Rusty and Mr. Goldman

"Rusty" was about 9 months old when his owner became our patient. Mrs. Goldman had terminal cancer and her husband had brought her a puppy to cheer her up while she was undergoing a final and difficult round of chemotherapy. While she loved the little dog, it was Mr. Goldman who clung to Rusty through the grief of watching his wife of 52 years decline, despite the attempts to manage her symptoms. Rusty provided comic relief from the sadness and pain they both felt and he slept beside Mr. Goldman as he watched over his wife at night. When hospice took over her care, we provided support for her, for him and the Pet Peace of Mind program provided for Rusty, too. We provided his food and delivered it to the home, as well as transportation to the vet and funding for his second and third set of vaccinations and neutering. We also provided flea and tick preventative and heartworm preventative for Rusty, so taking care of him during this time would be easier for Mr. Goldman. The family photos taken toward the end of Mrs. Goldman's life show Rusty in Mr. Goldman's arms. His place in the family was secure. When we asked Mr. Goldman if we could take a picture of Rusty, he was only too happy to comply. As a gift, we presented him with a copy framed in a pet themed frame. He displayed it at his wife's funeral two weeks later.

"Max" and Mr. Brown

Today I met a man in his 90's with a sharp mind and a strong, independent spirit. For several weeks now, Mr. Brown has been preparing to die. His body, once as strong as his spirit, continues to lose ground physically as his disease progresses. Each day, he insists on wearing his cowboy boots, western slacks and shirt as he sits on the couch, also wearing the oxygen that keeps him comfortable. Our staff has had a tough time convincing him to let us do as much as we can to help. Mr. Brown doesn't take charity and he wants to do as much as possible for himself. We do our best to honor his wishes. He's sent several people packing when they tried to do more.

Mr. Brown has a 15 year old cattle dog named "Max," who is almost as fragile as he is. They "found" each other when Max was only a few months old, abandoned close to Mr. Brown's home. They have been constant companions ever since. Mr. Brown finally let us help with dog food when he learned it had been donated to our pet food pantry, but he wasn't about to let us buy any. Today I met Mr. Brown and his devoted friend for the first time. We talked about taking "Max" to his longtime vet for a checkup, as the dog's chronic skin allergies and arthritis are causing him considerable discomfort. "Max" is also rubbing his gums on the floor, suggestive of advanced gum disease or tooth pain. Mr. Brown decided to accept our help for his friend, much to my surprise. He was very grateful for the help. Mr. Brown has total trust in his veterinarian, even to the point of letting him decide when "Max" should be put to sleep because of suffering. I stopped by the vet's office to make the appointment and to let the doctor know what was at stake for "Max" and for Mr. Brown. The appointment is next Thursday. I'll let you know what happens.

Pet Food Explosion!

Two weeks ago, we found out that the local food bank (yes, human food bank) had been given a shipment of dry cat food. They asked us if we would be interested in taking it for our pet food pantry. We said yes, as pet food is our largest expense for the Pet Peace of Mind program. Well, a hospice volunteer went to pick it up and it was a pallet of 20# bags, as in 50 of them!! Needless to say, that was a pretty big load for us, but after several phone calls, we managed to place all but five bags with local rescue groups and shelters. It wouldn't have happened, though, without our volunteers and my trusty assistant, Sonni. Everyone involved has done their part to make sure this food gets to the pets who need it, not only those in rescue situations, but people on fixed incomes that can use a little help with pet food. This has been a wonderful opportunity to reconnect with others in the "pet-friendly" community and to make some new friends as well. It's also a good opportunity to let people know about Pet Peace of Mind.

New Equipment for the Pet Food Pantry

Today was a day to spend money! It's the end of the fiscal year at a non-profit agency and we were the recipients of a grant to buy some much needed equipment for the PPOM program. Our pet food pantry holds both canned and dry food, cat litter and treats that are donated by other agencies and our wonderful PPOM supporters. Right now, it takes up a corner of another room used by our volunteers. We took old bookcases and plastic shelves and made it into a makeshift pantry, but it definitely needs some work. Thanks to a local foundation, we were awarded enough money to buy new wire shelves, a storage cabinet and a utility cart! I am the most excited about the utility cart because it will make moving multiple bags of food around much easier. Several of our patients have more than one large dog and it will help out a lot when we take those big bags of food out to our cars for delivery. Our volunteer Steve will also appreciate the cart when he unloads donated food to bring up the second floor pantry.