple times.
Sending my thoughts and love to you
xoxxoxo
Michelle & Angels Sassy & Bosch
Sassy is a proud member of the Winter Warriors. Live long, & strong Winter Warriors.
sassysugarbear.tripawds.com
07/26/2006 - Sassy earned her wings 08/20/2013
05/04/2006 - Bosch, Sassy's pal, earned his wings 03/29/19 fought cancer for 4 months.
"You aren't doing it TO her, you are doing it FOR her. Give her a chance at life."
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