A little scared

Who am I kidding - I am a lot scared.  I am fully aware of Simone's probable age.  We have had her seven years, and we were told they estimated her age as between five and seven when we got her.  As great as they are, Boxers are very short lived dogs.  The oldest Boxer I have ever heard of was ten.  So I know she has to be at least eight, and she was a mature dog when we got her.

She had at least two litter of puppies in her previous life.  She also accumulated some other things in that other life.  She has suspicious (at least to me) scars.  They are on the inside of her hind foot, mussel and a few other places.  All four of her canines have the tips broken off.  Very strange.  I have come to believe she may have been hit by a car at some point.  Just don't know.

At any rate, we are living on borrowed time.  I know that.  Her new diet has been very successful.  She looks forward to it at each meal with great relish.  But ...   There's always that but when you have a pet.  But,   I know that one of these days.

Well, I wonder if that day is coming.  A couple of days ago, I noticed she was salivating more.  No biggie, right?  Yes biggie with this dog.  It heralds nausea which means she vomits and is miserable.   Last night, she took her combo pill - the one that guards against heart worms, fleas, and other intestinal parasites.  She was playful wanting to play with her stuffed duck.

Then it began.  The massive salivating which leads to "licking the air" which is a precursor to vomiting.  I let her out (because dear God knows I have cleaned up soooo much vomit in the house - and she aways heads to a floor covering, not bare floor).  It is dark thirty out there, and she is traveling all over the yard - where I can't see her.

I searched the yard.  I found s sign of vomit, but it was cold.  Could she have vomited after breakfast?  I don't know.  She was out there at least 45 minutes.  I don't know what she did or didn't do.  When she came in, there was still some "licking" but nothing came from it.

When I went to bed, she came to my side for a while.  When she decided to head to her crate, I noticed she was still salivating a lot, but no licking like before.

This morning, she ate well.  But just a bit ago, she began licking again.  She has spend most of her time in her crate, and at least in my skewed mind, I think she is depressed.

So what I have been saying without saying until right now - is this the beginning of the end?  The thought comes with mixed emotions.  The devil in me is saying - well no  more making food every day, and no more worried about her vomiting everywhere, and no worrying about going on vacation and leaving her - with the worry of her dying without me being there .  But then, she has been my faithful companion.  She has helped me through so much these last seven years.  She is a truly wonderful dog.  She is so great with the grandchildren.  She is so sweet and gives so much affection.  She has all the traits one would want in a dog.  We have been so lucky.