My Courageous Boy: Hudson

[Hudsonsmom79]

We lost our sweet boy, Hudson, to Cushings Disease in May. He went into a seizure he could not come out of and the vet said it would be most humane to put him down. He put up a hard fight and fought this horrible disease for 11 months. I don't know how he did it everyday and I am unbelievably proud of him. I miss him more than he will ever know and not a day goes by that I don't think of him. We had him cremated and his ashes are sitting on top of our fireplace. I don't think I will ever get another dog. No one can replace the special place he made in my heart and the bond we had. I love and miss him terribly and he is the bravest and most courageous soul I know after what he went through. Loving you always Hudson.

[labblab]

Oh my, I am so deeply sorry for your loss. But thank you so much for returning and telling us what has happened. This way, we can join you in honoring your precious boy, and we can offer our support to you in the days ahead. Hudson has now joined our angels on our special memorial thread:

http://www.k9cushings.com/forum/showthread.php?t=8383

If you care to tell us the date of his passing, I will certainly add that to his memorial line. If you wish, it would also be our privilege to link a photo, as well. But I'll talk with you about that some more a little later on.

For right now, I just want you to know that we are here for you whenever you might want to share some stories about your sweet boy and your lives together, or if you just want to talk about how you're doing. We cannot change your pain, but we we can walk right beside you.

Sending you many hugs, always in loving memory of your brave, beautiful Hudson.
Marianne

[Hudsonsmom79]

Thank you for your reply. I sent an email to the main address with his picture and asked if you might be able to add it to the memorial. I would really appreciate that and it would honor Hudson. He passed away on May q8th. Thank you again for the kind words and support.

[Hudsonsmom79]

Sorry, he passed on May 18th. Typo.

[labblab]

Thank you so much for sending Hudson's wonderful photo, and the photo link is already in place. ;)

Truly, please know we are here for you, always!

Marianne

[Hudsonsmom79]

Thank you so much for posting his information. I appreciate your kindness!

[DoxieMama]

I am so sorry for your loss. He was a beautiful boy.

[Hudsonsmom79]

Thank you. He was a sweetheart and is deeply missed.

[Joan2517]

They are lovely pictures of him...I'm so sorry for your loss.

[molly muffin]

Oh what a sweetheart. He just looks adorable. We all understand very well how much it hurts the heart when you lose such a precious member of your family.

I feel the same, not sure if I will ever get another. Just don't know and it's been 10 months tomorrow and still miss mine something awful. We just go on, because what else can we do, but the heart knows and the love carries on.

My sincerest condolences on your loss. When ever you want an ear or shoulder we are here.

[liltara]

I am so deeply sorry for your loss - your post actually helped me today.

I lost my Mojo in May too - May 20th - after a battle with Cushing's for what seemed like an eternity but was really about a year.

My heart is still broken, but I felt really proud of him today after reading your post. He was courageous. He fought with all that he had in his little dog body to stay here with us as long as he could. When it was finally time to give up, he was courageous to the last moment of his life too.

I am so proud of both our fur babies for being so strong and fighting the good fight to be with us. I too am not sure that I will get another dog once my current fur baby follows Mojo to the Bridge, she is 10 and in good health so for now we are relishing every moment. Especially after the emotional roller coaster of the last year battling with Mojo. It's a relief to have a healthy dog for now.

I will miss my baby Mojo every single day for the rest of my life. He was a special boy and the bond I had with him was like no other. Today, though, I am looking at his picture and so proud of him thanks to your message about your boy.

Sending healing thoughts to you and to all of us Cushing's doggie parents who have lost our beloved doggies. Thank you for sharing.

[Hudsonsmom79]

I am so sorry to hear about your Mojo. So heartbreaking to go through this. Yes, I explain to everyone how brave Hudson was and what a horrific disease this is. Hudson was having horrible seizures where he was literally hitting his head against the wall and using the bathroom on himself sometimes multiple times a day. I was with him for each seizure and after he recovered he would get up and go back to his daily routine. I can't begin to imagine how horrible he had to have been feeling, but you would never have known by his personality. He was my bright happy boy and he still tried to follow me everywhere and play. He had a voracious appetite and thirst due to the Cushings and would try to find extra food in the house despite finishing off bowl after bowl of food. When he caught me watching him do this, you could see the shame on his face. If was so incredibly sad to watch. And yet he pressed on each day and did everything he could to make me happy and laugh. In his last days you would never have known how bad he was feeling as he still tried his best to interact with all of us and play with our young daughter. If I felt that bad I probably would have been laid up somewhere on a bed, but he was still fighting everyday. One of his favorite things to do was go to the dog park. Our vet advised us to stop because his seizures and condition were getting so bad that she said other dogs would pick up on this and he could possibly be attacked. Even our other dog had started treating him strangely and would growl at him if he tried to snuggle up next to her, as if she knew he was dying and didnt want to be near him. He was alone in that he had no social interaction with other dogs like he was used to, and yet he still tried to meet me at my feet when i got up in the mornings with a wagging tail, despite how hard it was for him to walk across the room due to hind leg weakness. He didnt let anything get him down and was never once depressed. We always used to take him to family dinners and events because he was spoiled and loved being there and playing with everyone. We had to stop those too because the last one we went to, he got too excited and ended up having a MAJOR seizure. He was now confined to our home and it was heartbreaking seeing his eager face when we would leave. But he never let it get him down and was still there, happy face and tail wagging when we returned. His once beautiful coat got hard black calcifications all over his body. When he thought we werent watching he would roll and scratch at them while whining, but would immediately stop and start his happy panting and being a clown when he saw me watching. I cant imagine how bad his life was, but he fought it everyday and did all he could to stay alive and be happy for all of us. When we finally put him down the vet was surprised and told us she had given him a valium injection to try to calm him down before putting him to sleep, but said Hudson was still fighting it and trying to stay awake despite the valium. He was kicking his feet up until the very last injections fighting so hard to stay alive and to be here with us, despite how horrible he felt and his quality of life.
They are all fighters and we all should take time to remember that and how proud we are of them. I know humans who go through way less and they do nothing but complain and feel sorry for themselves. But these dogs stay happy and do all they can to live their lives and make us happy. I am so incredibly proud of my Hudson and other dogs like Mojo who had to fight this terrible disease. They all deserve recognition and love for the courageous fight they have each day. Much love to you and hugs over Mojo. I am truly sorry for your loss. Maybe one day we can get new puppies in honor of them when the sting and pain has lessened.