rcharlton
Moderator emeritus
- Joined
- Jun 20, 2005
- Messages
- 641
- Reason
- PALS
- Diagnosis
- 11/2005
- Country
- CA
- State
- Ontario
- City
- Toronto
Sunny is our 10 year old beagle.
She was bred in a puppy mill and spent the first 3 years of her life in a small cage crowded in with other dogs.
Then she was sold to a vet school to be used as a lab dog. Students used to practice operating on her. At the base of her spine there is a white patch of fur from where she had been shaved to make it easier for students to practice giving her epidural injections.
She was scheduled for a terminal experiment but this was cancelled and she was put up for adoption.
When my wife went to pick her up, as soon as Sunny was released she was so excited that she ran around the room for 5 minutes and then collapsed at my wife's feet and rolled onto her back.
When we brought her home she was a bit freaked out by open spaces after spending her life up to then in a cage. Whenever we took her outside she would often just sit and stare. Even now she loves to find a hidden spot with a view, like our hedge, and watch the world pass by.
She LOVES people. She always gets so excited about meeting new people - she greets them like long lost friends. One of her favourite things to do was to greet people as they exited the subway at rush hour. Her tail would be wagging like crazy.
For the first few months we never heard her bark - I think that after living in a cage with so many other dogs for so long she had given up barking as a waste of time. The first time we heard her bark she scared herself.
She also did not know how to play. She would scamper around when excited but did not understand playing ball or tug of war. But she enjoyed nothing more than to lick someone's hands or legs.
She caused a few terrifying episodes running away a number of times.
And she could be stubborn. Whenever she did not want to do something she would roll on her back - especially disconcerting when crossing a busy road.
But she is the sweetest and gentlest soul. She mothers another one of our rescued beagles and spends a lot of time grooming.
We just found out Sunny is in renal failure and will die in a matter of days or weeks. She does not appear to be in any pain but I can't bear the thought of watching her waste away before us.
We explained the situation to our 4 year old daughter. She broke down and kept screaming that she didn't want Sunny to die. This was brutal on so many levels. I also saw it as a sample of what is in store for us when we explain to her about daddy.
Poor Sunny
She was bred in a puppy mill and spent the first 3 years of her life in a small cage crowded in with other dogs.
Then she was sold to a vet school to be used as a lab dog. Students used to practice operating on her. At the base of her spine there is a white patch of fur from where she had been shaved to make it easier for students to practice giving her epidural injections.
She was scheduled for a terminal experiment but this was cancelled and she was put up for adoption.
When my wife went to pick her up, as soon as Sunny was released she was so excited that she ran around the room for 5 minutes and then collapsed at my wife's feet and rolled onto her back.
When we brought her home she was a bit freaked out by open spaces after spending her life up to then in a cage. Whenever we took her outside she would often just sit and stare. Even now she loves to find a hidden spot with a view, like our hedge, and watch the world pass by.
She LOVES people. She always gets so excited about meeting new people - she greets them like long lost friends. One of her favourite things to do was to greet people as they exited the subway at rush hour. Her tail would be wagging like crazy.
For the first few months we never heard her bark - I think that after living in a cage with so many other dogs for so long she had given up barking as a waste of time. The first time we heard her bark she scared herself.
She also did not know how to play. She would scamper around when excited but did not understand playing ball or tug of war. But she enjoyed nothing more than to lick someone's hands or legs.
She caused a few terrifying episodes running away a number of times.
And she could be stubborn. Whenever she did not want to do something she would roll on her back - especially disconcerting when crossing a busy road.
But she is the sweetest and gentlest soul. She mothers another one of our rescued beagles and spends a lot of time grooming.
We just found out Sunny is in renal failure and will die in a matter of days or weeks. She does not appear to be in any pain but I can't bear the thought of watching her waste away before us.
We explained the situation to our 4 year old daughter. She broke down and kept screaming that she didn't want Sunny to die. This was brutal on so many levels. I also saw it as a sample of what is in store for us when we explain to her about daddy.
Poor Sunny