Thank you very much for the service you provide at an almost unbearable time. Thank you Doctor Forslund and all of your staff for your courage and strength to help our special dogs Rest In Peace.
Quigley spent the rest of his life with a huge smile on his face. He NEVER stopped smiling. He never quit and he always did his best to keep up with the rest of “his pack.” As humans we all could learn from Quigley’s undying spirit, his determination and his acceptance of life as it changed for him. I have never known a dog as joyful as Quigley. Nor will another dog ever spread as much joy as he did with just his presence.
Losing our has been even more difficult then we ever imagined. Quigley came to share our lives when we were searching for our second Aussie. We compete with our Aussies in Agility, herding, obedience and Rally. We were looking for that very special dog with endless enthusiasm. We found just that, when we found Quigley. Quigley was a quick learner and he had endless energy. We used to call him our energizer bunny. He was quirky, whenever anyone coughed he’d lift his head and stare you down as if to ask if you were quite done. If you kept coughing he’d leave the room. It wasn’t long before we’d cough we would follow it with an “I’m sorry Quigs”. We still do. At meal time he would follow me as I carried his bowl to his spot, the whole distance, spinning like a top.
In true Aussie style he could out bark the best. Sadly, just after turning two, Quigley suffered a spinal cord injury while herding ducks. He was paralyzed from just above the hips on down. He was in excruciating pain. My heart was shattered. After consulting with the neurologist we decided we couldn’t watch our energizer bunny in a wheelchair and requested that he be peacefully put down. Fortunately, for us the neurologist asked us to consider giving him 8 weeks for the swelling to go down and then, based on his recovery we could decide how to proceed. Obviously, Quigleys competitive career was over, but not Quigley. He was only just beginning his journey. A journey we would take with him. Thankfully though, Quigley recovered enough coordination to be able to walk and run again, albeit awkwardly. He required special boots too keep his hind feet from dragging, we spent years in PT with underwater treadmills and Rehab. Always working to maintain his strength. We were so grateful to have our always happy boy back.
Four years later Quigley was suddenly unable to walk again An MRI showed cysts on either side of his spinal cord at the level of his initial injury. After all of his hard work we felt we had to give him a chance and off to surgery Quigley went. He handled the surgery like the champ he was. After rehab he was back to being Quigley in no time. He was a fighter. He never gave up, how could we give up on him? Quigley's neurologist warned us that we would be blessed if we had Quigley until 8years old. He was going to suffer with early arthritis among many other difficulties due to his altered gait. We agreed we would never let him suffer.
Tammy Pachura
Rancho Cucamonga