Ava

If you are even a casual reader of this blog, you know my mom has had a rough time of it lately.

Today, she said goodbye to her sweet little Ava.

My mom adopted Ava in January 2018. We initially thought she was about 10 (it is almost impossible to know for sure with rescue dogs), but after doing a dental, our beloved vet suspected she was about 12.

I think Ava came into our lives because she knew we would need her. She was a wonderful companion for my mom for the first six months, so well behaved and grateful to have a human of her own. She was always thrilled to have a warm and fuzzy blanket to burrow in and was equally content to stay home or be taken on many a car adventure.

When my mom got sick last summer and moved in with us, Ava became an honorary member of my herd. We brought her to our house on June 28 (the first night my mom spent at the hospital) and it has been her home since. During our long and difficult summer, she seamlessly bonded with Maddy and Ginny, and when Maddy tragically passed away, she became quite close with Ginny (although Ginny did not reciprocate that fondness for the first few months).

Thinking about it today, I believe Ava saved Ginny from dying of a broken heart. Ginny had previously lost five of her sisters, but Maddy was Ginny's whole world. Without Ava trying to get Ginny to play, sleeping next to her on the couch, and barking at goings-on in the neighborhood, I honestly don't know what would have become of Ginny. Ava even forced Ginny to eat because while Ginny would just sit and stare at her food, Ava would gobble hers down and then slowly creep over toward Ginny's bowl – which caused Ginny to eat because she didn't want Ava getting her food. Comical in one sense, but in another, this act alone helped Ginny keep going.

Over the past couple of months, Ginny had really warmed up to Ava as she learned to live without Maddy by her side. For that, I will be forever indebted to Ava. She always struck me as a proper little old British lady, and over the last few months, I'd taken to calling her "Mavis" because that nickname suited her perfectly. Even though she wasn't technically mine, I loved that little dog so very much.

C and I were away this past weekend, and on Sunday night, my mom sent me a text asking me to call her. Ava was crying out in pain and my mom told me she was taking her to the emergency vet to see what was going on. Upon examination, they thought maybe it was her back or neck (the Achilles heel of Dachshunds), and they sent Ava home with meds and directions for restricted activity. We have a playpen in our family room that Ginny sometimes spends time in when she has overdone it and her back is bothering her, so my mom got Ava settled in for the night after giving her the medication. Yesterday was not too bad, and when C and I got home last night, Ava was excited to see us and seemed pretty ok to me. Ginny went to bed with C, and I insisted my mom go to bed while I slept on the couch to keep Ava company. I checked on her several times during the night, and she was sleeping soundly. She ate breakfast this morning and was looking so adorable as she snoozed on the couch that I posted a #tongueouttuesday pic of her on IG.

About an hour later, she suddenly cried out in pain. It was the first time I'd heard her do it, and my mom said that's what she'd done on Sunday night.

Well, my heart sank, because I knew that sound. All too well. And I knew it wasn't because of her neck or her back. My Molly, Gunni, and Duchess all experienced that same suffering before I had to let them go and it was just as horrifying. Seizures.

Ginny knew, too. She was acting crazy, running around and trying to get to Ava. Absolutely frantic.

After a panicked call to Dr. T., my mom held Ava in her arms and I drove the three of us to the vet as my mom and I cried. Ava had another seizure in the car and another right before we said goodbye.

Thank goodness for Dr. T. That's all I can say. She sat with us and cried with us and said all of the right things. My brother met us at the vet to say his goodbyes as well, and having him there with us was so good for my mom. Because no matter how much you know in your head that you are doing the right thing, your heart still breaks.

When my mom and I got home, Ginny searched for Ava. She searched the blanket we'd taken her in, she searched my mom's coat, she searched the car. It was so sad. She has been quiet all day long and only perked up when C got home from work. She has lost another friend. The cheese certainly does stand alone now.

We will miss you terribly, little Mavis. I have no doubt Maddy enthusiastically welcomed you at the Rainbow Bridge and introduced you to the rest of the herd who will unequivocally love you as much as we do. Thanks for all you did to see this family through a very trying year. You really rescued us.

such a sweetheart

Maddy, Ginny, & Ava

she didn't have many teeth,
so her tongue often hung out of her mouth
and it was beyond adorable

keeping me company while I write

doesn't she look like a "Mavis" :)

this was taken last week...
oh my word, that little face

she stayed by Ginny's side
while Ginny was
grieving Maddy's death

it took some time, but...

they became very good friends

two days ago

my mom saying goodbye to her girl

I will never grow accustomed to this

Ginny searched the car when we got home

she dug through this blanket
for several minutes :(

don't tell me animals don't grieve

Happy Tails to you…

NHL Arena #36

Tuesday, January 22

Click HERE for the first leg of this trip!

We checked out of Château Lake Louise around 11:30 am because we had to drive to Edmonton for the Oilers game that night. The scenery was just as beautiful as between Calgary and Lake Louise, and we arrived around 4:00 pm to check in to our hotel, which was a Home2 by Hilton. We dropped our stuff on in our room, went out to grab a quick dinner, and then stopped back at the hotel to grab our coats before the game. Well, our room keys would not work. C went down to the registration desk and the manager came back up with him to help us out. After many, many tries, we was finally able to get the door open. He repeatedly apologized for the inconvenience, told us to gather up our things and that he would return with new room keys, and when he did come back, he walked us down the hall and told us he'd upgraded us to one of the big king suites and was giving us a gift certificate for breakfast! Two hotels, two hotel upgrades! What are the chances?

Once we got settled in the new room, we took an uber to the game at Rogers Arena. It is a very impressive arena from the outside, and it was pretty nice inside, too. Obviously it is a major upgrade over their former arena, Rexall Place, which was absolutely the WORST arena of the original 30 we visited. It was atrocious. So Rogers Place is very nice in comparison to that monstrosity! However, compared with the rest of the league, I found Rogers Place to be nothing special. It's nice and new and so it feels fresh, but there is nothing really fantastic about it. It is the 36^th NHL arena we have visited, and it falls somewhere in the middle of the pack. The gold standard remains Little Caesars Arena in Detroit. It is unmatched!

Coincidentally, the Oilers were hosting the Red Wings and while the first period was quite boring, the game picked up and was actually pretty exciting during the second half of the third period. I was happy that Detroit won 3-2 and overall, it was a pretty good fan experience. Despite their team not playing particularly well, the fans were respectful throughout the game, which has not always been our experience at other arenas!

Wednesday, January 23

We got up early because we had to drive back to Calgary for our flight, and as you can see from the photo below, the weather was not on our side. We were worried that our flight would be cancelled, but thankfully, the closer we got to Calgary, the more the weather settled down.

When we dropped the rental car off, the employee took note of C's "Original 6" sweater and chatted at length about hockey with us. That in and of itself would have been a delightful experience because it is not often we encounter people near where we live who can really discuss hockey, but he then made a pretty hilarious joke, too! We mentioned that we don't really like the Caps despite where we live and his response was, "Who does?!? It's all about the Original 6!" He really made my day! And then he proceeded to give us a huge discount on the cost of the rental because we are Leafs fans! It really was a very lucky trip for us!

We flew to Dallas again on the 2x2 commuter jet, and then home from Dallas with an empty middle seat between us in the exit row. It does not get much better than that in economy!

For now, we are caught up on the NHL arenas, although there are a few new arenas on the horizon and Seattle was awarded an NHL team, so there will certainly be more hockey adventures in the future!

Happy Tails to you!