Welcoem to posts!!
in the future - u will be able to do some more stuff here,,,!! like pat catgirl- i mean um yeah... for now u can only see others's posts :c
The truth of it isā¦Iāll be 40 next May.Ā Today as I ate my ālunchā I looked down and quickly realized that what I was eating would have never EVER been considered a possibility by a 20 year old me.Ā Crisp bread, which is not bread at all and is made of various kinds of seeds because I canāt really tolerate bread anymore. Plant based cheese spread because Iām trying to figure out if I have issues with dairy.Ā And last but not least, cold smoked salmon of which I never ate much fish at all in the past because it simply wasnāt beef. I obviously only had one because watching calories is now a secondary job I truly never wanted, but here we are. And so I thought to myselfā¦This Is 40.Ā
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Hello all. Ryan here. I am writing today to share some tough news that one day Kelsey and I knew would be inevitableā¦our beloved Ernie (who we called Ern Dog) crossed the rainbow bridge on the afternoon of Friday August 2nd. I had a trip scheduled for last week but was able to drive through the night back home to be with him before having to say goodbye.
Ernie spent the first 6 years of his life in a backyard in Arkansas. He was chained up and was neglected beyond what I can personally comprehend. Iāve often said over the past few years that knowing him and his personality, spending all that time alone without the human contact that he craved kills me to even think about. This is often why we find that once you rescue a dog from that situation, the bond that is created is something that canāt really be described. Dogs already have loyalty in their DNA but the level of appreciation that Ernie had for his new life was something you could witness first hand right from the moment we got him. We canāt thank Westie Rescue of Missouri and all of their volunteers enough for what they do to help these dogs in need and his original foster mom Jo for her care of Ernie when he first arrived with the rescue.
Because of the neglect and abuse Ernie endured and because Westies are already prone to skin issues, he suffered permanent damage to his skin. He lost the majority of his hair and while there was some thought at the beginning that he might regain his once precious white coat, some areas were too damaged to grow back. This was the first special characteristic that everyone noticed about him and one that he took in stride.
Shortly after we adopted Ernie in the fall of 2021, we noticed a few issues with his breathing. After having 7 Westies over the years and learning way too much about Westie Lung Disease first hand, we quickly suspected he might have the terrible disease. A trip to the vet and a few tests later confirmed what we had hoped would not be the case. He was only 6 when he was diagnosed.
While also working on his skin issues, Kelsey worked tirelessly to research a plan for Ernie to provide him with the best life possible while he was in our care. His skin began to turn around and transformed from a once leathery and dark (almost black) color to a healthy pink. And while it took some time and wasnāt something that happened overnight, little by little and day by day the improvements were visible not only physically but also in Ernieās love for his new life.
In addition to the skin care, Kelsey researched ways to fend off the effects of Westie Lung Disease and prolong Ernieās quality of life. After a diagnosis, the typical lifespan is 12-18 months and Ernie surpassed this by a long shot! Most of this was due to laser therapy which helps to break up the fibrosis that is occurring in the lungs as well as acupuncture, inhalers and oxygen therapy at home, and a fantastic vet team that was with us every step of the way.
For a long time we thought we had stopped the disease in its tracks and Ernie was defying the odds. He could run around comfortably and his scans showed little signs of progression well after the 18 month mark from diagnosis. That was until the dreaded pneumoniaā¦
On a crisp morning in Oct of 2023 Ernie suddenly was gasping to breathe. I have asthma so I understand the terror and anxious feeling that comes along with the struggle to get air. Kelsey quickly loaded Ernie into the car and headed in to the ER to see what was going on. X-rays of his lungs showed us what we already knewā¦that scar tissue left little room for the expansion and contraction that his lungs needed to function properly but he had been like this for months without issue. What else could it be?
He was placed in an oxygen chamber and every time that they tried to bring him out, he would crash again so we had some tough choices to make. We decided to keep him on oxygen while we waited for a radiologist to read his X-rays to see if there was possibly something that was missed on the original look at them. We credit the radiologist and our vet, Dr. Gearhart, with saving his life that day because about 3am we got a call that said the radiologist saw pneumonia on the scans and they put him on antibiotics immediately.
Miraculously by 7am (just a few hours after reading the scans) he was out of the oxygen chamber and breathing on his own again. We picked him up shortly after and you would have never known what he had just been through. This was so typical of Ernie and his will to live.
We lived every moment and every day after that day in Oct. like it would be Ernieās last. He would rollercoaster up and down as the pneumonia had likely permanently damaged his lungs even worse than they were before and we knew time was running out. We cherished every single second with him.
Then he made it to Thanksgiving. Then Christmas. Then the New Year. Then Spring and on and on. No one on his medical team could truly believe how much he fought to stay here and to continue to be a part of our family. He loved the sun and we were so happy when the warm summer days returned and Ernie got his tan just one more time.
A few weeks ago he began to struggle again and this time were we running out of options. He had been on high doses of prednisone for way too long now as well as so many other things to keep his little body functioning. All of those things that kept him going all of this time also had side effects. We hoped that maybe one day his little heart would just stop and he could go peacefully without a decision from us on when it was his time. However, he continued to fight hard despite the fact that he just couldnāt breathe, leaving us to make the decision we had been dreading making. He left us peacefully and we found comfort knowing he was no longer struggling to breathe.
This one has been ultra hard. This is our second loss this year having had to say goodbye to Fiona almost 4 months ago, to the day. Weāve lost 5 total over the years and it never gets easier. They say you canāt have a favorite but Kelsey and I would be lying if we didnāt say that Ernie was something extra special. We love each and every one of them beyond measure. But he was our heart dog. The look in his eyes spoke right to our souls and his human-like qualities will never be replicated in the exact same way. His silent bark and perfect side eye skills, and his mullet which would flow in the wind while he also proudly wore pants during the colder months. We wonāt soon forget that either. He was our Ern Dog and there will never be another one.
We now shift our attention to healing after months and months of preparing for the grief that would arrive when he was gone and living through a form of grief while he was still here while watching his body failing. We have Joey (who is almost 17) and our newest addition Marty (an energetic little 4 year old) to help us with that process as we prepare for the next chapter of helping another Westie in need, when the time is right.
Thank you for keeping us in your thoughts during this difficult time and if thereās one thing you can do for us, please rescue an animal in need if you get a chance. Yes, itās difficult to lose them in the end but the joy they bring to life is immeasurable. The rewards are not only for the dog but for the rescuer too.
I said to Kelsey the other day that Ernie taught me a valuable lesson and itās one that I wanted to share today as well. In a world where we are attracted to the perfection of something shiny and new, Ernie taught me that there is a special beauty to the imperfection. His lack of hair may have looked odd to some, but it was one of the things in the end that we loved the most and will never forget about him.
Goodbye Ern Dog. Rest In Peace.
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It is with a heavy heart that we had to say goodbye to our beloved Fiona. We adopted her in May 2018 and she was the definition of a true Westie female; feisty, bossy, and ever so sweet and beautiful. She fought through the first stage of her life in a puppy mill, a mammary tumor that required surgery which she handled amazingly well and beat cancer, and later dementia which ultimately took her from us. Despite all of that she was a fighter and took it all in stride while keeping our boys in line. To the one that we called Nona, Nones or Nonies, weāll forever miss you little girlā¦Rest In Peace.
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Working hard on a new story about fall adventures and a challenging end to 2023. Stay tuned...
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Want to see the inside of the barndominium??? Working on a new video that will be out soon so stay tuned! And oh yeah...it snowed again.
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Working hard on the next Westberrie video so stay tuned!
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These winter sunsets just never get old. I'll be working on a new video update very soon!
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You may have seen me on youtube on my other channel (Ryan Knorr Lawn Care) but this channel is the place for me to share my creative endeavors. Whether that's music, story videos, or whatever else I dream up, this is where you'll find my creative side. In addition to my creative work, my wife and I will be documenting our journey of moving to a 40 acre property in rural Iowa and building our lives there with our Westies.