Hi, All...
 
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE INCREDIBLE OUTPOURING OF AFFECTION OVER DODGER'S
PASSING.  I simply cannot put into words how deeply all of your thoughts
and your prayers have touched me.  They just keep coming in and every
single one makes me cry - and moves me toward healing - a little bit more.
 
I need to let all of you know something that the vet told me last night.
She called me after doing an autopsy on Dodger and he DID NOT die of
pneumonia.  He died of Lymphoma.  Bless his heart; by my calculations
(according to when the person I got him from bought him), he should've
only been about a year old.
 
The x-rays showed what looked like fluid in Dodger's left lung, with some
fluid outside of the lung.  NOT.  Turns out that it was a solid mass; about
3 1/2" long x 1 1/2" wide & 1" deep, pushing ON his lung.  His lungs were
completely healthy, he just couldn't expand the left one against the
growing mass.
 
I went back to the office to get Dodger's little body :-( and asked the
vet to see the mass.  I Do Not Know how that thing fit inside of him.  No
wonder he could not breathe.  My only consolation is that I did not lead
him to the Bridge due merely to a case of pneumonia.  That was really a
terrible thought for me; that I had caught it too late for any treatments
to work.
 
I am still amazed that he had such an incredible appetite all the way to
the end.  He would scarf the a/d, which the vet said was odd because she
said that when ferrets are near death they will tend not to eat.  That is
just one of the many, many reasons that I kept hanging on to him.  How
ironic that his regular vet had just commented about how "handsome, solid &
healthy" he was, less than 2 weeks ago..
 
Well, I don't want to inundate everyone with these posts about him.  This
will be my last one and I will go back to lurking & sending individual
posts when I think that I can offer some good advice here & there.  I also
hope to keep in touch with some of the wonderful friends I've made, in part
due to our shared affection for my "BeeBoy" (big boy).
 
God bless all of you that have written to express your sympathies.  To
those of you who just haven't had the time to write; I appreciate your
thoughts and prayers as well.  I know what it's like to be too doggone
busy to let someone know you're thinking of them.  Frustrating, huh?
 
I am sure that all of the positive thoughts and the prayers sent our way
helped to ease the burden on both Dodger and our family.  What we have to
keep in mind is the fact that sometimes the answer to our prayers is "No."
 
BTW, I have rush-rush created a web site so that you all can see Dodge, as
well as some of the rest of our family.  I feel so much gratitude to all of
you, such a connection of the shared love that we have for our babies, that
I wanted you to be able to picture us in your mind, just as we take
advantage of the opportunity to look at all of your web sites as well.  I
bookmark 'em, too, so that I can visit you over & over.  (Betcha didn't
know that, huh?  ;-> )
 
The site is at:  http://users.sunline.net/mesutton
 
I apologize that it's not the most aesthetic thing in the world, but it's a
first try and it's there.  Whew.
 
I hope to reply to each of you individually very soon, please do not think
me rude quite yet.
 
Love & Dooks to all the hoomans & fuzzies,
 
Melissa
 
==================================================================
Happy New Year to All with LOVE from Melissa, Mykah & the ferrets:
           Dexter, Cocoa, MoJo, Dodger & RockStar
                 >^v^<-,--------,''''''
 
                ICQ us!  Our # is 6407420.
==================================================================
[Posted in FML issue 2546]