And the circle of life continues...

The time draws near...Harley has begun to decline, and it's happening fast. Just seven days ago, she was her usual spazzy self. She had been losing weight and coughing on and off for about a week but it wasn't slowing her down much. Monday, she didn't come racing down the stairs when Ted arrived home as she usually does. In fact, she did not come down at all. We called her down and she was VERY slow, a bit listless, and had her "wuss face" on. Tuesday night she began to smell strongly of bile (no vomiting) and continued to cough, but all else was normal. Wednesday she began coughing up blood clots and smelling of bile again. Her mucous membranes were pale and she was a bit wobbly in the rear. On a hunch, I scoured the backyard and found she had been having bloody diarrhea. She was up for a walk, though, so we went to the nice, grassy spot by the tennis court and she found a tennis ball to play with! We had 6 or 7 throws before she pooped right out. Thursday was not much better, but not worse, either...until Thursday night. Debilitating lethargy, increased water intake, and we took a short walk and she only chased the ball twice. She ate dinner last night very slowly, and her breakfast even slower. She slept most of the day today, and around three we went out in the backyard as I was hoping it would lift her spirits a bit. I brought out two of her favorites: baby carrots and peanut butter, which she was slow to eat. She drank a LOT of water. Her mucous membranes are grey, almost white, so I have opted to run some blood tests so I can see where we are and evaluate her needs. Her regular vet kind of dropped the ball (they are supposed to be an urgent care clinic as well, but wouldn't see her until Monday), so we are going to a different (new) place that squeezed us in so we could avoid the after-hours clinic charges. 7:20 p.m. tonight. She has just now gone to bark at the neighbor--I think I may have to go rescue her from the stairs because she hasn't come back down yet.

I have a large list of people whom I am very grateful for. They have really pulled together to help me over the last few months, and especially today. I don't have the time to list them all now, but they know who they are. Thank you.

I will try to update as much as possible via this blog. Stay tuned.