In Memory of Gertrude
August 11, 2004

Gertrude was a strong, full of fight frenchie. When she was 8 weeks old she became deathly ill with parvo and spent 8 days in the hospital - she got better and came home. Our Rottweiler, Zoey, was SO happy to see her little buddy again. Gertrude weighed 1 pound 14 ounces when we brought her home - she grew to be 35 pounds. She was a little fatty!! When Gertrude was 10 months old she started to have seizures - she had 2 mild ones and then didn't have any more for 2 weeks.

August 11, 2004, was the worst day of my life. I came home from work to find Gertrude had suffered a terrible seizure - she had gone outside (through the doggie door) and that's where I found her. Under her favorite bush, she was alive but in a coma. Zoey was sitting by her side. I rushed her to the vet were she was put on life support. She passed away in her sleep the next morning. I was SO heart broken - she was so special. Zoey often goes in the back yard and I catch her sitting by the bush. I know she is spending time with Gertrude there.

Gertrude chewed everything in my house, she would have accidents in the house all the time but every night I would go to bed, I would put her on the bed with me and we would snuggle and she would snort in my ear until finally she would fall asleep and then she would SNORE in my ear all night. I love her SO much and I miss her terribly. She was only in my life for 8 months but I hope she was as happy to live with me as I was to have her live with me.

This picture was about a month after she came home for the hospital, around the end of January 2004.

Jamie Michalesko

Illinois