Byron and Baxter Go to the Rainbow Bridge

Dear Debbie and all of NEBTR,

As you may remember, on November 28^th, 2014 my husband Ken and I picked up Byron and Baxter after our application to adopt them had been approved.  Some people questioned us when we told them ever so proudly that we were the new parents of two senior Boston’s, but we never hesitated.  Bryon and Baxter were 12 and 10 respectively and although they had some gray, they were full of character and so much fun to have!  As most dogs do, these two seniors walked straight into our hearts and stayed put.  We did have some initial adjustments but the four of us soon learned how to take quite good care of each other and spent our time doing just that.  We had several amazing months with them but sadly, we have now lost both boys. 

In August of 2015, after his senior work-up, we found out that Byron’s enzyme levels in his liver were very high and started him on some medicine to try and regulate them.  In September we noticed that his belly was looking just a bit bigger than usual but he hadn’t gained any weight, so although his levels had improved at his recheck we decided to do an ultra sound just in case.  The Doctor found a large mass on his liver and another on his lungs.  We considered surgery but given the size of the tumor and his age, we were advised against it.  We had Byron for another 2 weeks before he just couldn’t take it anymore and he let us know that it was time to go.  He definitely showed his age, in the end he couldn’t see or hear too much but he never lost one bit of his spunk!

At first we were worried about how Baxter would react to losing his lifelong pal, but he adjusted to being an only child rather well.  He definitely missed his buddy but we think he relished in having all the attention to himself for a while.  Health wise it was a few rough months for him, he developed an ulcer on his left eye and had his cornea scrapped twice for it.  Luckily the second time did the trick and he was out of his cone just before Thanksgiving.  Unfortunately, through all the visits to the doctor for his eyes, we learned that Baxter was likely cushingoid.  We confirmed this mid-December and planned to start treatment in January after all the craziness of the holidays had subsided.  Right before we were able to do that though we noticed that he was having a hard time drinking one night.  We immediately took him in to get checked and we discovered a mass in his throat.  He was anesthetized so the doctors could take a closer look, but it was such a struggle to get the tube down his throat that they were afraid he wouldn’t be able to breathe if they took it out.  We lost Baxter on January 7^th.  Like his brother, he couldn’t see a whole lot and he’d developed a very ‘selective’ hearing but he was the same food loving cuddlebug he’d always been right up to end.

We know how much you care about all of the pups that you provide for and so we wanted to let you know what happened.  We also want to thank-you for all you do and for letting Byron and Baxter into our lives. Our house is so quite without them and we miss them terribly.  We do intend to adopt again when we are ready but will never forget these boys!

Sincerely,

Ken & Rebecca Upsall

Oh no!!! My boys 😭😭😭

I am so sad to hear heaven is two stars brighter - Debbi Stapleton

Debbi, it looks like you picked a wonderful family for them.  They were very much loved until the end. Thank you for all that you did for them.

Debbi, it looks like you picked a wonderful family for them.  They were very much loved until the end.