It was Valentines Day 1989 when I was rushed to the hospital. I had passed out in the middle of the night on the stairway of our home and fallen down to the hardwood floor on the first level. My first recognition after the fall was the wet little tongue of our newest member of the family “Bitsie” who was 10 months old.
I was very disoriented and at the time only mildly amused that her little wet tongue was darting in and out of my ear. It was then I realized I could not get to my feet. The next thing I really knew was that I was in the hospital hooked up to all these machines.
I had suffered a massive head trauma. My fall was caused by a seizure that would plague me for many years afterwards. I was in intensive care for approximately one week.
Just prior to me being released to go home my wife Susie and daughter Kayce who were there for me around the clock told me that on the early morning that I was rushed to the hospital our puppie Bitsie had when into convulsions and could not walk. This was totally unbelievable for this also to be happening also.
It was snowing by then when my wife drove Bitsie to an animal emergency hospital for treatment. She had not told me before because of my medical problems and emotional state. She had followed up Bitsie’s treatment with our own vet and had tests ran. The diagnosis was bad. Bitsie had a rare canine liver disorder and when she ate.. her liver was not absorbing the toxins in her system and
she was slowly being poisoned.
The vet gave Susie some medications and said we could prolong her life with lots of love and a better diet. I was really shocked thinking of her little pink tongue the night I was rushed to the hospital tickling my face as I layed on the entry floor unable to get up. It was truly hard to believe now that she also had become so ill on the same day as me.
The doctors (many doctors) told me I was in for a hard road ahead of me to recover from my medical problems. I was soon forced me into retirement at the age of 42! Susie was now back working and had started a new career in Real estate.
Kayce was back in Jr High. I spent many days for 2-3 years at home with my little Bitsie. She was my comfort and reached the innermost part of my heart. I made special meals for her using Gerber’s Baby food and baby rice cereal. It was the only thing she could digest that wouldn’t fill her little system with toxins.
However, about every six to eight weeks the toxins did build up and she would be very disoriented and would walk leaning against walls. It usually took a couple of days of constant care and giving her water with an eye dropper until she started doing better.
Caring for this little sweet animal was what I needed. It gave me a new sense of purpose and took my mind off my problems and made me focus on other important things around me. Susie became very successful in Real estate and was gone a lot of the time. While Kayce was busy with school and related teenage activities I was at home with Bitsie. I always liked animals and Bitsie was not the only pet we had ever had. But, she became a part of me that can only be related to someone who understand what I felt and experienced
with her love and affection for me.
Once my nephew accidentally let her out the front door while my wife and I were gone. I was in a panic when we returned to find she was gone. I searched in vain for hours into the evening when a neighbor said she thought she heard a small dog barking down by the lake a block from our home. Sure enough there was my little bits who had went down an embankment and couldn’t get back up. I remember picking her up and holding her in my arms as my heart pounded with joy. She was pretty excited too as she kissed me and kissed me and let out little whining sounds of joy that I had not heard before.
Then the day came when little Bitsie finally got worse. This was the day I was dreading. Her episodes got worse and more frequent. I was up day and night with her trying to ease her discomfort. Our Vet said she was really not in any pain but would pass away soon.
The only thing left was to give her love and make her comfortable. The day she died my daughter had just come home from school. We asked her if she wanted to hold Bitsie for the last time. We layed her little sick body in Kayce’s lap and said our good byes through our tears of pain. She then passed over Rainbow Bridge. I will never forget her little heart that was so kind and devoted.
We were sick together and it started on the same day…. February 14th.. If there is significance in that it would be in the fact that her little heart was given to me that day and mine to hers.
In Memory of one of God’s Most Endearing Gifts to Me…
My Little Bitsie
| Bitsie |
| Steve Edwards |