In early May Pepper fell off the bed and hurt his back.  At first he seemed fine but within two days I took him to the emergency vet because his condition deteriorated.  He had pain when he walked and when he laid down.  The emergency vet took examined him, took x-rays, and told me had probably had a soft tissue injury since nothing definitive showed up on the x-rays.  A few days after that I took him to the vet school at the University of Minnesota where they told us he probably had a ruptured disk in his lower back based on the x-rays and his exam there.   We also found out he has a heart murmur that was at least a grade three.  Options were surgery or crate rest for at least a month--I chose the crate rest option.  We tried several pain medications, steroids, and muscle relaxants during this time but Pepper got sick to his stomach while on them, so the vet at the U of MN said to take him off everything & just do the crate rest.  Pepper saw our regular vet in late May and at that point, everything seemed to be going very well.

On 6/16/04 after improving in the weeks since the injury, Pepper's condition began to get worst again and by 6/18/04 he couldn't keep water down, he started coughing and drooling, and was in obvious pain.  My husband & I decided to end Pepper's suffering and we put him to sleep.  He died in my arms.

Letting Pepper go hurt something awful.  I loved Pepper very much and I will miss him with all my heart.  He was a wonderful little dog and his time with me on this Earth was far too short for me.  I wish I could have shared many more years with him--but I am very grateful for the time we had together.  Rest in peace, Pepper, and know that I love you.