Oscar passed away peacefully at home at about 7:45 am on Saturday. He didn't have to be euthanized or anything. It was about as un-traumatic a death as we could have hoped for. He was just one month shy of his thirteenth birthday. I'm doing okay with it, although I felt really sad and tired all day Saturday. My partner Anita is having a much harder time of it than I am. Since she moved down from Boston she put in a lot of time with him and was particularly good at knowing what he was trying to tell us. He really mellowed a great deal under her care, and I feel very grateful that she was in his life for the past few years.
We took him to this pet cremation place in Rockville called
Heavenly Days - it was like something out of a David Lynch movie, but in a quirky, cute way with a nice little old lady handling all the arrangements. He'll be cremated by this guy named Greg and sent home in a tasteful wooden box.
He had had a rough time in the past few months with what appeared to be a nasal tumor, but then had rallied right before Christmas. He had a good last few weeks. Over the holidays there were lots of people around and lots of excitement, and he met another dog friend at Anita's mom's on Christmas weekend. He was doing great until right before he died. He was only really in decline for about two days. We were all home at the time. Dr. Pat Kriemelmeyer ("Dr. K") at
Takoma Park Animal Clinic offered us a lot of good guidance on how to handle his decline and passing.
He was a good dog - goofy, energetic, intuitive, great at catching frisbees - not so great at returning them. When my cousin David was briefly living with me he thought his name was Oxford, and since we all suspected he was no Rhodes Scholar, "Oxford" became his ironically affectionate nickname. He was happiest when all of his housemates - Fred, Lisa and Anita, were home, sitting in the living room with him contentedly curled up on the floor. He loved to swim and run and gave us many many years of love and laughter. He was known and loved by many in the neighborhood! We all will miss him.
posted by Lisa Moscatiello #
2:04 PM |
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