We lost a best friend today. [View all]

[Stonepounder]

Fifteen years ago we got our first Cavalier, Sancho. There were a pair
of Jack Russell terriers next door and Sancho (who was named after
Sancho Panza from 'Man of LaMancha' Don Quixote's faithful friend) and
the terriers would run the fence-line every day, back and forth and back
and forth. When Sancho was four I got transferred to Kansas City. We
got a nice house, but there were no dogs next door. So, we went looking
for a companion for Sancho.

We found a tri puppy and went to see her. If we had known then what we
know now we would have recognized a not very good backyard breeder and passed.
But fate works in mysterious ways, and she came home with us. A tiny little thing
that we named Dulcinea, who immediately became Mrs. Stonepounder's dog.
If she wasn't sleeping or outside with Sancho, you would find Dulcinea curled up
next to Mrs. Stonepounder. (Dulcinea was the love interest in 'Man of LaMancha').

All dogs are welcome in our bed, and Dulci would always curl up next to Liz at
night. When Sancho died suddenly at age 8, Dulci went into a depression
that lasted almost a year. And she became even more attached to the Mrs.


When I retired we moved back to Northern Kentucky, volunteered with
Cavalier Rescue USA, eventually growing our pack to five. Lately we noticed
that Dulci seemed do have a problem in the back of her mouth in that she
kept developing a crusty mass of hair at the back of her jaw, that hung
down like a goatee. We pointed it out to the vet a couple of times
when we were there for other things, but they didn't seem to think it
was anything to worry about. Then, a little over three months ago, our
vet looked at it again and thought it might be as a result of a bad
tooth. So, we set her up for a full dental. We took her in early on
the morning of November 11 and dropped her off. We literally had just
walked back into the house when the phone rang. It was the vet. He had
discovered a large tumor in the back of her throat which he suspected
was cancerous. The lab ended up confirming his diagnosis and found that
it was an extremely aggressive form of cancer as well. The vet told us
he took out as much as he could, but that he knew he didn't get all of
it and it would grow back.

The last couple of months have been torturous for us as we have watch
our sweet Dulcinea go downhill. We kept altering her diet as it became
more and more difficult for her to eat. Then as the tumor kept growing
she began having trouble breathing. She became withdrawn, sleeping
behind an end table rather in bed with us. Yesterday she stopped eating
entirely. Today we made that devastating decision that she was telling
us that it was time. So we made the gut-wrenching final, one-way trip
to the vet.

Run free Dulcinea. Go find Sancho, have a good romp, and wait for us.
We will be along in the fullness of time.