It is with breaking hearts that we announce the death
of Lee Dog, Lee Manucia Abrahams, the Love Dog, the Center of the Universe.
Lee was euthanized during surgery on June 2, 1995 when it was suddenly
revealed that she was suffering from a virulent and advanced cancer of
the stomach. She had celebrated her twelfth birthday in April. Lee's discomfort
was apparently mild until the day of her death.
Lee lived a full and happy life, enriching and nurturing those who loved
her. She was whelped on an Easter Sunday in Phoenix, AZ, the only female
in the litter of a registered Golden Retriever named Mischka and her handsome
neighbor, a travelling man named Tolman Inman. When only a few weeks old,
several of the puppies fell into a swimming pool, but Lee's already burgeoning
aquatic skills saved her.
When she left her littermates, Lee lived the first few months of her life
with her father Tolman, receiving almost daily visits from Gloria. Lee
would ride in the passenger seat of Gloria's Tercel station wagon-an activity
and position she enjoyed throughout her life-and would visit Gloria's studio
apartment and cockatiel Paolo. By that young age Lee had already developed
an unexplained passion for French kissing.
At three months Lee moved with Gloria and Paolo to Durango, CO, where Lee
learned to enjoy snow. Her steadfastness and sensitivity toward Gloria
were high points in Gloria's turbulent life. Not only did she sense whenever
Gloria was upset, but she would run to Gloria's side and provide compassion
and encouragement. Once when humiliated by the college's test-grading machines,
Gloria went home midday in tears to be greeted with Lee's gentle pink-orchid
tongue. Gloria often stated, "Men come and go, but Lee Dog is forever."
As Lee's feathering grew in, she came to resemble Tolman but with finer
features. She won Best-Looking Pet Award from the local animal shelter.
In her puppy socialization class, where she was jokingly referred to as
the "Artificial Flatcoat", Lee tied with a Sheltie for first
place on the final obedience exam. She enjoyed camping alone with Gloria
at Little Molas Lake, a place so beautiful that one always expected to
see "Taste the high country" printed in large letters in the
sky.
Lee was gentle and tolerant toward Lily, a deaf white kitten whom Gloria
adopted for several months until Gloria's allergies forced her removal.
Lee was also a gracious older sister to Brandy, a flatulent abused Doberman
Gloria adopted from the local animal shelter, whose untimely demise occurred
only months later. With the possible exception of cockatiel Paolo, Lee's
best friend was a massive black and tan hound named Bonecrusher.
When Gloria moved to Columbia, SC for clinical retraining, Lee had the
run of a large, azalea-filled yard bordered by a creek. She proudly discovered
a dead possum and an angry turtle. A frightening collision with a hit &
run diver left no discernible sequelae except to remind Gloria of the priority
of Lee in her life. Lee and Gloria weathered a blizzard driving to NC to
meet Gloria's biological half-sister and Norwegian Elkhound nephew Hans.
Lee's best friend in SC was a sophisticated and well-traveled terrier named
Damon. Trips to Charleston included beach visits for the entire family.
Lee also enjoyed chasing crabs on the beaches of Lee Island, NC.
When Gloria moved west for her internship, Lee had to adapt to life in
a one-bedroom apartment and to elimination on leash on the sidewalks of
Brentwood. She developed a taste for sushi. Attempted evening runs were
repeatedly interrupted by the West L.A. Veterans Administration police,
but the discovery of an off-leash park in Laurel Canyon was the setting
for much ecstatic tail-wagging. Lee and Eliott, a black and white cat next
door, developed a respectful, if somewhat distant relationship.
Shortly after Gloria and Lee moved to New Orleans in 1989, a dog who could
have been Lee's brother appeared in the newspaper as Pet of the Week. Although
timid, Alex made a point of sleeping as close to Gloria as possible, and
instead of competing, Lee started to vary her nocturnal resting place,
often enjoying the cool linoleum of Joel's bathroom. Alex was more puppy-like
and actively playful than his sister, but they enjoyed many a vigorous
romp together. When disinclined to play, Lee would show Alex her teeth
in a display of mock anger, her ears out to the side making her look like
a vampire bat. Of the two, Lee was always dominant and secure in her dignity;
only a vacuum cleaner could unnerve her. Alex's lumbering size and unselfconscious
drooling contrasted markedly with Lee's delicacy and careful step. Lee's
shiny and gently wavy coat showed touches of auburn when in sunlight. As
Alex put on weight, his coat became long but straighter and bushier. Whenever
Joel and Gloria went out with Alex and Lee, they were met by repeated questions
and compliments about the two beautiful, big, black dogs.
Between the two of them, Alex and Lee made comprised a formidable canine
intellect. Not only was it impossible to touch a leash within the earshot
of either dog without starting a riot, but it became necessary to learn
to spell aloud when they both learned to recognize any discussion about
"going for a walk." When Joel was hospitalized for a few weeks
only 5 months into our marriage, Alex and Lee accompanied Gloria on long
late-night walks, keeping her safe and listening to her fears and confidences.
Every year the family participated in the LA SPCA's benefit activities
such as Bark in the Park and Dog Day Afternoon and also had portraits made.
One such portrait caught the eye of a young pregnant woman seeking a family
for her unborn infant. It is not exaggeration to say that the dogs-especially
Lee-played a major role in facilitating the adoption of little Katie. Lee's
gentleness and maturity had been proven during many visits to psychiatric
patients at DePaul Hospital as a therapy dog, and she totally charmed the
social worker from Jewish Family Services. Her trusting and devoted gaze
could melt any heart. Lee never showed any jealousy of Katie-saving that
instead for Solomon the parrot, adopted when Lee was eleven-and, in contrast,
habitually slept just outside the baby's room. Katie learned at the earliest
possible age the sacredness of the canine-. human bond, and Lee and Alex
patiently learned to ignore when Katie would bring out their leashes. Katie
would climb all over Alex and use him as a stair, but when she tried to
do so to Lee, Lee would gently rise and walk away. Lee particularly enjoyed
Katie's dinner time, and would sit in front of Katie's high chair, her
graying muzzle aimed at Katie's lap. She and Alex invariably licked clean
the baby's tray table. Indeed, Lee was always a prompt and fastidiously
thorough cleaner of any spilled food or beverage. No wonder that Katie
first learned to kiss by sticking out her tongue and waiting for Lee to
do the same.
Lee's health had been generally good throughout her life. Twice she had
developed lick granulomas on her leg which resulted in Joel's repeated
bandaging. Once she had an apparent mammary tumor removed, which turned
out to be merely a lipoma. A second lipoma was monitored but otherwise
ignored. In her advancing age, Lee suffered from an indolent ulcer of the
cornea that required induced abrasion and the temporary suturing shut of
her eyelid for a few weeks. She was invariably sweet-tempered through these
trials, and cooperative toward her veterinarian, Dr. Grisoli.
It was during our Friday night candle-lighting that we first noticed Lee's
distress. Ordinarily Lee and Alex would come running as soon as they heard
Gloria pulling out the Shabbat candlesticks, kiddush cup, and challah cover.
That night Lee dawdled in arriving. When she dropped her taste of challah
bread and did not bend to retrieve it, we were sure that she was seriously
ill.
The emergency veterinarian sedated Lee before attempting to pass a stomach
tube to relieve gastric pressure and abdominal bloating. She was placed
in a cage fifteen feet down a hallway behind the receptionist's desk, a
solid wooden door providing a visual barrier between her and tearful Gloria.
At one point Lee cried softly from either the intubation efforts or the
medication. The veterinary staff refused to let Gloria wait with Lee when
surgery was chosen. When the door was briefly left ajar, Gloria called
out softly to Lee, "It's okay sweetheart. We're here, Lee. Daddy and
Katie came too. We love you, Lee." Lee raised her tired head in response.
The staff closed the door.
The surgeon's report was pessimistic: Lee's abdomen was rife with neoplasmic
material, most certainly malignant. She had also been hemorrhaging. Complete
tumor removal was likely impossible, and little would be left of Lee's
digestive system. Radiation and chemotherapy were not options. Gloria ached
at the thought of losing Lee without the opportunity to say goodbye, but
the veterinarian advised against allowing her to regain consciousness because
of the certainty of pain and shock. Gloria and Joel watched as the large
syringe of pink barbiturate was emptied into Lee's right front leg. Her
breathing and heart stopped almost immediately. Joel removed Lee's collar
and Gloria removed the leg restraint. They gently extubated their daughter
dog and fumbled removing her IV, spraying saline. The vet sutured the long
longitudinal incision. Lee's tongue drooped to one side, slightly cyanotic.
Her beautiful brown eyes had lost their fire. Her perfect teeth seemed
smaller and more tartar-stained. Gloria wanted to hug her, to hold her
tight, to keep her. How could she face a future that denied her the sensation
of Lee's sitting upright next to her, a bundle of silky, shiny fur and
the deepest, most knowing eyes? "Lee, how can I live without you?"
she wailed, kissing the pads of Lee's two closer feet, already cooling
and no longer redolent of the backyard grass. Gloria had long considered
having Lee's coat made into a simple hide so she could continue to be able
to stroke that soft fur for the rest of her life. Joel balked, and the
vet sided with him. Arrangements were made for Lee's cremation. Gloria
cut a small lock of black and white fur from Lee's chest and wrapped it
in surgical gauze.
Now Lee's remains sit atop a hutch in Gloria's bedroom/office. She also
looks down upon us from pictures scattered around the house. Beautiful
Lee Love, if anything resembling consciousness awaits us in the World to
Come, we know that we will find you there, waiting happily and patiently
for us in a place of peace and fulfillment.
Gloria Manucia