Story as told by Natalie Amendola who was there:

Late last night, as Heather was heading to bed, she noticed Rocket had not put himself in bed as he and her other dogs do every night. Upon searching for him, Rocket was found lying in the yard, barely breathing. Rocket often walked around the yard at night so it was not odd that he was out there, but certainly odd he was found like this, since hours before he had been playing flyball, full of life as always. He had eaten his dinner well and had napped on the couch as usual. Panicked, she carried him to the car, called her friend and headed to the emergency vet. They wheeled him in on a gurney, and Heather and her friend waited for news. Doctor reported a body temperature of 94 and a low heart rate. They put heat on him to warm him back up as they think he may have lost consciousness in the yard and that caused his body temperature to drop. They went to run blood tests and came back with grim results. Lots of red on the paper, most concerning was his blood sugar at 26 and his potassium at 3.1, both very low numbers. What first came to the doctor's mind was xylitol poisoning. That he had perhaps found some gum. Second option was an insulinoma, a tumor that makes too much insulin. The doctor told us he was convulsing constantly. His brain function was low. The news settled heavy in the room. Her friend shook her head, this couldn't be happening. Heather began to weep. Heather asked if we could try more, the doctor's mouth tentatively said yes, his face told a different story. He told her that Rocket would never be the same, he had neurological damage and if he did make it past this stage he wouldn't be the same dog she knew mentally or physically. Her friend asked if Heather wanted to see him, so they walked slowly back. The doctor warned them it would be hard. There was Rocket, covered in blankets, warm air being blown into his cage, hooked up to fluids...convulsing. Over and over and over and over without end. This couldn't be Rocket. He's too strong. He was fine a few hours ago. The doctor said that usually within 30 minutes blood sugar would improve, there had been no improvement. Heather told the doctor how great he was, he had been in commercials, he was the best dog, loved to perform...and asked what he would do if this was his dog. His answer coupled with Rocket's convulsing body led them to the decision that no more pain would be the kindest end. On November 4th, 2013, Heather said goodbye to a best friend, a dog that made everyone his family and put his heart and soul into everything he did and lived with an intense passion that will never be matched. Rocket will never be forgotten. Commercial star, agility lover, flyball enthusiast. His kisses still linger on all our faces.