Please light a candle for our precious alumna Pattie Peppermint. Her family is struggling with her loss, understandably, and need our love.
Her momma writes: We’re heartbroken to share that we said our final goodbye to our girl Patti Peppermint late Sunday night. She had ACL surgery in early October and for six weeks she had an incredible recovery – it was like she was never even operated on!
But suddenly she showed symptoms of being uncomfortable on her surgery leg. Over the next month, we did everything we possibly could to give her some relief – multiple vet visits, X-rays, bloodwork, medication, anti-inflammatory supplements, CBD oil, cold laser therapy, physical therapy with an underwater treadmill, and of course, lots of love and pets when she barked and cried.
She seemed to show some improvement in little bits and spurts, but nothing really made a significant difference.
When we noticed significant swelling in her hip on the side she was operated on, our vet ordered bloodwork to look for cancer. This was on Friday, and we were told to keep her as comfortable as we possibly could until the results came back on Monday.
Even though we kept her on bedrest and gave her every med we had, she started to decline rapidly on Sunday afternoon. By Sunday night, we knew she was telling us that it was her time. Monday morning, our vet confirmed what we already knew – Patti passed from bone cancer.
Patti had just turned 5 in late November and this New Year’s Eve would have been her 2nd gotcha day.
Patti was the most loving, happy, sweet, gentle, and silly girl we could have asked for. She never met a human she didn’t want pets from, and she would give you her “bossy paw” to let you know it.
She loved sunbathing in the backyard. rolling around in the grass, family walks, and following us around the house so she could always be by our side.
Our home feels so empty now and we’re brokenhearted without Patti. I thought we’d have more time with her, and that our 2-year- old daughter would grow up with her.
We’ll be forever grateful that because of Patti, we have a little girl who is obsessed with dogs and animals of all kinds. She may not have memories of this time other than our pictures and videos, but I know that for a long time, every Bulldog that she sees will be a ‘Patti.’
We will love you and miss you forever, Miss Patti. Rest easy, sweet girl.
Patti Peppermint knew there was something special going on yesterday. We had visitors come over just to meet Patti. I could tell by the pep in her step that it was love at first sight.
Today just might be the best day Patti has ever had – it’s her adoption day! Her mom, dad, and newborn baby sister picked her up and even brought her a brand new harness & leash. When they arrived Patti went right over to her new family, tail wagging.
Patti will definitely be missed in our foster home, but we know that she is going to an amazing family who already loves her so much.
Hello everyone, it’s me Patti Peppermint and today I have hung up my Motherhood Hat and joined rescue! I am not at all sure why me and motherhood did not work, but you know, sometime things just don’t work out! I was super excited to have my babies. The thought of “puppy breath” was all I could think about.
I had the babies room ready, the recliner was in place and there were blankets and beds and everything a new mama needs for the delivery date! And then the babies came and they were perfect! But, then I got the worst news. My milk was bad. My babies were getting sick. I knew right then and there I was hanging up my Motherhood Hat, packing my bags and watching for the rescue wagon to roll up. So, today was the day!
Today I joined rescue! My babies are 7 days old and doing great with another mother. I will be watching them grow on social media and ya’ll can watch me get back to my pre-baby body. My size is XS, and before you know it Patti Peppermint will be rocking the polka-dot bikini and life will be great! I am 3 years old and just the perfect Patti Peppermint!
12/8/21 Update: Patti, Patti Patti, Patti Peppermint, Patti Cakes, Patti Pancake, Patti Pie… if the name starts with Patti and is so, so sweet, then it fits this baby perfectly.
She is a tiny girl, but she somehow manages to make it onto the couch by herself. If it were up to Patti, she would live on the couch! She is so well behaved that we decided that she didn’t need to sleep in her crate, so she sleeps on the couch.
Upon arrival, Patti was not a fan of the resident Bulldog, but we were told to give her some time and space to let her new mommy hormones work themselves out. Time and space were all Patti needed. Today, she started playing with both of the resident dogs – woohoo!
Patti has not had an accident in the house and will go outside when asked. She walks gingerly on the grass because her front paws have some damage from standing in a crate for so long. We wipe her paws with medicated wipes to help them heal and she tolerates the cleaning well.
We do have Patti in a doggy diaper because she has some drainage from giving birth not that long ago. This helps us to monitor the amount of drainage and keep her bedding and the couch clean.
Patti loves our children and is starting to have fun with our dogs, too. She would love a family who would let her cuddle on the couch and let her become the couch princess she was always meant to be.
12/21/21 Update: Patti Peppermint continues to be an absolute sweetheart.
She went to see Dr. Larsen for her spay on Thursday. She is not a fan of the “no jumping on the couch” rule, but is happy to be lifted onto the couch when she can be supervised. When she’s not able to be on the couch, Patti is happy to find a pillow on the floor.
When Patti first came into rescue, her ears were a little yucky so we were cleaning them daily with medicated pads. Dr. Larsen went ahead and packed them with ointment to help them clear up. Patti’s tail pocket is being treated with ointment, too. Patti has also experienced some head tremors. These were being treated with a little bit of peanut butter until we could get some Nutri-Cal supplement for her, both of which seem to help quickly.
Unfortunately, kennel cough has hit our house, so Patti is also being monitored for that. We are treating the cough as needed, per Dr. Larsen’s instructions.
I have changed Patti to a slow feeder bowl because when she’s ready to eat, she tries to do it in as few bites as possible. This was causing her to choke and throw up her food. Since changing over to the slow feeder bowl, she hasn’t had any issues.
This seems like a lot, but Patti doesn’t let any of it get her down. She’s still the sweetest, happiest girl.
12/29/21 Update: Patti Peppermint is healing well after her spay. If you remember, she came home and started coughing. We made the decision to go ahead and start antibiotics because we didn’t want the cough to get any worse. The antibiotics have been doing their job and Patti Peppermint has responded well.
Patti was not a fan of the slow feeder bowl and wouldn’t finish her meals. Patti and I came to an agreement that if I switched her back to the other bowl, she would slow down when eating and so far, she’s held up her end of the bargain.
We are still using Nutri-Cal and monitoring her head tremors. She had one that lasted longer than the others, even after the Nutri-Cal had been given. Dr. Larsen suggested giving Patti a big hug. I followed doc’s orders, administered a big, long hug and Patti’s tremor went away. Thankfully, we aren’t seeing any seizure activity, so hugs and Nutri-Cal are the only treatment she needs at this time.
Patti loved her Christmas goodie bag! She was so excited to have toys and bones and treats and blankets… THANK YOU to all our donors!
Keep your fingers crossed for Patti Peppermint. She’s getting closer to finding her forever home!
