Alivia was recently diagnosed with Cushing's - Alivia has passed

Dearest Mary Beth,

I am so terribly sorry for your loss of sweet Alivia and my heart goes out to you. We are here for, Mary Beth, always.

With Heartfelt Sympathy,
Lori

Mary Beth,

I am so sorry for your loss of Ali. I pray that her passing was peaceful and pain free. My mother's birthday is today and she passed three years ago this coming October. Look for her Ali! She also loved animals.

Dear Mary Beth,

I am truly sorry to hear of Alivia's passing. My thoughts are with you.

Hugs
Angela

I am so sorry for the loss of your sweet girl. Alivia has joined our other fur angels at the rainbow bridge. Run free Alivia, run free. Xxxx

Mary Beth:
You said the last post you knew something was wrong.I am so sorry about Alivia. She is not hurting anymore and running free with the other cush babies. God Bless you and Alivia and we are always here for you.
Patti

Oh MB, how it hurt to read this when I awoke this morning as I know your heart is broken. Precious Alivia with the most beautiful eyes fought every battle handed to her with all her heart and amazed us all. She will live on forever in our hearts, never to be forgotten.

Please take care of yourself and give Maxwell extra hugs from Auntie Addy. We are here whenever you need to talk or want to share memories.

Much love being sent our way, dear friend.

My heart is broken for you, Mary Beth. Our thoughts and prayers are with you all.

Thank you, everyone. This is so incredibly hard, but knowing all of you here understand the deep connection I had with Alivia is very comforting. I will try to tell you a little about the circumstances. Maybe it will help someone here...or, maybe it will just help me.

Ali saw her specialist a few weeks ago. Her blood testing showed a decrease in her kidney function, enough that the specialist wanted to see her back in 4 months, instead of her typical 6 months. She had lost weight and her appetite had declined. Overall though, she thought she was doing well for being nearly 16.

Then, about 2 weeks ago, Ali had another stroke. I was home from work with the flu (the real confirmed flu...when it rains, it pours). It was very early in the morning and I heard Ali walking around and around out in the hallway. I got up to check on her and she was walking in circles and falling over and seemed very disoriented. I took her to her regular vet. He said to be patient and she could recover. The next 24 hours was rough. She kept trying to walk into tiny spaces - behind the TV, under the end tables, into the headboard. It was heart wrenching. I had to hug her and hold her and watch her every second, even through the night, to keep her calm. But, like the little fighter she was, she began to rally and I thought we'd get through it again.

A few days ago, she vomited completely undigested food and had no interest in eating. I made her plain rice and she ate that and kept it down, but after that, she refused all food but continued to drink a bit of water. She had all the symptoms of kidney failure. I had to give her pain medication every 2-3 hours just to keep her comfortable. So, she was either sleeping or in pain (or possibly both). I hoped she would let go on her own, but I think she didn't want to be the one to leave me.

I made the hardest decision I have ever made. Of course it was complicated by the fact that her regular vet is never in the office on Fridays (another one is there that I had never met) and her specialist was off until next Tuesday. I could not bear to take her to a stranger. I texted her regular vet and told him I thought it was "time". He offered to meet me at his office. He was kind and gentle and I am eternally grateful. I asked him if there was any chance he could fix Ali one more time, even though I knew the answer. He told Ali what a fighter she was and that she was an amazing little girl. Alivia remained in my arms the entire time, wrapped in a warm soft blanket, completely calm and relaxed. He gave her one injection and left the room. She was sound asleep and we spent some time together like that. He came back in and gave her the second injection...she never even stirred and it was over in seconds.

We wrapped her in her blanket and I took her home. I thought Max deserved to have closure, too. I laid Ali in her bed and Max went to her, gently sniffed at her, and then laid down beside her. Then I took Ali to Perfect Pastures, a pet cemetery and crematory. My daughter and (ex) mother-in-law met me there. They laid Ali out for a short viewing and allowed us to say our good byes. She truly looked relaxed and just like she was sleeping. The tenseness she had from the pain she was in was gone. Unfortunately, the pain in my heart is not.

Dear Mary Beth

I am so sorry to hear this news of Alivia. She has always had one of my favourite avatars, I love how white she is and that cheeky eye looking over her shoulder. We are never ready to say goodbye to our little darlings. How nice your regular vet came in to help you, that is such a good thing for him to do. It sounds like everything just snowballed for her at the end and while it was so hard for you to do, it was the best for her. Big hugs at this sad time xxxxxxx

Oh Mary Beth,
I'm crying right along with you. So glad that Max got closure instead of wondering where Ali went to. It is important too.