Sammy
The sweetest and most loving sheepdog in the world, our beloved Sammy passed over the Rainbow Bridge yesterday. We had to make the devastating decision to put her down after tests showed her liver and heart had numerous cancer tumors. The deterioration was unbelievably fast. I had brought her in to the vet last week when she seemed to be in pain and I noticiced her belly was rotund and hard. She was her sweet self right to the end and hid her symptoms very well. The vet believed the cancer had been advancing for a very long time. No one even suspected anything of the sort until a week ago when she was already in the terminal phase. I brought her back in yesterday after being gone on a 4 day trip. I noticed her breathing was struggled and her walking was strained. It was a monumental shock when they told me she would not even make it through the night!. Bill, Duncan and Blair met us at the hospital and she greeted them with so much love. We held her in our arms as she gazed lovingly at Blair when the vet gave the final injection. It was very fast, her heart stopped beating at the end of the injection. In just a matter of seconds she became our angel girl. She was ten years old and was a 7th birthday present for Blair. The cruel irony is that it will be Blair's 17th birthday on Friday. We are all so grateful that Tristan and Duncan were able to spend a wonderful last week with her. They had just come home from school the Saturday before. Unfortunately Tristan just left on Monday to return to Amherst for the summer. He is absolutely devastated and in disbelief. Sammy had slept with him every night he was home. I really believe with all my heart that she held on and waited for the boys to get home so they could say goodbye to her. She really was in so much pain that she hid so well from us. Looking back now of course I can see the warning signs. But she kept her loving sweet temperment until the very end. We are all totally devastated and heartbroken. There is a huge hole in all our hearts. Unfortunately this is the cruel price for loving dogs. The universe sent me a hint when I came across a beautiful book called "Sight Hound" by Pam Houston on my trip last week. It is a profound story about an Irish Wolfhound dying of cancer. I had just finished the book Monday night and when I woke up I went to take Sammy to the vet on the last day of her life. Dogs teach us about life and about eternally devoted love. Sammy loved us with all her being and gave us so much joy and comfort in her short life. I know without a doubt that she will come back o us once again. In the meantime she waits patiently in a beautiful place where there is no pain, just pure love and joy and all the cookies she want. Max is now 14 yrs old and deaf but still very active and healthy. When it is time for him to leave us, Sam will be there with a silly grin and a loving nip to meet him. Thanks for listening. |
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So sorry for your loss of your beautiful sweet girl. Special thoughts for you and your family.  |
| I am so sorry to hear of the passing to the Rainbow Bridge of your sweet sheepie girl. My thoughts are with you and your family. |
| That is so sad, I am very sorry about your loss. I can tell you loved your baby loads and she brought years of happiness to your family, you did the right thing to show her how much you loved her.
I am going to light 2 candles, one for your baby and one for my guinea pig who passed away last night, to light their way over the Bridge. When you can, come back and talk to us and perhaps show us a photo of your Sammy....xx |
I'm so sorry for your loss  |
| I am sorry for your loss.
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| I am sorry to hear about your Sammy. I hope your heart stops hurting soon. We have broad shoulders here for you lean on during this hard time.
And Sue, I'm sorry to hear about your piggy. Guinea pigs are so sweet.... |
| I'm so sorry for your loss. They are so much a part of us that when they pass, it feels like they take a huge chunk of our hearts with them as they go. I hope your happy memories of her will bring you comfort during this difficult time. |
| I am so sorry |
| I am so sorry for your loss of your precious Sammy. Having lost our girl Drez last year, I can still so vividly feel once again how I felt then. Plus, our new rescue's name is also Sammie, so to read the name in print combined with the rush of renewed feelings just takes my breath away.
Sammy's memory will be with you always, as it should be. |
| I'm so sorry for your loss! It's a heartful story to read and makes me cry!
It remembers me when the vet told me that I should put my Ellie down 2 years ago and I wanted to wait another night but she died in that night, alone! I never forgave myself that I might should have made another decision. I understand you soo much!!  We where on holidays when Ellie got ill and I think she waited to die until we came home so she would have seen us one more time to say goodbye! Like Sammy did with your boys!!
Loads of hugs to you and your family!!! |
| I'm so sorry . It may take a long time but one day you'll be able to think of your sweet girl and smile, but until then |
| Your story brought me to tears, I'm so very sorry for your loss.
We are here for you to talk. |
| Tears for you and your family.
Its so devastating to lose our beloved furry family members. Thinking of you and wishing you happy memories and a peaceful heart. |
| I am overwhelmed by all your kind words. Your support means so much to me. I am a total wreck today as it all sinks in. It's so hard to be in the house and expecting her to be in all her familiar places. All last night I thought I saw her out of the corner of my eye everywhere I went.
We had to call our oldest son in Amherst, Mass last night to tell him the sad news. He had just started his summer job and had a great day and was so pumped. When we told him, he just howled and cried with disbelief. He is 21 yrs old yet he was like an unconsolable child. He kept saying "I just saw her and she was fine!!" Our hearts broke all over again and felt so bad that he was alone by himself to deal with this. I feel so inadequate in trying to comfort my sons when I am a crying mess myself. Just anything will set me off on an uncontollable crying episode. I feel the same grief for Sammy as I did when my mother died unexpectantly 25 years ago. Sam was not a dog, or a pet...she was my little girl, my child just like my boys. I am grateful to have a forum here to voice my grief. It is comforting to know that all my fellow OES lovers know what I am going through. I have posted some photos of Sammy and am waiting for approval. I would love all of you to see what a sweet girl she was. With Deep Appreciation, Janet |
| I am so sorry for your loss. My twin sons had just gone off to university when our first sheepdog Sheba took ill. I still remember that awful phone call to them to tell them that they had to come home to say goodbye. We still miss her but we now laugh and smile at the memories she left us. May you and your boys have sweet memories of Sammy! |
| I am so very sorry Thanks for the photos of your little angel girl, we will say a prayer for her |
| Sammy was a beautiful girl, and I can see how much your family loved her. They are absolutely like our children and the pain when we lose them is just as intense. My heart goes out to you and your family. |
| I am so sorry your heart is so broken.
Thank you for letting us see how sweet Sammy was. |
| I am so sorry...... |
| Thanks for posting pictures of your sweet girl. She sure had a big job taking care of all those fine boys. The pain when your heart is totally broken by a loss is so intense--
As a mom it is so hard to comfort your children during a time like this- as you hurt for them too. Cry and Cry and then cry some more! And then cry together... The pain in your heart will begin to mend as the sweet memories are remembered. Thoughts and prayers are with you and your family. |
| I'm so sorry for the loss of your beautiful girl .
Julianne and Marley |
| Day 2 without Sammy and it is sinking in that she is really gone. The shock of losing her has been replaced by a depair deeper than I thought possible. Her constant doggy companion, our 14 yr old Westie, Max is wandering all over the house looking for her. He feels as empty as I do.
My boys are sad but are back to their routine of school and work. I, on the other hand can't ge motivated to do anything. Everything reminds me of her and the tears start flowing nonstop. My heart aches so bad that I can barely catch my breath. I talked to her regular vet today and he reviewed her chart from the specialty hospital. He reassured me that I had made the right decision because I was starting to second guess myself. Maybe I should have brought her home one more night. Maybe I should have gotten a second opinion. All these thoughts are making me sick to my stomach. Today I laid on her dog bed and tried to smell her. Tell me it gets easier? |
It does get easier, but it also does take some time. I swore for days after we lost Drez that I heard her coming up the stairs, or trying to stand up downstairs. And my daughter swore that she "smelled" her - she had bad gas toward the end (could clear out a room in the blink of an eye!  ), and that's what my daughter smelled. Some people even swear they have "felt" their dear departed, either by the dog brushing up against them or by the person "tripping" over the dog where the dog used to lay. The mind is a powerful organ - it can play games with you BIG time.
When we lost our first sheepie back in 1994, I walked into my boss's office and called the rest of the group in and said - I'm only going to say this once because I can't talk about it, and told them we had lost Buford. I then went on to spend the rest of the day working and crying at the same time. It was a terrible time. As hard as the grieving is, you need to go through this. There will come a time when you can think of Sammy and smile, remembering all the good times and things she did. Until then - grieve fully, but also remember that she loved you all as much as you loved her, and she wouldn't want you to be unhappy. My heart goes out to you in this difficult time. |
| Janet, I'm so sorry to hear of Sammy's passing and the grief you are all feeling. I have to second Chris's post, if you hold on, the grief will get easier and the feelings will be replaced with all the funny stuff that Sammy did and the good times and memories will be there for easy and quick recall, the sadness will subside with time. I know as I went through it with Tyler and many companions before him and I will gladly do it again for the honor of having them in my life. I was recently away from home for a week or so and when I got back my crew has attached themselves to me at every opportunity, I'm so glad to be loved by them, they are worth it all.
Hugs to you and your family |
poolmom wrote: Today I laid on her dog bed and tried to smell her. Tell me it gets easier? It gets more bearable. And other things start to take front and center stage adn it gets pushed down a little bit more each day. So yes in that sense it gets easier. Thinking about my Max (who is gone over 4 years) is still painful and can bring me to tears instantly, but it can also make me smile and I appreciate the dogs I do have even more because of it. |
| I am so sad for your loss, it gets easier as time goes by although we never forget them and the memories they have left us to remind us they were a big part of our family.
I just lost a baby back in January, oldie and had to make that dreaded decision, dont think I am strange, but I actually have a tuft of her hair and every time when I feel I am missing her so much I pull it out of a little satchet that I have it in and just run my fingers through it and smell it to comfort me. Teary times ahead and completely normal, some days are good others where the memory is triggered by something so special as her bed or lingering smell on something will bring us to unexpected tears, but you will get there and your darling girl will always be there in spirit as a guardian angel watching over you forever in your heart & minds. Smiles of your special time and memories will eventually bring comfort to your soul again, they leave us with that for us to always remember them and how much they impacted so much love and joy in our lives. 
Again sorry for your loss |
| I am so sorry for your loss |
| We are so sorry to hear of your loss.
Believe me when I tell you that folks on this forum understand what you are going through right now. Our first sheepie, Quincy, passed away unexpectedly when he was five years old, and I am not exaggerating when I say we were devastated. I literally couldn't eat for weeks, and my hubby, my father and I would just look at each other and start crying. We understand your family's pain. Time was the only thing that helped. That, and a deaf sheepie puppy named Oscar....... I noticed that you live very close to me, as we're in The Merit Club in Libertyville. Though Oscar would likely be a poor substitute for your Sammy, if you need some sheepie lovin', we're close by. Hugs to you and your family. Laurie and Oscar |
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