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Emotional, Weary and Exhausted — How Seven Pups Survived
At just three weeks old, the survival of seven helpless pups was literally in our hands — this is their journey (and ours)
“STOP, she’s not feeling well,” said my Dad as I ran to Mandy, our family dog, momentarily pausing a few feet from where she slept. I turned to eat breakfast, leaving Mandy to recuperate, or so I thought.
I was eight or nine years old.
Later that day I discovered the truth. Mandy had passed away — She was gone. I was distraught and cried for days. I loved her. She was my first pet.
That was my first experience with grief.
Years later, I learned that Mandy, our 14-year-old poodle, struggled up the stairs to my parents bedroom that night. She was breathless. Panting. She stayed for a few minutes before heading back downstairs to rest — She was saying goodbye.
Fast forward 30 years
May 2019: I was was dozing on the couch. Nearby our family dog, Daphne, lay with her litter —seven hungry pups, who fed relentlessly. She was exhausted.
5am
I awoke to Daphne walking near my head as I slept on the couch, panting uncontrollably. At first I told her, “Go to bed.” Then I realized that something was wrong. Was she saying goodbye, just as Mandy had 30 years before?
“Michelle”, I called out, “there’s something wrong with Daphne”.
She was breathless, and couldn’t walk properly or stop panting.
Michelle called the emergency vet, taking the lead. Minutes later we were on the road, a 45-minute drive from our home in Dublin to Kildare, Ireland. Leaving behind seven pups, all alone. “They’ll be fine,” I hoped.
En route, we became increasingly concerned for Daphne. “Hang-on, Daph!” I said, while Michelle held her in her arms to comfort her. She seemed to be fading, her breath shortening.
