Ragsysmum

Anyone had any successs with those magnetic collars you see advertised? Some people seem to swear by these as helping their older dogs with general stiffness and joint problems. Can't do any harm trying, as far as I can see anyway.

Thanks for resurrecting this thread.....what a hoot! I think it should be revived as compulsory reading each Christmas season in case anyone is in need of a laugh!

Never seen a dental done but wouldn't they have to intubate him for the anaesthetic? Maybe his throat got a little bruised or scratched from that and it is causing discomfort when he drinks.

Lovely to see pics of Brody looking so much better. Well done for giving him back a life.

Thinking of you. Just love him and make lots of wonderful memories to help you through.

Any I send out from England have been individually wrapped, boxed, box Christmas wrapped then over-wrapped in brown paper. None have ever been opened and all arrived safely in the USA. I just think individual wrapping is more fun for the recipient.

Well done for rescuing this poor baby! Very best wishes and healing thoughts from over here for him.

I replied in this thread earlier but now, once more, we are at that stage again.....bone cancer in my girl's back leg and wondering how long we have left. I have never had one go quickly and easily out of all the rescues we have had and it seems that once again, we will have to decide when the time is right for her to leave us. It doesn't get any easier but at least, knowing, we can make her last days as happy as possible.

I file the tips off her dew claws but the rest wear down naturally as we walk several miles a day on a variety of surfaces.

Well done you for taking the advice and making the most sensible decision. Now you can forget about it all just as he has, and enjoy and long and happy life with your pup.

My girl Ragsy has MegaE also but only mildly so we feed 4-5 small meals a day and massage her throat to make sure the food has all gone down. You can see a bulge in her neck if it gets stuck. She will eat like this for two or three days then she has a day where she won't eat till late evening so we think maybe the food gets stuck further down and only goes through gradually after a build up of several meals. It doesn't really seems to bother her though and we have been this way for over three years now since we got her at around 10 years old. She doesn't seem to be getting any worse so I guess we've been lucky and I hope you will find the condition quite manageable also.

Mine acts this way when she pulls a muscle in her neck/shoulder area. She can't reach down to the ground to her water bowl so I have to watch when she wants to drink and lift it for her. She feeds from a raised bowl so that's not a problem. I just massage the whole area with gentle but firm circular hand strokes and it seems to ease it and she is usually OK in a couple of days. Seems to be a recurring injury with my 13 year old though and I've had other breeds with the same sort of thing especially our GSD's.

My girl has a front paw claw which grows at an odd angle also....is it called a sprung toe? The nail doesn't touch the ground like the others so tends to grow longer if I don't keep on top of filing it back. She has broken/torn it out a couple of times, licked it clean and it grows back in 5-6 months at the same odd angle again. Personally, although the mess from the bleeding is a nuisance if you don't spot the damage before the hound gets indoors, I would not have any treatment/ surgery to this. If it does not bother the hound, affect his gait, cause pain etc. I would leave well alone. Surgery could possibly result in some other effect on the rest of his foot and you could end up with more damage and pain than your hound has from this periodic claw breaking.

To be honest, I do think there is a lot of truth in your comments here. I'm in the UK and we seem to worry far less about how firm poops are.....it is rarely mention on UK dog boards and rarely a topic of discussion amongst my local area dog walkers. As long as the dog seems comfortable and happy, there is no anal gland problem and no signs of ill-health in any other way, I think we tend to accept what we get! Certainly the second and third poops on a walk are always much softer/looser than the first for my current hound as for some of the rescue dogs of other breeds I have had, but all the dogs have been fit and healthy so it hasn't been a worry. I do think pick-up has a lot to do with the concerns and the stress over it all transfers to the hound and makes the situation worse. The subsequent vet trip increases the stress, the medication usually prescribed probably upsets the system still more and the vicious circle continues.

My 13 year old is very picky over food and also has mild MegaE. At her age I'm happy to give her just about anything she will eat that doesn't actually make her ill. Maybe poorer quality food could shorten her life some, but at least if she will still eat and seems happy and healthy, I'll settle for that at this age.

I suppose there is no possibility she has a sore place in her mouth which allows her to drink liquid or very mushy stuff but not want to bite into anything more solid?

I would reckon it's definitely the extra exercise causing them too poop more. I have always found with mine that the more we walk out and exercise, the more they poop and the more fat they burn off. I would give them a little more food for the moment and see if things settle down after a while, but don't worry, as long as they are running and pooping, there won't be much wrong at all.

Sounds like something in his ear....an insect, creepy-crawly or maybe a bite down there beyond where you could see. Maybe some of that ear cleaning fluid you can buy would flush it out if there is anything crawled down.

I don't know which would be best as I've never had one that went suddenly. All the seniors we've had have gradually gone downhill and in each case we have had to decide when the time had come to let go. It's not easy but I try to be really objective about this and never let them stay a day too long just because I can't bear the parting.

So very sorry for your loss. A candle burns to light his way to the Bridge where he can run free from pain for ever more.

Good wishes and healing thoughts for Judge from over here.

So very sorry for your loss. A candle burns to light her way to her new forever home at the Rainbow Bridge, where she can run pain free once again.

Sending best wishes for a speedy and complete recovery for your girl.

Your girls symptoms sound a bit extreme for this but could it be a stroke? The back end weakness, unexpected extra peeing and some disorientation all followed on a minor stroke in two of my previous rescues. If it is, a very good recovery may be made within days and both mine lived for roughly another two years without major problems. Sending best wishes for your girl.

Good wishes for a straight-forward and speedy recovery for your boy.