Remembering Maggie (2013-2024)

Today would have been our eighth Maggie-versay because we adopted Maggie – our red heeler/kelpie mix – on 30 December 2016.

Photo looking down at a red/brown with big ears looking up at the photographer.

Sadly Maggie didn’t make it to this milestone, passing away at home with the help of the lovely folks at Goodbye Good Boy on the night of 27 December.

What happened?

Maggie loved food. So it was a bit of a surprise when, around the middle of October, she refused to eat her monthly flea and tick medication, and then didn’t finish her dinner that night. When she kept refusing food, we took her to our vet. A couple of tests later we confirmed that she had chronic kidney disease, likely brought on by old age.

When she continued to feel unwell, she was referred to a specialist vet. After some more tests we learned that she also had a urinary tract infection. Fortunately, this infection was quickly treated with antibiotics and she bounced back from feeling miserable in just a day or two.

Chronic kidney disease, however, is incurable. And, depending on what stage the disease is at, you really just have a few weeks to a few months left. You can slow its progress, of course. But, as we discovered, hers was quite advanced.  

(She also had a small tumour next to one of her kidneys, which a biopsy showed contained a slow-moving cancer. But given the rest of her diagnosis, that ended up being a non-issue – just like her arthritis, which we kept treating even though we knew it wasn’t going to be an ongoing concern.)

Photo of a Patient Discharge Information folder from Advanced Vetcare, a veterinary specialist centre and 24 hour emergency hospital. Handwritten on the folder in black marker is the name ‘Maggie’ with a little love heart icon drawn after her name.

So what did we do?

Once your pet has received a chronic kidney disease diagnosis, all you can do is take care of them till it’s time for them to go. The HHHHHMM quality of life scale developed by veterinary oncologist Dr Alice Villalobos helps you decide when that time has come.

Maggie was a happy, energetic, stubborn, no-nonsense dog with an insatiable appetite who led a really good life with us, so she made the best of her last few weeks as well. She wasn’t eating much, so she didn’t have as much energy as before. But we stayed home to spend as much time with her as we could, so she hung out with us all the time. We took her for her daily walks, which were the highlight of her day. Even on her last day, we went for a short walk on our street, which she would have happily extended if she hadn’t been feeling so worn out.

But worn out she was. Over a two week period in December her quality of life score dropped from the 50s to the 40s. A score of 35 or more is considered an acceptable quality of life, but it’s best to let your pet go just before they start to get miserable. So on 27 December we made the call.

Maggie had had her daily walk; she’d spent time in the garden, getting pats and cuddles from all of us; and she’d even eaten a bite of beef-steak fat, which was her favourite.

She passed away in her favourite orange, fuzzy bed, asleep and snoring like a champ.

Remembering Maggie through photos

To remember the fabulous years we had with Maggie, here are some photos of her that I haven’t uploaded before.

Maggie’s first walk with us (31 Dec 2016)

Photo of a woman walking a dog in a large public park.

Licking Nadia (2017)

Photo of a woman in a living room, sitting and leaning back on the right-side arm of a black leather sofa. She is holding a red/brown dog in her lap, with the dog stretching-out and raising her head so she can lick the woman’s cheek. 

Sleeping between Ameel and Nadia (2019)

Photo of a half-asleep red/brown dog lying in a large bed. The dog is sleeping between the two humans in the bed, with its head on a pillow, while facing the photographer.

Dog with the Pearl Earring (2019)

(I have uploaded a version of this collage before, but this one is better.)

Collage of two photos that have a passing similarity. The one on the left is of a red/brown dog with a yellow bed cover over its head that is covering both its ears. The dog is looking over its left shoulder at the photographer. On the right is a photo of the painting ‘Girl with a Pearl Earring’ by Johannes Vermeer. The painting is of a woman wearing a yellow-and-blue turban looking who is looking over her left shoulder at the painter. The woman is wearing what appears to be a very large pearl as an earring.

Cuddles with Nadia, who is just back from the gym (2020)

Photo of a woman in gym gear cuddling a resigned looking red/brown dog on a sofa.

You can find all my published photos of Maggie in the ‘Maggie’ category on this blog (or in the ‘Maggie’ album on my Flickr profile).

End of an era

Maggie’s passing is the end of an era for me and Nadia. We’ve both acquired, raised, and lost dogs before, but that was always with our families. Maggie was our family in Australia, and now we’re one family member short. *sigh*

Photo of a red/brown dog waiting in anticipation at the top of a flight of steps. The photo is taken from near ground level, behind the dog’s bum.

Maggie turns 11!

Maggie is a rescue dog, so we guesstimated her birthday to be 5 December 2013. That means today she turns eleven :)

Here are some recent photos.

Curled up and asleep in her bed

Close-up photo of a red/brown dog curled up and asleep along the side of a grey dog bed. The dog has one of its paws over its snout and pushed up against one of the bed walls.

Asleep in her corner of the bedroom

Photo of a red/brown dog asleep in a grey dog bed. The dog has its head and one paw resting on the wall of the bed that's against the wall of the room.

Asleep in her downstairs bed

Photo of a red/brown dog asleep, with one paw over its face, in a dog bed that's lying in a living room.

Asleep with her rope toy

Photo of a red/brown dog asleep on the carpet in a living room. The dog is snuggling its red-and-black rope toy.

All ears while we wait outside the vet

Wide angle photo of a red/brown dog standing outside a vet surgery. The photographer is sitting on the ground and is leaning forward to scratch the dog on its neck. The wide-angle view of the photo have made the dog's ears look extra large.

Keeping a nose on the neighbourhood

Photo of a red/brown dog being walked on a red leash. The dog has stopped on a nature strip along the side of a road and is sniffing the base of a tree.

Stopping to smell the flowers

Photo of a red/brown dog being walked on a red leash sniffing at the base of a patch of purple flowers.

Sadly, we won’t have Maggie with us for too much longer. She has chronic kidney disease and likely just has a few months left to live.

She is living a good life though, with lots of love and cuddles and walks around the neighbourhood.

And while she might be a little slow these days, she is happy and is still very much up for a game of tug, like she was when I got home from work today :)

Maggie in bed

Maggie doesn’t like to have her photo taken, so the best time to take a photo is when she’s asleep :)

Maggie asleep in her orange, fuzzy bed

Photo of a red/brown dog asleep in an orange coloured, large, round, fuzzy dog bed that's lying on a carpeted floor. The dog’s head is resting on the soft wall of this bed.

Maggie is very cozy in her orange, fuzzy bed

Photo of a red/brown dog asleep in an orange coloured, large, round, fuzzy dog bed that's lying on a carpeted floor. The dog’s head is resting on the soft wall of this bed.

Maggie is having a comfy afternoon in her downstairs bed

Photo of a red/brown dog asleep in a grey dog bed that’s on the carpeted floor of a living room. The dog is leaning its head against the wall of the dog bed.

Maggie is unimpressed with me taking a photo of her

Photo of a red/brown dog lying in a grey dog bed that’s on the carpeted floor of a living room. The dog was leaning its head against the wall of the dog bed, but has now raised it to blearily stare up at the photographer.

Photos from my desk

I was checking something on my camera while at my desk when I saw a couple of photo opportunities.

Afternoon scene from a window

Photo looking through a window from inside the house. The scene through the window shows the roof of a neighbouring house, the tops of some trees, and some power lines.

Maggie is snuggled up in her bed in the corner of the room

Photo of a red/brown dog sleeping in a round fuzzy bed with her face pressed up against the side of the bed.

Food motivated

What can I say? Maggie loves to eat!

VERY interested in a dog food delivery we spotted on our walk

Photo of a red/brown dog on a red leash outside a black residential fence. The dog is excitedly sniffing two Lyka brand dog food cartons that a deliver driver has left outside the fence.

Riveted by Nadia chopping beef on the kitchen counter

Photo of a red/brown dog standing in a dining room with wooden floor tiles. In the background of the photo are they dog’s food and water bowls. The dog is looking up, very attentively, at someone off camera.

The life of Maggie: walking and napping

Time to share a few photos of Maggie I’ve taken over the last few weeks. (You’re welcome.)

Turning a corner

Photo of a red/brown dog walking down the residential footpath, with just its head and one if its forelegs visible from around the corner of a fence.

Comfortable afternoon nap

Photo of a red/brown dog asleep on its side in a dog bed that’s lying in a carpeted room.

Ready for her daily walk

Photo looking down at a red/brown dog wearing a black and red harness. The dog has its nose to the front door of a house, waiting for it to open so she can run out.

Maggie, around the house

Maggie is enjoying the return of summer. She has arthritis so she needs to be warm, and she she’s always loved soaking up the sun. I think her bones also appreciate the memory-foam dog bed we have for her our living room.

Scratching her back after napping in the sun

Photo, taken through a window pane, of a red/brown dog in a residential garden. The dog is twisting around in the garden, all four legs up in the air, while she scratches her back on the dirt and grass.

Fast asleep after her morning walk

Photo of a red/brown dog fast asleep in a large grey coloured dog bed on the floor of a living room. The dog's face is smushed into a blanket lying on one side of the dog bed.

Blearily noticing that I just took her photo

Photo of a red/brown dog in a large grey coloured dog bed on the floor of a living room. The dog is looking blearily into the camera because she has just been woken by her photo being taken.

When she is tired but still follows you from room to room, so you pee with the door open

Photo of a red/brown dog lying on her side, with her head right in front of an open bathroom door. The photo is taken from inside the bathroom.

When we got Maggie all those years ago, we’d take her for hour-long walks every day and she’d still have an endless supply of energy afterwards.

As she got older, she’d start to get tired after forty-five minutes of walking, so we dropped her walk time down to thirty-ish minutes.

These days she still has the mental enthusiasm for half-hour walks, but if we walk for too long in one go, her body pays for it the next day. So we’re now down to fifteen-ish minute walks every morning; with maybe a five or ten minute walk in the evening if she’s up for it.

Not that she minds. She still loves walking through our neighbourhood and foraging for whatever she can eat. But she’s become a lot more chill as she’s gotten older, with fewer fucks to give about the world. And, as long as she knows where we are, she’s no longer in a mad rush to follow us from room-to-room as we move around the house. Unless it’s nearing her walk time or dinner time, of course, in which case she’ll make her presence know no matter where we are and what we’re up to! But otherwise she’s content with her slower pace of life.

Happy 10th birthday to Maggie!

When we adopted Maggie in 2016 we were told she was probably two-and-a-half to three years old. And since we needed to nominate a date of birth for her registration, we ended up picking 5 December 2013.

So, at least according to that guesstimate, our now-not-so-little Maggie is ten years old today. Happy birthday!

Here she is making the most of her middle-agedness:

Photo of a red/brown dog fast asleep on her side in a round, fuzzy, orange dog bed. One back paw and one front paw is sticking out over the edge, and the dog’s head is also resting on the edge. The bed is lying in the corner of a carpeted room.

Red heelers like Maggie tend to have a 12-15 year lifespan, though healthy, well cared for, non-working heelers can easily live for 18-20 years. So we have many, many years with her yet.

That said, here’s a side-by-side comparison of how much greyer her muzzle has gotten over the years. ❤️

Nadia and I have gotten greyer over the last decade too, of course, so we’re all a happily middle aged family now :)

Asleep, but alert

Maggie takes an afternoon nap in the retreat that’s between my study and Nadia’s study – where we each work from home – so she can keep an ear on both of us.

Photo of a red/brown dog on a dark brown towel that's been placed on the seat of a dark grey sofa. The dog is asleep, with its head nestled between its front paws; however its ears are pricked.

Maggie in her downstairs bed

As dogs tend to do, Maggie follows us everywhere we go in the house. Unfortunately, she also lives up to her ‘Underfoot’ middle name and is always in our way. To minimise her underfooted-ness, we’ve got a dog bed for her in pretty much every room of the house. This helps contain her a little.

Here is a series of photos of Maggie sleeping in what is probably her most comfortable bed (a memory foam bed, to help manage her early-stage arthritis).

Maggie in bed

Maggie has a comfortable, fuzzy bed in the corner of my room where she sleeps for much of the day.

Gentle snores, lethal farts

Photo of a red/brown dog asleep inside a round, fuzzy, orange coloured dog bed in the corner of a room. The dog’s head and one of its paws are lying on top of the side wall of the soft bed.

Fast asleep in her bed

Close-up photo of a red/brown dog asleep inside a round, fuzzy, orange coloured dog bed in the corner of a room. The dog’s head and one of its paws are lying on top of the side wall of the soft bed.

Snoring gently

Close-up photo of a red/brown dog asleep inside a round, fuzzy, orange coloured dog bed in the corner of a room. The dog’s head and one of its paws are lying on top of the side wall of the soft bed.

Snuggled up in a fuzzy bed

Photo of a red/brown dog asleep inside a round, fuzzy, orange coloured dog bed in the corner of a room. The dog’s head and one of its paws are lying on top of the side wall of the soft bed.

Asleep, but with one ear still up

Photo of a red/brown dog asleep inside a round, fuzzy, orange coloured dog bed in the corner of a room. The dog’s head and one of its paws are lying on top of the side wall of the soft bed.

A dog in the garden

Taking a sniff

Photo of a red/brown dog standing in a garden, sniffing a spot on the grass.

Maggie in the bushes

Photo of a red/brown dog peeking its head out from some bushes next to a fence in a garden.

A dog in the bushes

A snail in the weeds

Routine vet visit

Routine vet visit; routine sniff of the speciality dog food on display.

Photo of a red/brown dog on a leash in the waiting room of a veterinary clinic. The dog is sniffing at a set of display shelves on which there are several large bags of specialty dog food (eg for digestive, gastrointestinal, and kidney issues).

Maggie is not amused

I slept in and delayed Maggie’s daily morning walk. She was not amused.

Close up photo of a red/brown dog sitting on a bed next to the photographer, who is lying in the bed. The dog has a resigned expression on its face as it stares into the middle distance.

She was even less amused after I took that first photo :P

Close up photo of a red/brown dog sitting on a bed next to the photographer, who is lying in the bed. The dog is looking at the photographer, and is not looking particularly pleased that the photographer took her photo instead of getting out of bed.

Successful tooth extraction

Maggie’s tooth extraction went well, but she was on ketamine not too long ago so the poor thing is still a little out of it!

Photo of a red/brown dog with an orange crepe bandage on its foreleg. The dog, who looks like it’s dissociating quietly, is sitting on a brown towel that’s been spread out on a dog bed on the floor of a living room.

The folks at Fawkner Veterinary Hospital in Melbourne are both lovely and excellent at their jobs, by the way. 10/10 would recommend.

Photo of a red/brown dog that’s fast asleep with its face smooshed against the wall of a dog bed that has been covered with a brown towel. The dog itself has been covered with a small, fuzzy blanket.