A Rescue Story

A Tribute to Duffy, a True Diehard

By Ginger McAfee

In July of 1999, the call came in that a shelter in northern Alabama had rescued a Scottie out of a back yard, and that he was in pretty rough shape. I called a friend who lived near-by and she went to get him out. The volunteer vet at the shelter said that he was in such bad shape, we should just put him to sleep. My friend said she still saw that Scottie spark in his eyes so I asked her to take him to her vet and do a Heartworm test. If the test was positive, we would help him to the bridge because in that condition, he could not stand the treatment. Fortunately, the HW test was negative. So she drove him straight to me in Nashville (where we were living then). When she pulled his emaciated little body out of the crate I cried. This dog weighed 11 pounds, his paper thin skin was hanging under his belly, He had very little hair, both his ears were  split, probably from fighting. We named him MacDuff, but his friends just called him Duffy. His teeth were worn down to nubs. (My vet later told me that starving dogs chew on rocks and dirt to try to find some sustenance and in doing this, he had worn his teeth down to nearly nothing. When she sat him out of the crate, he could barely walk, kept his head down, but when I looked in those eyes, I knew we had to try to save him. He was covered with fleas, which had so depleted his body that his blood count was dangerously low. With some IV fluids, high-energy supplements, hand feeding, and lots of TLC, things started to turn around. By day three, he wagged his tail, and within a couple of weeks, we heard him bark for the first time. That was a day we celebrated, because when a Scottie feels like voicing an opinion, we knew he is on the way to recovery.

After about two more months of TLC, Duffy embarked on his next round of adventures. Libby Gault and her two sons came to visit him on Sunday afternoon, and it was love at first sight for both her 11 year old son, Jordan, and Duffy. Duffy would chase the ball as long as Jordan threw it for him. We didn't feel that Duffy was quite ready to leave our vet's care, but we knew that when he was well enough, Duffy would be going home with Jordan.  A few weeks later, we packed his little bag and off he went for his 'happily ever after'.

But Duffy's story does not end there either. A few days later Libby called me with tears of joy in her voice. Unbeknownst to me, Jordan had been having lots of trouble adjusting to some changes in his life and had been have horrible nightmares, and doing some dangerous sleepwalking.  I knew Duffy was far from being housebroken, and cautioned Libby to allow Duffy to continue to sleep in a crate until he could be trusted. However, Duffy had other ideas. The very first night, he made him self at home in Jordan's bed and Libby did not have the heart to make him move. The next morning, she realized that Jordan had not awakened screaming as had become his pattern. Nor did he do it the next night, nor the next. In fact for the next five and half years, Duffy and Jordan were partners, sleeping peacefully together.

Still Duffy's story continues, about three years later, the family was transferred to Bahrain, and was there for a couple of years, then  they were transferred to Germany. A few years after that,  I heard from Libby at Thanksgiving that Duffy was not doing so well, and that they were very afraid they were loosing him. Another letter shortly there after said he had seemed to rally and that it looks like another Duffy miracle was in process. However not long after that, the letter came that I had dreaded every time I saw her name on the e-mail. Here is Duffy's final chapter;  written, I am sure with tears of sorrow.

"Hi Ginger, I'm hoping this message finds you well and that you had a wonderful Christmas and New Year's.  I had hoped to write you sooner and let you know how much better Duffy had been doing since Thanksgiving.  I didn't write you soon enough.  Duffy passed away today very unexpectedly. 

I say unexpectedly because over the month of December he had really perked up.  He was walking and trotting well on his own, eating much better, and interacting with everyone much better.  Dr. Adam had lowered his insulin thinking that was the cause of Duffy's problems, and it seemed to do the trick for a while.  So the holiday season was very nice for everyone, including Duffy.

Bill left on Wednesday of last week to return to Africa and every day after that Duffy seemed to do a little more poorly.  Loss of appetite, rapid weight loss, inactivity, everything essentially.  He spent his evening lying on my Nannie's feet or my feet or in my lap.  This morning Nannie left to return to Tennessee and I made sure before we left the house that Duffy was comfortable on his bed in the kitchen.  He had an extra lovey (blanket) and soft music and Slippers for company.  Even though I knew he wasn't feeling great I really didn't think that today would be his last.   I was planning on coming home and just holding him in my lap for a while.

We have decided to have Duffy cremated in order to bring him home with us when we finally return to the states.  The facilities that I've chosen are to be highly commended.  I think regular funeral homes would do well to be as considerate as this gentleman was.  Duffy will be transported to Strasbourg, France to be cremated under quality controls, returned to us, and then sealed in an urn of our choosing.  I thanked Herr Meinhard profusely as I felt like this was a proper and fitting ending for Duffy.  I could not have borne it if he had been just thrown in a truck and hauled off to the pound.  He had been treated like garbage once in his life and I just didn't feel like he should be treated that way at the end of it.

I gave, and still give, thanks that God chose to bless us with his little life.  I hope I have been as much a blessing in return.    And I thank you, Ginger, for what you do in service to these souls.  They have hearts that are as much deserving of love and respect as any human and you have been such a blessing to all the scotties that you have helped rescue.

Thank you Ginger, for all you have done.  I'm sorry to relay sad news but I knew you would want to know.  Please take care.

With much love,

Libby     

So it is with sadness, over his loss, but with joy over his life, that I write this tribute to a true Diehard, what a little trouper he was. I would love for his first owners to know what a wonderful life he led for five and half years. He became a world traveler, and a much prized family member.