09/04/2020 our beautiful Darcy has passed away. She had another episode and couldnt stand and was struggling with breathing. The vets suggested it would be kinder for her to be pts. We are grateful for the fact her fosterers were able to be with her when this happened. Sleep tight lovely girl x
Darcy is a gorgeous 16 years old black Labrador girl, who came into Oldies Club care early in 2017 when her previous owner was unable to continue caring for her.
When Darcy’s fosterers first met her, they were a little shocked, as she has a huge lump on her shoulder, giving her a bit of a hunchback. She was also very stiff in her back legs so her movements looked awkward. A prompt vet check revealed she has degenerative joint disease and so medication was prescribed for her arthritis.
Darcy also has other lumps, along with a cough that the vet didn’t seem too concerned about, but Oldies Club requested a second opinion and it was because of this that the vets x-rayed Darcy’s chest and lungs. We were very sadly advised that Darcy’s lungs are spotted all over with cancer nodules. The vets took fine needle aspirates of the lumps and found that one was an aggressive tumour which the vets said had spread to her lungs. There isn’t anything the vets can do with all the cancer in her lungs because it is everywhere. We were all heartbroken to hear this news, especially Darcy’s fosterers, because she is an amazing girl Darcy.
Due to her health concerns and age, Oldies Club made the decision to place Darcy in our sponsor dog scheme, which means she will remain at her lovely foster home on a permanent basis, with the charity paying her vet bills for the rest of her life.
Thankfully Darcy doesn’t know about the news, and isn’t worrying as us humans are, and she has tons and tons of energy. Her now forever-foster family tell us she is deaf-ish (crisp packets are an exception!), but they have managed to walk her off lead. They built this up very slowly because Speedy Gonzales would be on the other side of the park before she realised they weren’t behind her. Her fosterers say it’s an absolute joy watching her run free off lead and they now do 90% of their walk off lead. She can easily manage over an hour daily with energy levels restored by the evening.
Darcy’s forever-foster family call her a little love and say she is sweet, cuddly and affectionate. She leans in for head and back rubs and flops against you for a cuddle. She’s just a little love bug. Darcy gets so excited when she sees them – she bounces on her front legs like a puppy and her tail wags like crazy. She also loves to be the centre of attention.
Darcy loves food. Sometimes the fussiness kicks in because she wants something a bit more tasty and also she needs to keep her foster mum on her toes! She gets a dog food for picky dogs, along with veggies and fruit that are suitable for dogs. She loves pears and apples and will steal fruit if she’s got the munchies, along with dental sticks or treats from my dog walking bag. She’s even influenced the other two Labs in her foster home to do the same like it’s a completely normal thing to do! She’s not sly though and does it in front of her humans, making a huge racket.
Darcy also loves tennis balls. Especially the squeaky ones. She will ask to play fetch and then spend hours squeaking away. She’s not keen on cuddly toys. Her foster family recently got a paddling pool for all the girls. Darcy isn’t sure of it at the moment but likes to pick the tennis balls out and nose the water.
Darcy adores dog beds. She has two, including one upstairs, as she decided it was in everyone’s best interest that she is upstairs to watch over the humans at night. It does also help them to monitor her cough. She’ll come home from the park and roll all over her bed downstairs, like she’s missed her best friend. She also loves soft blankets. She likes her comfort. Her foster family say they might have spoilt her a little bit!
According to Darcy’s forever-foster family, Darcy is everything you could ever want in a best friend. She’s full of love, she’s fun and she gets excited over everything. She gives them so much affection. She’s cute and cheeky. She’s a silly sausage. They love her to pieces and say people that have met her are totally smitten by her too.
The sad thing is that they worry over her every cough and every time she doesn’t seem keen on her food. They try to make every day a special day for Darcy because no one knows how long she has left and they want her to know she means the world to them and they’d do whatever they can to make her happy. Just recently she seems to be coughing less, which is wonderful, and everyone at Oldies Club hopes Darcy will be happy and enjoying life for a good while to come.
If you would love to offer a home to an oldie but your circumstances aren’t suitable, perhaps you would be kind enough to sponsor Darcy, or one of the other special oldies we are caring for in our sponsor dog scheme.