Buck and Molly
Our Flat Coat Retriever, Buck, was diagnosed with cancer on New Year's Eve of 1997. At the time I was a homebuilder in the Raleigh area and had just built a home for Dr. Sylvester Price, oncologist at the NC State College of Veterinary Medicine. Dr. Mike Bagley of Clayton Animal Hospital, our local vet, called Dr. Price who arranged to immediately see Buck at the College. At first the outlook was guarded with maybe an 8 month life expectancy, however, with Buck's incredible will to live and the kind and compassionate care he received at the College of Veterinary Medicine, he lived another 2 1/2 years. Buck was 15 when he died, an age unheard of for a Flat Coat. His quality of life was fantastic and he enjoyed coming to see his friends Petra and Franchette for treatments.
Fast forward to the present, our Golden Retriever, Molly, needed an MRI to diagnose a hip problem and once again we were referred to the College of Veterinary Medicine by Dr. Bagley. While waiting in the lobby, I started talking to a kind gentleman in a red coat. I asked him what his job was and he said he was a volunteer and just tried to help anyone who needed it while they were clients of the Vet School. I asked how I could become a volunteer and he introduced me to Valerie Ball, Director of Client Services. Today I volunteer regularly at the Vet School and I enjoy every hour. My wife, Betty, and I are very thankful that a facility like the NC State College of Veterinary Medicine is available for the care of our dogs. I tell my friends I have gone from President of a homebuilding company to Chief pooper scooper and I couldn't be happier! -Randolph Reid
Chance
Only two years old, Chance weighs 1300 pounds and stands taller than me. His size doesn’t matter, though – he is still a baby, my baby, and gives me a kiss every morning when I feed him breakfast and every night when I see him to bed. It’s a special moment for this “Gentle Giant” and me, especially since every day he lives to kiss me is truly a miracle.
When Chance, the first horse I had ever owned from birth, was five months old, my veterinarian, Dr. Younger sent him to the NC State College of Veterinary Medicine's Large Animal Hospital due to severe colic symptoms, warning me that Chance might not survive the trip. The veterinarians there discovered he had a deformity in his intestines. Throughout the treatment and recovery, Dr. Sheats and Dr. Gerard carefully reviewed all possible options, candidly discussing with me the risks and benefits of each. Surgery was the best option. Over the last year and a half, Chance has had three major surgeries. The hospital became Chance’s second home, with him spending nearly as much time there as in his own barn. Thanks to the efforts and love of Dr. Sheats, Dr. Gerard, and the rest of the hospital staff, however, Chance is now happy and at home with me, where he belongs, sharing the kisses that he deserves. -Robin Freeman
Sunshine Bittner
Sunshine rescued me in July, 2002, three months after my husband, John, had died of pancreatic cancer. She burrowed herself deeply into my heart and soul, giving me such joy, love, and companionship. She moved with me 3200 miles across the country to Idaho in 2005 in the back seat of my car, resting her sweet head on the back cushion so she could track my parents, following us in their car. She loved hiking with the "Hiker Chix" and Mountain West Outdoor Club in the Boise foothills, Bogus Basin trails and Sun Valley trails. Most of all, she made me laugh, with her impish grin, one-ear-up-one-ear-down, let's play bows, tag around the dining table, joyish running and turning on a dime, and doggie angels in the snow. Her sweet and gentle spirit will be in my spirit forever.
2001-2007. Gift of God and John. -Denise Bittner
Target
He was under a car in a busy parking lot, scared and hungry, about a year old and not neutered yet. Ironic that it was at a Target store since his beautiful tabby pattern, called classic tabby, formed a perfect bull's eye on each side. We think he was abandoned there, it's hard to imagine because he was such a sweet cat, how lucky I was to find him. Target loved company and would greet them, and drool when you scratched his head and chin. He had to leave us much too soon following complications from a urinary blockage, we didn't want him to suffer any longer. I hope his story will remind people how important it is to spay and neuter their pets to prevent so many homeless pets, and that I see you again someday, Target! - Jane Thompson
