I couldn’t let the year go by without a final farewell to Lina. She was my pal, my soul dog, the light of my life. Oh, and she would want me to add emotional support dog. And she was! I am heartbroken by her passing, but so grateful for the time we had together – every day was a new adventure. I can almost picture her now looking down and wondering what craziness might befall us today if she were here. I know she would be ready with face licks to make it all better.
I want to invite you to celebrate her life with me by pawrusing (her term) her updated Gallery on our website, and maybe even review our Events page for an overview of our happenings over the years. Most of all, I hope you will check out the sidebars on the opening page of our website (right side), and view Lina watching, skeptically, the Happy Birthday song (I think it was her 2nd birthday), and our movie, “Life With Momma, Year One” for a madcap recap of that first tumultuous year together.
Finally, I want to mention that I have a few extra copies of Lina Unleashed and Sit Stay Pray on hand (or paw as Lina would woof). Not that they weren’t best sellers (they both won national Indy book awards after all 🙂), but I do have a few left in my basement. If you are interested in receiving a copy, I’ll do my best to get them to you (contact me privately). Our gift to you.
Once again, thank you for being loyal readers. What’s next? I don’t know but I hate to “close the book” on Lina, so to “speak,” so we’ll see. Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays and all the best for 2026,
This is the letter I have been dreading writing for more than ten years. Yesterday, sweet little Lina left us to be with God and joined the other angels in heaven. It was time as she was failing and often struggling for breath due to her nasal cancer. Although I knew this day would come, I am utterly broken. She truly was the perfect pup — so gentle, loving, loyal, obedient, willing to please, smart, beautiful and sometimes even sassy! I can’t quite grasp that she is gone. To me she was pure love and pure joy.
This morning, the silence in the house is deafening, and I look for her in all the usual places. I picture her in the kitchen looking for any little morsel of food on the floor or at me with those pleading eyes begging for yet another treat. I feel she was giving me a sign yesterday when after she ate her dog food a little slowly, she did not wait around for her “after treats” which were her chemo and other pills rolled in ham, the favorite part of her meal. I picture her waiting for her morning walk, even when she had become really nervous about me touching her painfully swollen forehead while attaching her harness. It was another sign to me when, for the first time yesterday, she could not finish her walk due to breathing problems and I had to carry her partway home — something she did not like!
I picture her little shaggy butt racing around the corner of the house, bound up in her life jacket and headed for the pontoon or the paddle board. I picture her lying in one of her six beds scattered throughout the house, watching my every move and wondering, skeptically, what was next. I feel her looking at my back, impatient for me to get off the computer. And I just caught myself looking for her cute little mug in the front door waiting for me as I walked up the driveway.
But we did have our adventures! I will always remember our fun doing agility and even winning a few blue ribbons. Performing tricks and playing fetch. And oh how we loved our frequent paddle board rides in the summer with Lori and Erik, and our trips up north to the cabin, where she had another entire set of friends and admirers. Not to mention our time in Florida where Lina was teased mercilessly by the Norgaard boys! We did get one last pontoon ride in on Tuesday with friends, Rachel and Cathy. She was restless but still enjoyed cruising. And last month we got to celebrate her eleventh birthday, something I thought we’d never see.
I will also remember whisking her away when a visit with friends had gone on too long, and she gave me the look meaning “we’re done here, Momma.” We were a team.
Yesterday I took her for one last ride to Starbucks where she happily lapped up a puppuccino. I thought about a final board ride but got caught up in preparations and visits from friends. I only hope I have as many when my time comes. Which goes to say, everyone loved Lina. And I’m not exaggerating. More often than not, on walks in Florida or Minnesota, someone would stop us and say, “that is the cutest dog I’ve ever seen in my life.” I’ll never forget the time, when she was a puppy, a child about to get on our condo elevator spied her and yelled gleefully to friends, “Lina is on the elevator!!”
Many, many people will miss her including friends who came by yesterday – Becky, Erik, Angela, Cheryl, Susan and Lexi. Thank you. A special thanks to Talla and Ken who were with us throughout the painful goodbye. Also thank you to Dr. Tali from MNpets who facilitated Lina’s passing.
So, Dear Readers, we had a great ride. I was proud and happy to be Lina’s scribe for linasdogblog.com even if she often took me to task for my many foibles. We appreciated your readership and comments. I have included a last picture of Lina and Momma below.
First of all, don’t forget that today is National Dog Day! According to AI, NDD was created in 2004 and encourages the rescue and adoption of dogs, honors family dogs and recognizes the significant contributions we make to society! Check it out at http://www.nationaldogday.com. BowWOW!
Another birthday!
On another front and against all odds, I am celebrating my 11th birthday tomorrow! And what a ride it’s been. Since my diagnosis of nasal cancer on September 18, 2024, Momma and I have had our highs and lows. I’ve mostly felt good and pawrticipated in normal activities like walking and playing ball, but breathing is a little ruff, especially at night. Momma tries to make me feel better by telling me that she has a deviated septum and so can usually only breath out of one nostril, too, but I seriously question whether knowing that helps. 🙂
Although I’ve been doing well, I have had two bad nosebleeds since my cancer was discovered. One was a horrific incident at the RSW airport terminal in Fort Myers. When we finally got the bleeding under control, Momma decided we’d board for the 3 1/2 hour trip home to Minni. Then she pretty much held her own breath for the entire trip and wondered if she could get the pilot to land the plane if the bleeding started again. Thank goodness that viral moment incident never materialized. I slept except when she kept waking me to see if I was alive. That Momma. I also had a gastrointestinal illness one weekend that landed me in the hospital, but amazingly I pulled through. One result I’ve noticed is that my treats are of a higher quality now and there are more of them!
So on we go, enjoying the ordinary day. Thank you so much for following along with my tails of life with a maybe not-so-difficult Momma.
A special woof-out to Uncle Eric for my birthday blanket!
I thought that another blog post was in order to woof out what’s new with me. Summer is flying by faster than a dog with the zoomies.
Summertime and visits with Nanny
A highlight of summer for me is going out on our pawntoon. Here we are with our good friend Lori U the other day. Thankfully Lori brought the food so I got plenty of treats.
And here I am with a little car that Uncle Erik brought over for me when he and Lori M came over for paddleboarding. He also brought me a little can of doggie beer! Pawrty down!
Another favorite part of my summer was when Momma and I went to see Nanny in her new home. I had already been there before for a week’s stay when Momma was off on a trip, so I got to help her with directions. (“Yes, Lina, I heard you whining to turn at least ten miles out.”)
And just last weekend, I got to go stay with Nanny and Uncle Tom again when Momma went to visit the North Dakota Norgaards including my cousin and namesake Lina (Adeline) who just got engaged. Here I am just chillin’ in their gazebo and begging Tom to play ball with me.
Blue Pearl visit
I still feel pretty good and play Frisbee and ball and love my walks and treats. The other day Momma did notice a lump on my forehead though so we made another journey to Blue Pearl for a checkup. These are some pictures with our very wise vet tech, Rebecca, who called me “the perfect little girl,” and Dr. Duffy, my oncologist.
We had a good visit, and the folks there were super nice as always. I think Dr. Duffy was a little surprised to see me and even called me her little miracle dog. Unfortunately, she thinks that the lump on my forehead is the nasal tumor spreading. Thankfully, Dr. Duffy and Momma agreed to not do another CT scan and all the horrific recovery that entails.
So my cancer battle goes on for Momma and me, but we’re still chugging along. (Momma has started calling me “the little engine that could” and says “chugga-chugga-chugga” sometimes when we walk. That’s when I pretend I don’t know her.) I continue to eat heartily and go for almost daily walks. We may even have a party for my 11th birthday on August 27. As impossible as it seems, I think I’ve gained enough in dog years to surpass Momma in age! I just hope I don’t start getting those calls requesting “wellness checks” or the large fake-cheery postcards for rest homes that make Momma so mad.
Happy 4th of July! 🧨 Our celebration will be different this year because our lake’s huge fireworks show has been canceled. Do I dare woof what a relief this is? Not that there won’t be other war-like noises going off, but Momma has promised we’ll go in the basement if necessary. We make take “calming” gummies, too, she said.
To commemorate the day, however, Momma insisted our boarding friend, Lori, take a picture of us in front of our American and Minnesota flags. You will note that she is using the old clunky version of the MN flag in protest to the new one which she views as belonging in another country. Momma, the activist.
Stop Saying Gone to the Dogs!
The other day I was pawrusing Momma’s text messages and came across one from a friend saying that something “has gone to the dogs.” Seriously? I can’t begin to woof how offensive and hurtful and triggering that phrase is to me. My artificial intelligence research defines the saying as something that has become much worse, declined or deteriorated in quality, and confirms how dograding it is.
Well, I think it’s time for a change. I therefore declare that from this point forward, the saying shall be “gone to the humans.” Really, I think there are lots of humans who would agree! (Momma: “My own little Greta Thunberg.”)
Summer Fun
Okay, now that I’ve “shaken that off,” I just want to woof that I’ve been feeling good and, we’ve had some fun, too. Here are pictures of me with Momma’s law school study group (really, this group studied?) and on another play date with Winnie and Dr. Becca!
We have been busy — and not all of it fun and games. On a Saturday two weeks ago, I got really sick. The puking, diarrhea type of sick. To the point where I couldn’t eat. Momma, a wreck, took me to South Metro Animal Emergency Care in Apple Valley to get help. Her step-daughter, Talla and husband, Ken, recognizing the dire situation, came with us and helped hold things together.
The big question was whether I was throwing up, etc. because of the chemo pill I had been on for seven + months or if I ate something bad like rabbit poop. In any case they needed to get my stomach settled down. The vet in charge, Dr. Natasha Novik, was super nice and gentle with me, and recommended I be admitted to the doggie hospital to try turn things around.
Luckily, I got better overnight and the next morning, bright and early, Momma came and picked me up! Because of my upset, Blue Pearl Clinic took me off chemo and another drug for a few days, but Dr. Novik prescribed other drugs to clear up the GI issues. As you can imagine, all the drugs and changes and timing was overwhelming to Momma, and she actually had to create a flow chart of sorts to remember what to give me and when. She also changed my food to rice and chicken, but soon discovered it might not be the best for me because now I appeared to be constipated. So she Googled “can eating rice cause dogs to get constipated?” and of course she found at least one source that said yes! Should she discontinue the rice? After all, the clinic follow-up instructions suggested she give me rice and chicken! Stop using the paste in my Proviable-Forte kit (for short term use to help firm stools)? Wasn’t diarrhea the opposite of constipated? And two days had gone by!!
So, you guessed it — back to the vet. After assurances from Dr. Novik (pictured below) that I’d get better with time, we scampered home again and I began to recover. Whew!
So now on to the fun part! A week after my illness, Winnie and Dr. Becca came over as planned and we had a fun play date with treats and toys and even a boat ride…
Once again we enjoyed the wind in our ears just like the inspawration for the “Ode to a Pawntoon” trip from a few years ago ~
Then there was the fun/not fun part of my spa day with Auntie Susan. Because I really needed a bath but was a little rattled about going to the groomer, Momma’s friend, Susan (internationally known Keeshond dog breeder/exhibiter with numerous champions to her credit) offered to give me a bath at her home. Susan had the entire doggie tub setup in her basement, and she sure knows how to handle a dog!
What can I woof? Thank you, Susan! I feel like a new dog!
Shortly after we arrived home from Florida, Momma flew off for a week in Italy with girlfriends. I don’t begrudge her that because I know she does her best to care for me and totally deserves a break. And as her friend, Rachel, said when encouraging Momma to go on the trip, “Lina could probably use a break, too.” Momma is still trying to process that and whether to be insulted, but decided to just go with it.
The good news, dear readers, is that I got to spend an entire week with Nanny and Uncle Tom. It was delightful. They have a new home with a huge fenced in yard and I was free to run around to my heart’s content. Nanny was her usually wise, calming and caring self, feeding me and giving me meds and plenty of treats! And Tom pitched right in — he washed my eyes, brushed my fur and my teeth before bedtime, and calmed me down one night during a storm — none of Momma’s gummies needed! Here’s a sampling of the action.
Soon it was all over though and Nanny brought me home. All was going fine until Momma got sick. I could tell because she slept most of the day and walked with great care and shuffled like Tim Conway in the old Carol Burnett show. Oh, and she told me. Often. Looking for sympathy I think, which I was only too happy to give (support dog, remember?).
The problem with this was that Momma had contracted Covid. After two days of her hugging and cuddling and petting me largely out of guilt I think, it finally dawned on her to see if she could transmit it to me. (She was already taking her own precautions against my chemo excretions with the protective gloves and washing her hands a million times a day.) Not surprisingly, Google informed her that yes, a dog can contract Covid from a human. Momma was dogsmacked! She didn’t even dare Google what could happen if the dog was already compromised by taking chemo.
So now Momma, who wasn’t exactly a government rule follower back in the pandemic, is all of a sudden masking up and social distancing (thank goodness Google told her not to put a mask on me). It is all overwhelming to her though and she often can’t keep it straight if she’s protecting me from Covid or her from chemo. And how does it all work? How can she pet me if she has to stay six feet away? Should she not touch me at all? Should she wear a mask to bed? Should she double glove it to make sure she is not contaminated by chemo? Not even allow the occasional face or hand lick? Should we even be living in the same house?
Momma and I are leaving Paradise on April 15 and heading to Minnesota where the weather is always iffy this time of year. I just hope it doesn’t snow. As much as I look forward to going home, I will miss my time here in the Sunshine State. Weather has been good, I’ve enjoyed my excellent care from Janice at Nanny Paws, my mobile spa treatments from Karen at Love 4 Paws, and my frequent “mutt and greets” on our walks around the Cape. I will not miss the oppressive heat and humidity with my double coat of fur.
How do I know we are going home? There has been a flurry of activity around here, and the other day Momma brought out two humongous suitcases (that could double as small fish houses) and several boxes for packing and shipping. When she saw the panicky look on my face, Momma also brought out my little wheeled carrier: “See, Lina, not to worry, you’re going along.” All better.
One of the reasons I’m happy to be going home to Minni is that I’ll be able to breathe more easily in the crisp, cool (and sometimes icy) air of Minnesota. I still struggle with that a bit, especially at night, and I had a nose bleed a couple of days ago. Momma had set out my favorite game with pieces and compartments hiding little treats. So excited was I to retrieve the treats, that I must have bumped my nose when using it as a little bulldozer to move the parts around. Anyway, the bleed didn’t last long and Momma soothed me with pets and we worked together on cleaning it up.
Despite the occasional setback, I’m doing pretty well and continue on chlorambucil (chemo), Yunnan Baiyao and Panacur everyday. And food, too, of course, although do I dare mention that Momma forgot to feed me the other night? In her defense, she was juggling social obligations and did feel really badly afterwards. Of course I played it for all it was worth and got many extra treats the next day.
Okay, in fairness I must mention that I myself made a teeny tiny mistake recently when I dropped my Frisbee down the elevator shaft. And, okay, it was the second time, but who’s counting? Unfortunately, Momma and I did have to make the walk of shame to the manager’s office again to confess. However, upon advice from counsel (Uncle Chuck, Esq.), I pled the Fifth.
It all ended well, however, when our friend Danny, who works at our building, returned the Frisbee right to our front door a few days later. Thank you, Danny!
Me with a death grip on my retrieved Frisbee
Yesterday Stuart from Sunshine Booksellers/Fed Ex came by and picked up our suitcases and boxes for shipping home. Thank you Stuart! Some of you may remember that Sunshine is where I held book readings (with assistance from Momma) and pawdographing for Lina Unleashed and Sit Stay Pray a few years ago. I love those folks at Sunshine including Stuart, Theresa and Joan.
Three more sleeps left (as Auntie Lori would say) and we head home. Please wish us Bone Voyage.
Lately I have been feeling warm at night so I jump off our (kinda high) bed to the coolish wood floor for little breaks. The other night when trying to jump back up, I didn’t make it and fell back onto the area rug surrounding our bed. Just that once. And I was tired and groggy. Even so, Momma was alarmed and decided to buy some type of equipment that would help me scoot up into bed (and walk down if for some odd reason I couldn’t jump). I was not excited about this little “aid.” Didn’t Momma remember that I am an acclaimed agility blue ribbon champ?
Although I really didn’t think I needed help at all, Momma was on mission. She measured the height of the bed (28”) and because she could not find a set of stairs that tall, considered buying a ramp instead. Would I be able to make that final leap of 8”- 10” to the top of the bed in the middle of the night or would a ramp be easier? What if the ramp was too narrow and I fell off? Would she need to determine the square footage of each? Did she need to apply the Pythagorean theory to make her decision? Just kidding — Momma doesn’t know what that is.
After carefully weighing the options and considering the pros and cons and every possible danger posed by each, Momma bought a sort of lumpy set of steps, so rounded and soft it was difficult to tell where they started and ended. Here I am with the dreaded stairs.
Now what?
Momma was so concerned about another failed jump attempt in the middle of the night. though, that she decided we must have some training so I would actually use the stairs. She even invited her friend, Barb’s grandchildren —Ethan, Benjamin and Dorothy — to help out. Aren’t they cute?
Me with Benjamin, Dorothy and Ethan!
The kids were great — first we played for a bit and I showed them my large repertoire of tricks. When we turned to the stairs training, they were patient and encouraging and gave me plenty of treats. I loved those kiddos so much that I finally gave in and learned to do the stairs. Here’s a little bit of the action.
Imagine Momma’s surprise when she called me in to go to bed last night and I marched right up those steps. Now I would be safe after all! Thank you to my new special friends!
At the risk of boring you, I just had to pass along photos from my latest “spaw day.” Momma was aware I needed a bath but knew she just wasn’t “dog bathing” material. Therefore, once again, she called Love 4 Paws Mobile Grooming and Karen and her mother, Neyda, hustled right out and gave me the works: a bath, a blow dry (that was a bit much but I put on my game face), a brush out, ear cleaning, paw trim and nail trim. The whole shebang! A big woof-out to Karen and Neyda — they did a doggone good job. I also had a big surprise when I ran into my buddy, Al, on the way home! What follows is a photolog from that day.
Don’t you just love the little turquoise bows that match my leash and halter? And get this — Karen even brought me a new dress. It is so pawsome I must have gained a few pounds (Momma?!) because it didn’t fit. Nevertheless, it’s the thought that counts and I love Karen for thinking of me.
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