Fourteen years ago my baby girl was born. She was a gorgeous white and black Jack Russell terrier puppy and I fell in love with her the minute I laid eyes on her. She would knock the other puppies out of her way to get to me when I would walk in the room too. I think we knew we were meant to be together. :) From day one she was like my child, a little person..not just an animal or a pet. She was my child. We went through several ventures together in life. Moving, men, loss of family members, happy times, and she was always my companion. If I was happy she was happy. If I cried she put her paw on my face or licked my tears away. When I was tired she napped with me. We loved our walks together. She was so smart. She would look both ways with me before we crossed streets, watch for cars and turn when I said turn. We ran sometimes and we walked sometimes and I'd talk to her along the way about the trees, the people outside, the neighbors. She would look at me as I spoke and blink at me as if she understood every word I said. She was always that way and I really think she did understand me. She was an active girl when she was little (like most Jack Russell terriers are) but she mellowed a bit after I had her fixed. And, truly, I never found her to be overactive. She was a well behaved little girl her whole life. I looked forward to seeing her every single time I walked in the door. I would pull the car in the driveway and couldn't get in the house fast enough to see her. She would either be standing at the door looking for me or looking out the window at me pulling in the driveway. She knew what time I was expected home for lunch or at the end of the day. As my husband says, she had an internal clock. I really do believe that. She woke me up many times in the morning just a minute or two before the alarm was set to go off. :) And, my husband said she'd start whining for me at 5:10 p.m. if I wasn't home from work yet. I have watched her get older along the way and lose the ability to jump the way she used to but she was in perfect health otherwise. She had the occasional issue (such as motion sickness last year and wounds from things she'd step on outside a couple times) but other than that she was fine. On April 1st my husband called me at work and said she was limping and dragging her left leg behind her. I was confused because she was fine when I'd left for work that day. She'd had a little diarrhea the night before but was walking fine. So, I left work and took her to the vet right then. I then noticed that she also had a rash along her tummy. The vet said it seemed like a neurological spinal injury and asked if she'd been hit by a car. What? She hadn't even left the house. It wasn't possible. The vet put her on prednisone and took blood tests and sent us home. She was uncomfortable all evening and was panting and pacing and wouldn't sit still so I took her to the emergency vet later in the evening. They said the same and gave her a shot of morphine and sent us home. She laid down for a couple hours but didn't sleep and neither did I. The next morning I called the vet again and they said her blood work showed dehydration and slightly elevated kidney levels. They said they didn't see anything else but thought maybe the rash on her tummy was not a rash but blood clotting and that I should think about putting her to sleep. I laid on the floor next to her all morning and got very excited when she got up and drank quite a bit of water and ate a tad bit of turkey that I gave her. I thought maybe she was doing a little better but on her way back to lie down she collapsed and when she stood she could no longer stand on either of her back legs. She was now pulling her body with her front feet only and howling in pain. I called the vet and they said it was time to let her go. I couldn't stand seeing her in so much pain so I took her in and had her put to sleep. Dear God. The pain in my heart is awful. It was horrible to have her get sick so suddenly, more horrible to see her in that much pain and terrible having to lose my girl after all these years. The house will never be the same and neither will I. I know she is no longer in pain and she's in a better place and that's all that gets me by. So, to my TC puppy....I love you forever and can not wait to see you again some day. My life will never be the same without you in it. I miss you baby girl.