Retiring a dog is always rough.  Glad someone you know is taking care of Snowball.

I'm praying for your confidence and safety as you use the cane.

-----Original Message-----
From: Jeremy Gilley <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Tuesday, August 25, 2009 8:33 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Seeing Eye Dog retired

Hello everyone,
Not sure if you all remember me grin, I am a reader, but not a large poster to the list.
Unfortunately lately when I do post to the list it is because of a prayer request, and this one is no different.
I posted it on my facebook, but now it is time where I am thinking I need some support.
Here is my story, forgive me if I ramble.

For the past 3/5 months My Seeing Eye dog snowball has had some health issues.  She was having lots of nasty smelly accidents in our house, at work, and about everywhere she went, and if you just use your imagination on trying to pick up thick water, and no I am not talking about number 1, but a very sick number 2.
She would be fine 1 week, and the next we would wake up to the foulest smelling house you could ever stand, snowball was sick again, and it was up, clean clean shower and run for dear life trying to catch the bus.
This has caused me some very great hardship, for those of us work for the IRS get in loads of trouble if we take off of work to much and use up our sick leave and vacation leave.
Well, this became me, I was taking off of work as fast as I could gain my leave.  
I was running to the vets spending hundreds of dollars on her, and all the tests show nothing, not 1 bug, worm, any problem with her.
She was having accidents at work at my cubical, I work on the second floor, and there is just no way to place a caller on hold get her out the door before she goes.
The funny thing is though, my manager had a royal flippen fit because I placed my taxpayer on the phone ran my dog out so she would not get sick in the building again, and had to stay outside for 30 minutes.
Praise god when I came in my caller was not upset, I explained had a brief emergency and we went on with the call.
2 weeks ago this Friday me and my wife decided that it was time to retire snowball.  We figured it out that she was just under to much stress, and all the drugs she was on, the different food changes she went on, she had to retire.
Snowball retired at the age of 6.
The funny thing is, that dog drove me nuts, ask my wife, I was all the time barking at that dog.
But now that I don't have her? I find myself missing her, she was my gal, she loved me, she loved having the attention, and the lickes in the morning with a 100 mile an hour wagging tail.
This past week going back to using a cane is rough.
I have enough vision to really get me into trouble, and lately where we work we have to walk under scaffolding and the bars are messing with my vision enough to where I am bouncing off one side and the next like a ping pong ball.
Earlier this week I almost got hit by a car when I was crossing a street. I almost let fly a few choice words, but luckily I did not.
Scared the poop out of me, should of heard those breaks just a screaming.
I thought it was my time to go, I heard cars moving on my left forward, but this car wanted to turn on right in front of me.
Just one more thing my dog would of seen in time and stopped.
I think my wife is worried too. She said just today that she can't wait until I get a dog again.
I am scheduled to go back to Seeing Eye at the end of November, witch is really a long time away.
Snowball has been adopted by a co-worker who has know her for 3 years, is aware of snowballs health and took her anyways.
She said if she had to, she would make her an outdoor dog, she has lots of land for her to run, 3 teenagers to play with her and such.
As of today's date, there has been no accidents, no wrong doing or anything.
So, just another way of GOD showing me it was time for her to retire I guess.
So, yes, I am scared because this will be the first time since 1999 that I went without a dog for a long period of time.
Yes, I believe my cane skills are good, but to me my personal views, I was just so used to something guiding me around things, I never had to think of where I was going, how many steps it was to this or that, to worry about overhangs, being 6 feet 1, I have to now worry about a lot more things.
As for work, ug, got a warning letter blah blah about my leave, even though my manager knew about my dog.
Could get a probation letter, but lucky GOD stepped in again and was warned... still nuts if you ask me, but what can I do? nothing.,
just be thankful I still have a job in today's market.
So, if you could just pray about my situation, I would really appreciate it.
You never know what you have until it is gone.
That is so true in my case.
Thanks everyone for the support and prayers, and may GOD bless each and everyone of you.
BTW, I do have a facebook and a little bit was wrote about my dog the day of or the next day I retired my dog if anyone wants to read it.
One last thing I have to give GOD credit for.
Although Hundreds of dollars were spent, actually more like a couple of thousand by the time you figure in cab fair and the vet visits and medications, the vet has always given me and my wife close to a 75% discount just because they are working dogs.
So, the price we paid on snowball could of been a lot higher.
Well, again, thanks everyone.