kikibean

I totally feel your pain. We went through the same thing with Mimi last year. We finally let her go in Sept at age 15. The last year we had her was REALLY hard. She was wobbly, kept getting stuck places while we were at work, couldn't do the stairs, would keep me up all night doing this annoying breathing thing that I'm pretty sure she did on purpose She was still eating and alert. We decided to let her go. It was a HORRIBLE decision, but we were afraid she was really going to hurt herself while we weren't home. It sucks when you're basically having to decide if they're just too old. She was pretty much healthy, so it wasn't like she was sick. We had our vet come to the house, so that made it easier. PM me if you want to talk about it. Kelly (Mimi was my heart dog, so it was REALLY hard to let her go)

I'm so sorry . She was a beautiful girl.

This just sucks. I'd probably give the new meds a day or two to see if they help any and then go from there. When we let Mimi go, it was strictly due to old age. I don't know that she was ready. But, her body was just giving out and we were worried we'd come home and find that she'd seriously hurt herself. Sometimes with an illness they really know it's time and let you know. Other times they don't know what we know and we have to make the decision. It sounds like you have a vet who's really responsive. I'd probably just ask myself each time I was wondering if he was ready if I would be OK with him being any worse than he is. If the answer is no, it's probably time. He's such a special little guy. I'm glad I got to have him here a couple of days to get to know him. He couldn't have anyone better taking care of him than you guys.

We've used both. We stick with the gel because we've found our dogs HATE having the spray sprayed in their mouths. They don't seem to mind the gel at all. We brush with a soft toothbrush. Rocky & Maddy are every other to every 3rd day, Molly is every day since her teeth are so horrid.

That just SUCKS. I'm hoping it's not osteo. Give Whitey a hug from me.

I had a foster that did great on the shots. I think it's something that will either work or it won't, no harm in trying it.

I'm sorry about your prairie dog. They're so sweet, I love them.

We had an adopter who's new girl was fabulous with the husband and OK w/ the wife ...until the husband left the house. She'd literally chase the wife into the bedroom growling at her. They really wanted to keep her, so the wife enrolled in an obedience class with her. It ended up making a huge difference and the hound girl ended up being a fabulous pet. It couldn't hurt to ask around and find a good class to try.

Hope that's the answer!

Go Tripod Boys Go!!!

We got a dog returned that started going after the small dog in the family after being together over a year. The owner was convinced he wasn't small dog safe. I took him to foster and after a couple of meet & greets I realized he just didn't like ANY dog getting in his face (which was what the min-pin in the house had been doing), jumping around, trying to lick him, etc.. He was totally fine with dogs of all sizes as long as they respected his space. I just told anyone who had a "friendly" dog to stay away from him. I couldn't really blame him for not liking having dogs jumping in his face.

I'm so sorry. Vixen was a really special girl.

The battery thing is a very good point. I wouldn't have thought of the problem of keeping it charged.

I know Dillon (he was my foster!) and his mom and she's very careful about watching him. I've never seen a dog that's always looking for ways to escape like Dill is. It doesn't matter where he is or what he's doing, he constantly checks the escape routes. Inside, outside, where ever, he's always looking for a way to get loose. He's definitely a hound that wants to run. I think one time he got out when neighbor kids left the gate open (they've since locked it). I think another time a part of their fence was blown loose and he found a weak spot.

We'll be thinking about you. Let me know if I can do anything.

Whitey looks great!!!

Mr. Clean Magic Eraser for blood! Cleaned blood off of every surface in our house after a friend's hound had a bad case of happy tail while visiting.