I can very clearly remember the day we got Lucy. After a couple of weeks of searching the local paper for a miniature Schnauzer we came across a breeder in Decatur TX who had puppies for sale. After making an appointment to go and see the puppies we both agreed that we were just going to "look", and we weren't going to buy one. We purposely left our money at home so we would not be tempted. I remember the long drive out there and discussing with Jason how fun a puppy would be! The breeders were a very nice older couple who only bread Schnauzers. We drove down a little dirt road, and set back away from the busy highway was their sweet little home, and a separate house behind it that housed the puppies. I had never seen a kennel so clean and nice before! When we got out of the car they greeted us immediately and started to walk us back to their kennel. They had us wait in the little fenced in area and said they would go get the puppies and would be right back. Moments later the lady opened the door and out ran the sweetest, most precious little puppies you ever saw. I will never forget for as long as I live, Jason looked up at me and said, "Sarah, we need to go back home and get the check book." If my memory serves me correctly we hadn't even picked out a puppy yet, but we got back in the car and made the long drive back home to get our check book to turn back around and go pick out a puppy! Jason and I both agreed on the sweet, all black little girl. The breeders thanked us and gave us all kinds of information on taking care of a new puppy and sent us on our way. On the long ride home I remember holding this precious, tiny little puppy, and the excitement between Jason and I. Since I had a pretty decent I Love Lucy collection at the time Jason suggested that we name her Lucy. I loved it, and it fit her perfectly. Lucy was our pride and joy. We took her everywhere. She slept with us. We took her to the dog park. When Jason and I went on our honeymoon for 7 days we left her with his parents and when we got back she was so mad at us for leaving her she wouldn't even look at us! There are so many memories we have of our sweet dog that I believe we will cherish forever.
I must admit that after the birth of Jaxon, Lucy has slowly faded from being anywhere near the center of our attention. After bringing Jaxon home from the hospital we have ignored Lucy's emotional needs. We feed her, we let her outside in the back yard, and frequently give her a pat on the head, but its not the same. She used to be our whole world, and now she has been replaced.
I recently was laid off from my job. Dealing with the stress that comes along with that, and amongst other things this has definitely not been a good week. While I was home yesterday Lucy got sick. Throughout the day I believe she threw up in the house 6-7 times. She hadn't eaten anything and had barely had any water. I wasn't super concerned as I thought maybe she had eaten some table scraps that Jaxon had thrown at her, and they didn't agree with her stomach. Late last night, around midnight, Jason woke up to her going to the bathroom in our bedroom. It was all blood. By 7am the next morning she was still having bloody stools. After Jason went to work I watched her for a bit and then called the Vet. She was just not acting like her usual hyper active self. The Vet of course wanted me to bring her in immediately. I called Jason and he left work to come meet me. After filling out the paperwork I waited for the nurse to come in. She asked me all kinds of questions about Lucy's history and her diet. She asked if there had been any kinds of changes to her diet. I told her that prior to Jaxon coming along she was a dog food only girl! NO table scraps! If you have a toddler then you know that more food ends up on the floor than in their mouth! LOL Slowly but surely Lucy started eating all kinds of table food. The nurse took her temp. and examined her, and she gave us some ideas of what she thought might be wrong with Lucy. She asked us to wait just a minute and the Dr. would come in and see her. While we were waiting Lucy laid on the table and looked so miserable. I gave her lots of kisses and kept petting her and telling her everything was going to be okay. After the Dr. came in she told us that Lucy was dehydrated and they would need to draw her blood to see if they could find out what the problem was. If that didn't work then they would need to do some x rays. Jason was very upfront with the Dr. and told her that we did not have thousands of dollars that we could spend, especially now, if it were to be something serious, we would have to put her down. I tried so hard not to cry....I lost it. I know that a dog is just a dog, but in that little room I was reminded of the saddest movie in all of history, Marley and Me. Lucy had been through so much with us, we could not just give up on her. We were told that she needed to stay overnight so they could keep her hydrated, and they would give her some medicine to calm her stomach. I felt so bad for her. I felt so guilty for all the months of not loving her like I used to. She has been far more loyal to us than we have been to her. Its been pretty lonely tonight without her here and I've been thinking about her a lot. I miss her and I hope she gets better soon.
Lucy,
Even though you can't read this I want you to know that we miss you. We are sorry for putting you on the back burner. We love you with all of our hearts and we are ready for you to come home!
