Lucy portrait stage 3

So far her portrait is going very slowly; I keep skirting round the canvas unable to pay too much attention to her features. I think that I am avoiding really getting into her details as some small superstition - the longer I take to paint her - the longer she will be with us. So please bear with me on this. The portrait doesn't look much yet - just starting to fill-in areas of colour. I managed to apply brush to canvass today but my heart is not really in it. Lucy is lying here by my side. She is now being able to drink water without vomiting, but she has not had any food for three days, and only managed to 'sip' a small amount of watered down baby food this morning - chicken-flavoured - her favourite - FRANGO! We carried her out this morning to do 'her business'... just a few minutes on the grass and then carried her back home. She is resting now, but Robin knows something is not right with her and does his best to comfort her - keeps licking her ears and tries to get some reaction from her. I have to rebuke him so that Lucy has some peace, but I sense he is just doing what he feels is needed - a dog's way! Each hour I try to temp her with more 'baby food' but she really doesn't seem interested. It breaks my heart to see her like this, which is why her portrait will take so much time. I think I will spend a thousand hours at least to complete it!!!!... or maybe even longer!!! Yes, I am very superstitious! I know that her portrait will turn out beautiful on completion and will be a heart-felt tribute to her. So please do not 'judge' the portrait as it is now - her eyes need doing and nose etc etc... it is very much a work in progress, just so you can see how I paint. Judge my work on the final portrait, as they say an artist is only as good as his last piece; this will be my largest portrait and my greatest! One million hours and counting!
4:30pm... Lucy just left with my wife for her daily visit to the Vet; I hope he has good news about her. Robin needs his second walk of the day so I will take him now and lose myself in thought and let him 'drag' me around the park and everywhere else... revisiting HIS 'peemails'!