FOR CLEO
PASSED – 2020
She started her life in California, moved to North Texas and then was surrendered to a shelter in Dallas. But thanks to Holly Dool and Camo Rescue, Cleo came to live at Dog Lodge at the end of June, 2018. She was so small and she had so many medical problems to deal with. Unlike so many diabetics who manage to keep control of glucose levels with insulin, Cleo’s diabetes was pretty much unresponsive to insulin. It took a year of investigation by our veterinarians, trying different insulins and feeding routines, but we were finally able to get her reasonably stable. Diabetic cataracts reduced her vision significantly. Mammary tumors led to mammectomies. And the list went on…
Such a tiny girl with so many problems. Sure, she slept a lot and sometimes she preferred to be left alone. However, it was not uncommon to find her checking out what was going on in amongst the big dogs who were always so careful around her lest she get under foot. She never did. But at other times… Well let me tell you that she could be an absolute munchkin – most especially at meal time. She was transformed from a sweet, docile, cuddly sweetheart into a she-devil. About an hour before meal time, she started yipping and yapping and pacing back and forth (unless she was outside, in which case she would go through the picket fence and into the flower bed and begin digging and digging and digging some more for no other reason than to let us know that we were not prepping her meal quickly enough.) Then she gobbled down her food, got her insulin injection and her diabetic cookie and promptly changed back to the cuddly sweetheart of old. Cleo lived life with enthusiasm and more often than not, that little tail was wagging even though she may not have been feeling all that well. Then, quite suddenly and with no warning at all, Cleo couldn’t breathe. Her bloodwork was completely normal but x-rays of her lungs showed something suspicious in both lobes. She was admitted to hospital where she spent 5 days in oxygen. Because the “masses” were bilateral, surgery was not an option. She was unresponsive to antibiotic treatment. Despite all of the efforts of a team of wonderful veterinarians, there was nothing that could be done to save her.
Our hearts are broken yet again. We mourn the loss of a little dog who was so dear and loved by all of us who were blessed to be able to care for her. We will remember her for the kisses and the cuddles; we will remember her for the way she greeted everyone when they entered Dog Lodge; we will remember her for the meal time antics that always made us smile; most of all we will remember her for her courage…
Love to you Cleo…
We will miss you…
Her Journey’s Just Begun
Don’t think of her as gone away –
her journey’s just begun,
life holds so many facets –
this earth is only one.
Just think of her as resting
from the sorrows and the tears
in a place of warmth and comfort
where there are no days and years.
Think how she must be wishing
that we could know today
how nothing but our sadness
can really pass away.
And think of her as living
In the hearts of those she touched
For nothing loved is ever lost –
And she was loved so much.
by Ellen Brenneman
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