Slinkee came into our fold almost by accident.  Eileen had gone to a shelter to pick up a Kees puppy who already had a home and, while she was there, one of the workers said, "You know, we have another one like this.  Do you want to look at her?"

Eileen came home with two dogs that day.

Slinkee is our oldest dog.  We don't know exactly HOW old she is, but the vet estimated her age at 10 to 12 when we adopted her in 1997.  She is not in the best of health and has had a number of strokes, both small and large.  We know that it's only a matter of time before Slinkee joins Symba and Houska at the Rainbow Bridge, but we're determined to make whatever time she has left as full as possible.

We both love this old gal; she never fails to bring a smile to our faces.   She's our sweet, funny, sassy little "Pudge Muffin." Eileen often refers to her as "her little ray of sunshine."

At the start of 2002, Slinkee's strokes began to become more frequent and were also accompanied by loss of bowel and bladder control. The vets recommended several medications for her in addition to her medication for congestive heart failure, which we gave her regularly. And, at a follow-up exam in February, the vet said that her heart sounded surprisingly good and that we might well have her another couple of years. But, that night, as I went to bed, I called for Slinkee to join me in the bedroom. She was laying in the hallway between our two offices and just raised her head and looked at me with what I can only describe as a very tired expression. I knew something wasn't right, so I knelt down, stroked her muzzle, and told her that it was okay to be tired and laying there was fine with me. I then mentioned to Eileen that Slinkee wasn't doing well and to keep an eye on her. I had only been asleep for an hour or so when Eileen came in to tell me that she believed Slinkee had died. She looked very peaceful, and I hope that she slipped off to the Rainbow Bridge in her sleep. She'll meet up there with the others from our pack who have gone on before her.