seeh2o

Carl is about 76lbs, I used to have to give him 5mg for his SA so that I could get out of the house and he wouldn't destroy things. I'd give it to him 20 - 30 min. before leaving. It didn't make him dopey, just took the edge off. (he doesn't need it anymore!) Good luck with the xray visit and the results.

I agree, after all the troubles people seem to have been having with Nutro, I'd switch immediately. I'm glad she's doing better!

Carl had really bad diarrhea which led to a lot of blood. We were on a walk when he started bleeding, it was so awful, it just looked like it was pouring out. Bear in mind I'm phobic about blood, so maybe a little looked like a lot. The blood was probably mixed with the clear liquid from the big D, so it looked worse than it was. They gave him an injection and Flagyl at the vet, white rice and pumpkin for a week or so and he was on the mend, it took about a week for everything to "firm up". Good luck to you both, please keep us posted.

I'm so sorry. I lost my dog Chaka to cancer very quickly. It was way too late to think about treatment. Everyone told me I would know when it was time, that she would let me know. There's no way to explain it, but they were right. It is one of the hardest things I've had to do. My best advice is to soak him up in the time you have left, make sure he knows how much you love him (he already knows), spoil him rotten. Try to have your friends and family who are a part of his life come to visit him, it's helpful to you, them and him. I also cut a tiny bit of Chaka's fur before she passed to keep for myself in a special box.

My boy, Finn (7) had an episode of head tremors that lasted about 3 minutes last week for the first time. Scared the holy crap out of me. Did a GT search and internet search on the symptoms and it certainly didn't seem like seizure behavior, as he was alert and responsive to me, including following me around the house. I'm betting that it was a low blood sugar response... not enough cookies during the day between meals. Anyhow, started a journal with as much detail as I could remember, in case this happens again. Carl has had them a few times, he was clear eyed and responsive, so it clearly wasn't a seizure. They even happened after dinner, so it wasn't a blood sugar problem. I started a journal as well. What my neighbor (who Carl sits frequently) and I figured out, it is related to his ears. If he has a head tremor I clean his ears and no more head tremors. One time when I was cleaning his ears prophylacticly, I hit the nerve that seems to cause the tremor and it happened while his head was in my hands. As much as it looks like a tremor, when I was cleaning his ear it felt, with his head in my hands, more like a site specific shiver. Try cleaning your dog's ears, it might be the key!

Thanks! Today he has gone all day without a band aid and has only fussed at it once (he's been next to me all day, my velcro boy). He's playing with his Kong treat dispenser right now, so I think he's on the mend. Tomorrow I think we'll be able to go for our walk in the morning, sans t-shirt (uh, on HIM!) and band aid. I'm still debating on what to do while I'm at work. He'll be muzzled for sure, I'll probably put the t shirt on him just for my piece of mind. My neighbor may be able to Carl-sit for part of the day, too.

Carl has been wearing a t-shirt for the wound near his front leg, but the one he wants to fuss with is on his rear left flank where he can reach easily. I've been putting giant band-aids on it with coach/sports tape. He still tries to lick it, but at least for last night, he left it alone. One thing I just saw (and bought) for the first time is Neosporin Spray which has an antiseptic in it as well as an antibiotic. It really seems to help a lot, it really seems to make it less painful. I plan to always keep some it in my pet emergency kit now. It's tough for me to do hydro therapy because I have a bath tub and the location of the wounds make it hard (ok, nearly impossible) for me to get Carl in the bathtub...and it's an old tub, so it's really tall. I hate to subject him to a cold hose outside. Would it work to take him outside and pour a warm pitcher of water on the injuries? I really appreciate any insight or advice I receive here, this is a first for me!

I came home last night and Carl had a gash on his chest, one on his side and big one on his left flank. The cleaning lady said he was with her in the house all day. I suspect he went outside while she was working in the kitchen and scraped up against a branch outside, that's what it looks like as all the lacerations are about the same height and similar in shape. I cleaned him up last night, he ate and drank like normal, he was not in shock. I took him to the vet today, just in case, well...they put 2 staples in his side and 4 in his flank, none on his chest (too little skin and too close to the bone is my guess). I put him in a t-shirt when we got home so he wouldn't worry the front two wounds and I put a loose self-adhesive gauze pad on the flank. He got a shot of antibiotics and will start amoxicillin tomorrow, the staples come out in two weeks. My question is, can I, or should I, put EMT gel on any of the stapled wounds? Edited to add that I hacked the H*LL out of any possible branches today and thoroughly scoured the interior of the house (just in case). More yard work will be done on Sunday, none tomorrow because I have to work all day.

I'd guess it's a tooth problem, too. Even the screaming when her head is down could be the tooth/gum throbbing when her head goes down and pressure is applied to it. I know when I had a toothache the last thing I wanted to do was lean my head onto the side with the pain.

LOL, thanks. Extremis malis extrema remedia!

I just posted some of this in a different thread, but I'll put it here, too. Carl had some nasty SA and also was destructive, particularly with the door and the door frame. He also tore up his crate, cut himself up and actually broke soldered joints in the crate. No more crate for us. Carl had some real separation anxiety issues when I got him and he HATES to be crated, so that was not an option. We've worked through it, but we do have a very strict ritual when I leave for the day (we start off with a long walk in the morning 1 - 2 miles). Carl and I did alone training (I looked like a crazy woman...in the house...out of the house...in the house...out of the house). We also had to resort to medication for a few months, but that's completely over with. The few final things that helped the most: Carl wears a muzzle while I'm gone; I give him (and my other dog) each a treat ball filled with goodies to keep them busy; sprinkle some loose kibble on and around his bed so he can stay busy trying to find it; and, using my home phone and cell phone as a baby monitor. I use T Mobile, so I set my home phone as a Fav 5 (unlimited calls to that number). Just before stepping out the door for work I'd call my home phone from my cell, put the home phone on speaker phone, place it in a strategic location and make sure the speaker was turned all the way up, mute my cell and listen. Whenever I heard a ruckus, crying or howling I'd unmute the cell and yell, "Carl, NO"...instant silence. He thought I was there with him, but that he couldn't see me (hmmmm, kind of like on the show Heroes - I was invisible AND omniscient, ok, maybe more like the Wizard in the Wizard of Oz, the one behind the curtain!). At first I'd have to do that for an hour or two and did a lot of "NOing", then it dropped down to an hour, then 45 min, 30, 20 and now, no more at all. That lasted for about 6 weeks or so. It was the best use of my cell phone I've ever come up with (outside of using it for 911 calls on the freeway). I don't even have home set as a Fav 5 anymore...no need! Carl was also on Clomicalm (75mg per day) for about 3 months along with a half tab of Valium about 1/2 hour before I would leave for work. I hated to use the medication, but looked at it for what it is meant for - a tool to help him learn new behavior and eventually feel confident enough through using the new behavior to be weaned off the medication and be ok at home with my other dog, Sheila a Shiba Inu/Chow mix. I'm soooo glad it worked. Carl has been off his medication now for about 2 months. It's like having a new dog, he's so great and he's happy, too. Good luck!

I'm so sorry. I'm glad you had many happy years together and were able to be with her until the end.

Sheila has PetCare, they were fantastic and paid all of her claims when she developed SARDS and lost her vision. No questions asked, every. They paid 70% of about $3000 in claims. Payment was prompt and one time they called to apologize because the check was delayed over the holidays. Nice people to work with. Carl is with PetFirst. Unfortunately, PetCare's rates for purebreds were too steep for my pocketbook. I called them to see if they could work with me, but their hands were tied. I even tried to "educate" them...I told them what both vets I use have said - that racing greyhounds are one of the healthiest of purebreds because they've had most genetic/hereditary diseases and aggression bred out of them. It didn't work, so I went with PetFirst. I haven't needed to use it yet, but it had good reviews. I know a lot of people here, and one of the vets I use, feel insurance isn't necessary, that it is enough to put the money aside in an interest bearing savings account. That just wouldn't work for me. And when Sheila was sick and the bills and vet ophthalmologist bills started rolling in I was grateful to have it. That year alone it paid for itself throughout the entire time I've had it. Someone posted this link a few months ago, it helped me a lot - it's a good starting off place for research. Unfortunately, PetCare is not listed on it.

Frontline Plus here, too. I buy Omega-3 from Trader Joe's, the human stuff. Carl gets one a day. That along with the Eagle Pack is making him grow fur on his thighs and chest. How manly!

I've gotten to the point all I have to do is dab a little peanut butter on the end and he thinks he's gone to heaven!

He spoke his peace about it when you two were trying to decide how to proceed. You BOTH made the choice to move forward with the treatment. He was part of the decision making process. I'm sure you were both keenly aware the consequences of your decision, financial sacrifices. Now he needs to keep his "buyers remorse" to himself. His remarks are not helpful to you, to him or to your relationship. He needs to find a way to make peace with it and not by making passive aggressive snarky remarks. It's time for all of you to move forward. This is the kind of stuff that crumbles the foundation of a relationship...long slow chipping away. I have to completely agree with what BlackandBrindle posted. I admit that my back goes up against the wall when passive aggressive behavior comes into the picture. It makes be become very concrete and try to be as clear as possible, so if my response above sounds a bit "tough love"-like, that's where it comes from. All viewed and processed through our our filters. I'm so sorry for what you and your family are going through. Please take good care of yourselves. Edited for clarification.

That's fantastic. Remission happened so quickly, that is so exciting. I'm glad she's feeling well, too!

WHEW!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Congratulations to you and Loca. Have a very good night's sleep tonight (I'm guessing there haven't been too many of those in the past days).

Do most vets do this? Her reluctance to go potty continues and she's drinking more. I hope he finds something because she's just not right, right now The appointment has been moved up to 1:45 since there will be cats coming in at 3 . That's a good sign though, that the vet's staff listened when I told them that neither is small animal friendly. I agree, I would guess they would want a new urine test. If it's anything like what we do for humans, if the dipstick they run at the vet's office shows a UTI they may send it out for further analysis to see if the bacteria are resistant to specific antibiotics. That's how they decide which course of medication to give. Though patients aren't sent home to wait, they are given a baseline antibiotic. If the results indicate a resistance to that medication we call and switch to something the test shows is non-resistant. Good luck with the new vet and hugs to Sadie!

It does sound like she's trying to find a "den" to feel safe and quiet in. One of my dogs has always sought out a "den" in the house, now that she's a senior and blind she still likes to be in her den. Maybe you could make her a soft sided den out of cushions, something she could get in and out of easily.

For the two people who checked that vets are not "real" doctors, I work with doctors every day and have been told by many of them that it was much easier to become a medical doctor for humans. They have acknowledged that, in many ways, vets (and pharmacists) are smarter than they are. Medical doctors only have to learn about ONE species, whereas vets must learn about a multitude of species....mammals, reptiles, aquatic, etc. And they get paid peanuts comparatively. Well, that leads to a conversation about our pathetic, unbalanced medical system, insurance companies and the pharmaceutical industry, so I'll end this post here!

I'm so sorry about the news. Make sure you spoil him like crazy and enjoy your days with him, he already knows how much you love him (and you already know how much he loves you). Peace to you, Hobbes and your family.

Gosh, I am so sorry, I can feel how scared you were from your post. It's great that you were able to overcome your fear and remembered to get the ice pack and have the p/b and pill ready for when he could take it. I'm glad your s/o was able to go home and be with all of you, it is very frightening to go through these things alone. Good thoughts to Henry and your family.

How is Shelby doing?

Me, too. And keep an eye on her. It sounds good if she is eating cheese, I don't know if she would eat if she were in shock.