Angels for Austin

HRCH Hunting Doc's Austin
June 5, 1993 -- June 14, 2004
Patriarch of WaterDog Kennels
Spoiled by Joseph and Kristie Wilder

But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles;
they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.
Isaiah 40:31

AUGUST 6, 2004: Below is the story of Austin and a diary of the last days of his life with us. We will be maintaining this page as a tribute to Austin. While it's very difficult to read, we hope it will touch your hearts and remind you of the importance of family and friends, both human and canine...

It is with a heavy heart that we set up this web page. At this point (7:45pm June 5th), we are still unsure of whether Austin's condition is life-threatening or not. We will know more on Monday the 7th. (Please see diary for updates)

Austin's story goes beyond that of the average retriever. We'd like to share his story with you and hope that you are touched by his life as much as we have been.

Austin was born in Austin, Texas on June 5, 1993. His parents belonged to good friends of our's -- Dr. John and Suzanne Phillips as well as their sons Brett (Joie's best friend) and Michael. The time at which Austin was brought into this world is the most significant of any of the amazing things about him. For it was only three short months prior to Austin's birth that Joie Wilder, his owner-to-be, clung to life after a bout with bacterial meningitis. A bout that was predicted to kill him...

Ironically enough, Joie was rushed to the hospital upon arriving in Austin, TX in March of 1993. With flu-like symptoms, a soaring fever, and losing control of his body, he immediately fell into septic shock, had multiple organ shutdown and began to suffer from DIC, which caused his body to hemorrhage from the inside out. As a result of the trauma to his body, Joie lost both legs below the knee and a majority of his fingers.

After approximately one month in Austin, TX, and having come out of his septic shock, he was transported back to Atlanta to recover from his illness, a process which took most of two years and which continues to this day. Behind the scenes, the Phillips' and Joie's family were planning on surprising him with a puppy -- who was to be poignantly named "Austin".

Austin was flown to Atlanta and delivered to the hospital, directly to Joie's bed, by his friend, Brett.

Since Joie was still suffering as a result of multiple surgeries and the burn-like lesions that resulted from his illness, Joie's grandmother ("Memaw" -- Sue Parks) took charge of taking good care of Austin. Although I wasn't here during that time, I understand that Austin was an ideal puppy and faithful companion during Joie's recovery. And Memaw worked hard to housetrain him and make him a good citizen.

With the help of Chuck Macklin, Joie trained and/or had Austin trained as a service dog. Austin accompanied Joie to class, carried his books and picked up anything that Joie dropped, including pocket change and credit cards. As usual, he was a hit. Everyone loved him.

Joie was confined to a wheelchair for most of his recovery and on and off throughout most of his surgeries over the next two years. During that time, Joie decided that he wanted to train Austin for hunting. With the help of Chuck Macklin and Terry Fowler, Joie trained Austin for retriever work. For those who understand retriever training, Joie did all of Austin's obedience and yardwork from either his wheelchair or a four-wheeler. He then started running Austin in UKC hunting tests, which showcase dogs' hunting skills and award ribbons and points for a job well done. Joie became a quasi-celebrity, running Austin from a four-wheeler and earning ribbons. Austin was a very willing and capable student and excelled in his work.

I came into the scene just after this point. Joie's passion for training Austin and, of course his love for Austin, were contagious. I quickly caught the bug, Joie had recovered to a point where he was more mobile and not wheelchair bound, and we began training Austin together. Over the next year or so, we finished Austin's Hunting Retriever Championship. We were even able to earn a ribbon from the Austin HRC to add to our collection.

Probably most importantly during this time, were Joie and Austin's appearances to school, church and civic groups. They appeared in front of groups as large as 2000 people, with Joie presenting the story of his illness, what he had overcome and touching the lives of his audience in the process.

Austin was always a hit. He patiently demonstrated how he can pick up a credit card or penny over and over and over... He happily wiggled around as a room full of children descended upon him following his demonstration...

Of course, we can't forget about all the hunting Austin did over these same years. Most of Joie's trophy ducks and geese were retrieved by Austin.

I'm very distracted as I write this. Joie is at veterinary school at Ross University in St. Kitts, which is a million miles away, down near Puerto Rico. Joie is a wreck. We're all a wreck here. The rest of the family is just as attached to him as we are.

There's so much more to Austin's story -- like the time he disappeared in Abiline, TX and was found 24 hours later, several miles away, having been adopted by a family who had appropriately renamed him "Barnabus" in the short time they had him -- how God led Joie to him, absolutely miraculously -- I'll have to post that on here because it's an incredible story. I could be here for days, but the above covers how important he is to the people who know and love him or who have met him along the way.

We have yet to meet someone that doesn't absolutely adore Austin. It's hard not to fall in love with him. And it's harder to see him aging and know that his time with us is limited. We know that God will do right by Austin whatever He decides to do. And that we'll suffer the pain of his loss at some point whether now or later. We just pray, and ask that you do to, that God does right by Austin and takes good care of him in his time of need, whatever He decides needs to be done.

First, keep in mind that Austin has always been healthy as a horse. We've done routine blood panels during annual teeth scalings to keep an eye on him, especially as he's gotten older. He has always been in optimal health.

Last Saturday night (May 29), I noticed that Austin had discomfort trying to go to bed. He would lay down and then sit back up, try to lay down, sit back up. I was worried about him and watched him until he finally managed to get comfortable, about 45 mins later, and fall asleep. During that time, I did an inspection of what I could and found nothing, except some gurgling in his stomach.

Over the next couple of days, it seemed to continue and I noticed he was showing some weakness in his hindquarters. Since it was a holiday weekend, and since I didn't feel it was an emergency (yet), I planned to take him to the vet Tuesday morning.

Everything else about him -- appetite, general activity, attitude, bodily functions -- was normal.

On Tuesday, the vet did a blood panel. All was normal. We sent off CBC, which came back normal the next day. The vet did an exam of him while we were there. Everything appeared normal. Our vet put him on Medicam for arthritis and told us to keep an eye on him and check back in a week. The medicam really seemed to make him feel better. He probably needed it anyway, but there was still something wrong with the mobility in his back end.

Over the next couple of days, he started to really lose stability in his hindquarters. If his feet started to slip on hard flooring, he would tend to slide and not quickly regain his balance. It wasn't terrible, but it was noticeable and frustrating. I also noticed him having trouble balancing himself when pottying or when on uneven terrain -- always in the hindquarters.

On Friday, one of our employees came running into the house to tell us that Austin had collapsed. I about fainted, but when I ran outside -- by the time I got to him only maybe 30 seconds later -- he was trotting around the yard with a bumper in his mouth. However, it was enough to scare me into thinking about further medical examination.

We arrived at Auburn where Austin was subjected to a barrage of palpations, probes, pokes and the dreadful rectal exam. He was a good sport, but clearly uncomfortable. The veterinarian that performed the physical exam explained that she couldn't elicit any pain. His reflexes were slightly off in one or two locations. His back legs didn't respond to the test they do where they turn their toes over and see if they flip them back up. His prostate was up near or above his pelvis, which can be normal in a dog his age. Those were the main things. Everything else seemed to be fine, except for noticeable distention in his abdomen.

We left Austin at Auburn to find out what is happening inside of him. They plan a urine culture, urinalysis, xrays, ultrasounds and a neurological consultation.

Today, June 5th -- ironically Austin's 11th birthday -- we were called with the news that they found a mass in his abdomen. They just did a "little" ultrasound, but they will have to wait for Monday for the real deal to see if there's anything anywhere else. If his CBC is good on Monday, they are going to aspirate the mass.

We left a $1750 deposit. The initial estimate to do the diagnosis was up to $2500. If the prognosis is good and they can remove the mass, I'm sure the price will increase substantially.

To help offset the cost, we are currently doing two things: 1) Everyone in our family has cleaned their entire house out and we're going to the local flea market tomorrow with about three truckloads of stuff and 2) We are offering "Angels for Austin" in exchange for donations to his medical fund. Read more about Angels...

For every $5 you donate to Austin's medical fund, you will receive one Angel lapel pin. The pins are pewter and gold, with a military tack. They are approximately 3/4" in height. They are perfect to wear on your lapel, of course. But we wear our's on the back of our hats, our handler's jackets and anywhere else we can put them. We were selling these before this happened with Austin and they're a big hit. They make great stocking stuffers or gifts for friends and training partners.

NOTE ADDED AUGUST 6, 2004: Since Austin is no longer with us, we are no longer taking donations for his care. Thank you to everyone who donated and purchased pins. The response was overwhelming and covered all but about $100 of both Austin's medical expenses and Joie's flight home to be with him before he passed away.

If you would like to purchase a pin, please send payment to:
Austin Wilder
c/o WaterDog Kennels
1485 Old Draketown Trail
Temple, GA 30179-3108

We can accept credit card donations. We accept Visa, MasterCard, Discover and American Express. If you'd like to donate by credit card, please call us at 770-562-2741.

Otherwise, our contact information is:
Joie & Kristie Wilder
WaterDog Kennels
1485 Old Draketown Trail
Temple, GA 30179-3108
770-562-2741

Friday, August 6, 2004 -- Well, Austin has been gone for almost two months now. It's been hard for me to try to come back and update the site. But I managed to add the photos I had mentioned earlier in a new page I set up as a tribute. I continue to miss Austin terribly. I haven't talked to Joie about it lately, but it's getting worse for me instead of better. I know over time it will go away. But it's almost like the first month was such a shock that it hadn't sunk in. Anyway... Thank you again to everyone for your love and support. Please let us know when we can do the same for you. I guess this might be the last entry here... Everyone should have their angels by now. We had to order some more when we ran out after filling the first batch of orders. If anyone would like an angel, they are welcome to order them. The angels are something we had been selling prior to this happening to Austin and I just thought it was a great fundraiser... Thank you again.

Austin had a predominantly uncomfortable night on Sunday. It wasn't terrible, but he sat up for the better part of it. When he did lay down occasionally, we would massage his belly and rub his ears and he would moan. It was hard to tell if it was enjoyment or discomfort, but we kept on rubbing. He did have some peaceful sleep for at least part of the night. It became clearer that we had made the right decision. But staring at the clock and counting the minutes and hours until he was gone created nothing but mental anguish for me. Joie remained kind of distant, dealing with it his own way.

When it came time in the morning for Austin to go out to potty, he just couldn't get up. When we tried to help him, he purposefully collapsed like he didn't want to be bothered. However, we knew he had to potty. So for the first and last time, Joie carried Austin down to the grass. Once again, we knew it was time.

Joie brought Austin back to our bed on the floor. He said that it would be "easier" to give Austin the shot if we put the mattress back up on the box spring. I felt badly having to move Austin again, but we decided that we had enough people with us that we could simply lift Austin *with* the mattress in a little while.

Joie called our vet and arranged for a 10:30 house call. That was too soon for me, because I was planning on noon and had been counting hours. The next available time wasn't until the afternoon and the general thought was to get it over with. At around 8:30am, we heaved the mattress up onto the bed. Austin wasn't impressed, but it didn't take him long to get comfortable again.

One thing I hadn't mentioned, or at least I don't think I did, was that we had the thermostat in our room set to 60 degrees. This was to prevent Austin from panting and to keep him as comfortable as possible. It really did seem to work, as one day Joie tried to have Austin lay on the couch with him in the den to watch a movie. Austin was panting and clearly not comfortable. Back in the room, he settled down. We were frozen, but simply curled up under piles of comforters whenever we were with him.

Knowing that we had only two hours left with him, I curled up under a bunch of blankets on the bed. Austin rested beside me surrounded by soft pillows, with one under his head that we shared while we laid there. Family shuttled in and out to spend time with him here and there. He wagged his tail, something he hadn't done in about 36 hours, whenever someone came in and talked to him. I asked our cousin to bring him a bumper and he got very excited, wagging his tail and grabbing at it -- again, excitement that he hadn't shown in the last couple of days. I was so glad to see him happy.

He dozed on and off as people came to visit with him. He snored quite a bit, which made me feel even better that he was so relaxed. I had been concerned that his sleepless night would prevent him from relaxing the next day. I did not want him to be uptight and uncomfortable when the time came.

...and he wasn't... Dr. Williamson got hung up at the clinic, which was an emotional nightmare for me because I was literally staring at the clock every couple of minutes and when 10:30 came I was just about to faint. But it came and went, and Dr. Williamson arrived at close to 11am.

We had made arrangements with our employees to have all the dogs out in the airing yards to keep things as quiet and peaceful as possible. Kirsten mentioned that when Dr. Williamson got here and headed to the house, they were all quiet and stared at him. You wonder how much they really know.

We had tried to time everything so that Austin was relaxed and it worked. When Dr. Williamson came in the room, the family gathered around the bed. He administered a shot of Telazol to relax Austin even more. I was laying on the bed wrapped around Austin and Joie stood by the side of the bed with Dr. Williamson. The family was off to the corner of the bed. It all seems like a blur now, but I know we were all trying to contain ourselves for Austin's sake.

I sat and rubbed Austin while the Telazol took effect. As soon as he started to relax, he literally stared right through Joie the whole time. It wasn't easy to watch. We couldn't tell what he was thinking. But he stared at Joie for about 3-5 minutes straight, what seemed like an hour, before they decided that Austin was relaxed enough for the final shot.

I set his tongue back in his mouth while Joie searched for his vein. He couldn't get a good tap on it and had Dr. Williamson get it started. I hid my face in my sweatshirt. I just couldn't watch. I heard the tourniquet get snapped off and I continued to rub Austin in the blindness of my sweatshirt and tears, trying to stay calm, which was impossible.

Joie administered the shot, which takes a little while because it's viscous and there's a lot of it and you have to do it slowly. I asked "is he gone yet?" several times before the answer was finally yes. I had continued to rub him, but i couldn't even stand to concentrate on whether I could still feel the rise and fall of his chest.

The entire room broke into sobbing and Joie and Dr. Williamson placed Austin into his body bag.

I can only tell this story through my own experience. I can only guess at what everyone else was really thinking and feeling. I was kind of in my own little world and not paying attention to much else. I guess that's the way I deal with stuff like this. All I know is that from the point that Austin was placed in the body bag, I went through a series of dry heaves, hyperventilation, uncontrolled sobbing and vomiting. I had known for days, and longer, that this time would come. But I don't think there's anything I personally could do to stay calm during something like this.

Joie had made a noon appointment with Deceased Pet Care to drop Austin off for cremation. We chose a square wood urn that has a photo frame and nameplate. A little bit of humor -- part of what led to that decision was so that we'd have something that didn't tip over easily. Although I'm sure they're very secure, we envisioned all the mayhem in our house leading to a vase-type urn going flying on multiple occasions.

Anyway, Austin is now gone. We'll have him back in about a week. All of this happened so quickly, it seems like a blur. I was prepared to care for him as long as he needed, but I think when Joie came home he just knew he could let it go. On behalf of our entire family, I'd like to thank everyone for their thoughtful words, support, encouragement, prayers and friendship. I can't say again how helpful they've been and how much it has meant to us. I'll be packing the angel pins up over the next couple of days. And I should be done with Austin's scrapbook today...

Sunday, June 13, 2004 -- Sorry we haven't updated the news in a couple of days. It wouldn't have made us feel any better. Austin's condition has continued to degrade. Although he seems to sleep relatively comfortably, he started refusing food, and even treats, Friday and then even more so into Saturday. Yesterday, I got him to eat three pizza crusts and a few bites of pizza, but that was about it. He doesn't want to drink. A friend and well-wisher (thank you Becky) made him some of the most delicious looking dog treats that arrived in the mail yesterday, but even those didn't change his mind.

He's having incredible difficulty getting up and then staggers as if he's drunk while he's trying to navigate his way outside to potty. While he can stay upright, it seems very difficult and takes its toll... As he quickly potties and heads right back to bed. His expression has been blank, something we're not used to. And he sometimes just sits, in apparent desperation and discomfort. These bouts thankfully don't happen very often, but it's painful to see him that way. We urge him to lie down at these times, but it's clear that he'd rather be sitting. However, he just looks worn out when he is. His front end occasionally trembles, we assume from sheer exhaustion of having to compensate for the back end. Several times yesterday, he seemed to really relax and be comfortable, trying to roll over to get his chest and belly rubbed.

As Joie said "he's just not Austin" and we made the difficult decision yesterday to have him laid to rest Monday at noon. Last night was just so awful for us. We were trying to get to sleep and just couldn't. Joie went into our "storage" room and started looking through pictures and I came to the office, got on the computer and ended up talking to an internet friend, Julie Crammond, from Australia. We've been trying to get in touch for almost the whole week now, with the time difference and all. Thankfully, after talking with Julie for I think about 45 minutes, I started to get sleepy and Joie had gone through all the pictures. We went back to bed.

On Monday, Joie is going to administer the shot. I told him that I could never do it. He feels like it's closure. I guess so... I don't know what I'll do on Monday, but I will try to stay calm for Austin's sake. Joie and I talked about how we've come to "peace" with what we need to do. Although I'm crying now, I've felt more like a zombie about it. Joie has remained surprisingly calm, but he's much more reasonable than me about these things even though it pains him terribly. He's just smarter about them and knows what's best.

When Austin has passed, we're going to deliver him to Deceased Pet Care, where he will be cremated and placed in an urn. Joie originally wanted to bury him, but I expressed my concern that when Joie graduates, we won't be staying where we are now in all likelihood. And I couldn't stand the thought of leaving any of our dogs behind. One of the things that has made this even harder is knowing that Austin will be cremated and looking at him now... And realizing that he will shortly be a pile of ashes in a box. I just can't stand it.

Part of why I've done this diary is to keep you all updated on Austin's condition. I didn't anticipate that it would all happen this quickly. But I also did it and have expressed our situation in such detail so that others can see what we're going through and make sure to spend their time wisely with the animals they love. We are thankful that Austin lived such a full life. While there are a few extra things that we wish we had done with him over the last year or two, like a little more hunting... Overall, there's nothing we regret. And we are thankful that we don't have feelings of guilt on top of the grief we're feeling at his being laid to rest here shortly.

We will be making a scrapbook/tribute page to Austin in the next few days. Please check back soon to see a pictorial of Austin's life.

Friday, June 11, 2004 -- Joie made it home. It's midnight and Austin and he are in one piece. Austin's hind end disability continues to worsen. But he otherwise appears comfortable. I'll do a more extensive update with photos over the weekend. Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers. This was our next milestone and we made it! God bless.

Wednesday, June 9, 2004 -- Today was a good day. Every time we go out, I feel like Austin has a more difficult time getting around. His front end is working really hard to keep him going. But he's doing well. He slept easily and peacefully last night. I was telling friends that I finally know what a real hot flash is like (I'll be prepared for later on, I suppose...). If I hear Austin sigh or move, or fidget, I panic while I'm sleeping and reach over to make sure he's still breathing. I have an instant hot flash and feel like I'm on fire. I'm so worried about him. But he's only had a few episodes of other than comfortable breathing, and none that worried me, today. He even rolled over on his back to have his belly rubbed -- that's something I didn't think he was comfortable enough to do. He's still eating really well. And his other bodily functions are still normal. So I'm really pleased and comforted by that.

Today, we let him carry his pheasant around and he enjoyed it, so much so that he brought it back in and took it to bed. Of course, my camera batteries had died, so we'll try again in the morning. Sadly, he absolutely cannot run. Yesterday, I tossed a bumper a few feet in front of him and he took a few slow steps and picked it up. It's so depressing. But he was happy to do it. When Joie gets back, I want to put on a bathing suit (I'll spare you the pictures) and take Austin to the lake and have Joie shoot him some flyers. That way, I can get him if anything happens while he's swimming. I'm scared to get him overexcited and have something go wrong, but we'll talk about it and decide if it's something we want to do.

The emails and phone calls continue to roll in. Thank you again. It's been so helpful.

Tuesday, June 8, 2004 -- Austin's first night home was a little scary. It took him quite a while to settle down and go to bed. He panted with short breaths for probably close to 45 minutes, or longer, before he relaxed and slept peacefully through the night. As he was panting, he was sitting up against me and pressing his face to mine -- this made me especially nervous, although I tried to relax and act like everything was OK. That's virtually impossible for me, but I worked hard at it. I had to have Memaw come in and take over while I called Auburn to see what they considered "respiratory distress". Thankfully, Autin's gums were pink and he was otherwise OK.

He was pretty comfortable most of the day today. He rested on his bed. He slept on the dog bed by the couch when I took a nap late this afternoon. He's moving around the house on his own.

It seems like around this time (5pm), he gets a little uptight. So I'm ready for another session of getting him comfortable for bed later tonight. He has eaten and has had water today. So his appetite is still there, thankfully.

We did get Joie's plane ticket home today. He'll be back Friday night. It won't come soon enough.

Monday, June 7, 2004 -- I made arrangements with the Auburn staff to arrive at 11pm CST to visit with Austin. I brought his pheasant in a Wal-Mart bag and carried it into the waiting room with me. The lady next to me asked "Is that a pheasant?"... She wasn't offended, but I also didn't want to offend anyone. However, as far as I was concerned, Austin was going to get his pheasant no matter who might not like it. On the way there, I considered bringing a live one... :)

I also had my camera. We no sooner got into the consultation room than the doctor informed me that his condition was not good. Austin has inoperable cancer. He has a couple of masses and one (or more) thrombosis in his vena cava and on his hydrenal (sp??) gland. One of the masses is blocking blood flow and will eventually block it entirely in all likelihood. He has been given three weeks to three months before the cancer ends his life. Joie is making an emergency trip home to spend a week with Austin. He will be through with "hell week" by the weekend and his friends will take notes and help him in his absence from school. Joie is absolutely devastated. Please pray that God gives him strength to make it through his exams and do well.

The trip home from Auburn was really tough, although I was so happy to have the opportunity to be able to spoil him. I was on the cell phone virtually all the way home. I'm surprised we even made it home between my hyperventilation and blinding tears. I'm a little more relaxed now, especially seeing Austin carrying toys around and getting up and moving around the house for no good reason. The support has been tremendous and you all have shared so many stories, good and bad, about your experiences with your dogs. The most horrific ones were the ones where things happened so quickly, you had no time to really give your dog the extra good life during the twilight hours. We are so blessed to be able to really focus on Austin over the next part of our journey. I know it's more for us than for him, but we certainly are thankful for it.

Some scripture for our bad day:

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is the Father who is full of mercy and all comfort. He comforts us every time we have trouble, so when others have trouble, we can comfort them with the same comfort God gives us. 2 Cor 1:34

Good things about today:

Austin was able to come home. He didn't die on an operating table or while he was otherwise at a hospital away from home.
Austin is otherwise in good spirits, eating well, generally comfortable and not in pain. He is carrying around toys, moving about the house freely and wagging his tail.
Joie will hopefully be able to come and see Austin before Austin leaves us. (Please pray for this to be true) Joie will miss a week of school, but he has friends who will keep notes for him and help him when he returns.
We did not have to make the painful decision of whether to attempt surgery or chemotherapy. Either option would be painful for Austin and surgery would have had a good chance to result in death.

The bottom line is that one of three things will more than likely happen... 1-He will hemorrhage internally; 2-A piece of the thrombosis will break off and end up in his heart or lungs; or 3-The mass will continue to grow and block blood flow and he just won't be able to get up at some point in time. I've spoken with our vet and he said he would come out to the house when the time came if he was in town, whether he was working or not. I just pray that it comes peacefully and painlessly. It's so hard to write this. It's so much harder with Joie's being gone, just knowing that Joie is devastated and away from us and Austin and having such a hard time on top of the difficult time the entire family is having here. Please keep the emails coming. I can't tell you how much they have kept us going. I can't believe that "just a dog" can make you feel this way.

Before I forget, in addition to thanking everyone that's sent emails and financial support, we really need to thank our family. On Saturday, we had the "Fab Five" (me, Joie's grandmother, Joie's aunt, Joie's mom and Joie's sister) hustling and bustling to collect items for the flea market fundraiser. On Sunday, we were all up at 5 and spent all day hawking our stuff. We had a great time. We took no prisoners. It was a lot of fun. Then by the time I arrived home from Auburn, the mattress was off the bed, new bed linens were on, the trail of foam tiles had been laid, the house was vacuumed and my clothes were washed. And thank you, also to Kirsten and Melissa, who finally told me to shut up and let them take care of the dogs (in not so many words). It's been such a blessing to have found both of you to take good care of the dogs. And a blessing to have a family that scrambles in a crisis to make everything OK. And, of course, my family in Massachusetts who has spent time crying on the phone with me... We love you all.

In an effort to make Austin comfortable at home, we pulled the mattress off the bed and will be sleeping on the floor so he can sleep "in bed" with me. We also took our puppy room flooring (foam interlocking tiles) and made a trail between the bedroom, office, front door and living room. Austin does not do well on slick surfaces like our hardwood flooring. His back legs sometimes slide out from under him. I was concerned on the way home about what we could use to help him navigate through the house and remembered our puppy room tiles. They are PERFECT, even if they're not the most attractive thing. Here are some pictures:

Sunday, June 6, 2004 -- We checked on Austin and were told that he's resting comfortably. We and a few family members swept through our houses on Saturday afternoon and brought three truckloads of stuff to the local giant flea market. By the end of the day, we had earned $500 towards Austin's medical bills. We were really pleased with the results. I'm going to visit him tomorrow. I'm going to bring some toys, a big blanket, a pheasant that we can hopefully play with for a few minutes and some other goodies. I'm really excited to go visit. The response to our "Angels for Austin" fundraiser has been incredible. We are so thankful to everyone for their encouragement and assistance.

Saturday, June 5, 2004 -- Austin's birthday. He's been at Auburn for just over 24 hours now. We got the bad news today that he has a mass in his abdomen. Examination on Monday will reveal if this is the only mass and hopefully the nature of it. He will also undergo some further testing and a neurology consultation on Monday. We miss him terribly. And I'm feeling guilty for not having left a blanket or brought some toys for him to carry around. However, I plan on driving down to visit on Monday and making up for it then. I'm going to bring him a pheasant and a duck, too. He may go into surgery on Monday and I want to see him before then. The attending veterinarian said he's eating well, is comfortable and acting otherwise normal and happy.

At least my mouth still works!	Heading back in with my prize...
But first I have to fend off Allie	Made it!
Aunt Gay gives Austin a hug	Austin & Kristie

Austin loafs on his new "bed" on the floor Allie keeps him company	See regular bed in background!
Dr. McMurphy and Brian took great care of Austin.	"Handicapped Access" The trail of foam tiles helps Austin navigate the house without slipping on the hardwood floors.