What about Hana?

Dogs possess an indomitable spirit for life
that teaches right up to their last day.
from Dogs & Devotion, the Monks of New Skete

After I posted pictures of Buzz and his pal, Jack, Sheila sent me an e-mail asking about Hana. So, as Oprah would say, here is what I know for sure:

Four months after her lung cancer diagnosis, Hana, who is approaching 14, is still with us. We came scarily close to putting her down in late December, after two days in which she didn't eat and barely moved, apparently from arthritis pain. In fact, the vet had already inserted the catheter to inject the euthanasia drugs. I was sitting on the floor next to Hana, sobbing, when she suddenly turned and licked my face: this from a dog who was never a kisser. At that point, I told the vet to remove the catheter because I just wasn't ready to let go.

The vet suggested trying yet another of the new canine arthritis drugs. Although the previous arthritis medication had caused nasty side effects, including cognitive problems, the new drug not only got our girl up and moving, it improved her diminishing appetite. After years of being a picky eater, she has become a chow hound.

Like most elderly dogs, Hana sleeps most of the time. She is quite deaf, although she hasn't yet lost her sight. She coughs more often, and we wonder whether the lung tumor is expanding. On the other hand, although her days as a trail dog are over, she still enjoys twice-daily walks, now usually a slow stroll around the pond in the park across the street. Sitting out in the sun while I'm working in the yard, she still lifts her nose appreciatively to catch the scent of who knows what (coyote? mule deer? mountain lion?) blowing down from the mountains.

About the presence of Buzz in her life, Hana seems bemused. I like to think that, after having lived with other dogs for the majority of her life, she is pleased to have another of her own species in the house, even if Buzz does sometimes act like a herding dog to get her moving from one spot to another. I also like to think that Hana has taught Buzz all she knows about being a Gillette dog, lessons that she learned from Merlin, my beloved first Bouvier.

We don't really know how much time Hana has left. Jim doesn't think she'll see another Christmas, but as long as she can still move and breathe without too much pain, enjoy sitting in the sun, and get a blissful look on her face when she gets peanut butter to cut the taste of her meds, we will keep her close.