In 1996 I was the proud owner of a 155 pound rottweiler named “Scooby”. We thought it would be a great idea to get a small dog that could play with Scooby. We purchased a Black Toy Poodle from some friends of ours. We named him “Scrappy”. He weighed about 3/4 pound when we got him.

In September of that year we moved to Charleston, South Carolina on a temporary assignment for work. In December of 1996 we took him to the Goose Creek Veterinary Hospital in Charleston because scrappy had a small bump of his side and because we wanted to get him fixed. The veterinarian “fixed” him and examined the bump. He stated that the bump appeared to be some kind of deep bruise. We never laid a hand on Scrappy; we figured it must have happened when he was playing. We brought Scrappy home from the vent and watched him since he had just had surgery.

We were watching Scrappy on the bed when he started shaking and fell off the bed; it looked like he was having a seizure. We immediately took him to the veterinarian. The Vet began doing all types of tests; he then noticed that Scrappy had severe bruising on his belly. The veterinarian asked us how much money we cared to spend on Scrappy because some of the tests were very expensive. We told him money was not the issue, we just wanted our 6 month old puppy to get well.

Scrappy was then sent to a 24 hour animal hospital, his white blood cells were dropping and it appeared as if he was bleeding from the inside. My wife and I waited in the waiting room from Friday night until Monday morning. We did not sleep nor did we eat that whole weekend. We just took a few naps in the waiting room and ate snacks. We were sick to our stomach knowing that Scrappy was bleeding from the inside.

Over the next few hours Scrappy had little to no improvement. The Doctor then informed us that a Blood Transfusion would be the only thing that might help Scrappy. We told him to do it and to try to save him. After the transfusion Scrappy’s condition improved. The Doctor told us that he had sent a sample of the Blood to Cornell University for testing. On Monday we were finally able to take Scrappy home. Later during the week the Doctor called us and told us that Scrappy had Van Willebrand’s disease, it is a blood clotting disorder. This explained the severe bruising on his belly; it was apparently caused by the surgery.

We then moved back to Las Cruces, NM in May of 1997. Scrappy was fine except that we had to be very careful with him bumping into something. He grew up to be an awesome dog. He had 15-20 different stuffed animals that he would bring by name when asked to. My friends would come over and they would not believe what he could do. He had a little stuff dog that he would sleep with every night. He would start crying if he could not find his “Doggy” and none of us could go to sleep until we found it. Scrappy was the most obedient dog I have ever known. We would work with him when he was a puppy. You could tell him to sit, go to the store and he would be there when you got back.

I am 6’4 and weigh 300 lbs. I used to take Scrappy everywhere with me, people would laugh and wonder what that Big Guy was doing with a 6 lb. Toy Poodle. For the next 9 years we came to love and enjoy Scrappy very much. There were a few relapses where he had problems with his clotting. We were able to get through it thanks to GOD.

In September 2005 I noticed that Scrappy was peeing a little bit of blood. I thought it would go away after a day or so. It was just a tiny bit and I thought it was a minor infection or something. After a few days of seeing him pee blood I took him to the Vet. They did X-Rays and found that Scrappy had two stones in his bladder. Due to his condition the Vet did not want to perform the surgery. She placed him on some special diet dog food that would lower his PH level so that he could pee the stones out.

I had him on the special food for a month, I took him for another checkup and there was no change. He was still peeing blood and he was in a little bit of pain. The Vet asked me if I wanted to try another month of treatment. I told her yes and we tried it for another month. Another set of X-Rays were taken and they showed the same results, the stones were not getting any smaller.

I then discussed the options with the Vet; she stated we could try it again or have the surgery done. I told her that I did not want him to suffer and that I trusted her and that I did not want scrappy to suffer anymore.

She scheduled the surgery for November 8, 2005. On November 8, 2005 I took Scrappy in for the surgery, the Doctor told me that she had her own personal dog on standby just in case Scrappy needed another blood transfusion. I handed her Scrappy and walked out of the Office. Throughout the day I kept calling checking on his condition, they told me they the surgery went well and that they did give him another blood transfusion just to be safe. My wife and I went at 5:30PM to see him. Scrappy was still drugged up and he looked very tired and sad. My wife held him for awhile until we had to leave. The Doctor said that she was going to take scrappy home that night to her house to watch him and that we could take him home the next day.

On November 9, 2005 my wife stopped by the Doctor’s Office at 7:30 AM to check on Scrappy. At 7:42 AM she called me and told me that Scrappy had died last night at 11:40PM. The Doctor told my wife that Scrappy started throwing up blood and that he passed away. Apparently the surgery was to much for him. I was 39 years old at the time. I cried like never before, my family cried, everyone that new Scrappy was deeply moved by his passing.

After a couple of hours I called the Doctor to ask how much I owed. They told me not to worry about it, that I could pay whenever I wanted. At 1:00PM I showed up to the Doctor’s Office with my 3 year old Son. As we walked in he yelled where is Scrappy? I want my Scrappy! Everyone behind the counter started to tear, they were speechless. I then spoke to the Doctor and thanked her and told her that she did all she could and that the LORD had plans for Scrappy. I paid the bill and walked out and went home.

I never realized how much I loved Scrappy, I second guessed myself about the surgery. I blamed myself for his death. I then realized that he was very sick and that it would have been selfish of me to keep him from having surgery knowing that he was bleeding and in pain. I was very depressed for the next several months.

I can go on and on about all of the great times and awesome things that Scrappy would do. He was cremated and he sits on our mantle with his “Doggy” as if this date. We since have obtained two Toy Poodles, “Scooby” and “Shaggy”. We still Love and miss Scrappy, we are enjoying and Love “Scooby” and “Shaggy” very much.

We spent over $5000.00 on all of Scrappy’s surgeries and Doctors visits. If I had to I would do it again I would do it at the drop of a hat. Our story sounds a little far fetched; we have proof of everything that I have mentioned. It is not everyday that you here of a dog having a blood transfusion and/or having van Willebrand’s disease.

I want to thank you for letting me tell you our story it does help with the pain of losing Scrappy.

Thank you,

Bill from New Mexico