BauersMom

I can certainly see Kyle's point and the one-sided issue in that article. It is a personal opinion piece, and not worth much in the way of helpful information. [How many NGAP adopters with limping dogs and clear x-rays did the author totally freak out?] The reality is a personal decision, period. If you think it is wrong for you and your dog, then don't do the amp. If you do, then do it. I will not chastise anyone for making either decision, and I am not going to debate over what is "right" for anyone else. I think everyone in this thread feels the same. But I will say one last thing and then I'm out of this discussion... while I find most of the article to be lacking, this sentence is just downright silly: "Our vet prescribed Rimadyl and Tramadol, two drugs that always spell ‘terminal’ to me because that’s what we use on almost all of our terminal dogs."

I think most people who are facing the osteo decisions are right there with you. Most of the bad reactions I've seen or experienced first hand were transitory, and if I had thought Berkeley was suffering in any way, I could not have hesitated to make the decision. Perhaps a small percentage of folks let it go too long, but that isn't an osteo-specific scenario.

I think you misunderstood Kyle's point. He's not saying that opting for euthanasia at the time of diagnosis is ignorant, he's saying that the author of the article saying "there are no options other than euthanasia" is ignorant.

People don't know about the other facilities. They're making the decision based on the evidence we DO know about Diamond. If you can read that report and continue to trust Diamond manufacturing, I find that more concerning than trusting a different company who has yet to have any report published about them...

For those of you interested in our little OSU fundraiser, see this link: http://www.crowdrise.com/RunningfortheRacers/ If we reach $500 raised, we will kick in $100. If we hit $1000, we will add in $200, and if we hit $2000, then we will donate $300.

I have a friend who is dealing with some urinary issues with one of her cats, so I looked this up... it's made from beetles? And it's an.... aphrodisiac? http://beneforce.com/informationfaq/homeopathic/cantharis.htm

Stamford is a hike from SE CT. Depending on where you're looking for a vet, Dr. Cardosa over in RI is greyhound-savvy: http://bigrivervet.com/about.asp There's also Dr. Michelson at Montville Animal Hospital and Old Lyme Veterinary Hospital that local adoption groups have used as vets.

I had a similar problem with my 13 year old. I would have to wrestle her to be able to pill her, and even then, with all the squirming, I couldn't get the pill in far enough so that she couldn't yack it up. Fighting with my geriatric dog just wasn't what I wanted to do anymore so for everyone's sake we had the meds compounded as liquid suspension, and then it was much easier to shoot it in her mouth. Not an option for all meds, but thankfully was for what she was on. This won't help you now but may be worth the owners looking in to if she continues to refuse the pills...

For some reason, I had the moment Berkeley broke his leg hit me at the gym today unexpectedly. I choked back tears... and have been feeling pretty down all night. It's so hard. It'll be two months on the 12th, but it's still very raw for me. In some better news - my husband and I are working out a fundraising effort for OSU for our upcoming marathon/half marathon. As soon as we have the details, I'll pass them on.

Actually, there's been a lot of research on vaccines for cancer in humans. It's not a new concept. See one for prostate cancer: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Provenge

I would do some forced rest first and see if it resolves in a few days. If not, then I would go for a vet visit. Could be a lot of different things, and he may need a short course of anti-inflammatories if it's a soft tissue thing. I would do some forced rest first and see if it resolves in a few days. If not, then I would go for a vet visit. Could be a lot of different things, and he may need a short course of anti-inflammatories if it's a soft tissue thing.

Berkeley's limp was intermittent and for a period of a few months, went totally away. Every case is different. Have you checked his pads for anything that might look like a corn? Limping can be any number of things, so try not to worry until the vet visit! (I know, easier said than done)

Godspeed, Hurley.

What was in the salve you used? Some dogs are also very allergic to fleas (even a few of them...), though I haven't heard of swelling of the face with fleas.

I am so sorry! Crap, what a week.

I am so, so sorry, Kyle.

I am so sorry. Hugs to you. I would definitely get it checked out - hopefully it's nothing! So sorry to hear about Huck. You are going to need something stronger than Tylenol (heck, I wouldn't use Tylenol at all...?). Can he get deramaxx, tramadol, and/or gabapentin with his IBD treatment?

If the limp is unexplained, or doesn't resolve with rest and NSAIDs, it's worth an x-ray. How often it happens is not as important a measure, based on my own experiences.

Use the good ear to 'anchor' whatever wrap you are using. Cut a slit and pull the good ear through. Should help stabilize the wrap without it needing to be too tight. Here is Berkeley, post-ear stitches.

I was thinking the same thing this afternoon. Each of these recent losses has me crying all over again. The October pups, including our Bee Wiseman, have been gone for six months now. I really miss my girl today. I miss her everyday. We were in that October crew too, with Ivy. This is shaping up to be one of those months where you're afraid to look in Remembrance for fear of another loss.

Agreed. Hugs to everyone dealing with this nasty disease, whether a new diagnosis or facing the hard decision. It just... sucks.

Lots of good thoughts coming your way, still.

So after much back and forth with the vet and trying various things... I decided to have a pad biopsied. It came back as ulcerative pododermatitis. Lots of inflammation/pus but no signs of an infection. Has anyone dealt with this before? The good news is his VF titer came back too low to measure!

My Pepper produces eye boogies at an alarming rate. I've had two vets look at her and they found nothing of concern. We even tried some drops for a bit to see if that helps. Nope. So we just deal with the prolific boogie factory with much eye wiping!

If you didn't get high res versions, it may be worth getting them - I know OSU requested them before they would make a call in our case. Fingers crossed for you.