Cat Out of the Bag

***Bernie on an easy stroll at my parents'; January 1, 2009***

Well, I wasn't going to post anything till it was all said and done, but I'm not sure what to think. I woke up this morning--and that's a stretch, given neither Bernie or I slept much--99 percent convinced it was time to let her go. It started mildly Sunday night, but the past two nights she sleeps for an hour, gets up panting like mad, gulps a bunch of water, calms back down, repeats cycle. So, combine her prognosis, radical limp, and heavy breathing (I, too, have heavy breathing issues, but that's another story), and I was sincerely convinced that she's simply breaking down. Putting her down now seemed to be slightly proactive yet not premature. I told my mom, set a time with my vet, and contacted my roommate to let her know in case she wanted to come home and say goodbye.

Much of the same behavior from Bernie this morning, yet her mannerisms are so "with it" I'm confused. She eats, she drinks, no cough, no pain in her face/throat--nothing that indicates her tumor has run amok. I took her on a walk, leg is much better. She sniffs, she laid in the sunshine. So now I wonder whether there is something else going on, what I don't know. I'm ready to let her go, but she's welcome to stay. Proactive good, premature bad, though given her age, condition, fullness of life, I don't really think I could be premature. We'll see what the vet says, and I may or may not come home with my Bernie tonight. I've cried tons today, even spontaneously.

The good news I promised yesterday is this: Bernie was the Pet of the Week in the Tahoe Daily Tribune back in '94, and it was a heartbreaking ad. I had a dog, didn't need another, and am not sure how bad I wanted another. I simply was compelled to adopt her. So, Sunday night I emailed an editor at the Trib. Following is that email, with her response:

Dear Ms. Goodman. I am a former resident of South Lake Tahoe (1993-1999) and former reader of the Trib. Long story short, I adopted a dog who was a Pet of the Week in your paper. She is now 15 and and eloquently winding down her life.

My question to you is, is there any mean for the Tahoe Daily Tribune to locate in either electronic archives or print archives her Pet of the Week entry? I believe but am not certain that her piece appeared in more than one edition. I adopted her on September 9, 1994 from the Lake Tahoe Humane Society, thus I'm certain her piece would have been in the paper the last week of August 1994 and/or the first week of September 1994. Her name was Barney (now Bernie), she is a black lab/chow mix, and was nine months old at the time. There was a photo along with the text, and I've attached to this email a photo of her--though she's much more robust now than her photo in the paper!

I am willing to pay, of course, for your efforts and any reproduction you can provide. She has been and is a huge part of my life, and I would like nothing better than to be able to frame and hang her Pet of the Week piece on my wall for forever more.

Thank you so much for your help!

Sincerely,
Chad Caruthers

Hi Chad,
Thanks for contacting us – it’s nice to hear how well everything worked out with Bernie. We should be able to track down the Pet of the Week article you’re looking for. In addition, would you be willing to be interviewed for a short story, basically a Pet of the Week success story? I can have our community editor, Dan Thrift, contact you. (I have cc’d him on this message.)
Thanks again,
Elaine

How cool is that? More later. I'm exhausted.