[2022-06-30] Freddie endures
We took Freddie to the vet today. He hasn't been well for a few weeks, experiencing diarrhea on and off and appearing lethargic in the past few days.
It's always scary taking an old dog to the vet. I wondered, "Is this it?"
Freddie is 15—in fact, he'll be 15½ next Wednesday—which is a long time for a large dog to live. The average lifespan of a Golden Retriever and a Standard Poodle (of which Freddie is a mix) is 12 years. So the fact that our Goldendoodle has lived to 15½ is remarkable.
The vet ordered some blood tests and subsequently recommended that Freddie remain in the clinic for the day so that he could be re-hydrated and started on antibiotics. If Freddie responded well, the vet explained, he would go home by the end of the day with medicine and special food. If he didn't, he would be kept at the clinic overnight, and tested further the following day.
So we left our beloved Freddie at the clinic and busied ourselves for the rest of the day, not wanting to think about the possibilities.
The vet called at suppertime to say that Freddie was responding well and could go home. The vet asked that we return to the clinic in a week so that our dog could have more blood tests and an abdominal ultrasound. I took Freddie's rallying as a good sign, at least for today.
When I got cancer in 2020, Freddie was 13½, already an old dog. I'm not sure why, but I wanted him to see me through cancer treatment. He did just that, and not once but twice.
No matter how long we have Freddie in our lives, it will never feel like it was enough time. I'm grateful that we're not yet at the stage of having to consider the option of letting him go. I'm not ready for that, though I suppose that none of us is ever ready for that moment.
When I sit down at night to write my posts, I often have something uplifting to share. But it didn't seem authentic to publish a positive post when I'm feeling a little blue. The silver lining today is that Freddie is back home with us. Every day he remains in our lives is a gift to our family.
