Zachary

The day, Monday May 4, 2009 started out much the same as all the other days the past four years, shaving, sometimes, making the bed, most of the time, letting Zach and Mya out to inspect and lay claim to their kingdom, all the time. All trespassers and any manner of creature that my have left their calling cards were given fair warning. This has taken on a different twist over the last five months or so. Zach had been diagnosed several years ago with spinal neuropathy, a disorder of the spinal cord which fails to carry signals to the back legs. As a young dog we noticed that he had a strange habit of twisting his left hind foot outward while walking. The twist went away as his walk became a trot and when he ran, which was seldom and only for very short distances he would mostly use his hind legs much a rabbit would, with a hop. He has been living with this problem all his life which did not cause him any pain. Recently stair steps of any kind became an impoossible task to overcome. The deck off the back of our house has two sets of steps, to the left, Zach’s favorite, a two stepper and to the right a three stepper. Last fall I tacked down a welcome mat by the steps so when Zach went down the steps his hind legs would not slip out from underneath him. Picture the yoga position “down dog”, front arms straight with head held high chest up, waist and hips down and legs straight back and with out the mat tacked to the deck Zach ended up in this position looking back at me with a look of anguish that would melt your heart. That was in the fall of 2008. By this spring going up stairs became increasingly difficult. So much so he could not get the mind to overcome what ever was preventing his back end from getting the signals to climb steps so we would have to pick up his back end to help him. About the time we thought we had to help him up he would climb the steps. There became fewer times he was able to do it on his own. One time when he was out back and we were encouraging him to come up the steps he decided to run / hop around to the front door were there is a lower stoop and a step up into and through the front door. This quickly became the only way he would be able to come into the house on his own. I built a ramp over the steps off the deck but with no luck. Mya would tear up and down the ramp but Zach would have nothing to do with it. He would take one look at the ramp and head for the front door.
A few days ago we went to the forest preserves for our daily run. This spring has been an exceptionally wet spring in Elgin so we have not gotten out to the park as often as Mya and Zach would like so they were ready to go! The walk was typical except that Zach was having difficulty catching his breath. We cut the walk short and went home were he settled down and the day went on. Last Sunday Wendy joined us for our walk and Zach’s breathing was labored again. We had seen this in the past and had given him medicine that helped environmental allergies with some success. When we got home all was well.
Monday morning during our walk Zach’s breathing became quit labored to the point that I thought it best to be checked out by a veterinarian and get the correct “allergy” medicine for his problem. The receptionist went to tell the doctor we had arrived and the doctor came out to see / listen to Zach’s labored breathing. The doctor was concerned and took us into an examination room. What Wendy and I thought was a symptom of allergies turned out to be much more serious. The Doctor explained that Zach’s neuropathy was likely affecting the muscles that control the valve in his throat that allowed him to breath. He quickly explained there to be two different surgical procedures that can be considered but first Zach need to be stabilized. They took him in the back where a sedative and oxygen were administrated. About ten minutes later they came and got me from the waiting room. With a grim face I was told the Zach had not responded to the sedative and had been given a second one in an effort to stabilize him. It was suggested that because of the distress Zach was in that possibly being with me might help to settle him down. With in a minute of Zach’s return to the exam room the labored breathing which was causing him to loose color, a clear sign of oxygen depravation, I knew in my heart that it was time to help him one last time. I carried him to the back room and laid him on a blanket that had been spread out over a table and within a few minutes Zach was at peace.

Wendy and I have been very fortunate to have had several wonderful, loving pet dogs through out our lives. Zach will be remember as one of the kindest, gentlest dogs we have known.