Beau was our first rescue that we kept. His story was so sad that we just couldn't bear to part with him...

We were able to rescue him in August 2000 the day before he was scheduled to be put to sleep - his owners abandoned him at the shelter when they found out that it would cost $60 to get him out.

When we first picked him up, we weren't sure if he was going to make it more than a few days. He was covered with ticks and fleas, his hair growing in and over a dingy, old red collar - it took three baths to get him presentable.
The idea was to take him to the Tri-Valley Animal Rescue adoption day to see if we could find him a forever-home. A few people stopped to pet him but were a bit put off by not only his age, but also the fact that he had an orange-sized tumor on his side. Fortunately, it was benign but I guess nobody wanted to take a chance on an older dog.

He got along so great with Daisy and Jasper that we decided to keep him until the end of his days, however long that would be. They respected him and were always gentle with him - at 13, he deserved it! Since Beau had such bad arthritis, he could barely move from one room to another without having to take a rest. Our vet advised us to try Glyco-Flex, a glucosamine supplement. Best thing! He was soon moving around a lot better - we couldn't believe how energetic he got in only 3 or 4 days after starting it!

Beau loved taking walks at the park. We would take all three of the 'kids' to the little dog park by our house and he would amble around, sniffing trees and having a grand old time. He was so happy to be out and about in the warm sun. Mr. Carefree...a far cry from what his life must've been like before.

About 8 months after he came to us, Beau started not feeling so good. Beagles are notorious chow hounds, so the first time Beau turned his nose up at his food, we knew something was wrong. He began sleeping a lot also. We took him to our vet for an evalution. The vet felt his mid-section and said that he noticed that Beau's body had changed inside. He took some blood to do a blood panel.
I called the vet on a Saturday morning, March 31, 2001 to find out the results of the blood panel - it wasn't good. There were quite a few health concerns, but the foremost thing was that Beau's kidney's were failing.
We had to make a decision right then - to either have Beau hooked up to fluids for 24 hours at the emergency vet, or to put him to sleep. The vet told us that at best, the fluids would buy him another 3 months or so. That didn't sound very promising.
So, Michael and I made the most painful decision a pet owner must face. The best thing for our dear friend was to let him rest from his pain forever.
We wanted to take all three dogs to the park for a last walk with Beau. Both of us cried as we watched how happy Beau was to be out on a walk in the cool, green grass and yet, within the hour, he would be gone.
We dropped Daisy and Jasper off at home and took Beau to the vet. He sat on my lap the whole ride, leaving little nose tracks all over the side window.
Everyone at the office was so kind and understanding. By that time, we could hardly think straight.
This was the first pet that Michael and I have ever had to put to sleep together. He took it pretty hard. We said our goodbyes to our friend and companion and stayed by his side the whole way through. Then we thanked everyone at the office and left. I stared at the nose tracks on my window the whole ride home.

Daisy and Jasper greeted us happily at the door and seemed a little confused as to where Beau was. Jasper kept walking around the house and sniffing Beau's little bed. They sensed that something was wrong but weren't quite sure what it was. They looked up at us with their questioning eyes and then looked back down at his bed. Our whole family was depressed for a few weeks, dogs and all. Daisy and Jasper finally accepted the fact that Beau was not with us any longer.

Two weeks after Beau was put down, Jasper had his first seizure in the start of what was going to become a life-long battle with epilepsy. We didn't know if the two events were connected but trying to help Jasper with his health problems provided a distraction from the loss we were suffering and allowed us to focus in on at least providing Jasper with the support he needed.
We still miss Beau even now. We hope that his 8 months with us made up for his lifetime of neglect. We questioned whether or not we should continue with rescue - would it always be like this? Having to put our little friends to sleep? I didn't know if I wanted to do this anymore. But, after a few months, we heard about another beagle who needed a short foster on his way to another stop. We took him without a second thought, and thus began fostering again. I am so glad that we did because we have met a lot of really great dogs over the years and it's always so rewarding to find them a new forever home. I have never regretted helping with rescue and I am so glad that we are still able to do so today.