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Nicknames: Cosmonator, Moe-moe, The Moe, Moe, Cos, Momolicious, Moe-mee, Cosmosis, Cos moo-moo
Quick Bio:
-purebred
Likes: Getting attention from humans, walks, riding in the car with his head out the window, loves going to see the touchy-feely vet, the beach, licking your bare feet
Pet-Peeves: Quincy tugging his body parts when he's trying to sleep, seeing us with the bottle of ear cleaner, not being able to go with us every single time we leave the house, delivery trucks (mom loves them), squirrels running along our fence
Favorite Toy: Quincy
Favorite Food: Hot dogs, no-salt canned green beans with his kibble, Dingo bones
Favorite Walk: Neighborhood public park to stick his nose in squirrel holes; dog park to play with the Chinese Foo dogs, Flynn, Owen, and Olivia (F-O-O), who live directly across the street from us.
Best Tricks: Paws open the kitchen cabinet when we're not home to check if the trash can needs emptying. Blocks the door from the inside when we're outside trying to get in.
Arrival Story: We got Cosmo after seeing an ad in the paper. The puppies all looked so cute and we had recently lost our dear Duster, our first Golden boy (not pictured), due to natural causes. Husband picked the puppy with the most "personality" and that is what we got indeed! Cosmo came home to become buddies with our beloved Butch.
Bio: Cosmo was diagnosed with hip displaysia in both hips at eight months of age and received a total hip replacement on the worse one shortly after he turned one year of age. In April, 2004, he had TPLO knee surgery, fought a bacterial infection on the surgical site until August, 2004 (four months), and had three ear hematomas that had to be removed and stitched up like a quilt. An oral sarcoma was also discovered on his front jaw and after consulting with a specialist who wanted to remove part of his jaw, we did some research, listened to our hearts, and opted not to do anything aggressive and proceeded with his knee surgery. Through all his mishaps, Cosmo never lost his spunk and positive attitude. Cosmo loves going to see his vet and getting attention from everyone there. He also believes that everyone who comes to visit us at home comes just to see him! He's so used to all the cats that he could care less!
**AUGUST 22, 2009 - Our brave and sweet boy made his journey to the bridge at the age of of 12**
Forums Motto: April 1, 1997 - August 22, 2009
Cosmo's remains were returned to us today. The service our vet uses offers a very nice and classy urn. This is actually only the second time we had one of our fur kids cremated, with the first being our cat Milo. Cosmo was also the first dog, but not the first cat, that we ever had to help cross the bridge, as Butch and our first Golden named Duster (whom I've never made a page for) passed away at home.
I admit that I wondered about whether the ashes are really theirs but I am now convinced they are because the metal implant from Cosmo's hip surgery was returned separate from the urn.
Cosmo loved me, but he was always one of "Dad's boys". He told me when he was a puppy that his Dad was alpha and that I should be at the very bottom, below him, so he constantly jumped up and nipped at me and pulled at my clothes whenever his Dad wasn't around. All his Dad had to do was come into the room to see what all the fuss was about and he'd stop and sit down. He eventually grew out of this.
Late last year, my husband knew that the company he worked for was going to move the site he worked at overseas. As a manager, he stayed on for about four more months to assist with the shutdown. The shutdown was completed in March of this year and with the economy the way it is, finding another job has not been easy for many people.
The reason I'm bringing this up is because it meant that Dad was able to spend five months at home. Both of us have repeatedly said that we are happy that Cosmo had that time with his Dad and vice-versa.
Well, guess what, about a week and a half after Cosmo left, his Dad gets the job offer he really wanted at another company less than a mile away from our house, right across from the vet's office. Funny how things happen sometimes.
We have no feelings of guilt, but we will always miss our big red boy.
Cosmo passed away peacefully with the help of Dr. Hensley at approximately 11:00am Pacific time this morning.
A couple of day's ago, we made the difficult and heartbreaking decision to end Cosmo's suffering. Even though we had the option of having the procedure performed in our home, which we would have liked, we thought it was best to bring him in because of Quincy and the kitties. Besides, Cosmo always loved going to see the vet.
Cosmo was somewhat excited to be there and even greeted the technician with a bark, and he hadn't barked in weeks. We were allowed as much time as we wanted with him and were fortunate enough to have had the procedure performed in the "family" room vs. a regular exam room. His Dad and I stayed in the room through the entire procedure and watched Cosmo go quickly and peacefully.
The last couple of weeks were the worse for Cosmo. He had a desire to eat and drink but it was a struggle for him because of the mouth tumor. In the past few days, he could barely stand without assistance. We used a harness for his upper body as well as a hip harness, but you could tell he was frustrated and confused no matter how positive and patient we were.
The tumor in Cosmo's mouth was bleeding more and he was starting to cough, most likely from the lung nodules. He was tired, and we just knew he was suffering and that what he had was a terminal illness.
I will probably write some more about Cosmo in days to come, but I will not be on the computer very much until then, which I'm sure you will understand.
We want to thank our friends for their love and support. Always.
The tumor in my mouth continues to grow which is not a big surprise, but it's a bummer. Infection is one of the big concerns right now but my parents are trying to make everything as easy for me as possible.
I am on a prescription diet for cancer now and I love it! Mom has also been making me patties from fresh salmon with some broccoli, sardines in olive oil, and egg. Sometimes she puts hamburger in them too. Those are my snacks and I love them. Of course, so do the cats and Quincy, so they have to make sure I am getting what I need.
I do better with handfeeding but that is okay for my parents as long as I eat, and I do have a desire to eat. I'm having trouble drinking water unless the bowl is filled up high, but guess what, I like to crunch ice cubes with my back teeth, so Dad has been breaking them into smaller pieces and sticking them through the side of my mouth.
We are going to try one of those controlled water feeders with a tube like you see for cages and see if it will help me lick water easier from the front of my mouth. This was a suggestion from my doc, when my parents had another conference call with her last night. She said trying to squeeze water through the side of my mouth (like near the back) with something like a bottle is not always good because we have to be careful that the water goes down my throat and not my lungs.
I also have a desire to go for a walk, even if I need a little help getting up with my back legs. I actually want to go farther than I really should but by the time I backtrack it is really enough for me. The little ramp leading to the backyard is still also a help.
The other day when Dad was out for a walk with Quincy, a neighbor who we don't know stopped in her car and actually asked Dad where his other dog was! I think we are famous in the neighborhood more than we know.
We're also going to get the outside of our house painted starting next Tuesday, and when the painter came to write the contract, I actually got excited and got up and walked over to see him.
I have a strong will and hopefully some of this new food will help fight the cancer. Everything else seems to be functioning normally, and I don't seem to be too affected yet by the lung nodules.
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