In New Orleans, A Jazz funeral for pets lost to Katrina ....

[leftchick]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060821/ap_on_re_us/katrina...

NEW ORLEANS - Some came to the jazz funeral memorial march with photographs of pets lost in Hurricane Katrina's floods or aftermath. Others came with just their memories.

Earl Madona and his fiancee, Maggie Smith, brought a giant dog mask and two stuffed animals to symbolize their three dogs, two of them lost in the floodwaters.

They were among about 100 people who gathered Sunday night on the Esplanade Street median for a 10-block walk to a memorial service at St. Anna's Episcopal Church. Some marched with their dogs.

"It's just a nice way to pay tribute to all those that were lost so horribly, you know, all those that suffered," said Gail Langos, who was walking with her dachshunds, Merlin and Muffin.




Mary Horaist from Kenner, La., holds a photograph of her dog that died because of Hurricane Katrina as she walks in a traditional New Orleans style Jazz Funeral in New Orleans on Sunday, Aug. 20, 2006. A Jazz Funeral and memorial service were held to help people grieve for the loss of their pets after Hurricane Katrina nearly one year ago. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

http://news.yahoo.com/photo/060821/480/88da749a082c4f90...

[goclark]

1. I just had to put my 11 year old Maltese to sleep

Even knowing that he would not recover from his illness, it was a hard process.

Yet, I knew that he would no longer be in pain.

I was in the room with the Vet during the process ( I would highly recommend that all Pet Owners be there to see it ~ it helped me to feel that he was at peace.)

I can't even imagine how I would feel if my precious one had been taken from me like the owners in NO.

That would tear my heart out.

[Neecy]

3. so sorry to hear this.....

As hard as it must have been, you did right by your dog. It's still an agonizing decision, though.

Hope you're okay and big hugs from a fellow dog lover----

[goclark]

6. Oh Neecy~ your hugs mean so much

Isn't it amazing how anyone that sends a card or calls when your pet dies is remembered and appreciated.

[DemoTex]

4. I was with Sweet Sirius when he died .. a year ago this Friday.

I know how you feel, Goclark. It was one of the hardest things I have ever done. His lungs were filling with blood from the cancer, so the veterinarian ended his suffering. Sirius fought the good fight .. six months of chemo and a surgery, with a relatively good quality of life right up to the last couple of days. He died with his head in my arms.

Thanks to those who organized this jazz funeral for the pets in New Orleans. It is a fitting tribute and I join them, vicariously. May we all meet at the Rainbow Bridge.


Sweet Sirius

[goclark]

5. Your post has me crying sweet tears ~

My precious one had cancer too.

He was acting strange,he had been fine all day, and I took him to a new Emergency Vet, one closer to my house.

I was shocked when this cold hearted Dr. there said...

"I have bad news for you. Your dog is critical. He will probably die tonight.We can put him down now for $1000 or more. We can TRY to keep him stable through the night and we will not guarantee anything. We can take out his spleen for $7000 - $8000 and that may help him a little because dogs don't need spleens.We can send him home with you with Hospice Instructions,or we can keep him here and try to keep him stable, probably about $1000."

I was shaking and in complete shock.

Somehow I got the strength to say...."Keep him here, give him blood and try to stabilize him. I will come for him in the morning. Do NOT do anything else!"

She went over the $$$ part again and we left.

I signed for that and I was shaking so much and crying all over the paper. It was the first time in my life I could not recognize my own signature.

The next day I went to pick him up and take him to his wonderful Vet to be put to sleep.

To my HAPPY SURPRISE, he was so peppy!
Our Vet said he was stable and that was a good thing.

We both agreed that he was Peppy and we didn't want to put him down.

He gave me the option to take out his spleen ~ and asked if $1500 would be too much for me to pay. I gratefully agreed(after the $$$$$ from the other Vet, that was a gift!)

He said that he was almost sure that without the spleen, my precious one would have a good quality of life for anywhere from a week - 6 months.

We discussed Chemo but with his other health issues and his age, we decided against it.

For 2 1/2 happy months, we had the joy of saying a long goodbye, it was a blessing. People would come to visit and there he was greeting them as always at the door and asking for a treat!

Finally,he had a seizure one morning. I checked his gums and they were grey again. But there was just something about the way he looked this time that I knew we would be saying our last goodbye.

I held him in my arms all the way to the Vet, his eyes were glazed, he was so weak he could hardly move, he just kept looking at me. His eyes kept saying,"Don't worry, I love you."

My 88 year old Mom who loved him dearly,went with us. I thought that she was going to wait in the Reception area. To my surprise, she said that she wanted to be there with him and with me. That was one of the millions of things that makes her so special, she is one tough little cookie.

We took him to the Vets and with dignity and grace he gave me a kiss on my nose as we said our last goodbye.

~ Thank you dear friend for allowing me to write this through my tears.

PS/ My Mom tells me over and over that she is at peace because she was able to see him go to sleep without pain.

[Neecy]

8. wow

What a miracle that you had a little extra time with your sweet boy. And what a wonderful person you are to have given him such a good life and a dignified, loving end. My eyes filled with tears when I read about his last kiss on the nose.

I know that a new puppy won't be the same - and it shouldn't be, every dog is unique - but I hope you're considering it. I lost my Dalmation a year ago September in much the same way you describe and I adopted a Pomeranian rescue about a month later. The new little guy helps.

[goclark]

9. I hope the dog lovers in NO can have a new pet in their lives

if it could help the pain of such a terrible time in their life.

I can't get one because as much as my Mom loved our precious little guy,her Memory is not good at this point.

It was getting very hard for me to leave her alone with him and hard for her to feed him. I was afraid to leave them alone together. It was just more responsibility than she could handle.

[malaise]

11. I cried for a month

after I put my beloved Roots to sleep when she was 12. She was suffering real bad and I knew I had to do it but it hurt no hell.

[goclark]

14. I share your pain and the pain of all those in NO nt

[malaise]

15. That NOLA Jazz funeral is touching n/t

[sarge43]

2. So many friends lost

Rest in peace.

[goclark]

7. Yes, unconditional love torn away by water and Bush nt

[JNelson6563]

10. Very touching!

I'm a dog lover and I know how it is to lose a pet though not in such traumatic fashion! So, so sad to have lost so many. On the upside, many lost animals have found homes, one group brought lots of NOLA animals up to northern Michigan for adoption. I know several people who did give homes to some of these mostly forgotten victims.

Julie

[leftchick]

12. I met a Vet who volunteered there for a few weeks

she came back to New York with two dogs and she already had three. She is such a softie.

[KamaAina]

13. The "Esplanade Street median"?!

What a ! Firstly, it's Esplanade Avenue, not 'Street'; this is the street that forms the lower boundary of the Vieux Carre, or French Quarter. Secondly, a "median" is what they call a neutral ground outside N.O. For some reason I believe that all sentient beings should know these things...

Perhaps my friends' kitty Rhiannon came down to join them; her nine lives were ripped away about fifteen years ago when an unspeakably cruel human (?) twisted her leg off. Had she lived, she would have been mine, as her human didn't want an indoor kitty...