FROM GWEN @ BHRR(Birch Haven Rescue & Rehabilitation Services):

Casper was in bad shape. Full disclosure was not made on this poor boy and we were in shock when we saw him for the first time. Feet bleeding freely, the largest inter-digit pustules our vets had ever seen; swelling & pain that make walking excruciating for him and the smell from the infections was truly awful. He had trouble with the three stairs going outside for he was that unsteady and he was even mentally not there with us.

We spent a very long week caring for him in the hopes that we could ‘turn’ him around. He was not eating; drank little and we had no choice but to put him on IV fluids. Casper’s lymp nodes were so swollen and we did needle aspirates on them. The vets felt that he either had such a bad bacterial infection in his legs(his previous vet records show that this has been going on at least since July) that it spread to his lymph nodes or that he had Subcutaneous lymphoma or even lymphosarcoma. One of the vets said that the skin condition can be a sign of a lymphosarcoma. He also had sores all underneathe his jaw and on his lips.

Marc and I have talked about ‘good/healing suffering’ and ‘bad suffering’. Casper was not going through a healing suffering such as recovering from a broken or amputed leg on the way to a positive rehabilitated life. Night after night, Casper would whimper, cry and sometimes howl in pain in our bed and we tried so hard to comfort him.

I brought Casper to work with me yesterday and it was one of the hardest shifts of my life. Casper was held in my loving arms and blessed with my tears as we crossed him over. All I could was keep saying I was so sorry, so very sorry that we could not make him better. Perhaps, if he was released to Marc’s authority earlier; he might have had a chance.

For those in Rescue, it is always hard when you cannot save them to give them that chance at something wonderful.

RIP Sweet Casper…..