Mabel came to us from SAINTS in February of 2007. You can read some of her history here from the SAINTS blog. Mabel came to our house to die. She was urinating blood and she had a big cancer tumour on her neck. As soon as she arrived she commandeered the laundry room as her domain. It was quiet and she could sleep and be out of the way of the thundering herds in our house. She quickly made her presence known which is not easy in a house with 7 other dogs. We asked nothing of Mabel and gave her everything she wanted. She quickly made her food preferences known. She liked the raw food we fed the other dogs but she had a real penchant for chicken and Cesar dog food. One day we gave her ham – she was fairly sure that it was heaven on earth. The next time we cooked a ham she barked at the stove for 90 minutes straight while it boiled. She could smell it and she wanted it!
Mabel lived life on her own terms. She preferred to be dirty and smelly and would turn into a Tazmanian Devil whenever Deb bathed her. She often connected but I don’t think she ever drew blood but it was not for lack of trying.
After several months at our house Mabel developed a small tumour on her leg. We took her to the vet and had it treated. In the beginning they thought it was a lick granuloma but it never healed. At the same time the vet checked her teeth and she needed a dental. She seemed healthy enough so we opted to have blood work done and if all was ok we would proceed with the dental. Her blood work was not only ok, her liver and kidney function had improved. So, we went ahead with the dental and had the tumour removed. She came through it like a trooper!
She enjoyed two summers at our house. She would do her daily constitutional around the yard and then come back in. We had a couple of scares like when she became quite disorientated while on antibiotics for her leg but she improved again.
Mabel lived for food. She ate 4 or more times a day usually within a time period of four hours. Deb would feed her and Mabel would bark an hour later and Deb would swear and feed her again not believing that a little dog could eat so much. I found it quite amusing that Deb would attempt to ‘reason’ with Mabel. She would say things like: “You just ate! You can’t be hungry again” and Mabel would continue to bark. Then my favourite line was: “If you stop barking I can feed you more quickly” and Mabel would bark louder. She simply did not care. We were her slaves – she knew it and never let us forget it.
Rest easy Miz Mabel-Mae. You were a force to be reckoned with and you were loved.
Dispatches from the Swamp 
*Sniff*
They very much become our children…
You must be heart-broken, but kudos to you both for having the hearts to be good parents/guardians/pets for these creatures.
*hugs*
I’m sorry for your loss. Mabel sounds like she was a world class tyrant…you gave her a wonderful last couple of years.
It was a very nice thing you do for the animals and
Mabel was very lucky to be with people that care.
there is so many that need help.
I was very touched, and so happy there are people that care. Pat
I’m so impressed that you would have the courage and stamina to care for a dying dog. And she lived so long — no doubt due to your love and care. Sorry for your loss; losing a pet is never easy.
It was both sad and strange not seeing Mable Mae yesterday you guys and I sure agree that Mable Mae was so happy to be there and so well taken care of. Thanks for having me and taking care of all those wonderful animals. Eva
What you can’t see on the back of Maybee’s black t-shirt is the word “Gangster”. That shirt fit her just perfectly in so many ways.