Missy, the Basset

Missy was a favorite at a local animal control, but no one would adopt her because she had a hard mass, the size of a lemon, on her belly. She was good on a leash, loved to ride in the car, was good with kids, other dogs, and most cats. She was housebroken and would have made a wonderful companion.

When we saw the "Urgent" appear on her site, we knew they were full and had to move her or euthanize her. She had had a stillborn puppy the week before. We met her and immediately liked her and thought she deserved a chance. We scheduled her to be evaluated by the vet and have spay surgery, as well as remove the mass. Because of a veterinary emergency, the surgery had to be postponed for a week.

Two days ago, at the late night bed check, I noticed a tarry stool, fresh blood, and evidence of vomiting in her kennel. We took her to the vet and he first suspected parvo but the test was definitely negative - thank God for that. He knew we had wormed her, but went ahead and checked that out too. No worms, but the sample was full of cancer cells. The cancer had infiltrated her colon. She snuggled in my arms as we euthanized her to prevent her from suffering any further.

Maybe that was the plan - she loved to ride in the car, loved to go outside in the play yard and sniff and dig and roll in the fresh grass. She loved to eat! She was a real sweetheart and will be missed.