Dogs are loving and trusting. They are my favorite animal. Thus, it is with great sadness that I have to tell you this story.

On March 26, 2003 we buried our Golden Retriever, Honey. I cried as I saw our other dogs sniff what used to be their friend and companion. Our dog, Molly, brought a ball to the hole and dropped it in for Honey. My husband and two of our sons watched quietly as we and they said good-bye to our friend of eleven and one-half years.

Yet one week earlier Honey was in good health. She went to the closet where we kept the leashes and wagged her tail for someone to walk her. We usually didn't because her pace has slowed and joints stiffened over the years. Exercise in our fenced backyard had to suffice these days. On February 17 Honey had her yearly checkup the vet suggested giving her the drug Rimadyl. I reacted with an immediate, "NO!" I told him how my brother's Golden Retriever died from liver failure after taking that drug. He told me that it was a rare occurrence for such a reaction and that Honey's life would be enriched with more pep and energy. Besides shots, he took Honey's blood for a routine blood chemistry. All came out normal. I pondered his words.

Four weeks after Honey's exam, as I watched her difficulty getting up from our vinyl flooring, I decided that my brother's dog dying from Rimadyl must have been a rarity. I decided to try the drug on Honey, asking everyone to keep an eye on her for changes. On the second day, following the second dose, Honey threw up. From that point on her health declined. I stopped giving her the Rimadyl after only four pills, one each morning and evening for two days. It got to a point to where she could not even get up. One of my sons would have to carry her outside. She continued to throw up. Her water consumption increases. Her appetite decreased. Her stool became black and sticky (probably bloody because her odor aroused our male dog). Her stomach swelled. We took her to a different vet who said we had a very sick pup. He looked at her gums which were yellow, took blood, and started her on an IV. The blood work showed high bilirubin (liver function in trouble) and her BUN (blood ureic nitrogen) went from 11 a month ago to 69 (kidney problems). A day later, still on the IV, her tongue hung from the side of her mouth as she struggled for each breath. Her liver and kidneys had failed completely. We had her put to sleep