Brando, An Ambassador To His Breed

I want to honor and remember my friend, my child, my companion Brando who passed two days ago. Brando was a 9 year old American Pit Bull Terrier, and I always thought of him as an ambassador to his breed as I had taken him to classes for socialization with people and other dogs when he was a puppy, he was around children often, I taught him to take food and treats delicately from your hand. He was around 85 pounds, but he was a gentle giant as one of the vet techs had told me. I love him so much and my grief is intense. I hope by telling our story I will start to scratch the surface of acceptance in the grieving process. Everyone that knew him thought he was such a wonderful and loving dog. Strangers would always comment on how good he looked and how well mannered he was.

I had got Brando from a couple that had moved into an apartment building under the assumption they could have a pit bull, but after they moved in, they found out this was not the case. They had Brando's mother as well, but I had never had a large dog before, and I was worried that I would not be able to be able to handle two. He was a puppy when I got him, and I fell in love instantly. He had so much energy, so much love. There are not enough words to describe how much love he had. He loves hugs, snuggling, attention. He was always a peace maker as well as we went to many off leash dog parks or at the boarding facility I used, he would always get between dogs that wanted to fight and try to be the peace maker.

Unfortunately, I lived in one of the few cities in Colorado that enacted breed specific legislation and he was grandfathered into one of the licensing programs. After a year or so of living under these repressive rules, we moved to a different area that did not have BSL. Some of the rules were that you could not leave a window open in your house, if you walked your dog in public you had to have a muzzle on them, your dog could not be outside alone unless they were in a six sided pen. I was so glad to move to an area where we could be free again and I could be with my companion like any other dog caregiver.

We were very active together. We went on a minimum half hour to hour walks in our neighborhood, and often to off leash dog parks or very long hikes often in the mountains. Though he was never aggressive to humans, dogs, or cats, wild animals were a different story. My property is not huge, but has about a 1/4 acre, and between this and a couple of times in the mountains, he had killed four skunks. Oh what a horrible smell! I had at least one bottle of skunk enzymes in our house at all times. He had also killed a few squirrels on my property, but over the years, I believe the squirrels learned to be more on guard around him. Also, he loved to chase dear on this one mountain that did not have many trees. Of course the deer were too fast for him to ever get close to them, but he would try. And when he was younger, to this day, I have never witnessed such physical prowess of an animal as to see him run up a mountain in the snow trying to get to these deer.

A little over a year ago, I found out he had bad hip dysplasia and arthritis in his one back knee. I had tried a couple of glucosomine / MSM supplements and thought that Cosequin DS seemed to work the best. Also, when he had flare ups or before long walks or hikes, I gave him a NSAID called Metacam that worked extremely well, but again, tried to use sparingly as there could be an affect on his liver. I also tried fish oil pills, but they did not seem to make a difference.

I hope that I gave Brando a good life and he was happy. I live alone now, but for the last 9 years, he was my friend and companion. I really could not ask for anything more from a dog, and he has helped me so much on my spiritual journey. I have learned much from him and despite his chase for wild animals, his heart was so huge and loving toward people and domestic animals. I will never forget him and I will always love him.

I would like to address what I know of his death so far as to maybe help in possible prevention for other people and their pets. From the first symptom I noticed to his death was less than 48 hours. I first noticed he was somewhat winded from a relatively short walk ( maybe 1.5 miles if that ). About 3/4 of the walk, he became overheated as if it was a very hot day. It was an unseasonably high temperature of around 60F for December in Colorado and we had also just come out of one of the longest cold streaks that I had ever been through, so I was thinking maybe this had something to do with it. Then that evening, he did not eat any of his food. This was extremely unusual as he always had a good appetite except sometimes during very hot times in the summer. The next morning, again he did not eat his breakfast and I noticed he was having labored breathing as if it was hot, but the temperature was very cold. I called my vet, and they were able to see him at 3:30 pm that day. At the vet, they took xrays of his chest, on both sides, and his stomach. They also tested for anemia. The test for anemia came back ok, and the xray of his heart seemed to be ok and in acceptable specifications for size. They could not see his liver and kidneys well enough on the xray, so we made an appointment for the next day as there would be a radiologist there to take a sonogram and find out more. They had told me that if he got worse, to take him to an animal hospital that was close to me and open 24 hours.

Over the next five or six hours, I noticed he was definitely getting worse, and also he would not eat even his favorite snacks or turkey that he loved. It was like he did not even want to smell these. Also, he was having discomfort and still the labored breathing, all of which was getting worse. And the look I saw in his eyes reminded me of the look of another dog that I had for fifteen years right before he died, and to be honest, my instincts were that it was time for my baby boy to go. I could not take his suffering anymore, so I took him to the animal hospital, and from there we did a sonogram and blood work. The ER vet was very kind and diligent, but as my other vet told me, she was not a radiologist, and could not rule out torsion of the liver or spleen as a potential problem. From his blood work, two facts came back alarming. His ALT was at almost 2600 with I believe the high limit should have been 100. Also, his glucose was much under the low limit. We admitted him, and they immediately started fluids, glucose, and antibiotics.

The next morning, I went to my vet to get his xrays and past medical records sent the hospital and then I went to see him. I had actually got there about an hour and half before visiting hours, but they let me come back and see him. He looked so bad and I could not believe whatever was wrong with him was happening so fast. Again, if I had it to do over, I would have had him put down at that time. He was suffering so much and it broke my heart to see him in this way. The vets had to make their rounds, and I received a call from one of the vets that they had the radiologist look at new sonogram pictures and it seemed his liver and kidneys were enlarged. Also, we decided to get a leptospirosis test done as he had not had a vaccination for this. They would have to send it to Illinois and the results would be back the following day late in the afternoon.

I had talked with this vet about transferring him to my original vet. I went to pick him up and they brought him out on a gurney. They wanted to see if he could pee, and we tried to get him to, but he could barely stand. Every time I saw him, he looked so much worse. I knew he did not have much more time to live, and on the way to my vet, I decided to bring him back to our home and see if he could urinate or eat something where he felt comfortable. When I got home, he could barely move, and I had a neighbor help me move him first to some grass to see if he could urinate, and then into our house and on his favorite part of his sofa. We used a blanket as a gurney. I had made a decision in my mind that when I took him to my vet, I would have him euthanized. I did to want him to suffer like this anymore. I had tried to see if he would eat some turkey but he would not. At one point, I saw he was getting this strange anxiety, and it was almost like he did not recognize me and that he was having maybe hallucinations. He also put his head off the sofa in a strange position, so I put a bunch of pillows under his head so his head would not hang down. I did not know what was going on at first, but as I held him, I noticed his neck seemed to start to get stiff. Then a seizure started. I quickly got my neighbor, and we put him in my car, and I started to drive to my vet. Within five minutes, my Brando was no longer breathing. I arrived at my vet, and I lay with him for about two hours before we took him inside.

In some way, I was relieved that his suffering was over. His body was still warm for this long time, and it was like he was just sleeping. I petted him, kissed him, and laid next to him like we use to when we snuggled. And of course I cried like I have never cried. When I was ready, we took him inside, and I said my last goodbye to him.

That evening, I met with a couple of friends that loved him, and again, I was almost more relieved that he was not suffering. I went home and looked at the many many pictures and videos I had of him. I took so many videos from our many hikes, walks, and the dog parks. It was so good to see his energy and how vibrant he was.

The next day, absolute agony. I could not stop breaking down and crying. As I live alone now, I really let my grief out. I kept taking naps, exhausted from my grief. Today, not as much crying, but a numbness for much of the day, and I had to get some work done too, which was extremely hard. After work, I had a voice-mail from the animal hospital, and she said the results had came back that he did have exposure to leptospirosis. She said she would give all the information to my original vet, and I plan on calling him tomorrow. I really had not known about leptospirosis and that there was a vaccination. I had always got the required immunizations, but because of my ignorance, I did not have this vaccination, or at least for the past few years. I will ask my vet if I had this when he was younger. The hospital vet said they are not saying this was the cause of his death, but hopefully my vet will give me more information tomorrow.

I have gone into this detail, as I hope this can help people make better decisions than I have. I know this is part of the grieving process too in blaming yourself for a loved one's death, but in the future, I will know to get this vaccination.

I do know that I gave him all the love I had to give, and I always wanted the best for him. I would go out of my way to some of these dog parks just to see him so happy. He truly was my child, and I always always wanted what was best for him. I am missing you so much Brando, and I know you are in a better place and surrounded by unconditional love, but I miss you so much. I will try and be happy as soon as possible so you do not have to worry about me. Please have a great after life and know that your daddy will never forget you and always love you.