My Old Dogs

[regdog]

Both of my dogs are getting older. Our cocker mix is 14 and the pug we think is at least 14.

My poor pug is getting so arthritic none of his legs bend when he walks. He shuffles along and the saddest stiff legged gait, but Dog love his heart. It's all go, go, go. We've tried several different meds all with bad tummy results. His vet has given us another option, fingers crossed it works.


Our cocker mix recovered from a serious allergic reaction and is holding her own. Her heart murmur has increased and for the first time, she is starting to look old.

Crap, they aren't supposed to do this, they are supposed to stay young forever. :(

[Carlene]

So sorry to hear what you - and they are going through. My eight-year-old Lab, Tara, has hip dysplasia on both sides, and arthritis. I had her on Deramaxx but it didn't seem to help and is VERY expensive. I have a friend who's lived with dogs all her life and rescues all of them. She's had as many as ten, lucky girl. Anyhow, she turned me on to Ascription - aspirin coated with Myloxx, and Fresh Factors - they're like vitamins for dogs. I currently give Tara, (she weights 114 lbs. - not overweight, just BIG) one ascription and two Fresh Factor with her meals, morning and night. We walk every day for a couple of miles and she romps and plays with her five-year-old brother a lot.

I get the Ascription (in the blue box) from www.amazon.com and Fresh Factors from Springtime. They usually have a special of some kind, buy two, get one free.

I'm not a vet, just telling you what works for me. It might not be right for your little one if he has tummy troubles.

Hope you can find something to help.

Carlene

[Satori1977]

Sorry to hear this. I have a 13-1/2 year old shepherd, and he has horrible arthritis. It is very hard to deal with them getting older. Dogs just aren't around long enough.

Are your dogs on anything? I personally don't like deramaxx too much, though it does work for some dogs. I like rimadyl, but that is quite expensive. There is a cheaper version called novox. (if you don't know what they are, they are non-steroidal anti-inflammatories) Works very well.

My dog is also on glucosamine and chondrotin. You can get it at walmart or any grocery store, or a flavored pet version at a pet store (like petsmart/petco) or possibly at your vets. With small dogs, I wouldn't recommend the human version because they don't have different sizes.

Lastly, he is on tramadol, which is a narcotic for pain. He has only been on this recently, and it really helps. The combo of the three drugs is amazing.

There are also other alternatives (or things to complement the drugs) like hydrotherapy and acupunture. Not all vets offer this though.

Allergies are common in cockers, and tend to worsen as they get older. What type of allergies does she have? And unfortunately the heart murmur could get worse as well.

I will be thinking of you and your furbabies! :Hug2:

(And no, I am not a vet either, but a vet tech. Have worked in vet hospitals for years. But the best advice I can give is to discuss all your options with your vet. Good luck)

[Haggis]

That plain sucks, Heather. And it's the main reason I'm still between dogs. They just don't last out their warranty.

My old guy had bad arthritis, and whatever pills we gave him seemed to bring on the doggie Alzheimer's way too rapidly. At the end I'm not even sure if he knew us.

Fortunately, I now have a slew of granddogs--four in all--which includes


are you ready for this?


a Chihuahua named Haggis. :)

[regdog]

Thanks so much. I just want to keep them as comfortable and healthy as I can as long as I can.


A chihuahua named Haggis, what a good idea. I wonder why I never thought of that :)

[Haggis]

Thanks so much. I just want to keep them as comfortable and healthy as I can as long as I can.
As a rather old dog myself, I can tell you that they will very much appreciate your efforts. An occasional Milk Bone won't hurt either. :D

[alleycat]

When I younger we had a dog that lived to be 18. When he got very old and couldn't get around very well we'd pick him up and carry him up and down steps or stairs.

Yeah, that's the trouble with pets. They get older . . . and leave us.

[Bushrat]

As long as they're still happy...I admire that about old dogs. We humans whine and complain and pull a long face, but dogs, even when they're walking wobbly, can hardly see or hear a thing, are still so full of love and enjoyment of comapany, smelly things and food.
My life is currently ruled by the incontinence of my 13 1/2 year-old chinook - he leaks all night (and we live out in the bush, so it means hand-washing his blankets every day) and has a hard time going pee during the day, just can't regulate it much anymore. We trudge along, slowly, because his hip dysplasia, doing pee rounds every two hours or so. It's hard, but I'm glad he's still here. I'm also honest to myself and know that I'll be very relieved to gain some freedom again once he's gone.

[regdog]

Bushrat, try taking an old sheet and cutting into strips long enough to be tied around your dog comfortably. Buy some Teena Overnight pads, big and absorbent and use them like a diaper. It helped with our late Min Pin and the pug. He leaks and pees without knowing it.

[Bushrat]

Thanks, Regdog. I have a feeling he'd pull that off as soon as nobody's watching but will probably give it a try. I keep putting wads of toilet paper under him during the day but that doesn't work at night - he eats it when he can.

[regdog]

As a rather old dog myself, I can tell you that they will very much appreciate your efforts. An occasional Milk Bone won't hurt either. :D

When the vet was here the other day, he wanted to see the old pug walk. I went to the pantry and he got up and waddled over. He knows the pantry means Milk Bones :)

[regdog]

I was trying the last medication we could think of for Puggie's arthritis and keeping our fingers crossed he wouldn't get sick. He did :( Now the only thing I can do is spoil him until he can't get around or the pain gets too much. Heartbroken doesn't begin to cover how I feel

[CaroGirl]

Oh, dear. I completely understand. By the time my old dogs (Bichon Frise littermates) turned 15 they had poor eyesight, the female was almost totally deaf and had arthritis, both had terrible teeth, the male's gums had started to bleed, the female had a seizure. It was awful. We had to make that most difficult decision and put them down, as they lived, together.

Best of luck with your special friends.

[Haggis]

Spoiling is good. Go for it. :)

[regdog]

Can and will do :)

Right now, he's snoring so loud he keeps waking himself up

[regdog]

Happy to say, the old boy is doing better over the past few days. The ultra cool weather seems to be agreeing with him.:) Yeah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[shawkins]

Go old dog go!

Right there with you dude. I just put my eldest on previcox. It seems to be helping, but I HATE that it's needed. Spoil away.

[NewKidOldKid]

Happy to say, the old boy is doing better over the past few days. The ultra cool weather seems to be agreeing with him.:) Yeah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Have you tried any natural/homeopathic remedies? Some work extremely well. A vet who works with natural products might help or you can try google. Really, I would give that a try.

[veinglory]

I sent my Mom's old dog a batch of glucosamine/velvet pills. She said they worked really well. It takes about 3 weeks to kick in and effectiveness varies, but sometimes it makes a big difference.

[regdog]

We have two shelves of medicine we've tried on the old boy. Unfortunately they all caused vomiting which has been really depressing since several of them gave him relief from the arthritis. So far, fingers crossed, knock on wood, the fish oil is giving him minor relief and no vomiting.

[veinglory]

Glucosamine/velvet isn't a medicine, its a 'nutritional supplement' made out of deer antler. A bit woo woo, but in my case it worked.

[Clovia]

My mom's had good results with the deer antler velvet, too. She had a couple of very long-lived Shelties, and the velvet really helped with their stiffness and pain.

[LaurieD]

That plain sucks, Heather. And it's the main reason I'm still between dogs. They just don't last out their warranty.

My old guy had bad arthritis, and whatever pills we gave him seemed to bring on the doggie Alzheimer's way too rapidly. At the end I'm not even sure if he knew us.

Fortunately, I now have a slew of granddogs--four in all--which includes


are you ready for this?


a Chihuahua named Haggis. :)

Love it.

Happy to say, the old boy is doing better over the past few days. The ultra cool weather seems to be agreeing with him.:) Yeah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hope it keeps working for him Heather.

My 13 yro Cocker/Border Collie mix is on Tramadol intermittently for mysterious neck/upper body pain. (Vet couldn't figure out the source and considering my Shadow's age and that she's already had two surgeries for removal of cancerous tumors, we're all for keeping her comfy and not focusing on the why so much.)

[Canotila]

Have any of you ever used the Liquid Health Level 5000 Equine Canine glucosamine formula? One of the old shepherd dogs on the search and rescue team went lame. Her elbows started going out at seven, at nine she could hardly stand by herself and stay upright as she walked.

We put her on that supplement. Our vet recommended it because it's much more concentrated than the walmart stuff. It's liquid so she can absorb it a lot better, and it's the only supplement on the market that has perna mussel, shark cartilage, and msm. In addition to a boatload of antioxidants and digestive enzymes.

Within a month she could stand up and walk on her own again. She had been on other glucosamine supplements, and they helped, but she was literally on the verge of being put down when we tried this and it's given her another year and half. She's maintaining her activity level too, so she might last a lot longer.

A friend also used it on one of her borzois. He blew out his knee in a yard accident when he was four months old. Three reconstructive surgeries were done. The anterior cruciate ligament was removed completely. She put him on the supplement, and was told that when he turned one year they would do more surgeries to finish the repair. She was also told he would never walk without a limp.

At one year they did new x-rays. The doctors were floored. He didn't need the surgery. He had no limp. He went on to finish his AKC championship easily, and at six years old is in perfect health.

Good luck with your old gentlemen! Enjoy every moment, they are very blessed to be loved by someone like you.

[regdog]

Thanks.

I haven't heard of that supplement. I'll check it out. We've tried just about every other one out there. Two shelves in our pantry are medications and supplements