June 20, 2011 Four years later

Dear Abby,

We still miss our big old woolly girl. It does not seem like it has been four years since you left us.

There have been many comings and a couple of goings in the last two years. First, as you know, Lexie joined y'all a couple days after her 13th birthday a year ago last May thanks to cancer. We have been joined by Max, Nadia, Kiska, Kodi, Kane, Georgia, Turbo, Taz, Blue, Merlin, Sasha, Yukon and Isis. Kodi was adopted by a Dogster friend a few weeks after we rescued him. He is living in MD. Missy lost her tail back in December thanks to a tumor which turned out to be cancerous. We had thought it was gone but the cancer showed up again a bout six weeks ago. She is taking Pred which seems to help keep the tumor in check but it won't cure it and there isn't much else that we can do now but keep her comfortable.

We hope you are having a ball with Aileron, AJ, Tasha, Rustie and Lexi while you wait for the rest of us to join you.

We love you.

June 21, 2009 ...... Two years later ....

Dear Abby,

It has been two years since you left us so suddenly that night. It doesn't seem possible that it has been that long, but it has. To say that we miss you would be an understatement.

There have been some comings and goings around here since you left.

As you know, little Tasha, who eerily reminded us so much of you, crossed the Bridge and joined you, Aileron and AJ on the other side last November. She was never a replacement for you but rather just another little girl in need like you were when you joined us.

Rustie crossed in early January. We sometimes wonder if she took the place that she held here as the alpha female of the pack. Knowing her, I suspect she did. You were never one to make waves so I suspect you had no objection.

Lucas joined us a week after Rustie left. He is a very special boy, and I think you would have liked him a lot. Then a couple of weeks after Lucas arrived, Panda joined us. Max (2) joined the pack in early May. I think you would like both of them too although you would have had a hard time keeping up with Max being that he is still only about 7 months old and a bundle of energy. There may be another "little" boy in need joining us in the near future. Time will tell.

Zoe had a tumor on her leg removed in May. It proved to be cancer, but it appears that Dr. Darlene got it all and that Zoe is good to go ..... it never even slowed her down!

We found that Mischka has cataracts in both eyes like Queen did. We hope to be able to get them treated in the future. Everyone else is doing fine . Even Lexie, though considering her age, I suspect she will be the next one to join you. Hopefully not too soon though.

Please know that we still love you, and the rest of our pack on the far side of the Bridge, and hope that y'all will wait patiently for the rest of us to join you in the future.


Love always,

Mom and Dad

One year later .....

Dear Abby,

It is hard to believe that it has been a year since you left us so suddenly. Believe me when I say that you are greatly missed. What I would give to see you out on "patrol" along the edges of the yard.

There has been a few changes around here since you left us last year. First, Tasha came into our lives. It is uncanny how much she looks like you. The same colored "wooly" coat. The way she walks. She is a bit smaller and has brown eyes instead of your blue eyes. I think you would have loved to pal around with her.

Also a couple of months ago Nakita and Mischka joined the pack.

As you know Rustie is still around. We really thought she would have been the first to go. I am sure that she will be joining you, Aileron and AJ sooner rather than later. She is going downhill with her lung problems and it is getting more and more noticable. And the smoke from the two swamp fires drifting in all the time isn't helping her any.

As I said, you are greatly missed, Both your mom and me still have a hard time viewing your Dogster page without tearing up somewhat. But we both know you are waiting at the bridge with Aileron and AJ for us to join you.


Love, Dad

To Abby ~ From Yukonwinds Summer Breeze

To Abby ~ watch over us from North of the rainbow bridge
~
North of The Rainbow Bridge

by MakWa4me

The time comes. A Siberian Husky lifts up its head. There is an untested adventure beyond. Time to go.

Across the Rainbow Bridge is a place for all dogs. A river runs wide and shallow with tennis balls that fly with their own wings; that is the place for a Labrador or Golden to await its master's arrival.

The Siberian is not content here. Northward is its trail....

There are soft pastures for Aussies and Border Collies, with sheep and geese to pen. Agility equipment grows like trees amid Frisbees and flyball.

But the North continues its sure wild call, and the Siberian's journey continues....

Now the air is colder. Now the moon is always full. Now the light is silver and it breaks and shimmers on fields of bright snow. Now there are no roads, no walls, no pens, just endless space to run. This is where Siberians gather, North of the Rainbow Bridge.

They wait in this beautiful place, happy, but not complete. Suddenly, a howl begins, as one dog senses someone coming, someone very special. All the Siberians raise their heads and join in the ancient chorus. They dance like moonbeams and sing like winter winds.

There are red ones like dawn streaks, black ones splattered with many colors and silver ones like the first strange hour before light. They line up as if in harness and run together, in a scintillating, many-colored streak. The leader of the team guides the others past the fields and river, with racing feet and racing heart. They rush to greet the new arrival at the Rainbow Bridge, where the leader is rejoined with its beloved person, never to be parted again.

The glory of the reunion is celebrated by all the Siberians dwelling beyond the Bridge, a glimmering, multicolored team leaping and whirling with joy. The light from that scene is what we see on magical evenings in the northernmost parts of this Earth: The Aurora Borealis, the Northern Lights beyond the Rainbow Bridge

June 21, 2007

I crossed over the rainbow bridge tonight at 9:55 EST. My mom, dad and Rustie were with me when I crossed. The crossing was very sudden and very quick.

In some ways I was a very unlucky girl though in other ways I was very lucky. Through it all, I was a trooper.

I was rescued by mom and dad in July 2002. I was the 4th dog and the 3rd Husky in the house. When I came into my forever home I was heartworm positive. Mom and dad got me treated at once and I was cured of that affliction. I lived a fairly normal life around here. I was a fairly quiet couch potato most of the time but I was happy. I got loved on, got treats and belly rubs all the time. I mean, really, who can complain about that? Best of all I was LOVED. And I gave love back.

Then disaster struck. Late one night in February 2004, I slipped and fell, hitting the back of my neck on the corner of a wall. I was hurt bad .... so bad that I couldn't move much of anything except my eyes and nose. Dad stayed with me the rest of the night holding me to keep me from trying to move and hurting myself further. The next morning Mom and dad got a friend who dad had worked with on the fire dept. (thanks Bill) to come over and help load me on a makeshift backboard and put me in the back of dad's truck for a trip to my vet. Well, I didn't break anything but in hitting the corner I did injure the nerves in my neck and the swelling in that area paralized me. Well, alot of things were talked about including the possibility of having to have me put down. Well, to make a long story shorter, I stayed at the vet's office for almost a month while they treated me and rehabilitated me (thanks Darlene and crew) until I was able to return home. It was a long time until I was able to walk without assistance. But I finally did it. And I finally got to a point that I could even run some.

Well, over time I developed arthritis and had to take meds for that. Later a blood test showed some problems with my thyroid (whatever that is) and I started taking pills for that. Boy, did those pills make me feel better! I started going on patrol around the yard again and even started to play with my sisters and brothers (there were 14 of us now) some. The down side was I had to go in for blood tests more often now. Well, about a month ago, my vet didn't like some of the numbers and started to talk about something called Cushings but said that even though some of the numbers indicated it others did not.

Then on June 18, 2007 disaster struck again. While mom and dad were having dinner outside on the deck, I was playing inside with Nanook and Rustie. Mom saw Rustie take a dive under the couch and knew something was wrong. As mom got up, I stumbled to the patio door and collapsed. I was holding one of my hind legs out like I was paralized again. But not as completely as before. They got me to my feet again and I stumbled to the other end of the room and collapsed once again. They then saw that I was having trouble breathing and that my tongue was turning blue. Well, they put me on the backboard again and took me up to an emergency vet in Chesapeake, VA about an hour away. They checked me over and took some x-rays and did some other things to me. They got me up and walking with assistance and the a bit later on my own, but couldn't find anything wrong except for a dark area by my heart. They talked a little about maybe keeping me there overnight, but mom and dad took me home since I was stable and so they could take me to Dr. Darlene the next day. Dad said that being home would be less stressfull on me and if I was going to die at least it would be at home with my family. Besides, he wasn't impressed with "that air-head"! (nuff said about that!).

I went to see Dr. Darlene Tuesday morning and she took some more pictures of my insides. Well, she wasn't too thrilled with what was said the night before but wasn't able to identify the problem with the equipment that she has. She then refered me to a heart doctor up in Va. Beach.

Dad and my two legged sister and her baby boy (I like him!) took me up there on Wednesday (June 20) to see a nice lady named Dr. Small. She did some tests and looked at my insides with somekind of sound machine that can see things better than x-rays. She finally decided that I had something called pulmanary hypertension and that it could be treated with drugs.

Thursday, June 21, started out as just a normal day around here. Mom and dad went to work and us kids hung around in the house in the air conditioning taking it easy. After dad got home him and mom had dinner and then fed us kids. I had eaten very little since Sunday. The usual rations just didn't appeal to me, so mom made some chicken and brown rice for me. It was good! Later we all spent some time outside. After we came in, we all got ready for bed, me and Rustie in the den with Demon and the other kids in the various rooms around the house that they sleep in. Dad went upstairs while mom was finishing up in the kitchen. Then it happened! I was leaning up against dad's recliner with my butt up in the air like I was playing. Mom came in to watch me play and then realized when she saw that I was chewing at the carpet and that my eyes were as big as saucers that I wasn't. When I saw her I gave out with a loud scream which was very unusual for me since I normally could not make more than a hoarse sound at most. She screamed for dad who rushed down, but I was breathing my last breath as he got to me. Rustie already knew I was gone and gave out a howl. Mom and dad tried CPR but I was already over the bridge. Dad realized this when he checked my puples with a light and saw that they were already fixed and dialated and it had only been a couple of minutes. It was that fast.

Mom and dad later brought the other kids in a few at a time to say goodbye. Most of them knew something was wrong but not the full extent of it, Zoe and Queen wanted to play, most of the others thought I was sleeping. Molly must have realized the seriousness of the situation because she started to lick my face in her attempt to revive me but I was already playing with Aileron and AJ on the other side.

The next morning dad took me to Dr. Darlene's office from where I will be sent to Kitty Hawk to be cremated. The whole office was in mourning ......



Abby's dad here: We will never know what exactly killed Abby. We decided not to autopsy her because we didn't want her butchered in an attempt to find an answer that may not have been found. Our girl had been through enough. Rest in peace sweet girl.