Pets chit chat thread

[Juniper]

Ask them to do an xray of her throat area while she's under, if you can afford it. They should be able to tell from that if she has tracheal collapse, and can tell a bit about laryngeal paralysis too.

I'm glad her bloods came back normal. And if it's a glucosamine/chondroitin supplement then it will help with her arthritis.

Ah, I forgot to mention... They did x-rays, which came back good. Nothing abnormal for a girl her age.
And yep, those are the supplements the doctor recommended. The ones I got are tablets which also have MSM, and I got some powdered granule stuff that I can't remember the name of right now but she gets two scoops of that daily. One with breakfast and one with dinner.

[anunitu]

Re: Pets chit chat thread

It is a sad fact that our furry friends have a shorter life span than we do,with the exception of a very few. Tortoises may outlive many of us. they can go 150 years,also some birds.
Found this for parrots lifespans.

Not sure what hawks bird is exactly.

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Macaws 50 - 100 +...so its a life time deal with them.

[Juniper]

It is a sad fact that our furry friends have a shorter life span than we do,with the exception of a very few. Tortoises may outlive many of us. they can go 150 years,also some birds.
Found this for parrots lifespans.

Not sure what hawks bird is exactly.

- - - Updated - - -

Macaws 50 - 100 +...so its a life time deal with them.

With all due respect Anu, that really didn't help. All it did was make me feel sad because my girl's not a parrot or tortoise. She's a 14 year old dog that's showing signs of her age and probably will only have a few more good years left before her health starts to deteriorate. I just want some compassion.

[anunitu]

Re: Pets chit chat thread

I have been through this Juni,and I know how hard it is,but for me being a pragmatist I have to take it as it comes. My daughter lost he Dog,that she had from its being a puppy...She has now after a while gotten another dog,BUT as everyone who has had an animal another one is never the same as the one you raised as a puppy.
I do have compassion because it is hard to go through,but as humans we have to mourn and heal,as all life seems to require...(Big hug cause even being a pragmatist,its just a front to keep from crying when a friend goes away)

[thalassa]

Re: Pets chit chat thread

Ah, I forgot to mention... They did x-rays, which came back good. Nothing abnormal for a girl her age.
And yep, those are the supplements the doctor recommended. The ones I got are tablets which also have MSM, and I got some powdered granule stuff that I can't remember the name of right now but she gets two scoops of that daily. One with breakfast and one with dinner.

Its hard to lose a fur baby. I'm sorry your girl is getting to the end of her time with you. My Ivy-dog had to be put to sleep the week before I was able to come home on leave. My parents tried to stretch it out....but she was in too much pain for it to be fair to her.

I hope that this helps her feel up to snuff for a while longer, so you can have plent of snuggles and licky-dog face!

[Rae'ya]

Re: Pets chit chat thread

Ah, I forgot to mention... They did x-rays, which came back good. Nothing abnormal for a girl her age.
And yep, those are the supplements the doctor recommended. The ones I got are tablets which also have MSM, and I got some powdered granule stuff that I can't remember the name of right now but she gets two scoops of that daily. One with breakfast and one with dinner.

That's all good then. If her chest rads are clear and she's not coughing then any laryngeal or tracheal issues are in very early stages. I'll assume they also heart scored her (or at least noticed her hear) if they did chest rads... but one simple test you can do for her heart function is to count how many times she breathes per minute when she's ASLEEP. I only mention heart stuff because you said she's breathing heavier than usual... that can be because of tracheal or laryngeal narrowing, or it can be heart function. Her sleeping respiratory rate should be less than 20 per minute. You have to do it when she's asleep though, as it'll be higher when she's awake. Breathing heavier can also be a sign of pain, so sorting out her arthritis might help that overall.

With her arthritis, ask your vet about 'Zydax' or 'Cartrophen' injections. The drug name is 'pentosan polysulfate'. It's used in arthritis and is AWESOME. You do four injections one week apart, then repeat that every six months (or your vet might do one full course, then a single shot every 3 months if they use Cartrophen). We use it a lot, and it really makes a difference in arthritis in hips, knees, elbows and shoulders (it's not very useful in spinal arthritic or spondylosis though, as the vertebra are a different sort of joint). Couple that with your Gluc/Chon/MSM supplements and an Omega 3/6 rich food (or if the powder you're using is Green Lipped Mussel then that's awesome) and you're doing everything you can to help keep the arthritic joints lubricated and healthy. Then just make sure you give her gentle, low impact exercise every day (a walk around the block on flat, firm ground is good). Arthritis will get worse if you let them sit still all day... you need to get her up moving every day. Make sure she has a padded bed and avoid her laying too long on tiles or concrete (which can be hard for some dogs a they like it). Also make sure she doesn't have one of those suspended beds... they are very difficult for arthritic dogs to get in and out of.

Also your massage course can be adapted to dogs. The principles are all the same as far as I'm aware, and there are Canine Myofunctional Therapy courses that you can do specifically to learn massage therapy for dogs. Many of the muscle groups can be easily translated from humans to dogs, so you can use some of what you're learning on your girl. If she's arthritic then she may benefit from regular massage and physical therapy on her lumbar spine and both hind legs. So feel free to practice your techniques on her!

It sounds like she'll be around for a while yet. Think of her like an 80yr old grandma... you just have to make some adjustments to accommodate her elderly-ness and she'll be perfectly happy and healthy.

[anunitu]

Re: Pets chit chat thread

I did not know about this:
QUOTE:
"Also your massage course can be adapted to dogs. The principles are all the same as far as I'm aware, and there are Canine Myofunctional Therapy courses that you can do specifically to learn massage therapy for dogs. Many of the muscle groups can be easily translated from humans to dogs, so you can use some of what you're learning on your girl. If she's arthritic then she may benefit from regular massage and physical therapy on her lumbar spine and both hind legs. So feel free to practice your techniques on her!

It sounds like she'll be around for a while yet. Think of her like an 80yr old grandma... you just have to make some adjustments to accommodate her elderly-ness and she'll be perfectly happy and healthy."

[habbalah]

Re: Pets chit chat thread

Spoiler!

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I'm dogsitting this weekend. They're good boys.

[B. de Corbin]

Re: Pets chit chat thread

Remmie the Beagle had to go in for emergency treatment yesterday. He had something in his eye. The vet has removed it, but there is the possibility that it may become infected, in which case he'll lose the eye.

Hopefully it will be ok, or we'll have to rename him as "Blinky."

[anunitu]

Re: Pets chit chat thread

As always B. De.,remember the saying made popular I think in the 80's "Stuff happens" fill in the real first word as you please...

[Juniper]

Hoping for a swift and as-painless-as-possible recovery for Remmie (my phone keeps wanting to auto correct to remote)

[Hawkfeathers]

Re: Pets chit chat thread

Remmie the Beagle had to go in for emergency treatment yesterday. He had something in his eye. The vet has removed it, but there is the possibility that it may become infected, in which case he'll lose the eye.

Hopefully it will be ok, or we'll have to rename him as "Blinky."

Awww poor thing. Hope everything goes well.

[B. de Corbin]

Re: Pets chit chat thread

Remmie thanks you!

The vet said we'd know by now, and everything looks good so far, so I'm hoping things will stay good.

[anunitu]

Re: Pets chit chat thread

Hoping your friend Remmie gets better very soon...I confess I like Animals much more than humans BTW(well some humans)

[B. de Corbin]

Re: Pets chit chat thread

Just back from the vet.

So far, all good!