I adopted Nikki after his elderly owner had a stroke. I met her at the senior apartments my Dad lived at. Carol had rescued him 2 years earlier after her adult kids gave her yorkie and greyhound to a shelter when she went into the hospital for her first stroke. When I met her she was in financial distress so I took over Nikki's vet and food costs. We became friends and she asked that if anything happened to her that I take Nikki. She didn't want her kids to come and take him too. She hadn't spoken to her kids since they gave away her other 2 dogs and got Nikki. After only 8 months of knowing Carol she had the stroke and went into a nursing home and sadly passed away 10 months later. I would take Nikki to the nursing home every other week to visit (Her kids moved her an hour away and never visited her). She lit up like Christmas when she would see Nikki coming through the door. Nikki was with me for 2 1/2 years and was estimated to be 19 years old. He was blind, deaf, in kidney failure and had doggy dementia but he was happy sleeping next to me until the end. I had to put him to sleep 2 months after my DH passed away. |