|
This is a testament to the existence and life of our little angel, Maximillion Reginald Von-Loy (Maxy). Maxy was born on August 17, 1989. He was approximately 11 weeks old when he came to live with us. The night before we picked him up, my late husband, Don, and I were all excited about the next day. We had retired for the evening. In the darkness, Don asked me, "Have you decided what you're going to name your new puppy yet?" I thought and thought. Suddenly, I sat straight up in bed and declared, "I've got it! His name will be Maximillion! When I was a little girl, Mom gave me a children's storybook about a family of rabbits. The littlest rabbit's name was Maximillion. He was a lively little rabbit and always very 'bouncy' and curious about everything. I will call him Maximillion – Maxy for short!" Don gave Maxy his middle name of "Reginald". He said it seemed fitting and complemented his first name of Maximillion very well. Together we decided on his last name – "Von-Loy". The next morning, we left and drove 80 miles one way, to Des Moines, to pick up our new pup. The weather was extremely frigid – about 28 degrees below zero, with winds gusting to 35 miles per hour! We took along extra blankets to bring our wee one home in. We finally arrived at a very fancy home and pulled into the driveway. When we went to the door, Maxy came bounding to the door to greet us. From the beginning, he was enthralled with Don and literally tried to leap into his arms. We were able to see Maxy's mother, "Diana's Patches" – "Patches" for short. She was a beautiful, silky, silver-colored Shih Tzu and very gentle. We discovered that Maxy was the last of the litter, and that Patches' owners had grown very attached to Maxy. They had already taught him to fetch, and he was paper trained. The husband loved to sit and watch TV with Maxy laying in his lap. Maxy was a pure bred Shih Tzu. We registered him with the American Kennel Club. Maxy's father's name was "Loy's Chanahan". Pure coincidence! But we were delighted none-the-less. Maxy's father was a champion show dog, winning several First Place medals in competitions in the AKC competitions! We bundled up our new baby and carefully carried him to the car, beginning our long drive home. When we arrived home, we discovered that our water pipes had frozen, due to the extreme temperatures! What a "homecoming" for our new pup! With the electric stove and the electric heater, we soon warmed the living room to a comfortable temperature. Don set to work on thawing out the pipes while I played with our new arrival. Soon some very good friends dropped by to see our new pup. Don finished thawing out our pipes, and we all began to play with Maxy. His intelligence astonished us. Maxy brought much happiness to us, and we spoiled him rotten. He particularly liked to "bounce" through new-fallen snow – just like the "bunny rabbit" he was named for. We discovered the best way to keep his beautiful, long fur from getting wet and caked with snow was to slip one of his "doggie sweaters" on him before we let him out to play. We went sledding quite a bit and Maxy would tag along, having the time of his life. Maxy had one "bad" habit. When unattended outside, he loved to roam the neighborhood in search of other dogs to play with. One particular day, he slipped away and found another dog to "wrestle" with. The snow was thawing that day and producing deep puddles. Unmindful of the puddles, Maxy and his friend frolicked in the remaining snow and puddles. Maxy became completely soaked to the skin. By this time, we were frantic to locate him. Our search finally ended in success and Don "chased" Maxy all the way home, scolding him for running away again. When we entered the house, Don immediately placed Maxy in a warm sink full of water, trying to avert any illness due to the thorough soaking of Maxy in the cool weather. Later that evening, we noticed that Maxy started to have a "hoarse" bark, and he was having difficulty swallowing. We called our vet and filled him in on what happened. We ended up giving nearly a two-week supply of antibiotics to Maxy to combat his strep throat! During his "puppyhood", Maxy always had bouts of a "touchy" stomach, and with our vets' advice, several times we administered a half-teaspoon of Pepto Bismol to settle his tummy. After three years, Don became ill. To our heartbreak, we discovered he had lung cancer! During the next eleven months, between his trips to the hospital for radiation and treatment, Don was content to have Maxy at his side. Upon Don's passing, Maxy grieved for several months for Don. About six months after Don passed away, Maxy and I moved to Des Moines, where he originally came from. After living there for three years, I met and married my current husband, John. Maxy and John totally bonded, and Maxy loved him with as much intensity and depth as he had shown Don. Maxy and I settled in with John and his two dogs, Lacey and Sweetie. Unfortunately, a couple of years later, Lacey, an older dog, had to be euthanized. Then Maxy and Sweetie paired up and became good friends. Maxy certainly had his share of health problems, as can be typical of the Shih Tzu breed sometimes. He endured bouts of ear infections and even Pancreatitis. During his last two years of life, he developed Cushing's Disease. We routinely took him to the vet for exams and gave him medication for the Cushings. Gradually, the Cushings caused a weakness of his spine and back legs. He also became nearly blind with cataracts. He still loved to be with us and have us hold him on our laps – especially John! The last week of his life, Maxy legs became noticeably weaker, nearly not supporting him at all. On March 7th, he stopped eating and drinking as much, was very restless at night and seemed to be in significant pain. Finally on Sunday, March 9th, we took him to the Animal Emergency Clinic. After an examination, the vet discovered that he had a herniated disc pressing on his spinal column. We could opt for surgery or cortisone injections, with neither solution promising a full, satisfactory recovery. Maxy's little eyes were so full of pain and seemed to say, "Please help me by being the best friend that I could ask for, and give me peace." We had to make the painful decision to "let him go". We were heartbroken, as well as Maxy's little friend Sweetie, who would not eat for more than 24 hours after Maxy's passing. Sweetie kept approaching Maxy's little bed and just looked at it. We decided to honor our Maxy by asking for his ashes and placing them in a permanent pet urn. We created a little "tribute" area in our front room, with Maxy's engraved, polished bronze urn, plus photos of him and the framed "Rainbow Bridge Poem". As ludicrous as it may sound to some, we now believe that we will someday see Maxy again in heaven. I have included some scripture references from a book, "Will I See Fido in Heaven?", written by Mary Buddemeyer-Porter, on the main "Maxy's Memorial" page. These scripture references to God's lesser creatures and their eternal destination have given us great hope. Thank you, dear reader, for taking the time to look at and read this web page. May this site give credence and testimony that our little angel actually DID live for a brief time on this earth. He DID exist. And his little life mattered so VERY, VERY MUCH ! Maxy has two virtual grave web sites at Find-A-Grave and Maxy's Rainbow Bridge Residency. Click here to view the program for the memorial service that was held for Maxy at the LovingRest Pet Funeral Home on March 17, 2003.
|
