From Struggles to Joy: Bridget’s Story After Rescue
In the early summer of 2018, Bridget was found tied up under a bridge in Mississippi. She was found by some people who gave her to my dad’s girlfriend, Mary. At that time, Mary lived with my dad. Bridget was a young dog of only about 3 months old. My dad did not want puppies, so he got her spayed. They gave her the name Bridget because she was found under a bridge.
My dad was a truck driver at this time. He was gone most of the time. So, Mary was in charge of taking care of Bridget and training her. Mary’s idea of training Bridget was strange even to my dad. She would keep Bridget shut up in a dog pen all day long. Then at night Bridget would be let out. My dad did not agree with this training method. So, every time he came home, he would let Bridget out and they would go walking over the 17 acres. Bridget loved to run and would follow him all over the place.
January 2019 started off bad. My dad called me from the emergency room. He was having problems breathing. They first thought that maybe he had pneumonia. He stayed in the hospital for about 1 week. Unfortunately, he did not have pneumonia; he had stage 4 lung cancer.
I am the one who brought my dad home from the hospital and stayed with him while he was in the hospital. Mary left town when he went into the hospital. The night that my dad came home from the hospital Mary and I got in an argument. My dad sided with me and Mary left. She took her small Pomeranian dog that lived inside but left Bridget. I lived in Louisiana, so, every three weeks I drove to Mississippi to help my dad. He scheduled all of his appointments for when I would be there.
By March my dad was worried about Bridget. She seemed to be losing weight. By April my dad was fading fast. When I came the 1st week of April, he told me to take Bridget home with me when I left because he could not take care of her.
I took Bridget home with me the first of April. I already had a dog and four cats. Bridget was a bundle of nerves. She followed me everywhere. I could barely take a step without stepping on her. On April 25th my dog, Roxie, died. Bridget was a small comfort. However, she was still the most nervous dog I have ever seen. She was under weight, and she frequently had diarrhea and vomiting. I took her to the vet. They diagnosed her with a bad stomach. It seems that she had been kicked in the stomach too many times. They gave her some medication that helped. Unfortunately, every time she gets too hot, she still vomits. This dog’s favorite past time is running. The vet suggested that I don’t let her run when it is hot. I live in South Louisiana. It is hot most of the time. Since there is a long hallway in my house, I started playing with her in it. She gets to run up and down that hall.
During this time, my dad got worse. He passed away May 16, 2019. Just before he passed away, he asked to see Bridget. We put her on the bed with him. He spoke softly to her. She laid beside him for a little while. She was in the room when he passed.
Today, Bridget is a happy dog. She still follows me around the house, but not as closely as before. She lives inside and sleeps on a doggy bed when not on our bed. She loves to jump up onto our beds.
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