drwylerpetdoc / In Memory of

In Memory Of...

Sabrina

Sunday 31 July 2011

To Dr. Wyler, Dr. Starkey, and Staff

We wanted to thank you for your compassionate care and concern, for both Sabrina and our entire family, as we moved through the challenges of this last phase of Sabrina's life. I still vividly recall the sense of crisis that disrupted our family back in March when we realized Sabrina had crossed a threshold that might lead her away from us. Hesitant to commit to surgery, we faced prospects of loss that were painful to entertain. But you prompted us to take a chance to help Sabrina along, and we were delighted by the results of that operation. To have had Sabrina for an extra 5 months was a wonderful privilege, and all of us who were part of her life feel the deepest appreciation for your efforts on her behalf.,

Unfortunately, yesterday age and Nature and Time caught up with Sabrina?but even here we were comforted by Dr. Starkey's understanding and compassion. Even his surprise that the end had come so suddenly for Sabrina made us realize that she had been spared the gradual deterioration that can be so painful to witness and endure. We all appreciated the time he allowed us to spend at the end of a busy day for our family to say goodbye to our trusted and steadfast friend.

As you probably know all too well, such events as the loss of a pet are felt deep in the emotional core of a family, generating a searing pain. Last night, as family and friends visited us and then, later, as my sons and their girlfriends sat with Susan and I under the stars in our backyard, we relived our rich and rewarding experiences with Sabrina. Today, upon awaking, I felt compelled to try to express the emotions we were feeling in a poem I am enclosing as a gesture of friendship. There is a strange inspiration that accompanies the onset of a darkness, so here is the radiance I discovered there, appreciable, I am sure, by those who have devoted their lives to the care of animals.

Once again, thanks for the wonderful combination of professionalism and personability, compassion and concern, that steered us through this painful corridor of experience. Everyone we interacted with in your office expressed the most genuine affection for Sabrina and the most sincere understanding of our family's plight. You made a difficult ordeal more bearable for us all by displaying qualities that distinguish you in your noble profession.

Sincerely,

John, Susan, Johnny & Anthony Pagano (& Samantha!)

To Sabrina

Yesterday we stood together as a Family to face a Darkness,

To watch you cross a Threshold and take that Last Journey to the Undiscovered Country.

Unable to accompany you, we looked on in sorrow & disbelief.

We could not wish away your pain, so we consoled you with our Love.

You taught us so much, Sabrina?Patience, Trust, Loyalty, Joy in Simple Things.

Today you are with the Sun, returned to the Rhythms of the Natural World,

Radiant in Memory and Imagination where you will be with us forever.

Last night, under the Stars that circled the Home where you ran and played with us,

We relived our Time with you.

A Privilege & a Pleasure to have shared Life with so wonderful a Companion,

So devoted a Friend,

So shining an Example of how even in the face of Death there is Love that endures.

Images of you as a puppy animated our minds,

Bringing Laughter to dispel the sadness,

And we rejoiced to have been granted your company for so long.

The years brought changes to us all, moving? us along a current of events challenging and unpredictable,

But your Devotion was a constant,

Always to be counted on as a Signal of the Love that kept your Spirit strong,

Enabling your Advance far into the Corridors of Experience & Age, steady at our side.

We will miss you, deep in the Core of the Heart where emptiness and loss cause Volcanic Pain

But that is the Measure of your Value.

The shattered Heart rebuilds itself stronger than before.

Here, in this fragile Life, we have to accept that nothing Gold can stay

That is the Law here, All changes and passes on,

Subject to Nature & Time.

We too one day will set off on that Last Journey,

Perhaps to rejoin you in a Better Place,

A Family reunited in Love & Spirit.

Thank you for all that you brought into our Lives.

You have meant more to us than we can express in language,

For in that Silent Space where Words must give way,

You always conveyed your fiercest Devotion & Love.

The Gifts you bestowed on us cannot be diminished, displaced, or forgotten

They have passed into the Fibers of our Being & the Fabric of our Family.

Rest, Friend?yours was a Worthy & Inspiring Life.

We are grateful to have walked with you so far.

Sunday morning

July 31, 2011

The Day after Sabrina's passing

Captain

1998-2011

Akira

February 23, 2010

Dear Dr. Wyler,

I am writing you this letter to thank you for all you did for Akira and to tell you a little bit of his life story.

Exactly a week ago we said our final good bye to Akira. It was both incredibly painful but also a relief. He had been in a lot of pain during his last two days; in particular during his last day. He would scream and faint when he urinated. I would then have to hold him in my arms for at least 30 minutes to console him,and then put him down on the sofa to rest. He would loose all his energy every time that happened. He did that once on Sunday and Monday, and twice on Tuesday. I took him to your office on Monday and when you said the cancer had spread my heart froze but I knew that the time had come. He was such a brave g. He battled cancer for almost three years. All I did during his last 24hours with us was to hold him in my arms as much as possible. I wanted to be able to give him as much love as I could during his last hours and I did.

The last day was particularly tough as I could not wait to get to your office because I did not want him to suffer anymore, but I also wanted to spend as much time with him as possible before saying good bye. Before leaving for your office we had to take him to urinate one last time as he was urinating every three hours during the last month or so. I prayed to God because I did not want him to scream this last time. Thank God, he did not scream that time. That was such a relief. The car ride to your office was the longest ride of our lives. Akira was acting surprisingly energetic and happy as he used to do when riding in thecar when he was younger. He was very interested in looking outside the window.I guess it was the snow or he knew he was on his way to heaven.

When we got to your office he was also surprisingly calm. He always got very nervous and impatient, but not this time. I remember when you took him in your arms. He looked so at peace. I felt like he knew it was his time to go, and he was thanking us for all we did for him, and for letting him go before he got to suffer too much. Seeing Akira on that table was very hard because he was so much more than a dog to us. We have no kids. He was our baby. However, when he finally left us he looked so peaceful. I was happy that he would not have to scream and faint anymore when he urinated. We miss him so much!

We knew his time was getting closer. My husband told me like a month ago that I should get ready because he knew his time was getting very close. I told him that I had been trying to get ready for the last three years ever since he was diagnosed with cancer in April of 2007. I remember when I found out about his cancer. I was on a business trip in San Antonio with clients and I cried so much that night. Ever since that day, the first thing I always did in the morning was to look at Akira (he used to sleep on our bed in between the two of us) to make sure he was still breathing. I also prayed to God that he died while sleeping so he did not suffer.

during the end of his life. He pampered Akira so much during these last nine months.We are both so happy that he got to spend all this time with him. I think Akira stayed alive all this time just to keep him company at home, and in return my husband staying at home and spending all this time with him helped Akira to have the strength to survive this long. For people who might not believe this story, Akira died exactly one week after my husband started his new job. I think that Akira knew that his last task on earth was done as his daddy finally had a job and Akira did not need to keep him company anymore.

We did everything we could to make Akira's last couple of years as comfortable as possible. We even dismantled our bed and put the mattress on the floor so it was easier for him to get on and off the bed. Even with the mattress on the floor he needed us to carry him off and off the bed. We had not had a full night sleep in more than two years as we was always getting up a few times during the night to either go drink water or go to the bathroom. During the last two months we had to get up and carry him to go to the bathroom as he was getting up every two to three hours to go. He would be so confused right after waking up that he would not know where to walk and would not get to his wee-weepad on time. We were very patient and carry him every time. He was so old and always limping. We even had to help him stand up after waking up because we knew it was a lot of trouble for him. During his last couple of days we had to hold him while urinating as he would fall sometimes and even fainted from the pain four times in his last three days.

We are so thankful to you and all your great and loving staff for all the great care you gave Akira during his whole life in NY. It was extremely hard for us to leave Akira behind every time we went on vacation but we knew that he had the best care available and the most loving people to take care of him. The last vacation we took (a week before he died) was particularly tough for me. I did not want to leave him but my I had already promised my sister that we were going to go to Puerto Rico for her birthday, and we don't see each other that often. We could sense that Akira's time was getting really close and I was so worried that he would get sick while we were traveling. I am so thankful that he waited for us to come back, and I know it would not have happened if he had not had all the care and love you, your family and your staff always gave him.When I picked him up from vacation and you requested to see me I was scared because I thought you were going to give me bad news. However, I was so moved by your story about your wife coming to visit Akira to hold him, and how all Akira wanted was to be held. Please thank your wife and kids for all the love they gave him.

Akira was such a special being for us, and he will continue to live in our memories for eternity. He was there with us to celebrate with us during the happy times, and to console us during the sad times. Forever we will owe you for all the care, attention and love you gave him.

Gracias,

Jeanette Millan & Radames Millan