Years of severe allergies had left much of his body hairless and most of his skin painfully inflamed despite regular injections, daily medications, and a number of rotating topical treatments that never seemed to provide any relief. After spending a decade on and off various antibiotics, he had become resistant to all of them. In the end, all we could do was try our best to keep his most recent skin infections at bay.Pretty soon, we could tell we were fighting a losing battle; Coal was soon a shadow of his former self. The little dog who never seemed to let his infirmities get him down, no matter how bad he felt or how much he itched, was truly for the first time showing the effects of years of suffering.
Since his first birthday, Coal has been a certifiable mess. The first sign of trouble was an allergic reaction to a vaccination, and it's been downhill ever since. He has been on every treatment regimen Banfield could think of--each one providing a glimmer of hope before failing miserably. About three years ago, Coal even started visiting his own doggy dermatologist, but again, hope was soon met with disappointment. Our little guy even had to eat synthetic, hypoallergenic dog food as he was unable to tolerate Fish & Potato, Lamb & Rice, and Kangaroo & Oat (yep, you read that last one right).
To say Coal had a tough life would be an understatement, but you know what, he never seemed to let it bother him. That is what made him such an amazing dog...a wonder-pug as I've said on occasion.
For a dog that was in a constant state of pain and discomfort, he never let it show--never whined, never acted out, never let it slow him down. In spite of the constant appointments and mounting expense, I regularly told our vet how fortunate we were to have such a sweet-tempered pet because any other dog (or person for that matter) with half of Coal's ailments would have been miserable to live with. But Coal was special, and that is why it's been so hard for me to say goodbye.
We adopted Coal for our elder pug Charley, and Coal was instantly devoted to his brother. They would sleep intertwined, forming a yin and yang of fawn and black pug. For 11 years Coal rarely left Charley's side, which made his sudden and consistent absence from Charley all the more concerning. We could tell his health was deteriorating, and he soon began to ignore our instructions, skip meals (unheard of with pugs), and refuse to take his medications.
Sara and I both knew this day would come, and I thought I'd made my peace with it. But by the way I've been blubbering the past 24 hours, I clearly was not as prepared as I thought I was. Coal found his way much deeper into my heart than I realized.
I've both read and seen the movie adaptation of Marley & Me, and to be honest, I wasn't moved by the events of the closing chapters...and this is coming from a self-described softy. Marley, in my opinion, was a colossally bad dog, and while I didn't wish bad things on him, I never found him particularly endearing.
But now I get it. Coal, while not a bad dog, was his own form of colossal mess...but he was my colossal mess, and nothing could every change that. I will miss him dearly, and while I'm glad he's no longer suffering, that fact provides little solace. He may have been tough to pet and truly stinky, but he was the sweetest, most adorable little guy...my little Coaley-Roll.
Farewell, my friend. I hope your beauty within now has matching exterior. I look forward to petting your allergen-free, full coat one day.
Sorry for a downer of Saturday night/Sunday morning reading. Happier tales to come.
Thanks for letting me share.
