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Señorita Margarita 4/4/2010 ~ 6/12/2021

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Today Heaven became even more beautiful…as the most special angel has arrived.

This morning, much sooner than expected, Margarita lost her battle with liver cancer. Just a few minutes after she woke up, she had a seizure while getting a drink at the water bowl in the camper. In addition, her abdomen looked to be distended and her gums were pale. A phone conversation with our veterinarian, Dr. Campbell confirmed what we had suspected- the mass on her liver most likely had ruptured. 

Luckily there was an emergency veterinary hospital 10 minutes from the competition. By the time we reached the ER, Margarita was having trouble breathing. An ultrasound confirmed that she had internal bleeding. Dr. Campbell spoke to the ER doctor and agreed it was time to help Rita cross the rainbow bridge. Brian and I held her in our arms until the very end.

I am grateful that Brian and I were there with Rita when she had the seizure, we were able to go into the emergency animal hospital, and that we were able to be with her until she passed, kissing her and hugging her- telling her how much she was loved and thanking her for all she has done for us and all the love she has shown to us. We are fortunate and thankful to have a veterinarian who is always there for us and our pack no matter how far away we are. 

The Emergency hospital offered to ship Rita’s remains to us in NJ. As much as I appreciated that, I will be driving or flying back to OH when Rita is ready to return to us  – to bring her back to our family. 

Brian and I were beyond blessed that Margarita chose us as her forever family. Margarita changed my life and taught me so much. The connection her and I shared was like no other and although I will cherish that bond forever, I will be lost without her. 

Señorita Margarita is reunited with the love of her life – her fiancé and fellow Pointer, Mr. Spock. I know in my heart Spock was waiting with flowers for her (as he always did) at the other side of the rainbow bridge. 

Words cannot begin to describe the devastation and pain of Margarita’s passing. Five years was nowhere near enough time with her. It has been comforting to be surrounded by our dock dogs family.

11 Years Old

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Today is Señorita Margarita’s 11th(-ish) birthday… We chose this day to mark her birthday because it also marks the date 5 years ago when we met “Penelope/Penny” and brought her home as a foster.

Big Poppa cooked an amazing bacon, sausage, egg, and pancake breakfast for Sweet Reet.

For her birthday dinner, we did a little something different this year… a dog-friendly charcuterie board (or maybe we should call it a charCHEWterie board…??… or BARKuterie board?!?) All items included on the board are foods that are safe for dogs (in moderation of course).

Homemade peanut butter PUPcakes with cream cheese frosting was her birthday dessert!

10 Years Old: Double Digits!!

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March 4, 2020

We are so very excited for this birthday because Rita was lucky enough to hit double digits!

Margarita’s Pop helped this English Pointer celebrate by cooking her customary English meals for her birthday!

Traditional English Breakfast

Bacon, fried egg, buttered toast, bangers (sausage), and raspberries.

English Birthday Dinner: Traditional Sunday Roast

Roasted beef, roast potatoes, peas, carrots, and Yorkshire pudding.

English Birthday Dessert: Bread Pudding

Margarita went on a birthday hike with brother Porter and Cousin Clyde at Historic Smithville Park.

Birthday gifts were chosen by Rita as she shopped for the first time at Tractor Supply Company!

Margarita also helped pick out her birthday balloons at Binkley’s 5 & 10 !

We have a lot to be thankful for and celebrate this month!

💖Happy 10th Birthday to our Sweet Reet!💖

Rita’s 9th-ish Birthday

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Happy 9th(-ish) birthday to our Sweet Reet!

Today also marks 3 years since the day we met Margarita when we brought her home as our GSP Rescue of NJ foster dog (Then known as Penelope/Penny), so we picked today to mark her annual birthday celebration!

Margarita didn’t get to do any fun activities for her birthday celebration due to recovering from her splenectomy, so we will ensure to make up for that after she gets the “all-clear” from the surgeon at her follow-up exam later this week!

Birthday weekend meals included a breakfast of:

  • egg-in-a-ham-basket topped with cheddar cheese
  • sausage patties
  • kiwi
  • homemade blueberry muffins

Dinner was:

 

Rita’s 2nd Gotcha Day / Rita’s 8-ish Birthday

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Happy 2nd Gotcha Day/ 8-ish Birthday to our Sweet Reet!

Rita partied like a rock star as she enjoyed a Starbucks puppuccino…

 

Margarita ran a Flex It Pink 5k to benefit less-fortunate dogs.  Flext It Pink is a company run by two moms who are passionate about fitness and living a healthy lifestyle. They began the company in 2013 to support, encourage, educate and empower other women in their healthy lifestyle and fitness journey.  The Run for Rescues 5k benefited the Have a Heart Humane Society , whose mission is to rescue abandoned, abused and injured animals, provide low cost vaccinations and spay/neuter programs, educate the greater Tehachapi community (in CA) about responsible pet ownership, and partner with local organizations to develop and share resources for animal welfare.

 

 

Margarita also did some birthday shopping at Pride Paws  .  Pride Paws’ mission is to provide job training and transitional employment experience to individuals with developmental disabilities who could not independently succeed in a traditional work environment.

 

 

Mom also made some pretty yummy bday meals and treats!

 

Bday yard zoomies:

 

In the past year, Rita has graduated from obedience class, earned her Therapy Dog registration through Alliance of Therapy Dogs, was named the first District Therapy Dog for my school district, and had mastered all necessary obstacles in order to compete in an Agility trial.  We can’t wait to see what adventures are awaiting Rita over the next year!

We love you, Margarita!

Rita’s 1st “Gotcha” Day / Rita’s 7th-ish Birthday!

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Today is a very special day, as this date marks one year since we met Margarita, and brought her home as “Penelope / Penny,” our GSP Rescue of New Jersey foster dog.  Although we didn’t officially adopt her until April, We picked March 4th – the day we met her – as Rita’s “Gotcha Day /Bday.” During her initial evaluation last year, it was estimated that Rita was 6 years old, which makes her approximately 7 years old now!
Unfortunately, Rita, found as a stray, had a bit of a rough start to life. She went through some health issues and operations during her first month with us – she was underweight, had to have 9 teeth pulled, a lumpectomy, was spayed, had “happy tail” from being in a crate, and treatment for Anaplasmosis. However, Rita was a trooper, and has had quite a healthy and active first year with us!
I promised myself that because Rita didn’t have great experiences in the first part of her life, I would introduce her to as many good things as possible, finding what activities make her most happy, and continuing to have her participate in those events. During our first year with Rita, she has been on 15 camping trips, and visited 8 new states including, DE, IN, IA, MD, NH, NY, OH, PA, and VA. Rita has even been out of the country (Canada) as well! She has visited 4 wineries, 5 breweries, 3 restaurants/bars, stayed overnight in 2 hotels, and shopped at Cabela’s and Lowe’s. Margarita has participated in 5k races, Barn Hunt, Nose Work, Lure Coursing, swim lessons, and agility. Margarita also completed training and is a registered Therapy Dog with The Alliance of Therapy Dogs, and has begun her “official” Therapy Dog visits at assisted living facilities and a local library’s children’s reading program. Most recently, Rita and I have earned our registration as a Reading  EducationAssistance Dogs (R.E.A.D.) team!
Brian and I were quite content with the size of our pack before meeting Margarita. However, Rita has filled an emptiness that we didn’t even know our family had. Not only has she been a great playmate for Hooch (who often was excluded by Cello and Lager during their play sessions), she has brought the utmost joy and love to Brian and I, as well as everyone she meets. People stop us continually and ask to meet her everywhere we go. My students at school – who have never met her – love her and talk about her constantly just from looking at her picture in my classroom. There is definitely something very special about this sweet soul, and we are extremely honored to have her as a family member!
Thank you to all of you who love and support Margarita both in-person, and from afar – we can’t say enough how much we appreciate it!!
Happy Gotcha Day, Señorita Margarita, we love you!!
Link to the public photo album of Rita’s first couple of weeks with us:
Link to the public photo album from Rita’s 1st Gotcha Day/7th-ish Birthday:

6 Years

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Since Margarita was found as a stray, the veterinarians had to guesstimate her age.  They put her at about 6 years old, so we are sticking with that.  We also chose her birthday to be the day we picked her up to bring her home as our foster – March 4th.

File Apr 21, 8 41 46 PM