Reggie

Chris took Reggie and Duke pheasant hunting. He came back really happy with how well Reggie had done. She had jumped a bunch of pheasants and they had a really good hunt because of her. 

  Just a few days later something really sad and scary happened. Chris and I were sitting on the couch and Rhett was playing on the floor with Duke and Reggie laying nearby. All of the sudden Reggie started screaming and crying. I've never heard a dog make a sound like that. She was running and rolling and flailing all over the place and biting her feet and tail. In her loss of control she knocked Rhett over, and I ran to pick him up. As soon as I had scooped him up off of the floor, Reggie bit my foot. It was clearly an accident, but I was shocked at how painful and scary it was. A few seconds later Reggie's episode ended, and I told Chris that something was really wrong and we needed to take Reggie to the vet. Chris loaded her up and headed to the vet. He said by the time they got there the bed of the truck had a puddle of blood from Reggie's wounds from biting herself during her episode. The vet looked her over thoroughly and couldn't find anything outwardly wrong. After hearing about her symptoms, she told Chris she suspected a brain tumor. :( We ended up having to put our girl down. 

This is my foot the night after this happened. You can tell from the vein tracing that it got pretty infected even though I was on antibiotics within 24 hours. It was really swollen and I couldn't walk on it or fit it in a shoe for a couple of weeks.

This is about a week later…

  It was so sad to loose the first dog I have ever really loved. I'm so grateful for so many things though. I'm grateful that I was able to get to Rhett in time and get him out of harms way. If he would have been in my place, this ordeal would have been 100 times worse. I'm so glad our baby boy is safe. I'm so grateful that Mia was in the other room and didn't see any of this happen. It was really traumatizing, even for Chris and I as adults to witness. I'm so glad she was spared that experience. And I'm honestly really glad that it was me that was bit. Out of all of our family, Reggie and I had a special bond, and I feel so confident that she NEVER would have done anything like this in her right mind. 

  I'm so grateful that we still have our sweet Duke. Duke was so scared when Reggie was having her episode. He ran away and I came and found him after Chris took Reggie to the vet. He was hiding in Chris and my closet in the dark. I tried to reassure him, but he was very somber. Chris didn't come home with Reggie and Duke kept acting kind of down. Chris took him hunting with him a few days later, and said that they saw a dog who looked a bunch like Reggie and Duke took off after the dog. Chris tried to call him back over and over, but Duke kept running. He got up close to the other dog, and realized it wasn't Reggie and came sadly back to Chris. It's sad seeing Duke missing his buddy, especially since it must be so confusing to Duke. We're glad we still have him though.

  I'm so grateful to have had a dog who was so sweet and patient with my kids. As a baby, Rhett would often poke Reggie's eyes, or pull her ears or tail out of curiosity. Reggie was always so patient and just laid there and let him explore. Mia loved to play with Reggie and a few times told me that Reggie was her best friend. Mia would often tell Reggie to sit and then use her as a step stool to climb up on the couch or sit on her for a ride. Reggie would always cooperate with Mia's demands. She made me feel safe and protected when Chris had to be out of town and she put my mind at ease when she was out in the yard with Mia when Mia wanted to play outside and I had a few things to get done around the house and didn't want to sit outside too long. I really loved her and am so grateful for the time we had with her.