Our Beloved Kaija!

May 1, 1994 - March 14, 2005

In Fall 2004, we learned that Kaija was diagnosed with bone cancer, osteosarcoma. This was now the second type of cancer she had to face in her short lifetime. As a result, she had to have her right front leg amputated in October. Then we embarked on a series of chemotherapy treatments for her. We had been very pleased with how well she was getting around on three legs and progressing through her chemo treatments. She finished her chemo in mid-February 2005 and we thought all was fine. Her chest x-ray was clear. But in mid-March she was having a tougher time getting outside each day.

Sunday, March 13th, was a special struggle. That evening she had two seizures and we immediately rushed her to the emergency clinic. In only 3 weeks, the cancer had spread to her lungs. The x-rays showed spots all over. We waited overnight to hear from Kaija's chemo vet, he confirmed that the cancer had spread to her chest. He was especially concerned because her breathing had become quite labored overnight. But more importantly, she was having two brain function problems. First her eyes had begun twitching constantly--the results of what he said was vestibular disease. Second, the seizures continued. Since these functions come from two different parts of the brain, the vet was confident that she also had a brain tumor.

We had learned from the chemo vet that at most, she had 1 - 3 weeks left. We spoke at length with our favorite surgeon, Dr. John Payne, who's been fantastic providing excellent care for Kaija over the past 3-1/2 years for everything from her first tumor removal, to her knee replacement, to her amputation. He said that if she were his dog, he would not bring her home. He stressed that he would want to remember his dog from happier times rather than when she was struggling so much.

So on March 14th, with Dr. Payne's help, we put Kaija to sleep and we were there holding her as she slipped away in God's hands. We see clearly now that we were her caretakers here on Earth. We wanted to do all we could for her because she gave so much to us throughout her life. Because of that, we now see God's hand intervening to take her home. That was the only way we could ever let go--if He said no more. But what a time of year to give her into His hands--Easter! A celebration of resurrection and new life!

Kaija loved people and was a phenomenal ambassador for her breed. She brought so much happiness and joy into not only our lives, but the lives of hundreds of other people. We have been overwhelmed at all the cards and emails that we have received because of her passing--from neighbors, friends, former students, co-workers, and family. She touched each of them, not always in person but through stories I would share with students (both in on-campus courses as well as in online courses), and with the countless people who would walk by our home each day on our busy street. Kaija's name was well known amongst the hundreds of students she met at the Pitt library school, where I was an adjunct since 1997. She loved meeting all of them over the years, joining me for classes monthly and even weekly in Summer 2004. Kaija treated each person the same, greeting them with a huge smile and a kiss, if they were willing. Everyone could not help but walk away with a smile on their own face.

We talked for years about having a professional photo taken of us with Kaija so that we would always remember her. We regret so much that we postponed having our pictures taken. But shortly after her death, we found an incredibly talented wildlife artist, Judy Schrader, who paints portraits and lives in the Allegheny National Forest here in Western Pennsylvania. She painted a beautiful portrait for us that now hangs proudly in our family room.

Even now after Kaija's passing, she still brings a smile to our faces every single day: Kaija's Portrait

Because she gave so much to us, we hope to remember her by writing a book this summer. In the meantime, here are various Web pages we've created to share her life and experiences with people over the years.

Thank you for allowing us to share our dog
with so many people over the years.


Thank you to so many of you for bringing happiness
to our beloved Kaija in her wonderful life!!

Home
2008 -- http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~missy/OurKaija.html
Missy Harvey
Computer Science Librarian
Senior Librarian
Engineering & Science Library
Carnegie Mellon University
Pittsburgh, PA 15213