#lilystrong

If you’re squeamish, you may want to stop here.  The day that Lily died, I rushed her to the vets office because she was VERY weak, started struggling to breath, and her gums turned WHITE. I carried her out to the car and drove as fast as possible to the vet. Turns out Lily was in the midst of a “cardiac event” and her platelet count was continuing to drop. The doctor suspected there was internal bleeding somewhere, so we did an ultrasound. Turns out Lily had a 1.5 lb tumor on her spleen that was bleeding into her abdomen.

It was surgery or euthanasia. We opted for surgery. Lily survived the surgery, but died approximately 2 hrs later.

Here’s the tumor:

Here’s me saying “F U CANCER”!!!

This was Lily's last search of the day at the Yadkinville, NC Elite trial. It was also our last time playing the game that she loved so much. It wasn't our priettest search (Yes - we were painfully slow), but hopefully you can see the love we had for each other and the pure heart and determination she had to finish this search. This video represents the way we always played the game - goofy, fun-loving, and most of all as a team. My favorite part of the video is the little pep-talk we had at the start line. 

It was hot in the tractor barn, so I let her move as slow as she needed to... Lily found 4 of the 6 hides, but I only called alert on 3 of them. You'll see her getting mad at me for not calling the 4th (on the pole) right around the 2 minute mark. That was my mistake. I had never seen her work this slow, so I wasn't sure in the moment if that was a pause because she needed a break, or because she got herself trapped in a corner, or if it was an alert. We weren't going for points this trial... I just wanted her to do what she loved so she could perk up a bit and she did. In any case, I'm super proud of what she was able to accomplish just 5 days prior to crossing the rainbow bridge. She found every hide in the ground that we were able to cover. She was amazing! #LilyStrong #AlwaysInMyHeart #MissYouSoMuch 

I am heartbroken... My precious Lily crossed the Rainbow Bridge yesterday. She was an incredibly amazing dog and she will remain in my heart forever! We had such a special connection from the moment we met and that only grew stronger and stronger over the past 11 1/2 years. She meant the world to me! We were a team - Lily and I against the world - and together we could do anything. Lily was my heart dog and was always up for anything as long as we were together! I am going to miss not seeing that smushy face by my side every day! The house just isn't the same without my girl. I'll never peel another banana or press the button on the ice machine, without expecting her to come running...

In typical Lily fashion, she fought hard until the bitter end. She hadn't been feeling well over the past few days, and we discovered yesterday that she had a 1.5 lb. tumor on her spleen that had ruptured. She was bleeding into her abdomen, and her platelet count was dropping fast. We knew we had to do something and none of our options were good ones. Knowing it was risky, we decided to have her spleen removed. I hated the thought of Lily going through another surgery, but the only alternative was euthanasia. I spent quality time with Lily yesterday and kept asking her to "tell me what she wanted me to do". I always wanted to do right by her! It may sound crazy, but just as I was about to make the decision to call it, Lily stood up on her own and looked at me. Then she sat down right in front of me and refused to lay down. She wasn't done yet! So we decided to give it a shot. We knew it was a Hail Mary. Lily walked herself into the operating room, and I told her how much I loved her. She made it through the surgery, but her body just wasn't strong enough to hang on. She stopped breathing and needed blood, so they transfused Jagger's blood into her and that helped for a couple minutes. Then her heart just stopped. She died about 2 hours after the surgery. Thankfully, she wasn't in any pain.

I knew Lily was on borrowed time, but that didn't make saying goodbye any easier. She's had to overcome so much over the past couple of years, and we've made so many good memories along the way. Living 2 years after being diagnosed with pulmonary carcinoma is almost unheard of. I'm so thankful for each and every second we shared together and I will cherish the memories we made forever.

Until we meet again, my sweet girl.. I love you more than I could ever explain. You're cancer free forever. Jagger and I will miss you every day. I hope there are a million hides for you to find in heaven.. Now that you can see again - I'll let you run this one off leash.

#LilyStrong #MissYouAlready #AlwaysInMyHeart

Lily got IV fluids all day today. She came home, ate, went out to potty, and is resting comfortably! Happy to report she walked over to her bed and got settled on her own.

Hopefully the sleep will allow her body to heal and recover as much as possible...