Rainbow Bridge / Listening Ear Bereavement Service

OAKLEY came into rescue from the Somerset area. He had lived with another rough collie and several cats quite happily for a long time and when his collie “friend” died, Oakley became lonely and started picking on the cats. His owner could not cope so handed him over to rescue to re-home., he was 10 years of age.

He was re-homed in the West Midlands and settled in very well and enjoying his life. He started to have a pronounced limp on his front leg and it was discovered there was a problem with one of his toes, which had to be removed. The pre-op blood test also showed another problem, Oakley had Cushings Disease.

Oakley recovered from the operation and was put on medication for the Cushings. All was well for quite a while, until December 2013 when he had a serious bout of pancreatitis and was hospitalised at the vets. All treatments failed and after three days of trying he was not responding at all. Sadly Oakley was put to sleep two days before Christmas.

RUBY was re-homed in the West Midlands in December, 2012, after becoming the victim of a marriage breakdown. She was in poor condition, weighing only 14 kgs and a coat that was badly matted. The first concern was the weight as we were not sure whether this was due to being starved or a medical condition, but after only two weeks she had gained 1 kg. We had to wait for Ruby’s overall health to improve before we could tackle the coat. Ruby fitted in well with her foster carers and their two other rescue Rough Collies, Joe and Jordan. Ruby lived for playing ball and carried it everywhere with her, her personality was so funny she frequently made us laugh. Ruby hated being groomed and would show her teeth and bite if a brush went anywhere near her, we suspect a brush had been used to hit her with.

A visit to the groomer resulted in Ruby having her coat stripped off and we purchased a beautiful red jacket for her to wear, which she proudly wore when outside. She also needed a dental operation to remove some teeth and clear the tartar that was present. At the same time X-rays were taken as she appeared to be “very spongey” when light pressure was put on her back. The results that came back were not good – Ruby had both osteo and rheumatoid arthritis in her spine and back legs so she was put on Tramadol for pain relief. Her weight gradually increased to a healthy 19 kgs. Ruby was now a completely different dog and so happy, but in November, 2013 she became very ill, very quickly – she collapsed, was very sick and her gums had turned white. She was rushed to the vets and put straight on a drip before X-rays were taken which revealed a massive tumour in her stomach which had ruptured and was bleeding out. We had to have Ruby put to sleep as there was nothing else we could have done for her. We could not believe that we had lost her, she had been playing happily with her ball a few hours earlier. We had only had her a short time and we loved her so much. She is missed every day.

Samantha xx

ELLIE was adopted by us (our first Rough Collie) on the 13th March, 2010 – aged 11 years, after being handed over to rescue due to the fact that she could no longer manage to climb the stairs to the apartment where she lived. Ellie was a happy, contented girl and had few demands. She was happy with everyone she met, loved other dogs and cats and the birds that live on our island amused her greatly. She was a brilliant ambassador for the breed.

We noticed that she was very stiff on her hind legs, but she walked all right on flat ground. The vet said she had arthritis. It did not take too long before it became very obvious she had a major problem.

By January, 2011 Ellie was no longer able to stand unaided, she had lost the use of her back legs. She had walked our long, white beaches every day, and although she did not object, she would rather rest when we stood still. It is only with hindsight we know the reason. A terrible disease affected Ellie, she was diagnosed with the disabling condition CDRM. We sadly lost Ellie after only having her 13 months. During this illness she had dignity and patience with us and her situation. We were very happy to have her as our girl – she broke our hearts, but filled them with so much love too.

Mary and Steve xx

SHAUN was one of our long standing sponsor dogs who unfortunately had to be put to sleep in September, 2014, due to multi-organ failure.
Shaun was a stray who was found at the side of the road with a badly injured foot, due, we think, to a road traffic accident, which needed a number of operations and ongoing treatment over the years.  He was placed with one of our Committee members in Manchester, where he spent the last seven years of his life. Throughout all the operations and treatment Shaun was “the perfect gentleman”, never getting angry or upset at the amount of work he needed to get his foot working again.  He did have a slight limp, but the last four years of his life he was treatment free and enjoyed what became a very sedate life, gentle walks and playing with the other dogs he lived with in the garden.
Shaun attracted many sponsors over the years and everyone is devastated at his loss of life, especially his owner, Maria, who said – “Through all his lengthy treatment, Shaun was so patient and never became grumpy.  I was so proud of him for his bravery.  For his last four years he was operation free and has had a very peaceful and happy time. Shaun was a pleasure to own and I will miss him dearly”.

Maria xx

BUDDY had been with us almost 3years and he had certainly had a massive impact on our lives. He loved and trusted everybody he ever met, there was not a single nasty bone in his body, despite being neglected and ill treated in his previous life. He had a knack of getting exactly what he wanted, when he wanted it! In summer we dreaded neighbours mowing or strimming the lawns, Buddy would bark at anything as he could not see. In winter the icy roads were his biggest bug bear. He refused point blank to walk on icy surfaces.

If Buddy wanted a rich tea biscuit he would block the doorway so no one could get past him. The biscuits had to be dunked in tea otherwise he would spit it out in disgust! He had a habit of lying anywhere where he would be in some ones way. Cooking meals were a hazard as they often involved striding over him with boiling pans, but the amazing thing was that he trusted us to never stand on him or harm him.

Early January I returned home from work to find Buddy was not stood waiting to greet me as usual by jumping up and cuddling me. I went to his bed at the bottom of the stairs and alarm bells rang immediately. His body was lifeless and he did not even respond when I stroked him. I rushed to phone the emergency vet in a total panic. As I replaced the phone I turned round to discover Buddy had been violently sick several times during the night. Buddy came strolling in to the room and vomited again. The howling was horrendous and went right through me. This poor soul was in agony. By the time the vet arrived, Buddy had collapsed. The vet quickly checked Buddy over and discovered his heart rate was 120 & his temperature was 46. Buddy was in serious trouble. He was rushed off to be admitted and placed on several drips.

After 2 days and nights of several blood tests, painkillers, fluids and antibiotics, Buddy was allowed home. The vet had no idea what had caused Buddy to be so ill. He was now on a diet of chicken, pasta and rice. He seemed fine until a month later. He was quite restless one morning and did not want to eat. That afternoon he suddenly started to vomit again. We phoned the vet immediately and he was admitted over night in case he became very ill again. The next morning I received a phone call to say Buddy seemed to be ok but he would not eat as he was in a strange place. The vet then said the only way to discover what was happening would be to have Buddy return during the following week for an endoscopy to be performed. The vet stressed that the anaesthetic was a huge risk to Buddy, due to his age.

Steve fetched Buddy home along with anti sickness medicine & antacid tablets. He slept all that day. The following morning he seemed fine and insisted on his usual morning walk over the fields. When we arrived home he refused his breakfast. This was not like Buddy at all. That afternoon he was waiting for his next walk, stood by the door, tail wagging. The plan was to only take him the shortest route, he had other ideas though and as we strolled round the village he insisted on wandering over the hills, leaving his scent on every corner we turned. I told myself he must be feeling better to want to walk so far. Buddy went to sleep when we returned home, on his bed. Two hours later, he strolled in to the kitchen, arched his back rigid and screamed. He then vomited violently .As I put my hand out to comfort him he flinched. Again, he screamed in pain. Again he vomited. I phoned the vet in a total panic. We could not let Buddy keep suffering like this. We could not put him through an operation that could easily kill him. It was time to let Buddy go, let him go with dignity.

Buddy left us the way he had first joined us almost 3 years ago, snuggled between us. He was so well loved locally that he now has a memorial plaque and a cherry tree planted in his memory at Carsington Waters where he loved to walk and meet all his doggy friends. Buddy had a massive impact on our lives and not only inspired us to rescue another blind dog but he also inspired me to write a book about him which has raised over £400 for rescue to date. RIP Buddy. A dog in a million.xxx
See also … “The Stray, Unloved Dog” … in our Poetry Corner

Pauline and Steve xx

 ….. Not a Rescue Collie, but nevertheless, she was a much treasured and loved beautiful girl who was taken away from us after a short illness aged 11 years.

‘Its so quiet without you my precious, there is no one to dance around the kitchen and tell me to hurry up at mealtimes, no one barks when I sneeze and no one has yet taken your place between us on the bed at night. Although you have passed on quite a few of your naughty tricks to Teisha, your little playmate, thankfully that doesn’t include eating our duvet, but the pigeons will never be safe in our garden. Run free Tara, we will never forget you. Love you forever, you leave a huge pawprint on our hearts. Runited with Topper.’

Owned, loved and adored by
Julie Growcott xx