Hershey

Faithful Companion



It is with a heavy heart that we write this blog entry. On Dec 23,2008 we had to say good bye to our dear, sweet Hershey. It seems so sudden, so unexpected. But the vet said she had the tumors for sometime and they just got so big that she couldn't hide her pain and discomfort anymore.

Hershey was such a loyal friend. The day I left for Vegas to see Shawn graduate from Weapons School was her last day she could hide her pain. I guess she felt she could let her guard down since I wasn't there. She stopped eating that day and seemed down. My parents thought she was depressed because I had gone house-hunting with Shawn in Colorado. After a few days they made a vet appointment for her. The day of the appointment she ate all her food and seemed her normal self again, so they cancelled the appointment. The next day she was back to not eating again. When we got home Friday we knew there was something wrong with her. She still didn't want to eat but she did anyway because she knew I wanted her too. She was very lethargic and her breathing was labored. On Sunday we took her to the ER vet. They took all kinds of tests and still couldn't tell us what was wrong with her. They told us to follow up with our vet in the morning, so we did. The next day our vet did x-rays on her and this is when they found an orange sized tumor in her abdomen and another large tumor in her lungs. She had fluid in her lungs and her prognosis was grave. Our loving and caring vet understood our disbelief and grief over this news. Up until that point we believed we could fix anything that was wrong with our Hershey. But this was unfixable. We were able to take Herhsey home and have one last night with our sweet Hershey. Our vet gave Hershey pain and nausea medicine to help her feel well again. On our final night we took Herhsey out for ice cream and she finished off her peanut butter and we loved on her all night. We talked to her, told her how much we loved her, thanked her for her faithfulness and understanding. On Tuesday morning we took her on a little walk and she chased a cat that was hiding in the bushes of my parents house one last time. We feel so blessed that God gave us one more day with Hershey. We really just enjoyed her. The girls got to see her again and we got to see her with the girls again. It was a most special night for us. Kalei and Alice don't fully understand that Hershey is gone. Kalei knows that Hershey wasn't feeling well and the vet couldn't fix her, so she is with God now. We told her that she feels good now and is running, playing and eating again. Alice still starts her nightly prayer off with Hershey...eyes shut tight she prays for Herhsey. We show them pictures of her when they want to see them and we hope that the memories that Shawn and I share with them will help them remember her like we do.

As for me and Shawn we miss her terribly. I had always wanted my own dog. Shawn got her for us, right before he deployed the first time after 9/11. He knew I needed a friend, a protector. Hershey helped me get through the loneliest times when Shawn was deployed. She was our first "baby". We doted on her and took her on every vacation we could. We even planned vacations so that she could go and enjoy them too. She was everything I thought a dog should be. She brought us so much JOY! Our memories of her will help heal our hearts. This I am sure.

We have put together a slide show of some of our favorite photos of Hershey. These show her at every stage of life with us. Pre-babies, Post-babies and everything in between. Before we left CA two friends and AMAZING photograhers took pictures of Hershey so I could make an album for her best friend Steven. These are by far the BEST pictures of Hershey and they have brought us so much happiness this past week. Thank you Trish and Sandy.

Finally, we cant forget about Hershey's dearest friend Steven... and of course Julie and Olivia. We are sincerely grateful and in debted to you for a lifetime for the love and attention you gave Hershey. You came into her life right after Alice was born and gave her the attention that we couldn't at that time. Her life was better and blessed because of your friendship to her.

We know that Hershey was loved by so many. Everyone who knows us knows about our Black Lab Hershey. She was an ice breaker, a security blanket, a friend to all. We hope that you enjoy the show of our faithful and loyal friend...Jeezles!
Love,
Shawn, Shelly, Kalei and Alice