I just finished writing about how Kora changed my life and now she's moved on to the next world.
This morning we went for our morning walk as usual, but when we got home, Kora wanted to cross the street and check out the neighbour's yard. I walked along beside her to make sure she crosses the road safely. When she got to the middle she stopped and began wobbling on her legs. I could hear a car approaching, so I tried to coax her to finish crossing the road, but she stood her ground. I picked her up and put her down on the lawn in front of my neighbour's home and she lay down in the shade of the tree. We rested there for a while and she seemed content. After a while, I figured I could get some work done if she was at home rather than out next to the street, so I tried to convince her to get up and go home. She refused, so I picked her up and carried her home. I put her down next to her bed and brought her some fresh cool water in case she was too hot. She turned her head away, refusing the water. I thought that was a bit strange, but maybe she just wasn't thirsty or perhaps she had an upset stomach from whatever it was she found in the field yesterday and ate. I left her alone for a while and got some things done, then made myself some lunch. Surely she will come and try to beg for some of what I was having. NOPE!
Now that got me really worried, so I got one of her treats and put it in front of her nose. Again she turned her head away. That's when I called her owner (my sister-in-law) and told her what was going on. She said she would have her husband pick Kora up and if she gets worse, take her to the vet.
Well, I guess she got worse and off they went. The vet did some blood tests and put Kora on an I.V. drip. The vet said Kora was in rough shape and had a 50/50 chance of surviving and that if they brought her home she would die for sure. They were advised to transport Kora to the animal hospital and let her stay there overnight. Unfortunately, Kora died on the way there.
After doing some post-mortem tests, it was determined that Kora had cancer in her liver and spleen and that the tumor had burst and spilt fluid into her abdominal cavity. At least she died fairly quickly and was loved by both families.
Good-bye Kora; I'll miss you dearly!