Quote:
Originally Posted by EarthAngel  Rich and Sheila, I pray you are both doing well today and may Sheila be flooded with good memories of her babies.
Love and Hugs,
Dyan |
Hi, Dyan.
Thank you for your continued prayers.
Sheila is having a rough time.
It's been a year today, that Kia showed symptoms of anything being wrong.
She refused her breakfast, and she was a great little eater!
Demanded her breakfast at 5:30 & Sheila always cooked her a fresh meal.
That morning, she wouldn't eat, so Sheila gave her Nutric-Cal.
When she refused lunch, she gave her more, Nutri-cal, Sheila called our former Vet.
All the Staff knew Sheila and our girls so well, and they loved her & the girls so much. She never even had to give her last name.
That day, she got a fairly new receptionist, and Sheila explained to her, that Kia was very tiny (4#s) and she wasn't eating & her nose was stuffy, and she was breathing through her mouth. She told her, "Her Vet needs to see her today." The girl kept asking Sheila to repeat her name, spell it.
(All the other receptionists knew Sheila so well, and she never even had to say her last name.)
Our Vet, didn't call until 7:45 in the evening. Sheila told him, "Kia won't eat, her nose is stuffy, she's breathing through her mouth. I've given her Nutri-Cal all throughout the day, I gave her 1/2 t. of Children's dye free/alcohol free decongestant, twice, 6 hours apart. Her temp. is down to 96.3".
He said, "The decongestant will lower her temp. With Kia being so tiny it could be anything, but since she had infected teeth pulled last summer, it sounds like an infected tooth. If the decongestant doesn't relieve her stuffiness, bring her into the office in the morning. I'm off on Thursdays, but 'one of the girls' will take care of you".
He had been our Vet since 1996, since Sydney was 6 months old, and he never told Sheila to wait. And he never told her to see one of the other Vets. He always had us bring one of the girls in immediately.
When the girls were young & still receiving vaccinations, he'd slip in the back door of the clinic, in his softball uniform, meet us in a back room, give the girls their vacs, and go back to his game.
Always told Sheila, "When you call, I know something is wrong, because you know your girls so well".
Sheila laid on the couch with Kia all night, with a soft nightlight on, and she listened to her breathing. I got up several times in the night to check on them, and Sheila, whispered, "She's sleeping, still breathing through her mouth, but she's not panting or gasping for air".
The next morning, Sheila held Kia in her hands, wrapped in Kia's favorite pink fluffy baby blanket. Kia's eyes were so clear, and focused on Sheila.
Sheila said to her, "Kia, focus on Mommy. I love you & we're leaving for the Vet in a hour. And you're going to be fine."
Kia took one small breath, and she was gone!
And Sheila was hysterical! She cried so hard. She held her in her arms and wouldn't put her down. Kia died at 6:22 a.m.
At 7:30, when Sheila knew some of the staff would be in the office, she called and spoke to one of her favorite receptionists. And told her that Kia had died. We took Kia's tiny body to the office to be sent out to be cremated. The Vet that took care of us, is the Clinic owners daughter, and she wrapped Sheila and Kia in her arms & cried with her. She had lost her two Maltese two weeks apart, so she understood Sheila's pain.
The entire staff was in tears.
Our Vet called the next day, and said, "It sounds like it was something in her lungs. Even if you had brought her here, or taken her to the ER, and spent $1,000. we might not have found out what was wrong". He knew, we never spared any expense with our girls.
About a week and a half after Kia died, the Vet that had taken care of us called Sheila. She said her Dad & she didn't understand, why our Vet didn't call until 7:45 in the evening, and then, not have us bring Kia
in immediately & put her on oxygen. She said her Dad was furious, and they were both so sorry".
Sheila had raised Orphaned Wildlife for 35 years, and she had done a lot rehab with the Clinics owner. He was her Wildlife Vet.
Sheila doesn't blame the Vet though. She blames herself. She says, "I knew my baby, I should have taken her to the ER".
So, she carries that guilt, and grieves so deeply.
Love & Hugs,
Rich