The family dog is having some issues. . . these may be her final days with us. On Monday, I came home to find Daisy (the family dog) not bearing any weight on her left hind quarter. She seemed like she was in pain and it was very difficult for her to get up and down. My husband was out of town and the kids were in Las Vegas. It was 10:30 at night, and Daisy, after several attempts, could not climb the stairs. So I decided to sleep on the couch. I spoke with my mom and husband and decided that I would wait until the kids came back from Las Vegas on Wednesday. I did not want to ruin their trip by telling them about Daisy and a few days wasn't going to make any difference.

Tuesday, I was exhausted from the lack of sleep - so just staying awake while at work was about all I could do. I worried and fretted over Daisy. In the morning she seemed better and followed me up the stairs. And when I came home from work, she was not as bad as on Monday night, but I could tell she wasn't feeling her happy go lucky self.

Wednesday, I was busier than a one legged man in a butt kicking contest - so my eating was poor. The kids came home and they could see that Daisy wasn't doing well. My son carried Daisy down to the basement and I went to bed.

Today, my son will take Daisy to the vet. While Daisy is the family dog, my son and she have the special bond. When my son was in Afghanistan and then in Iraq, she would wait by the basement door to go downstairs (thinking he was down there). It took a couple of months for her to figure out that my son was not in the basement.

We've had Daisy for 13 years. She has been a great dog. We got her from the Humane Society and they thought she was about 2 years old then. She has been in good health until the last few years. I'm hoping the vet has good news, but either way, I will chose to be happy that she was in our lives and remember the good things.