Remolacha

I am so sorry maybe it will help a little to remember that dogs live very much in the present, and her "present" for the last four years were they best they could be.

I am so sorry, your Bullitt was such a special boy

I was hoping for better news

I hope it is just age related. Not all dogs lose weight as they get older, but it is pretty common.

Charley (5th grey) is my first licker. She will lick my skin, my clothes, my hair, whatever she can reach, weirdo I have had several whiners. I'm not crazy about it, but it certainly is perfectly normal! I think it is their way of communicating. Just be prepared to listen to it for the rest of his life, I have never known a whiner to change

You can still use the bone-in mince, just mix it with other non bone stuff. My dogs get about 1/2 ground turkey necks, wings, & drums and 1/2 ground beef (no bone) plus some supplements for trace elements. You could use, say 1/4 or 1/3 mince, 1/3 ground meat (no bone) and 1/3 cooked veggies, green tripe, whatever Misty likes. Just remember, the veggies have to be cooked (mushy). Or, you can do just boneless ground meat, veggies, and add calcium.

I don't see any issue in changing Misty's diet because of her age, as you said, you would be improving it! However, if she does have kidney disease, that may be another issue. In the early stages, the higher quality protein of a raw diet can actually help, but as the disease progresses, she would really need to be on a low protein diet. You may want to go to some of the kidney disease boards (hopefully someone here will have links) and look into a home cooked diet for her. Better than kibble, but you can make something that doesn't stress her kidneys. Welcome to the dark side

How terribly sad for all!

Always nice to get an answer, and if the answer is "resolves on its own, do nothing" even better!

I had an IBD dog for 9 years, so I feel your pain For treats, try freeze dried or dehydrated versions of his main protein, lamb. You can also try freeze dried/dehydrated veggies (sweet potatoes, green tripe), liver. Single ingredient is key, you usually know right away if something is going to work, and if it doesn't, you know exactly what the problem is. The other thing, and I have no scientific basis for this, just what I learned with Fletcher, something about the processing of the ingredients could cause a problem for him. Things he could tolerate raw, freeze dried, or dehydrated, upset his system if they were otherwise commercially processed. I have a friend who had an IBD cat that was the same

Glad he got a clean bill of health! Older dogs sometimes just get thin, especially if they have been picky eaters all along.

I've had a dog with neck pain that comes and goes. I just treated it with meds when a flare up happened. If your vet recommended a specialist, then a consult would probably be a good idea, but like others here, I would be very, very reluctant to put a 12 yr old through surgery! The anesthesia for an MRI, well, if the dog is otherwise healthy, it might be OK, but I would think about whether it was really necessary if you weren't going to do the surgery anyway. Good luck with whatever you decide!

Mine get the three year rabies, and even that I wouldn't give if it had come due after they turned 11-12. They don't get any other annual shots, but it has been years since I had one that wasn't a senior

I am so sorry, what a special kitty she was!

I am very sorry I am sure it was nothing you did, but it must have been a terrible shock!

"If they decide that they need to crate in the future, they can set one up again and start from the beginning with crate training. The break without the crate in sight might be a good thing as, in the future, the dog will be calmer and more trusting of his "new" humans, and take to the crate with a better attitude." greysmom makes an excellent point here. Just because you take the crate down now doesn't mean you can't crate train later if you decide you want to, and it might indeed be easier.

Sounds like you lucked out, and got a perfect one for your first grey Crate training can be useful, and I am sure there are those here who will disagree with me, but if he hates it that much, I would take it down. I have never crated my greys and haven't really missed it, but I do have a spare bedroom that is the "cat room" with a permanent baby gate installed a few inches above the floor, so the cats could get away if they needed to. Good news on the stairs!

I am so sorry your beautiful girl had to go

I am so sorry This day never gets any less painful

On the crate, I would let him stay on his bed since he seems to prefer that and there haven't been any problems. Some dogs like their corsets, but it sounds like he isn't one of them As for the cats (I know you didn't specifically ask ) I would continue to watch him closely, and either crate him or put the cats behind closed doors when you are not home, but other wise, it sounds like he will be fine with them. Just remember that as he gets more comfortable in your home, over the next few weeks/months, his attitude *may* change. It probably won't, didn't with any of mine, but I have seen it happen, so just stay alert for awhile. Many dogs don't like their feet messed with, I have no idea why. As Roo said, take it slow, treat a lot, and he will probably get better. Remember, you are still very new to him. If he never gets really comfortable with you handling his feet, you can always pay someone to clip,his nails