(VICT) Re: Chimette: AKA Met December 4, 1996 - September 10, 2007

Dearest Karen,

I was catching up this morning and now find tears flowing and my heart 
aching for you.  Know that you are in my prayers and thoughts as you travel 
this difficult pathway.  Below I am sharing a piece sent to me by Meg 
Irizarry.  How important to honor our partners with loving memories of all 
the little things they bring to our lives.  Grace and peace, in thanksgiving 
and honor of Met.  May your paths one day cross again.

Bren


The Journey
by Crystal Ward Kent
When  you bring a pet into your life, you begin a journey - a journey that
will bring  you more love and devotion than you have ever known, yet also 
test
your strength  and courage.
If you allow, the journey will teach you many things, about life, about
yourself, and most of all, about love. You will come away changed forever, 
for
one soul cannot touch another without leaving its  mark.
Along the way, you will learn much about savoring life's simple pleasures  -
jumping in leaves, snoozing in the sun, the joys of puddles, and even the
satisfaction of a good scratch behind the  ears.
If you spend much time outside, you will be taught how to truly  experience
every element, for no rock, leaf, or log will go unexamined, no  rustling 
bush
will be  overlooked,  and even the very air will be inhaled, pondered, and
noted as being full of  valuable information. Your pace may be slower - 
except
when heading home to the  food dish - but you will become a better 
naturalist,
having been taught by an  expert in the
field.
Too many times we hike on automatic pilot, our goal being to complete the
trail rather than enjoy the journey. We miss the details - the colorful
mushrooms on the rotting log, the honeycomb in the  old
maple snag, the hawk feather caught on a twig. Once we  walk as a dog does,
we discover a whole new world. We stop; we browse the  landscape, we kick 
over
leaves, peek in tree holes, look up, down, all around.  And we learn what 
any
dog knows: that nature has created a marvelously complex  world that is full
of surprises, that each cycle of the seasons bring  ever
changing wonders, each day an essence all its  own.
Even from indoors you will find yourself more attuned to the world around
you. You will find yourself watching summer insects collecting on a 
screen.(How
bizarre they are! How many kinds there are!), or noting  the
flick and flash of fireflies through the dark. You will  stop to observe the
swirling dance of windblown leaves, or sniff the air  after a rain. It does
not  matter that there is no objective in this; the point is in the doing, 
in
not  letting life's most important details slip  by.
You will find yourself doing silly things that your pet-less friends  might
not understand:  spending  thirty minutes in the grocery aisle looking for 
the
cat food brand your feline  must have, buying dog birthday treats, or 
driving
around the block an extra time  because your pet enjoys the ride. You will
roll in the snow, wrestle with chewie  toys, bounce little rubber balls till 
your
eyes cross, and even run around the  house trailing your bathrobe tie - with
a cat in hot pursuit - all in the name  of love.
Your house will become muddier and hairier. You will wear less dark 
clothing
and buy more lint rollers. You may find dog biscuits in your pocket or
purse, and feel the need to explain that an old plastic shopping bag adorns 
your
living room rug because your cat loves the crinkly  sound.
You will learn the true measure of love - the steadfast, undying kind  that
says, "It doesn't matter where we are or what we do, or how life treats us 
as
long as we are together." Respect this always. It is the most  precious
gift  any living soul can give another. You will not find it often among 
the
human race.
And you will learn humility. The look in my dog's eyes often made me feel
ashamed. Such joy and love at my presence. She saw not some flawed human who
could be cross and stubborn, moody or rude, but  only
her  wonderful companion. Or maybe she saw those things and  dismissed
them  as mere human foibles, not worth considering, and so chose to  love
me  anyway.
If you pay attention and learn well, when the journey is done, you will  be
not just a better person, but the person your pet always knew you to be - 
the
one they were proud to call beloved friend.
I must caution you that this journey is not without pain. Like all paths  of
true love, the pain is part of loving. For as surely as the sun sets, one 
day
your dear animal companion will follow a trail you cannot yet go  down.
And you will have to find the strength and love to let them go. A pet's 
time
on earth is far too short - especially for those that love them. We borrow
them, really, just for awhile, and during these brief years they  are
generous enough to give us all their love, every inch of  their spirit and
heart, until one day there is nothing  left.
The cat that only yesterday was a kitten is all too soon old and frail  and
sleeping in the sun. The young pup of boundless energy wakes up stiff and
lame, the muzzle now gray. Deep down we somehow  always
knew  that this journey would end. We knew that if we gave our  hearts
they  would be broken.
But give them we must for it is all they ask in return. When the time 
comes,
and the road curves ahead to a place we cannot see, we give one final  gift
and let them run on ahead - young and whole once  more.
"Godspeed, good friend," we say, until our journey comes  full circle
and  our paths cross again.

of
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "metnme2" <metnme2@xxxxxxxxx>
To: "Vi-Clicker" <vi-clicker-trainers@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Wednesday, September 12, 2007 12:30 AM
Subject: (VICT) Chimette: AKA Met December 4, 1996 - September 10, 2007


> It is with an enormous amount of greif that words
> could never fully contain that I let you all know that
> Met is free. I sat here last night and wrote an
> extensively long email to the epilepsy lists where we
> were a part of the community there since 1998 but then
> the shock and numbness wore off and try as I might
> today I have not been able to duplicate for you the
> way Met has touched my life.
> Chimette was that one dog in few who despite not
> seeming right initially for public access work, not
> only proved me and many people so completely wrong but
> did so in the grandest of ways.
> In the early days, weeks, and months we considered him
> my little disaster. Smile
> But that little disaster changed my life in ways I
> could never begin to portray completely to all of you.
> He was adopted to be trained as a hearing dog but no
> sooner had I decided he did not have what it would
> take for public access then he began to change in
> amazing ways- he began to blossom, began to take on
> the world and above all began to do some of those
> amazing
> life saving things. He took me from someone who was
> merely existing rather than living and showed me the
> beauty that life had to offer. He brought me out of my
> shell and gave me back a side of adventure,
> determination, and independence. As my disabilities
> progressed he became not only a full fledged hearing
> and service dog with public access rights, but he took
> on the role of my guide. There could never be a better
> more intune dog as Met has been to me and all my
> numerous needs.
> Last month when Met stepped out of harness but still
> wanted to be my service and hearing dog, I had no idea
> that in a months time he would be stepping out of life
> itself. This is such a scary uncertain time for me-
> losing my combo trained service dog has me uncertain
> how I am going to make it, but I love Met way too much
> to have made him live in the condition his body had
> faltered to.
> Many of you know that Met was a special needs service
> dog... that is one with his own problems. Epilepsy did
> not take Chimette from me. In fact he had
> been seizure free since November 6, 2003 (almost 4
> years)He remained seizure free through surgery in 2006
> a big feat IMO, through the horrendous effects on his
> weak blood brain barrier which was somehow
> re-triggered this past summer and even through the
> complete removal of his meds 4 days ago to give him
> the peace he needed from the torment his body was
> going through. Met had severe spondylosis where his
> lumbar and sacral areas were evidently fusing together
> and was in horrid pain that could not be stopped. I
> was told that spondylosis in canines was not usually
> problematic, but then Met was not a pet and Met does
> not have a habit of doing anything the *usual* way. He
> also had some serious issue going on that
> affected him with horrid anxiety, frenzy type behavior
> that followed the consumption of
> all meds and food until we pulled his meds and
> supplements for good a few days before his death. A
> risky venture, but a necessary one. Since Monday Met's
> system just really began shutting down. His hearing
> was failing him and he was downright terrified at
> times by the changes going on. His kidneys were also
> failing fast.
> On Tuesday I told him it was time to rest- that he had
> been the bestest service dog I could have ever asked
> for and that I would be OK. He separated himself from
> me more and more as the days progressed, no more
> petting, no more walks, a level of confusion that just
> broke my heart.
> Yesterday with the help of his vet who returned from
> vacation that day, we set Met free in the side yard at
> my folks place where he so often loved to run and play
> and show us how rapidly he could water all moms
> plants.
> Though I know it was his time, it does not make this
> journey I have travelled these last couple weeks
> especially an easy one. He will always and forever be
> in my heart, be my sidekick. He has taught me so much
> about life, about animal health and above all about
> not taking veterinary information at face value. Any
> vet who had the experience of caring for my special
> man, came away with a vast amount of knowledge that
> you won't find in any veterinary manual.
> Gosh my heart hurts so badly- I am so numb and I feel
> so lost... There was nothing anyone could have done to
> stop this from happening. We know they are going to
> die some day, but we just never expect it this way...
> people have questioned with me today if he could have
> gotten ahold of anything out of China but honestly I
> don't think that was the case- at least not in terms
> of food though I know we had struggled the last months
> to find a good solution for him. Supplements though is
> a topic that has me wondering... who knows though? I
> can't beat myself up over this.
> Met never got the genetic cancer that was uncovered in
> his family history when he was about 4 years old which
> truly terrified me. It sent much of his
> family to early graves. Tonight I imagine him with all
> his family, with his girlfriend and with my special
> tiels who went before him. This loss is just so
> unbelievable!
> Run free baby boy with your full lucious coat and the
> ability to jump and twist and tumble without feeling
> anything but pure joy!
> Momma loves you
>
> Karyn and Angel Chimette
> *We Treasured the Moments*
>

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