At 5.15pm Friday the 23 ^rd of May, Prince forever fell asleep cradled in his foster mom's arms. On Friday afternoon, his one ear had developed a hematoma. The only treatment really for this kind of ailment is surgery, there can be attempts made to try and drain it, but it will only come back again. We decided not to put him thru any painful procedures; especially surgeries his body would not be able to handle it in his condition, he probably wouldn't make it through the anesthesia. After the vet did a thorough exam of Prince, we came to the conclusion that tonight may be the night for him.Besides the ear hematoma, he also had a nasty infection in his mouth & for him to live on comfortably pretty much all teeth would have to be extracted, those that were left, at least. His body was full of arthritis; especially his back legs were bad. Then of course his ears & eyes is a sad sight for anyone to see. In order for him to continue life without pain, we would have to run complete blood work on him in order to determine the proper meds to keep him doped up on. Nope, Prince was not going to continue life on heavy medication, in a zombie-like state. Upon consultation with our board, the vet & foster mommy Ingrid, the decision was made that it was time for Prince to finally get some long-awaited rest & complete pain relief .

Ever since Prince arrived at my home the evening of January 30 ^th I have had him on pain meds & sleep aid just to keep him comfortable, but I never felt it took away all his pain, poor little Prince. I remember taking him to the pet emergency hospital the 2nd night because he could not breathe properly. It sounded like he was drowning in his own lungs. I told him one thing then while we were waiting for the vet to see us & that was "I'm so sorry we didn't find you sooner, my sweet boy". We talked a lot that night Prince & me. I promised him that if he made it thru the night he would never have to leave my home again & that I would make up for all the things made wrong towards him in his life. I promised that never again was he to have an embedded collar around his neck, never to have to sleep outside in the heat, never to go hungry or thirsty again. I tried to make every day his birthday, good food, treats, play & lots & lots of love, tummy tickle & laughter. Although I'm heartbroken over the loss of my little man, I know in my heart that we made Prince very happy. We truly earned his trust & his love & he found a home with us. I love & cared for Prince like I love & care for my precious Betty. I know my little man is in a happier place now, free from pain & neglectful people. He's running & chasing & playing & I believe we will one day all be together again. Prince taught me that love can be seen with blind eyes. He taught me that loving words can be heard with deaf ears. He taught me to love what I have, when I have it. He taught me that time is precious & to be kind & humble. He taught me that beauty comes in many shapes. He taught me how to hold on for dear life & he taught me how to let go. Goodnight Prince. Rest in peace & play in heaven. Mommy & Sister loves you, sweet little man.

Prince is now one happy fatty! (even a little too fat!) Here are some piccies of him at our Bully BBQ this past weekend. Thanks to Shannon for the awesome shots!

Tickle Monster Time!

Hi All, It's been a while, I know. I apologize, but there's not much to add. Prince is doing great; he's fat & happy, harmonious & content. He sleeps thru the night and most of the day so he can stay awake and play with me & Betty Boop when I'm home. Betty lets him know when I walk thru the door (nudges his face) & I can see in his face how happy he gets that I'm home. It's a wonderful feeling being that loved by this special boy. He steals Betty's cookies by jumping up on the couch (yes he does!!!), that's where she's been hiding her treats, bones & cookies from him, so far... Now she has to find another hiding place. Rule is; eat your treat NOW when offered or loose it forever to Prince. He is a cookie monster; he will sniff & find anything that's eatable, there for he is now a size fat-boy. Not at all obese, but charmingly fat for his age and he is currently on a diet, but it's not easy when he sits and barks for hours if he doesn't get what he asks for. Trust me; I laugh a lot with my two dogs. He is living a very comfortable & happy & quiet life with us & I know he is happy & feel very safe. Still every day is a blessing & I fear for the day he'll ask me to be strong & help him in his last transition. I have already made arrangements with Betty Boop's veterinarian that when that day comes; she has agreed to help us so he won't have to travel anywhere. He will take his last earthly breath where he has been the happiest and most loved, at his forever home with Betty & my self by his side. But let's not think about that now, I hope in my heart that the 3 of us have a long time to go together still. I have tons of wonderful pictures of Prince & I did get the cord but now I also need another gadget to make it work with my computer, and I'm getting it so please be patient and I will download all the pictures of my favorite bully boy. That's it for now, just wanted everyone who has followed Prince's saga to know that he is doing fab & all bad memories have been erased forever.

A Little poem for Prince & all other rescued dogs in our care.

I'll lend you for a little while

My grandest dog, He said.

For you to love while he's alive

And mourn for when he's dead.

It may be one or twenty years

Or days or months, you see

But will you till I take him back

Take care of him for me?

He'll bring his charms to gladden you

And should his stay be brief

You'll have treasured memories

As solace for your grief.

I cannot promise he will stay

Since all from earth return.

But, there are lessons taught on earth

I want this boy to learn.

I've looked the wide world over in my search for teachers true.

And from the throngs that crowds life's lanes

With trust I have selected you.

Now will you give him your total love?

Nor think the labor vain,

Nor hate me when I come

To take him back again?

I know you'll give him tenderness

And love will bloom each day

And for the happiness you've known forever grateful stay.

But should I come and call for him

Much sooner than you'd planned

You'll brave the bitter grief that comes

And someday you'll understand.

For Prince With Love, Mommy Ingrid

P.S. Prince will be making a special appearance at our Bully BBQ this Sat. the 17th!

Hi there, It's been a while & I truly apologize for the delay. We are all still doing well. Except that I have changed Prince's name to Fatboy. He has gotten nice and fat, not overly obese, but he has a nice proud little belly now. But what can I do? I have created a monster, at least once a day he'll go into the kitchen and stand next to the cupboard that holds the treats, and then he'll start barking. And he will bark & bark & bark..... And if I don't give him any treats, he won't stop. And he won't settle for just one treat, no no way. How do you discipline an 11 yr old deaf & blind dog? You can't. And I'm not going to be mean to him, he has been told so many mean things in his life, and been forgotten more times than I'd like to think of, that I can't deny him life's goodies now. So what if he has a bit of weight on him, it's not like he's going to run agility or show up in a beauty contest anyway. So I'll leave him be. As long as he's not getting sick from a little potbelly, I'm going to let him enjoy whatever life he has left. Yes yes, I will show you a recent picture of Fatboy soon, I promise. I'm just so very busy that I haven't had time to buy the cord I need for my camera yet. (sad excuse I know) Sister Betty Boop is doing just fine; sometimes she gets tired of all the attention I pay Fatboy, so she'll give him the stink eye and accidentally run into him when he's sleeping or something like that. Mean Betty. And Prince is so funny; he's started to get a "tude". He loves to suck on the dental bones I buy for Betty, and if he has one and Betty tries to take it from him, he growls at her and tries to bite her. It's the funniest thing when he comes at her with his 6 teeth, and Betty just looks at him like, -Is that all you got?? But Betty and I are good actresses though; we pretend we get really scared so he doesn't loose face or confidence. We do love our Fatboy. Until next time... Butt wiggles

Prince is just ticking along "the old clock", and he is doing better and better with the gum-flem. I think as he gets healthier through the Canidae diet, his mouth is clearing up a bit. He is not as nasty as he was in the beginning. So he is sleeping better cause he is breathing better, and that makes me very happy. Now I can sleep, finally. I have slept with one eye open for the past month, haha.

This Saturday afternoon I packed Betty Boop and Prince into my SUV & off we went to Brutis birthday party at Erica's house. I was a bit worried at first and I contemplated if I should even bring Prince on a trip at all. Well, the old boy proved me wrong. He was all up for it. He sat up the whole car ride over, enjoying the wind from the window in his face. Once we got there he walked all the way to the house from the car and then he walked around Erica's backyard just like any dog. He even went off on his own; checking out the surroundings & bumping into the other bullies at the party.(peed & pooped, (had to leave Erica with a gift or two, of course haha!) Shannon took some precious pictures of Prince in his party hat. Of course he got to taste Shannon's meatloaf cake she had baked for Brutis' birthday, and he loved it! Betty had some as well, but she gets intimidated when 6-7 dogs herd around for the bites, but she managed a couple of bites anyway, my little love-child. She is such a great little sister to Prince. She lets him DO & HAVE whatever he needs before she has any, whether it's attention or food. She patiently waits on the side while I take care of Prince. I'm so proud of my little girl. You who were at Erica's Saturday saw how Prince has gained weight. He's looking really good now. I'm very proud of him. This fostering Prince started out as just lending him a quiet comfortable place to "die" in, thinking back at the state he was in when he was rescued. I remember thinking when Erica brought 48 cans of food with him when she first deliverd him to me, "No way I'll need all that food", Now he has gobbled down 72 cans of food already, and Erica is bringing more tomorrow. Now I actually dare to look forward, and I'm hoping Prince will be around for this whole year if not longer. When we came home from the party Saturday both Prince & Betty laid down and fell into a deep sleep, snoring until late night, they had dinner, went outside and then back asleep for the night. Dreaming about all the new friends they made, and they are looking forward to the next meet-up, for sure. * Sweet Dreams my babies, mama is keeping guard while you are asleep in dreamland *

Here's Prince walking into the party with his sis, Betty:

I think I smell a female on these tracks....

Happy Birfday Brutis!

Yummy! I love it when mommy shoves meatloaf in my mouth!

Water Please!

Time for a swim!

I have to get with you guys and show you some pictures I took of Prince the other morning. He tried to get into and sleep in Betty's baby bed. I bought it for Betty when she was a pup, and it's pink and plush and soft. It's too small for Betty now so I mainly use it for holding toys and she thinks it's a toy and throws it around from time to time. Anyway, Prince worked so hard trying to lie down and get comfortable in this bed. Finally, he fell asleep with his butt hanging out, and he looked so funny I had to take some pictures of him. He does the "chuckle roll" every night. That's what I call it when he lies down and rolls and laughs. It sure looks like he's laughing. And when he does the chuckle-roll Betty loves to nibble his ears and she doesn't use her teeth, she tickles him with her lips. I tell her to be careful with his ears and it's like she understands me. (Hmm!) Betty never stop to surprise me, she is such a good dog, and she is so good for Prince to have around, cause he gets to be all dog around her, to play and have the camaraderie of another dog.