Our dog is slowing down.

[Mermaid02]

Our Weimaraner is 12 now and in the last few months she has really slowed down. Her hind quarters are thinner, her backbone is more pronounced. Sometimes when she jumps up on the bed, she doesn't quite make it. When we come home now she rarely bothers to get off the couch- she's happy to see us, but we have to go to her.

The vet says she looks great- and could last to be 15 or 16. I just have a really bad feeling though.

 

[Disneylover79]

I hope your doggy feels better soon..prayers and thoughts going your way

 

[iNTeNSeBLue98]

We are experiencing the same thing with our 11 year old lab. retriever. He mostly has good days, but he seems to be stiffening more often lately after napping and can hardly get up or down from the bed, sofa or stairs.

 

[Christine]

I am experiencing the same with my 10 year old hound mix.

She is healthy in all ways, but since January she's just really slowed down. I am starting to note some real stiffness in her legs and hips and she's just content to sleep an AWFUL lot.

I really noticed a downward trend during one of our huge snowstorms and my husband took her outside for a very long walk. I swear she hobbled around for DAYS afterward and hasn't been as lively since.

She still gets real excited about her walks and car rides but she's definitely MELLOW.

 

[ckay87]

Aw, it's sad to watch isn't it? Our beagle mix is the same way, she is 13. She's also deaf, but that has been to her advantage since she can't hear thunderstorms or fireworks, etc. anymore. Much less stress for her in her old age.

Our vet recommended glucosomine for her. Didn't get it last time, but I will this time. It's supposed to promote joint health and ease arthritic symptoms, I think.

 

[Christine]

Our vet recommended glucosomine for her. Didn't get it last time, but I will this time. It's supposed to promote joint health and ease arthritic symptoms, I think.

We just started the glucosamine about 6 weeks ago. To tell you the truth, I don't *see* a change but maybe the dog feels better? I used it on one of my other dogs many years ago and never really noticed anything.

 

[Jockaroo]

I know how hard this is--watching them get old, grey and slow. Health issues can come up very quickly in senior and geriatric dogs. Their immune systems don't tend to function as well either. Any time you have "that feeling" that something is wrong, please get to the vet to check it out. Glucosamine can work very well, but it takes several months to really see improvements. Vets can also prescribe pain medications for arthritis, but some of these can have side affects. Seniors need blood work twice a year just to monitor for health problems. I found the golden years and the twilight months served to really strengthen the bond I had with my two old dogs before they passed. I found that when I had that feeling something was wrong, I was correct. Remember you know your dog the best.

Enjoy every moment; cherish every day. An old dog has wisdom; we can learn from them.

--Missing my sweet "Puppy" Mac who passed at 14 1/2 and would have celebrated his 15th birthday next week.

This is a touching poem called "Walking with an Old Dog" by Gayl Jokiel:
http://laurelhuntbooks.com/?p=296

 

[apirateslifeforme]

I have a cocker spaniel who turned 16 last month. She had her annual checkup recently and I am very grateful that the vet says she's exceptionally healthy. But there are, of course, the physical signs of age...

She tore the ligaments in both back legs when she was about 8 and has prosthetic ligaments now. A few years ago, we noticed her falling backward when she tried to jump onto chairs, and about a year or two ago, she completely stopped trying. The vet says she has no signs of arthritis, "just a little muscle weakness back there; happens to all of us." She's a little slow now when she first gets up from lying down, and her legs crack several times.

She's lost a bit of weight...2 pounds or so, but again, vet says that's okay. Her spine does protrude more now, but she eats normally. She'll still attempt the stairs on her own; if it's dark out, she needs the light on. She has walked into a few things here and there. You can also stand right next to her and shout her name...no reaction. You have to touch her to get her attention. I also noticed; she's white with red spots, but she has a lot less red than she used to. What little she does have left has faded.

The worst is that she's developed "geriatric vestibular syndrome" in her ears. We thought she was having a stroke at first! She'll try to walk, but she'll go sideways, with her head cocked to one side, her ears perked. One of her back legs will thump up and down, like a spasm, and her rear end will drop. This will go on for about half an hour at a time, during which she can't settle down. Tires her out, that's for sure. But again, the vet said it happens, we really can't do anything about it, but it's not life-threatening.

It's hard to watch them get old... to all!

 

[tink_lover]

I'm right there with ya - it is so hard to watch our "big boy" age. Our older boxer will turn 10 next month. We lost our first one right at about this stage. Our "little boy" turned 3 yesterday. I think the young boxer has helped keep the older one a little more spry. We walk a lot with them, but dh has started giving the older one a little aspirin after the walk. The vet said that was ok to give baby aspirin to him. Since my oldest child is 11, this has been the dog the kids have grown up with.

 

[HunnyPots]

About a year and a half ago, we rescued a stray German Shepherd mix from the parking lot of McDonalds, where he was living and eating from the trash dumpsters. He was terribly underweight and had trouble walking. He had large patches of fur missing from his "elbows" and "knees" (sorry - don't know what you call them on dogs) and his bottom front teeth were missing. The vet said he most likely jumped from a moving vehicle. His xrays showed numerous healed fractures and that he'd also been shot. He guessed his age to be about 12 and was amazed he'd lived so long with all the trauma he'd experienced. We took him home, fed him well, and loved him. He is a great dog!

Well, we are now seeing daily signs of his decline. He is sleeping about 22 hours a day. Falls almost everytime he tries to get up and then has to be lifted to his feet - it's KILLING my back! Sometimes drags one leg when he walks, and just generally looks like he is in pain. I know his time is coming. I also know I don't want him to suffer but at what point do you make that choice? I always thought I would know the right thing to do but its much harder than I imagined...

Parenting an old dog is NOT for sissies!

 

[Sparx]

You may want to buy some doggy steps to help her get up to the higher surfaces. If she falls (and she is getting weaker) she might fracture a bone.

 

[2goofycampers]

Have you tried a doggy chiropractor ? It really helps with the older dogs. I also have had my and neighbors dog get injured and it fixed mine up in one visit. The neighbor dog has had one treatment and is much better. He couldn't hold his head up last week, right after the treatment he held his head up. I found one through the American Veterinary Chiropractic Association online.

 

[disneyaddicted]

My Eskimo Spitz, silver, started slowing down around the age of 13, I hated to see her getting old, not being able to go on those long walks with me anymore, but she made it till she was almost 18, she was just a few days short of being 18. Her health didn't start to really decline until she was about 17, then we had to carry her up and down the stairs, lift her onto the bed, even bring her food and water into the living room where she spent most her time, the walk to the kitchen was just too much for her. But I loved her and she loved me up until the second she passed away, I still love her, she was such a great dog, saw me through my teen years, all my broken hearts.

I hope your doggy starts feeling better, Silver would have good days and then she would have her feeling old days. I will pray for both of you.

 

[chisnpeke]

About a year and a half ago, we rescued a stray German Shepherd mix from the parking lot of McDonalds, where he was living and eating from the trash dumpsters. He was terribly underweight and had trouble walking. He had large patches of fur missing from his "elbows" and "knees" (sorry - don't know what you call them on dogs) and his bottom front teeth were missing. The vet said he most likely jumped from a moving vehicle. His xrays showed numerous healed fractures and that he'd also been shot. He guessed his age to be about 12 and was amazed he'd lived so long with all the trauma he'd experienced. We took him home, fed him well, and loved him. He is a great dog!

Well, we are now seeing daily signs of his decline. He is sleeping about 22 hours a day. Falls almost everytime he tries to get up and then has to be lifted to his feet - it's KILLING my back! Sometimes drags one leg when he walks, and just generally looks like he is in pain. I know his time is coming. I also know I don't want him to suffer but at what point do you make that choice? I always thought I would know the right thing to do but its much harder than I imagined...

Parenting an old dog is NOT for sissies!

It is SO difficult isn't it? I don't know if anyone is ever really ready to make the choice.

It's so hard when our pups get older. I love mine so much.

 

[LindaG4458]

Harry, my cocker, is showing lots of the same symptoms as described above. He is 13. We have always had at least two pups at a time so we have never been left alone when we lost one of them. We would get another companion for the remaining dog shortly afterwards. This time, because of regulations at our FL condo, there is only Harry. He will probably be OK in NH for the summer and fall but I don't know if he will get back to FL next winter. We usually stay for some skiing in the early season and the snow might be too much for him. We will miss him a lot.

 

[Disney Doll]

The worst day of my life was the day we put Teddy down. He had been failing, developed a brain tumor. One day he looked at me and I just "knew" that his life was getting too hard, he wasn't enjoying anything, everything was a struggle for him...getting up, lying down, eating sitting, peeing...everything. I had been giving him Glucosamine which kept him pretty comfortable, I also had pain pills for when he was real sore. I made him special food when he couldn't chew his regular dog food really well anymore.

But one day he gave me the "I'm done" look. And I loved him ebough to let him go. And it broke my heart...still does....

 

[Aisling]

My dog is still a puppy, and I dread the day I have to go through the emotions many of you are going through now with your beloved dogs when they start to slow down. Hugs to you.

 

[dcentity2000]

I don't even want to think about it

I don't know what I'd do without my dogs.



Rich::

 

[Chelley00]

I can sympathize. Our 9-10? year old boxer had a hard life before we rescued him and spoiled him rotten. Because of his past abuse, he's got arthritis from incorrectly healed breaks, and is fighting hip dysplasia and starting to exhibit signs of oncoming paralysis in his back legs. He still tries to run and be a puppy, but when he's standing still, his back legs start drooping down. It's getting hard for him to go outside.

He's been the best dog ever, everyone loves him. He's so good with the kids and he's so funny. It's going to kill DD8 when/if he dies. I can't stand watching him decline

 

[Pea-n-Me]

I hate that time when you come to realize your dog is getting old.

Hunny Pots, bless you for taking that dog in. I hope it's comforting to you to know you made his last days good ones.

FYI it seems like we just got her, but my dog turned 6yo last week. I can see she's aging, too.