Saito May-chan

May-chan had been feeling poorly the last month or so. She was vomiting frequently, and didn't eat with her usual gusto. Tests showed that her liver was not functioning well. She stayed at the veterinary hospital for four days, and then she went home. For a while her liver function improved, but about two weeks ago it started declining. She would barely eat, and she vomited when she did eat. She began to receive IV nutrients. I remember, ten years ago, when I was ill with liver problems, and how sick I felt, and how even a small amount of food made me vomit violently. I didn't want May-chan to suffer. I had met her when I went to Japan in early 2003. She was a very sweet shiba inu. She always wore a scarf. She loved to ride in the car, and she especially loved going for walks. She ate with Y's family, sitting at the table like a person. When Y's mother died, May-chan just lay on her blanket for two weeks, barely eating; but she eventually became her old sweet playful self. On Saturday night, actually Sunday morning, 4 am, Y's phone rang (earlier his dad had called to say that May-chan was not able to walk, that she had gone out to pee and then lay down on the grass and could not pick herself up, and that her body temperature was dropping. I knew then that it was only a matter of hours) and it was his dad calling to say that May-chan had just died; she had waited until Y's sister came home from an errand, and then took her last breath. I love animals, and I love most dogs that I meet. But May-chan had an unusually sweet personality. I hope we will meet again.