Hiroki
It is with great sadness we share that our beloved hospice dog, Hiroki, has passed. Hiroki returned to COSIR in his twilight, a 15 years old, after his adopter/mom was taken by cancer. We hadn’t seen him in years, but had stayed in touch, so we weren’t surprised to see this precious little old Shiba still had a sassy spirit, perfectly balanced by his sweetness.
He was lucky to live out his final chapter as a hospice dog with COSIR board member, Tina. He was deeply loved and meticulously cared for; showered with the kindness, comfort, and dignity he deserved. He loved his short slow strolls, where freedom seemed to make him forget the weight of age. He relished in stroller rides – a prince surveying his kingdom and above all else he adored humans, especially when they gave gentle scritches and complimented his regal air and good looks 
In the end his soft cries were a plea for help, as his body had given all it could. We knew then, the kindest thing to do was set him free. Not because we stopped loving him, but because we loved him too much to let him struggle any longer. So we called Laps of Love in-home euthanasia service and let him go in the comfort of his own home.
His final hours weren’t sad – they were sacred. He had two full plates of grilled steak, baked chicken breast, and not a single bite was spared. He went on one last walk, slow and unhurried, soaking up every smell and the breeze. He got to say goodbye to old friends. He laid in the grass in his backyard, shaded and safe, with soft familiar hands gently scratching his head and reminding him with every stroke that he was loved; deeply, truly and completely.
When know that when he arrived at the rainbow bridge, his beloved adopter/mom, Carol, was there to greet him with open loving arms. Rest in peace sweet boy. No more struggles. We love you.
Hiroki is 15 years old. He spent the first half of his life with a backyard breeder, confined to a crate 24/7. We rescued him in 2017 and adopted him to a wonderful woman, who in 2018 also adopted Yukio from us. Hiroki and Yukio were good buddies, were deeply loved, and happy there until 2023 when we received the heartbreaking news that their humom had passed after a long battle with cancer. She was their person and they were devastated. Of course, we took them back into rescue and placed them in a foster home together. The foster ended up adopting Yukio but continued to foster Hiroki in an effort to keep the 2 pals together.
After several months, Hiroki’s health began to decline. His arthritis was getting worse and he was not stable on their floors. He was not opening his mouth to eat and losing weight, and had to be hand fed, and he was becoming incontinent. The level of care he required was more than they could manage, so we decided he was no longer adoptable and would need to be in hospice care, so he was moved to a foster home that had the time he required, and experience with hospice seniors.
At this point, we discovered that Hiroki had a heart condition; a grade 4 heart murmur. The left side is the worst, moderate to severe, and the middle ventricle is thickened. However, X-rays confirmed that the enlarged heart was not pushing on his esophogus, and therefore, was not causing his difficulties eating. He was prescribed a maintenance mediacation for this heart, and will need an EKG every 6 months to keep an eye on his condition, but we still needed to get to the bottom of his eating issue.
Despite his heart condition, the cardiologist cleared him for surgery so that we could perform an exploratory dental in hopes of identifying the cause of his inability to eat on his own. We discovered he has resorption dental disease eating away the enamel of his teeth, making them very sensitive! He had 7 pre-molars extracted, but no masses in his mouth or throat that would be an obvious cause of his eating issue. Even after a full recovery from the dental, he was not able to eat on his own. Interestingly, he can open his mouth to bark or yawn, but will not to eat, yet he very much wants to eat! All of this, plus a few other behaviors we’ve observed, has confirmed our suspcion that the cause is a neurological issue. The vets and specialists we’ve consulted with agree. What this means is that he will always need to be hand fed, and we’ve found what works best is a high quality fresh pet food that can be rolled into little balls and placed in his mouth, which he will then chew and swallow.
Hiroki has no control over his bladder or bowels and his poops are quite unpredictable and often lose, so he he wears a diaper to keep from making a mess of the house everyday. This makes him more suseptable to UTI’s so his foster mom is on top of it. She changes a lot of diapers and he gets a lot of baths down there. His stability is much better on her carpeted floors, and he is on regular pain/anti inflammatory medication for the arthritis.
Despite all of this, Hiroki is still a joyful, sassy, silly boy. He loves to give his foster sister, Missy “the business” when she walks by. He loves going for “walks” in his buggy every day and sunbathing in the backyard. He is a cuddle bug and loves to be on his foster mom’s lap. He is a darling little dog and it is our pleasure to give him the love, respect, and care he needs for the rest of his days. As of now, he has a good quality of life and we will continue to love him and make him comfortable until he no longer does. We will then make the decision to do what’s best for him and let him go.
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1 Response
[…] Yukio and Hiroki were placed in a foster home together. The foster has already decided to adopt Yukio, as he fits into their home perfectly. His brother Hiroki, however, is not a huge fan of one of their younger, more exhuberant dogs, so they feel he’d do best in another home. If you love senior dogs, check out Hiroki’s profile. […]