PatricksMom

Sending good thoughts that it's nothing.

I'm out of town now, but when I get home I'll call the vet and ask. Send me a PM if you don't hear from me by next week.

Patrick does this coming out of anesthesia and he's not at all a spook, he loves the vet's office. His vet gives him a shot of a valium-like drug (sorry, can't remember the name), just as he comes out now, and it seems to have completely prevented it from happening.

I'm tearing up. I'm so sorry that you lost your beautiful boy.

Sounds like she might need some pain management on an ongoing basis. Rimadyl is an anti-inflamatory, so it's not going to work as well if you're taking her on and off it. Is there a reason you're only using it sometimes?

I know with humans, dehydration can make it really hard to find a vein. Did they suggest why she might be dehydrated?

My beloved grandfather passed away last Thursday. In a way, it was a blessing because the last 2 weeks of his life were painful and he wanted it to be over. But since he was an incredible dog lover, and because GTers have been so supportive, it seemed appropriate to post a rememberence here, a bit from the Eulology I delivered and a bit about dogs. My grandfather taught me many things, to manage my money wisely, a good work ethic, how to have a loving and respectful marriage (of 58 years), but most importantly he taught me compassion. When I married my husband, my grandfather embraced him fully as another grandson, and over time he shared many stories with him that were too painful to share with me. One of the ones I learned, was of the time when he lived on the streets, at 14. An amazing couple, lured him in by bringing him candy, and kept him and raised him as their own. When I learned this, it all of a sudden made another of my grandfather's habbits make more sense. My grandfather loved sales, and two-for-one bargains, and whole sale clubs. And he would buy all this food, often food he didn't need, and donate it to the church food pantry. Maybe not that significant, who here hasn't done that. But he went a step further. With his donations, he always added a few bags of candy. Because, he said, no child, no matter how poor their parents, should go without some candy now and then. And this was who my grandfather was my entire life. A man who experienced many hard things, but always turned them into compassion for others. He was so proud of all of us, I only hope that we can live up to what he saw and loved in us. He used to joke that he was the best Grandfather _______ I ever had. But the truth is, he was a far better Grandfather than I could ever have wished for. And now, for GT. One of my earliest memories was my first dog, Pippin, going bannannas whenever Grandpa came to visit, or even when our car turned on to our street. Over the years, he took in so many stray dogs, just as he took in stray family members. It's a tribute to him that ever single one of his grandchildren who are out on their own, share their lives with at least one dog. And in this past year, since he was diagnosed, he has not only enjoyed the visits of his friends and families, but as often our possible our dogs. If you read all this, thank you. This is the closest I've come to processing my loss so its a bit in-articulate.

Don't beat yourself up, we all make mistakes and you handled it well. I had to call the vet to find out how bad it was that I took Patrick's soloxine (turns out once, not that big a deal.)

Last time this came up I asked about that (why we stay awake and they don't) and Dr. Feeman posted a through and helpful explanation.

I'd do some x-rays, and some bloodwork (tick-born diseases can cause joint problems.) If you end up being sure it's arthritis, you might try switching glucosamine brands, and you will probably need to add some pain management on top of this. But you definitly want to figure out what's going on; for arthritis exercise is actually good, for other problems, not necessarily.

I wonder if quack grass is the same as crab grass. That's what Patrick carefully selects. Same as Susan though, only in my yard where I know there are no chemicals.

My question (Dr. Bill, are you reading?) is would this sort of cleaning be useful for a dog who can't go under anesthia for some medical reason? As for me, I'll keep doing the full dental--so far Patrick has all his teeth and I'd like to keep it that way!

If at all possible, I'd wait and see how your dog does before you redo your whole yard. Patrick has zero interest in eating plants, except crap grass, which he carefully picks out. Bulbs, bushes, flowers, veggies, he doesn't touch. Now our yard is small, so the grass takes a horrible beating (and I really can't imagine a ground cover in the world that would hold up to him.) The problem I have had is with him trampling in the garden, so I bought some of that 2 foot high stick in the ground fencing for the veggie garden--for some reason he pretty much stays out of the flower beds on his own. I do avoid using any chemicals in the yard, safer for him, my bunnies, and us.

I do think Cosequine's great and I've used it for years, but if you can't afford it you can't afford it. I've had to ask before if there are less expensive medication options available. Imo, a vet should provide alternatives whenever possible. Lots of people here use Greyhound Gangs glucosamine and seem really pleased with it--perhaps that's an option.

When Glucosamine stopped working, our vet felt that it was still worth using, just that it was time to add pain medication on top of it. If you just did X-rays and they were clean, it sounds like arthritis. What pain medication did you use, and at what dose? It may be that just wasn't the right med. for her, or the right dose--sorting these things out takes time.

Glad to hear he's starting to do better, the hair growth will probably take a while, in my experience.

I'm so sorry for your loss.

Yep, on a lot of dogs the fur is sparser there and coarser.

It could be a sebaceous cyst--Patrick's was between his toes, and it sounded like that (without the callous). I'd have a vet have a look.

I think (if my fading memory is correct) that it doesn't protect against everything the heartworm pills do, so you might want to test annually to be safe. I've used it (well, the vet's used it) for several guinea pigs that have shown up with mites--it's amazing how many different species it's safe for.

Good news about Duke--not about the arthritis but that it's not cancer. Patrick would like to tell him to be a good boy and take his meds and his joints won't hurt anymore. Out of curiousity, what did NGAP recommend for pain relief?

Epson salts should help it feel better, if nothing else. According to my vet, benadryl won't help with healing, and if your dog is a real licker, the antibiotic cream just encourages them to lick it off. Have you tried "taping" a baby sock on, with vet wrap at the top of it?

Did Purina change their formula? Seems like a lot of companies are doing that (and not really telling us)--I wonder if he's sensitive/allergic to something new maybe.

Ouch, that poor baby. I'm glad you're taking him to the vet and that he's with you now. How are he and Duke getting along?

You are so not the worst mom ever. These decisions are horrible ones to make, but you're doing it out of love for Hershey, trying to ensure that his remaining life is as comfortable and enjoyable as possible. If it makes you feel better, I think I'd do the same thing in your place. I'm so sorry this is happening, and I'll keep both of you in my prayers.