Little Mikey

I experienced something this past weekend that I had never before.  We had to put our Yorkie to sleep.

 While I was out of town in Houston, Wayne called to tell me that Mikey was not doing too good.  He was laying in the same spot in our bedroom and had not moved.  That did not sound good.
Mikey had been with us for 15 l/2 years and in the last 2 years he was showing signs of deterioration and old age.  He had lost his spunk, was aggravated with the grand kids, was not going outside very much, etc.  He had developed a stomach condition and threw up quite a lot.  He had lost most of his teeth.
He was starting to relieve himself in the house (we changed most of the flooring to tile for that reason), and he was getting blind.  We knew the day was coming for the dreaded trip to the vet.

When I returned from Houston on Friday night...Mikey was still laying almost lifeless in the middle of the walkway into our bedroom.  It was almost like he didn't want to go to his normal spot under the dresser...like perhaps he wanted to let us know that he was not well.  The vet had told me that dogs do not show their pain...they hide it.  I wrapped him in a blanket and laid him in his bed.....he didn't move.  We went to bed knowing that the vet was open l/2 a day on Saturday and we would take him if he wasn't better in the morning.    Early in the morning, I heard him moan....well, that was it.  I didn't want him to be in pain.

We got up and I tried to offer him water (he had not gotten up to eat or drink in over 24 hours).  He just turned his head away from me. 

At that point, I picked him up and held him wrapped in the blanket, and said my goodbyes.  It was sad.  He had not really been an "active" participant in our family for some time...but he was with us for so long that Wayne and I both felt sad and moved by the way he looked.

So, off to the vet.....I had a meeting to attend that I could not miss....so I didn't go....I don't think I could have watched the procedure....even though I knew it was painless and he would no longer have to feel bad.

It's taken me a few days to write this....to document the last days of Mikey.  I've tried to find a picture of him...I guess he never came out of his cave long enough for us to snap a picture.  He was cute in his day...a little big as Yorkies go...so the girls had named him Yorkzilla.

We still have Coco  who is our female Boxer....she is 13 years old...so getting close to her end.  However, she still has some spunk....sleeps most of the day, but has a great appetite and is loving and great with the kids.

I'm trying to get her used to getting in our 5er and feeling comfortable there...so we can take her on trips with us.  We'll have to see....she's pretty set in her ways!