Evie
This is one of the hardest things we have ever had to write, as breeders we are very aware how delicate life is, and we are constantly researching and taking professional advice so we can truly do the very best we can for your dogs and puppies, but what happened with Evie was nothing short of a horrendous nightmare that will haunt our family forever.
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Evie turned one on Friday 25th of March. Evie lives with my sister Hayley as a therapy dog. Evie really was everything Hayley could have wished for and Hayley got to fully understand why we love Australian Labradoodles so much. Owning an Australian Labradoodle is nothing you can explain to anyone, you only can truly understand by owning one for yourself.
Evie was Hayley's pet that was gifted to her and Evie was booked into for a pre spay appointment on Monday 28th March.
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I saw Evie on Monday, which I normally do, and Evie was playing with our dogs. I received a lovely message from Hayley Monday afternoon saying:
'The vet is very happy with Evie, she is the perfect weight, healthy and has been booked in for a spay on Tuesday 5th April'.
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We love to receive updates on how our dogs are doing.
On Wednesday 30th March Evie started vomiting and diarrhoea. There has been lots of warning from dog owners online about a sickness bug for dogs going around.
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Evie did perk up by the end of Wednesday, but by Thursday morning Evie was not 100% and was taken to the vet.
Evie was given medication for her tummy and probiotics, and told to rest as was a sickness bug.
Evie perked up a bit on Thursdays afternoon but by Friday morning was unwell again. She was taken back to the vet Friday morning and given an anti sickness injection and some more medicine to help settle her tummy as she had quite bad bloody diarrhoea at this point.
We were told that Evie was not dehydrated and that all her vitals where within a normal range.
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I went round to see Evie Friday evening and she did not greet me as she would normally do but that is quite normal for a dog not feeling 100%. Evie had been poorly for 48hours now but she still got up for a wee and chased a cat out of her garden.
Saturday morning I received a message from Hayley at 7.30 saying that Evie had just gone unresponsive and she was heading to the vet. I immediately headed down to the vets to meet Hayley.
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Evie at this point was completely lifeless and the vets took her straight off us.
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We had been waiting at the vets for over an hour when they came to tell us that Evie had stopped breathing but they had managed to bring her back. She was breathing via a tube and they had given her a blood transfusion and plasma.
We were told to go home and that they will ring with any updates.
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Within the hour we got a phone call to say that Evie was brain dead and her body was shutting down.
We rushed down to the vets to be with her while she passed.
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This tiny body on the table did not look like Evie. She was lifeless, peaceful and already on her way to heaven.
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Through the tears comes the anger. How did this happen? We have failed her! What did we do wrong?
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It really does feel like a dream and that you are going to wake up to Evie's smile and kisses.
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This happy dog that was the perfect bill of health has now died!
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We spoke to the vet for a really long time trying to find out what we could have done. The vet explained that Evie had become dehydrated and had collapsed in glycaemic shock. Her tiny body didn't have the fluids to push her blood around her body properly and they had not seen a young dog crash so rapidly for a few years.
We were told that it was just one of those terrible tragedy's and that with Evie being a miniature dog (7.4Kg) they can crash quicker than others.
To say that we are heart broken is an understatement.
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We do have questions on whether she picked the virus up from the vet on the Monday, though we will never be able to prove it! I do have suspicions and urge everyone to remember that when you are at the vet, keep your dog away from other dogs in the surgery. You must ensure that you wash your own hands and under no circumstances let your dog drink from a public dog water bowl. Always take your own water.
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I feel that we could have gotten a second option on the Friday as it was not one of the experienced vets that I normally like to see. But as the vets are seeing a high number of sickness bugs that dogs to recover from within 48 hours, we assumed that she would start to get better as they normally always do. Evie was just incredibly unlucky and we are devastated.
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Thank you to everyone for the well wishes, it really is a very difficult time.
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We want to ensure that we remember Evie the Champion of Balloon Tennis forever.
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