Holly Berry English Shepherd with us Dec. 27, 2001 -- Oct. 27, 2010

Holly Berry, presumably an English Shepherd, began her life with us in my office, and concluded it there too.  I pulled from the animal shelter/pound in Zanesville, OH on Dec. 27th, 2001.  It was kind of a fluke since I actually went out to pick up a German Shepherd, and was a little uncomfortable with the situation and said I preferred not to take him.  That's ok they said, we've got another one, and presented this little pumpkin-sable and white colored pup to me.  She sat there wagging her tail, probably about 9 - 12 months old, and I said, "ok, whatever" signed up for her and brought her home on that snowy afternoon, driving back across Interstate 70, about an hour and 15 minutes from home.  When we got home, the no-name dog came into the house, met the other two, Abby the tri-color collie, and Quincy the Shetland Sheepdog.  The meet and greet was inconsequential.  I went upstairs to my office, she followed me, came into the office, laid down in the corner next to the desk and claimed her spot.  When the other two resident dogs tried to come into the office, she stood up and growled at them, warning them away.  Of course, she won.  They stood down and backed off.  We had to work on that for awhile, making the point with her that the other dogs had the free run of the house and it was not her decision about when and where they would be in the house. 

On Oct. 27, 2010, in the evening, Holly did not come down for the evening feeding.  That was unusual as she had huge food drive.  I called for her, she came down the steps, into the kitchen, looked at her food and walked away.  Within minutes I was on the phone with the vet to make an appointment for the next morning.  My first thought was Auto Immune Hymolytic Anemia - AIHA, which is what killed Abby the tri-color Collie in 2006.  Lethargy and no interest in food were two distinct signs. 

Feeling anxious about the situation, I went back upstairs to the computer, attended to a couple of matters, came back down stairs to discover that Holly had thrown up all over the couch and floor.  About that time, Becky came home, I was back on the phone with the vet, and we determined that for now, an appointment was not necessary, so I cancelled that. 

Holly was laying on the couch, I talked to her, she thumped her tail up and down.  I went back upstairs to my project at the computer.  A little later Holly showed up, came into the office, seemed very uncomfortable.  She laid down by the desk in front of the door.  Laid quietly, moved around a little, then lurched a couple of times.  I presumed she was really sick and nauseated which explained the odd movements.  Then I looked at her again, and it was apparent that she had just died right in my office floor where she started her time with us almost 9 years before.

I tried some heart pumping, carried her downstairs, to the car and rushed to the OSU Vet Hospital.  It was, of course, too late.  They checked her and pronounced her dead.  I paid $75 for a necropsy report and left.

On Friday the lab called to report that she died from a turmor on her heart, hemangia sarcoma, undetectable until it started bleeding, then it quickly filled the heart sac with blood, stopping the heart from beating. 

It has been a very sad time, indeed, losing her.  She was a funny and lovable character. She loved to snuggle in and on the bed, as demonstrated in the one photo. But, she was also on alert when necessary.   As far as she was concerned, anyone who visited the house had come to see her.  She was very personable, slighly pushy with her presence, and could easily get anyone's attention. 

This posting is for Holly Berry, English Shepherd, a great companion and friend to everyone, who also kept the boy dogs in line by growling at them when she sensed they were going to get into trouble.

Holly Berry - English Shepherd - Dec. 27, 2001 - Oct. 27, 2009 in this household.