Somewhere over the past 4 years Maya has become a staple in our lives. When she's not here, our house feels empty. She's the best dog Daniel and I have ever had. She's loyal - almost to a fault, and she's patient with our son (she must also think he tastes awfully good the way she licks on him!). There couldn't be a better dog in the entire universe and NO, I'm not prejudice. If you don't believe me, come meet her. You'll see just how sweet she is.
In July, Maya was diagnosed with Hip Displasia. I don't know much about it, but I do know that it's a degenerative disorder that will, eventually, cause Maya to be lame and we will have to put her down. There's a best case and a worse case scenario to the disorder and we really have no idea which case Maya will be. Worst case, we put her down in 6 months (which would be around now from the time she was diagnosed) or best case, she'd still have another 3-6 years.
The news was absolutely devastating to us. I cried for 2 days every time I thought about her. I can't imagine my life without this dog.
With all of this came a very serious conversation. How much money is too much money to spend on a dog? It's a question almost all pet owers will have to ask themselves at one time or another. So, we discussed it, and settled on an amount of money that we thought was acceptable. I'm sure Dave Ramsey would not have agreed with us, but Dave doesn't know Maya.
So, we've been living with the realization that any day now, we could lose our dog. At first, we treated her extra special and loved on her a whole lot more. Then, after a few weeks of that, life went back to normal.
Two weeks ago, we received about 7 inches of snow. I let Maya out to use the restroom and saw bright red blood on the snow. I realized that she was peeing blood. I broke down and cried. I called Daniel, then the vet. We took her in and they diagnosed her with bladder stones. I didn't even know you could get bladder stones!! The vet, Dr. Kyle, performed surgery that afternoon. Maya came home later that day and we've spent the past two weeks babying her and helping her get back to normal.
I say all that to say this: in the past two weeks we have come within $30 of the amount we set to spend on Maya. I have experienced a variety of emotions considering this dog. My mind has gone from "My poor baby..." to "what else could we have done with that much money?"
As my new philosophy on life, I'm considering all things Maya related - JOY. She is an absolute joy in our lives. She has taught us so much and has become a constant fixture at my side. I don't know what I'd do without her. She makes me feel safe when Daniel's gone; she loves to cuddle and be wrapped up in blankets when she sleeps at night. As difficult as it is to watch your pet go through something like this, it teaches you something and I believe it has made us more compassionate people. She's teaching us a lot about money through all of this as well. The money has never been ours - it's God's anway. We're learning to trust and understand that trusting doesn't always mean understanding. Thanks, God, for being patient with us and for teaching us life lessons; even through our four-legged friends!
