Storybook Farm wheelchair-bound dog Krumm dies suddenly

DISABLED Gold Coast pup Krumm, who is known internationally as the cute little ‘wheely-dog’ face of a renowned animal charity Storybook Farm, has sadly died. His grief-stricken owner says ‘my heart is simply, unequivocally, broken’.

THE well-loved furry face of Storybook Farm Sacred Animal Garden, disabled dachshund Krumm, has been described as an “angel with attitude” by his devoted owner after his unexpected death on Sunday.

Krumm, 9, died on the weekend due to underlying cancer or a spider bite, Storybook Farm founder Lisa-Jayne Cameron told the Bulletin.

She said the fearless pup suddenly went downhill within a matter of hours after taking him to an animal hospital when he began throwing up.

“I’m okay for a little while, then get a horrible wave of grief that takes your breath away,” she said.

The usually-happy pup’s condition deteriorated rapidly on Sunday. Picture Glenn Hampson.

Ms Cameron said Krumm, who suffered from crippling disease IVDD and was wheelchair bound with his hind legs, had touched many people’s lives with his determination to live life to the fullest.

“We could all do to be a bit more like Krumm,” she said. “He was special because of his refusal to act like a well mannered dog. He was unashamedly him, he had an opinion on everything.”

Ms Cameron said he lived life so fast that he often took off and left his wheels behind.

“He was naughty and noisy, he destroyed so many sets of wheels,” she remembered fondly. “But Krumm would turn into a different dog (when we visited people in need) and go to the person that needed him most.

Krumm the Dachshund was the face of Storybook Farm. Picture: NIGEL HALLETT

“We had a motorbike accident victim unwilling to do exercises. Krumm did exercises with him and three weeks later we were told this person got back into it because “the f--king dog put him to shame....”

“He was magic. We called him the ‘angel with attitude’.”

Ms Cameron posted her heartbreak to Facebook earlier this morning as people left heart-felt tributes.

Krumm dressed as a firedog at the Wynnum wiener walk.

“I have been trying to write this post for two days now,” she wrote.

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“I am completely and utterly devastated, so bloody distraught I can barely breathe …

“Our beautiful, naughty, definitely one-of-a-kind boy Krumm died Sunday night in hospital …

“Please bear with me as I’m struggling to write this.

“All here at Storybook are in a world of pain and deep shock.”

Ms Cameron said Krumm was his usual happy self on Sunday morning but suddenly vomited in the car on the way to a fundraising event that afternoon.

He was rushed to the emergency vet where his condition worsened drastically and fluid developed in his abdomen and chest.

Lisa-Jayne Cameron with dachshunds Krumm, Betty and Nanook. Picture Glenn Hampson

“We were there all day and into the night but our boy steadily got worse,” she said.

Ms Cameron said Krumm originally came to her when his owner couldn’t keep up with his disease when he was three years old.

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Krumm has acted as the ambassador for disabled animals for years and was a rising film star after appearing in Gold Coast-filmed movie Swinging Safari.

But it was his role as best mate to Ms Cameron that has left a gaping hole in her heart.

“I literally haven’t gone to an event without my dear friend in years, he has been by my side everywhere I go everyday since his arrival years ago, he slept in my bed, at night we would sit up late watching movies together and to see him leave our sanctuary yesterday to go to the crematorium was more than I could bear,” she said.

Lisa-Jayne Cameron with Krumm (L) and Cody. Photo by Richard Gosling

“My knees literally gave way and I couldn’t stand due to the weight of pain that washed over me.

“My heart is simply, unequivocally, broken. My children are inconsolable. I am deeply grateful to have a busy sanctuary to run as it is this very work that is keeping me together at the moment. Krumm would have expected nothing less of me.

“We were so blessed to have him,” she said, adding he had also recently fought off illness earlier this year.

Ms Cameron plans to hold a memorial for Krumm on the Gold Coast with a date yet to be determined.

His remains will be cremated and once the Farm finds a permanent home, his ashes will be distributed in a memorial garden.