[OT] Update on the Dog

[Taro T]

Thanks to the people that wished Zhitnik well in the Complaint Thread last night. :thumbsup:

 

A little update on why I posted about him and what happened today. Last night we came home from a quick shopping trip to find the dog had wet the carpet which is extremely rare for this dog. We let him out and he didn't come back. I went looking for him and found him lying in the dew-covered grass in the dark, nearly unresponsive. When he did finally start to be responsive, he could barely stand. I carried him inside (he hates being picked up, but he didn't make any fuss) and he started wobbling around and then threw up some bile. I set him on my lap and he just laid there. (Although he's fairly small - ~24 lbs, he is definitely not a lap dog. He absolutely hates being held, and isn't a real big fan of being petted either except in the early morning.)

 

The other dog knew something was up w/ him, he's normally jumping on him trying to get him to play. (Which just absolutely makes Zhitnik's day. <_< Something about having a 3 year old 80 lb brown beast whapping you with a paw essentially saying "tag your it" that just makes a geriatric dog's day.) But last night he just sat looking at me holding Zhitnik for a while then went and laid down.

 

Zhitnik wanted nothing to do with any food or water, not even his favorite treat in the world - tuna water. He did finally get up and wobbled to a spot on the floor after a couple of hours.

 

When I went to bed last night, after sitting with the dog for ~4 hours, he was still very unresponsive, could barely stand, and still wouldn't touch any food or water. Though I did force a few cc's of H2O down his throat with a syringe.

 

We figured the dog had a minor stroke, and with him being 15+ figured the call to the vet wasn't going to be pleasant. But, he was able to walk shakily this morning, which was a great improvement over last night, though he couldn't raise a leg without taking a header and he couldn't get up the front steps. He even drank water, but still wouldn't eat.

 

He was far perkier by the time we got to the vet's office. The vet said he had a seizure, but didn't know the cause. Long story short, he's now back to at least 90% of his normal motion; heck, he even was barking at the young dog again. So it looks like our 'grumpy old dog' is back (for a while at least). :)

 

So, thanks again to the well wishers. :worthy:

 

Gotta love this place. SDS, and the rest, you do a heck of a job. :clapping:

 

(Mods, please feel free to move this back into the CT thread. (Or delete it or whatever.) The CT thread was locked by the time I had a chance to post this update.)

[Corp000085]

Glad to hear it is looking better for your dog. I was the one that merged your new CT thread with the old one, which was the reason why it ended up locked. Any thread about an awesome dog can stay open in my book! Good luck this weekend with the beast.

[shrader]

I love the name. What's the other dog's name?

[Tony P]

Glad to hear all is well.

 

Not sure if you've had older dogs in the past but we've had several get up into their "teens". Seizures like this are pretty common with them although Zhitnik's sounds like it was pretty intense.

 

At least now you know it wasn't anything truly terrible and hopefully, you still have many more happy days with the old guy. :thumbsup:

[Taro T]

I love the name. What's the other dog's name?

The dog is my younger boy's, so he got to name it. It's a chocolate lab, so its name is Choco.

 

When Alexei was still a Sabre, we'd get confused looks from people sitting near us when we'd say "good puppy dog" when he did something good on the ice and "bad puppy dog" when he took one of those trademarked 20' high slap shots.

 

Btw, the cat's name is Max.

 

And, for full disclosure, the hamster and the crawfish died. The older boy seems to have a penchant for "disposable" pets.

Glad to hear all is well.

 

Not sure if you've had older dogs in the past but we've had several get up into their "teens". Seizures like this are pretty common with them although Zhitnik's sounds like it was pretty intense.

 

At least now you know it wasn't anything truly terrible and hopefully, you still have many more happy days with the old guy. :thumbsup:

Thanks.

 

Had a dog when I was a kid. He only made it to ~14, but never had seizures. Definitely nothing ever even remotely close to this. This one was definitely intense.

[cdexchange]

Hey Taro, I feel for you man. Our old girl Mollie is sitting here eating lunch with me as I type. She's 13+ now so I know that we don't have alot of time left with her. She's been with us since my wife and I married 12 years ago, we rescued her from the SPCA. We decided awhile ago that we didn't want kids so Mollie has really been our "child" ya know? As long as we've been married, our little family was always "Bill, Jen and Mollie" so it's really gonna suck when that is no longer the case. Anyways, luckily she's still in really good shape so I'm thankful for that but I still dread what I know is coming in the near future. I know it's unlikely but I hope so much that she just goes peacefully in her sleep because I want nothing to do with the alternative. :cry:

 

I'm glad to hear that Zhitnik is doing better. Enjoy the precious time you have left with him. :)

 

Mollie with her Sabres collar, doing what she loves most (well, besides eating steak):

[shrader]

The dog is my younger boy's, so he got to name it. It's a chocolate lab, so its name is Choco.

 

When Alexei was still a Sabre, we'd get confused looks from people sitting near us when we'd say "good puppy dog" when he did something good on the ice and "bad puppy dog" when he took one of those trademarked 20' high slap shots.

 

Btw, the cat's name is Max.

 

And, for full disclosure, the hamster and the crawfish died. The older boy seems to have a penchant for "disposable" pets.

 

You're going to run out of naming options soon if the european exodus continues.

[That Aud Smell]

taro: sorry i don't have more time to respond. just wanted to say that my heart went out to you and your crew when i read the initial post, and that i'm glad to hear that things are looking up.

[BuffalOhio]

I love the name. What's the other dog's name?

 

Smehlik?

 

Giveaway?

 

Highandwide?

 

Glad to hear your buddy's doing better. I have a 14-year old (along with THREE others right now), and the sad day is coming. I've been fortunate for 46 years that I have never had to put one down. I don't think I'll be as lucky this time. It's gonna suck.

[darksabre]

Smehlik?

 

Giveaway?

 

Highandwide?

 

Glad to hear your buddy's doing better. I have a 14-year old (along with THREE others right now), and the sad day is coming. I've been fortunate for 46 years that I have never had to put one down. I don't think I'll be as lucky this time. It's gonna suck.

 

Grosek

[thesportsbuff]

I think Wooley would be a good name for a big fluffy dog.

 

On topic though, glad to hear the good news on your dog. My household had three dogs put down in the past year -- two I've had since my childhood, about 15 years, and the other my step dad brought into the family in 2008 when he and my mom got married, so I'm not sure exactly how old she was. It's the saddest thing having to say goodbye to a pet. They were all in real bad shape though, so it's probably a good thing that they're in a better place now rather than suffering here.

[Kristian]

Glad to hear the dog's feeling better.

 

Dogs are great, definitely getting one myself again when the kids are big enough to walk it once in a while :thumbsup:

[North Buffalo]

Glad to hear your dog is okay. Our Dog had a similar deal when he was young. Never did figure out what happened. But seemed fine after a couple of days. We have an Lab/Dalmatian mix. Now Finnegan is almost 10, but he still chases deer and chipmunks. Actually caught one this summer-chipmunk. He is great with our two boys... non of the Dalmatian agnst because my boys run him ragged especially playing horsey.

 

Good luck and glad to hear the hockey player is better.

[PASabreFan]

Wilbur licks himself with delight at the good news!

[TheChimp]

I'm sure I'm going to get ###### for this from all the friends of the OP, but Jesus H Christmas, haven;t you ever heard of the overnight emergency vet???? How does it not even occur to people to get help IMMEDIATELY for their pets? If that was your mom, you'd have called 911 in seconds flat.

 

We call ourselves animal lovers. We have no idea what hypocrites we are.

[darksabre]

I'm sure I'm going to get ###### for this from all the friends of the OP, but Jesus H Christmas, haven;t you ever heard of the overnight emergency vet???? How does it not even occur to people to get help IMMEDIATELY for their pets? If that was your mom, you'd have called 911 in seconds flat.

 

We call ourselves animal lovers. We have no idea what hypocrites we are.

 

Not everyone lives near one of these mythical overnight vets.

[Taro T]

I'm sure I'm going to get ###### for this from all the friends of the OP, but Jesus H Christmas, haven;t you ever heard of the overnight emergency vet???? How does it not even occur to people to get help IMMEDIATELY for their pets? If that was your mom, you'd have called 911 in seconds flat.

 

We call ourselves animal lovers. We have no idea what hypocrites we are.

Just got back to town, thus the delayed response.

 

Why, yes, I HAVE heard of the overnight emergency vet and have taken this dog and one other pet there in the past.

 

This dog is very old, is deaf, is nearly blind, has probably about 1/4 the sense of smell he started with, and is arthritic.

 

He's led a good life. He truly despises going to the kennel or the vet. I made a conscious decision to make the dog as comfortable as possible and if he survived the night would take him to his regular vet. I also made a conscious decision that I would not have the vet take any Herculean efforts to save the dog. Unfortunately, he is not going to be here much longer (although today he's even started to carry his tail w/ the bald tip up in the air so I'd say he's made a full recovery) though the way he came through this thing it's quite apparent that he isn't ready to check out yet.

 

I figured at the time that I found the dog, that he was not in pain and whatever issue/event that had racked him out like that had already run its course. If he was going to survive, he was going to and if he wasn't going to make it, paying a grand to have him hooked up to an IV (which would have significantly stressed him out) wasn't going to have a great probability of altering that outcome. I am a big supporter of hospice. Considering the dog couldn't really tell me what was wrong or what had happened to him, and knowing his entire life history (we've had him since he was ~8 weeks old) and what he thinks about the vet; hospice it was.

 

Considering the recovery he made, and the fact that the vet stated that STRESS can often lead to seizures (all the while he is trying to talk me into spending a lot of money to run tests and procedures which are guaranteed to significantly increase his stress levels :angry: ), I am comfortable that I made the correct decision. You might have made a different one for your pet, which is fine. Hell, had my dog been 3, instead of 15, I'm quite certain that I would have made a different decision as well.

 

Not sure why I bothered to give an abrieviated version of WHY the decision was made to wait till the morning (there was far more that went into it, but I highlighted the big points) when a simple ###### you would have worked just as well. ;)

[Buffalo Wings]

Not sure why I bothered to give an abrieviated version of WHY the decision was made to wait till the morning (there was far more that went into it, but I highlighted the big points) when a simple ###### you would have worked just as well. ;)

Don't feel the need to explain yourself, Taro. Seems clear that TheMute doesn't have a pet or has never had issues with one.

 

I put my dog down last summer - she was 13 and you could see she had given up (malnutritioned when we found her, heart & liver problems when she was younger, kidney problems, arthritic, cataracts, and she had stopped eating). It was easily the hardest thing I had ever done in my life and as hard as it was for me to believe (heck, I still get teary-eyed thinking about it now), it was the right thing to do.

 

When the time comes, you'll know it, but also know that your buddy will be in peace and in a better place. Hang in there.

[Taro T]

...

I put my dog down last summer - she was 13 and you could see she had given up (malnutritioned when we found her, heart & liver problems when she was younger, kidney problems, arthritic, cataracts, and she had stopped eating). It was easily the hardest thing I had ever done in my life and as hard as it was for me to believe (heck, I still get teary-eyed thinking about it now), it was the right thing to do.

...

Sorry to read that. It's never easy to put them down.

 

Sorry about the bad run Jack had as well.

 

:(

[rbochan]

I just ran across this, were you feeding the dog IAMS food? There's a recall.

 

http://www.iams.com/iams/en_US/data_root/html/recall_message.html

[rbochan]

...We have no idea what hypocrites we are.

 

Or apparently, pricks.

[shrader]

I saw/heard something on the street today that was pretty funny and this is the only thread even remotely related, so I'll put it here. Some guy was walking a Dane one way and a girl was walking one of those little rat dogs the other direction. The little thing decided to start yapping away at the huge dog, which couldn't have cared any less. The girl starts laughing and says that the guys dog has a good 40 pounds on hers. A classic case of a woman underestimating weights.

[cdexchange]

Hey Taro, I feel for you man. Our old girl Mollie is sitting here eating lunch with me as I type. She's 13+ now so I know that we don't have alot of time left with her. She's been with us since my wife and I married 12 years ago, we rescued her from the SPCA. We decided awhile ago that we didn't want kids so Mollie has really been our "child" ya know? As long as we've been married, our little family was always "Bill, Jen and Mollie" so it's really gonna suck when that is no longer the case. Anyways, luckily she's still in really good shape so I'm thankful for that but I still dread what I know is coming in the near future. I know it's unlikely but I hope so much that she just goes peacefully in her sleep because I want nothing to do with the alternative. :cry:

 

 

Well, turns out I was right about not having much time left. We just had to put her down this past Monday, bone cancer. Not sure if this will ever stop hurting. :cry:

 

R.I.P. Mollie 1997-2011

 

[TheMadCap]

Well, turns out I was right about not having much time left. We just had to put her down this past Monday, bone cancer. Not sure if this will ever stop hurting. :cry:

 

R.I.P. Mollie 1997-2011

 

 

 

Sorry to hear it buddy. You have to console yourself with the fact that you gave this dog a wonderful life, full of love and light. I'd say Mollie won the lottery as far as that goes. :)

[Ghost of Dwight Drane]

Sorry Bill. I also feel sorry for people that can't understand how great animals are.

 

The worst thing my dog has ever done to me is bark at the front door like someone is there, only to get me off the couch so I'd go into the kitchen and get something she could mooch off of. It worked the first 2 times. The 3rd time she didn't even bother going to the door and just made a b-line to the fridge. I can't begrudge creativity.