Terrible News, Onyx passed away tonight

[Blake7134]

Oh no Jeff, I am so sorry to hear about this. I don't visit that often but just happened to see this today. If you may recall, I lost my Tai to bloat and it's just terrible. One second they appear happy and fine and the next, they are not. Thank God Onyx had you during the most crucial time of her life. My thoughts and prayers to you and your family.

[PurpleKisses]

Hey Jeff,

Remember I told you(and many others as well) that you and Onyx were meant for each other.... for a short time yes, but I believe when you accomplish what you are supposed to on this earth then it is time for you to go...... She needed to learn what love, and a family were.... you gave that to her. I believe you learned something from this too(don't know what that is, only you can know what she taught you) You gave her everything she needed and wanted, and now I believe that she is gone to be an angel to help someone else learn what they need to.

Also, I do believe everything happens for a reason....... it very well may be that she needed to go so that you might help another chow in need.

You are a great person. There is not a person on this forum that can argue that. Yes I know you disagree and have (very) strong feelings with alot of people but you do always do it with the best intentions behind you.

[CoraP.]

Well-said, Purplekisses. I totally agree!

[Jeff&Peks]

Hey Jeff, Also, I do believe everything happens for a reason....... it very well may be that she needed to go so that you might help another chow in need.

I'm sure there will be more but I know one thing I'm sticking with the down and out Chow, the Chow thats never had anything, lost its spirit, on its last day and there's no hope, I don't care what the temperament is, those are the Chows I want.

[SWANCIN]

Hey Jeff, Also, I do believe everything happens for a reason....... it very well may be that she needed to go so that you might help another chow in need.

I'm sure there will be more but I know one thing I'm sticking with the down and out Chow, the Chow thats never had anything, lost its spirit, on its last day and there's no hope, I don't care what the temperament is, those are the Chows I want.

PurpleKisses, beautifully said!

Jeff, I believe you....

[chowchowdaddy]

Fortunately for us, we have never personally experienced bloat, but our housekeeper had it with one of her chows, Baby. They had the surgery despite the odds and he survived, only to die a few days later in his sleep on their kitchen floor. They thought he'd merely gone to sleep...

Bloat is a terrible thing, but there is nothing we do that actually causes it, so never ever think that anything you or anyone else did was wrong. As we've all said, Onyx and you were blessed to have your time together and you will meet up again...

[Mikosmom]

Jeff,
I too am another member that reads everyday but doesn't post often. My heart is breaking for you & Conner; I know how grateful rescue chows are. Our Genie had been terribly abused before being rescued and was the sweetest little girl, who was always so happy to be with the family she ended up with. We were fortunate enough to have her for 10 years, but as others have said, you gave Onyx the home she had always hoped for, and that alone is enough, no matter for how long.

Please know that my thoughts are with you & your family and take comfort in knowing that Onyx knew she was loved.

[Sydney]

Jeff:

My heart goes out to you, you know that. I'm so glad you walked in the shelter that day and gave Onyx the life she deserved. I know it was only for a short period but what a wonderful time it was for her.

I was wondering if this would get you down or you would be more determined. I see by your last post, it's only helped make you more determined and that doesn't surprise me. You have a lot of people that admire you and it's well deserved. See, I guess we can all disagree but the chow breed is still our common bond.

Syd

[MFOSSS]

VERY,VERY SORRY . WE WENT THROUGH THE SAME WITH BOSKO , NO WARNING , NOT EVEN TIME TO GET HIM TO THE VET .
YOU KNOW YOU GAVE HIM A GREAT LIFE , WE ALL BECOME WHOLE AGAIN AFTER THE PAIN IS GONE AND SOMEHOW WE PULL THAT ALL TOGETHER TO BE EVEN MORE SPECIAL WITH THE NEXT . WE AS CHOW OWNERS HAVE TAKEN A SPECIAL BREED INTO OUR HEARTS , HOMES AND LIVES . I DIDNT BELIEVE AFTER THE PASSING OF BOSKO , THAT WE COULD CONTINUE , BUT WE ARE LIKE OUR BREED VERY SPECIAL AND WE ALL ARE MEANT TO BE TOGETHER .

[MickChick]

I'm sure there will be more but I know one thing I'm sticking with the down and out Chow, the Chow thats never had anything, lost its spirit, on its last day and there's no hope, I don't care what the temperament is, those are the Chows I want.

Dear Jeff,

Thank you from all the unwanted, unloved chows that no one else will take. I with there were more people like you. He**, I wish I were more like you ...

Cecelia

[carolyn dewrance]

Bit late with my sympathy, but I did pm you, Thank you Jeff for loving her, and taking care of her, and just wish I could be there to give you and your family a hug and say how very sorry I am.
Carolyn

[Jeff&Peks]

I've thought about that last hour a few times and what could have happed to cause the bloat, there are a few things that might have happened.

1. Onyx was a food vacuum she cleaned her bowl the second you put it down, the first time I feed her I thought man are you a candidate for bloat so I cut way back on her food. I only give Pekoe and Onyx 2 cups of dry food aday, thats way under the wieght requirement. Onyx only ate 1 cup at a time.

2. Onyx was really skinny so to get her to eat I mixed one of those small cans of wet food with her 1 cup of dry.. I'm the one always complaining about food enticers yet I did it with her food just to get some weight on her but one cup of dry and a small can of wet isn't that much food.

3. after she ate I went to bring her out front with me again to watch the concerts in the park, when ever Onyx saw the leash she went nuts and started spinning around, we always had to tell her to calm down and wait a few minutes, she got excited right after she eat.

4. when I brought her out front there was a hot dog on a chair so she grabbed the bottom part of the bun (bread) and downed it before I could get it out of her mouth but nothing was on the bun just straight bread, The Bottom half of a hot dog bun isn't that much bread I don't think.

So we have four things, Guzzling her food, Mixing wet with dry (1Cup), got to excited after she ate then ate a hot dog bun, thats all the activity and food she had all day so the combination of the four is all I can think of that could have caused her to bloat.

Some of you might give a second thought to trying to get your Chows to eat all their food and adding stuff to the food to get them to eat.

[Laura]

Jeff it isn't anything you did or didn't do. It's like trying to explain why one person gets cancer and another doesn't. There isn't an answer. It's just one those crushing events that leave us wondering and searching for an answer that won't come.
I free feed my two...have done that with all my dogs. They snack a bit during the day and eat the majority at night. I fill the bowl once a day. Some days they eat it all...most days they don't. Sometimes they also split a can of food or salmon. Some dogs snack...some wolf it down like they don't know if they will ever get another meal. I'm sure Onyx ate the same way everyday that you had her(probably her whole life)...she didn't bloat on the other days. I think it is just one of those things we can study and try to prevent but that not enough is really known to effectively do anything. Non- smokers get lung cancer...some dogs bloat/some don't. It's tragic because it's one of those things that make the owner blame themselves...second guess everything they did. I know it would make me crazy if it happened to one of mine.

[Jeff&Peks]

Pekoe is a self feerder also she can make two cups of food last for two days. I'm not beating myself up over it i'm just taking what they think may be some of the couses of bloat and comparing them to what Onyx did that day. What i learned from Onyx won't happen with the next one.

Onyx had alot of other problems, infections in both ears, external damage and bruses from the car accident , she had a few problems that I never posted, we were working on the external problems and getting to the internal, pekoe had some problems i had to take care of first then i was going all out on Onyx. She deffenantly had Hip and leg problems from the car accident who knows what was going on internally those things were already scheduled to be looked at with the vet, so there could have been hundreds of reason for her bloat, Onyx was at the Vet constantly getting treated for past medical problems thats why I always said I was hanging on to her for medical reasons. Onyx spent more time at the vet in one month then Pekoe has her entire 12 years. In Onyxs case all from lack of care. I'm sure there were past issue's that brought on the bloat if not that day it most likely would have been another day.

In other words I was trying to rebuild a Chow from ground up, physically Mentally and temperament but got foiled in the process

[carolyn dewrance]

Jeff, during the 30 years of having and loving the Chow chow, I have lost quite a few to bloat, Halley was my first to go and I did not know what to do, I was a helpless jibbering fool when I eventully got him to the Vet, but he died of heart failure and he was only 3 years old. Over the years after that first experience, I have always kept a piece of silicon tubing in my dogs first aid drawer, and with the help of this tube I have been able to if not completly save my chows life I have been able to prolong it, and have been able to get them to the Vet for further treatment, some of them did recover to live a few more years, One even became a Champion, that was Rambo, but unless you are very quick and catch the problem at the start, then there is really no hope, I tried so hard with Sharon, but the tube did not work so I used a large bore needle and managed to get the gas out that way, until I was able to get her to the Vet, she appeared to settle down after the gas was relieved, but then the next day while I was at work my son phoned me and said that it had started again, I got home and got her to the Vet, but even with the operation which was successful, my girl died of heart failure.
I have studied this problem, and discussed with various Vets the cause of it, and we have come to the conclusion that it is an inherited problem, Sharon was Halleys grand daughter, Rambo came from the same line as Halley, and Halleys father died of the same problem, Now not knowing Onyx's heritage, it is quite possible that her father or mother or even both suffered the same fate.
Since Sharons death, I have discontinued all dry food, and now cook them all home food, Rice raw chicken mince, grated carrots, and a mixture of cooked frozen veges, and so far touch wood Smurf and Chrystal appear to be doing well on it, Chrystal is Halleys grand daughter as well, and I watch her very carefully, no running after eating, no excessive water drinking, and make sure she lives a very quite life. Smurf is now going on 12 years old but does not have this terrible problem in her family line. Yes it is very scary, not knowing what to do or how to handle it, but the problem can be helped by getting a tube down their throat into their stomach and releasing the gas, this gives time to get to the Vet for further treatment, It's not what you did, and not what she did, but why it happened, and did her parents or even grand parents suffer from this problem. change the way of feeding, and make sure, that your chow does not exercise after a meal, I do hope I have settled your mind and know that you will look into what I have said with your Vet.
Carolyn

[Salandra]

Oh, Jeff,
I know I'm late in responding but I am so very sorry for your loss.
I can give no words of comfort but would like you to know that your family are in my thoughts.

Blessings
Sally

[Mia]

Jeff,

I have been away for a while and have just come back and seen your post.

I am so sorry to hear about Onyx.

[cmyers]

I am so sorry, my thoughts are with you. It's so hard to lose one, and a baby, no less........
I've only had one bloat, and Simba was 6 months old.
There are a lot of Chow people that give GasX once a day, usually at night, to help.
I only give ice in their bowls, never water to lap up fast, and they never free feed dry kibble, in fact I don't feed dry kibble, only mixed and wet.
Sorry, you only have to go through boat once, to become a "freak" about it!

[Jeff&Peks]

I don't know about the wet food,dry food theory, Pekoe has been a self feeder only eating dry for 12 years she has never had wet food in her life, she has never had a problem or signs of gas. I gave onyx wet just to add some weight and we know the story. I do believe bloat is mostly food related though, amount of food, mixtures, or eating table scraps or anything that might cause gas like digging something out of the trash. 3 people in my neighborhood lost their dogs to bloat one was a Chow, the owner left her Chow with her mom so the mom gave the Chow a bowl of spaghetti thinking it was cute, the chow died an hour later from bloat. the two other dogs, great Dane and Shepard also eat table scraps then died from bloat. No different then a human eating beans or Mexican food. Something is coursing the gas so it has to be food related. As for Onyx she sucked down a cup of dry mixed with wet then grabbed the bottom half of a hot dog bun, bread expands so the way I see it the bread expanded right after her eating her normal food causing the problem but who knows what went on her first 3 years before i got her, Onyx was a breeders top puppy machine tossed out in the street becouse she was no longer of any value, the vet said he estimated she already had 4 to 5 litters of puppies at 3 years of age. she just had a litter before I got her, who knows where those puppies went.

[motychows]

Jeff-
I am so sorry for your loss......I cannot even begin to explain how my heart hurts for you. Please take comfort in the fact that you gave her a quality of life, even if for a short while. The pics show her happy and healthy and luvin life.....that is something that you gave her and that is perfect:)
Again, our family is so sorry for your loss.....
Michelle