Poor Scott has lost his "little buddy", Pong.  Scott raised Pong as a kit
along with is brother Ping.  This was a sudden, very unexpected thing
Saturday.  During the chaos of a lunch hour rush at the small restaurant
he runs, Scott learned over the course of several phone calls that his
beloved ferret was ill and was given a mercy shot so that he could dance
once again.
 
With in the space of about two hours, Scott experienced the following:
 
That Pong was ill, and he had to decide if and which vet for me to take
him to that day.
 
That Pong was seriously ill.
 
That he probably had cancer.
 
Whether he should go forth with tests and which ones.
 
Then he learned that that his companion had a fatal form of advanced
cancer and was dying.
 
And whether or not to euthanize and when.
 
Finally, that he was euthanized ... without his presence.
 
He was not allowed to leave work to say good-bye.  The vet offices were
closed and our vet was staying after with me as it was, and could not
reopen for him later that day as she was due at Rabies clinics.  We
were advised that it was risky to wait and that Pong was crashing and
suffering.
 
I waited 1 1/2 hours with Pong wrapped up and held close to my body for
heat until Scott could get home.  Pong's eyes had remained open from the
time he was anesthetized to the time Scott walked through the door ...
until Scott took him into his arms and kissed him.  They shut so suddenly
it gave Scott a jolt and a sad sense of hope that maybe he wasn't gone
after all.  Of course that was only momentary.
 
We then took Pong down to the ferrets.  They took a very long time with
him, probably because he was the leader of their pack ... the alpha male.
Laddie was pathetic and guarded his body for a while, then he curled up
like a donut with Pong's tail over his shoulders.  This made it all the
more difficult for Scott.
 
Scott said a few words and lowered Pong's body into the ground on a very
unusually cold, windy and drizzly April day.
 
He still cannot believe that his little pal is gone.  None of us can.
Although Pong was very old and lived a good long life, this was sudden.
Pong was a strapping, healthy and intelligent ferret ... especially for
his age.  He had a peculiar habit of holding his head high up into the
air when he walked giving him a regal appearance.  This was our Coke baby
who jumped into Scott's arms for a lick of Coke from any high surface.
 
Kiss your loved ones every morning and night.  The blessing is that Scott
does this with his family and his pets each day.  His last memory of Pong
was from that morning when he bent over him as he laid curled in his
sleep sack with his cage mates.  Pong woke up as he always did to lick
Scott on the nose.  Scott spoke to him and told him that he loved him, as
always.
 
Wolfy
http://wolfysluv.jacksnet.com
[Posted in FML issue 4858]