When it comes to Hunter (Our Beloved 11 Year Old Golden Retriever), we definitely don't treat them like they are little people, or children...
He's not allowed on the furniture or on the bed...but he does have a memory foam dog bed of his own. He doesn't get people food or tons of treats and chews...but he does get the TOP OF THE LINE all natural dog food and dog treats. He doesn't ride in the front seat of the car, but he does travel with us almost everywhere we go. We don't take him to a groomer or dress him up....but we do brush him all the time, keep his nails trim and I'm a pretty handy home groomer with the feet and ears if I do say so myself.
Oh who am I kidding, Hunter's life is WAY cushier than mine, he is our first child and there's nothing we wouldn't do for that animal.
This is a picture of him last year...rounding the corner on 10 years old. Looks amazing right? And he acts it as well. He's in better shape than most dogs half his age, not a stiff joint to be found and other than so pretty fierce seasonal allergies he's fit as a fiddle, with the only indicator of his age being his slightly graying face.
But lately, he's had us a bit worried. After his vaccines in May he got really stiff and started to limp. It did settle down a bit for a while but then came back. We put him on glucosamine and chondrotin suppliments. But now everything's gone down hill...and FAST. He limps on two legs hardly putting weight on one, needing to be carried up and down stairs, he started itching like crazy and ripped so much hair out that he has a bald spot, he became super lethargic and stopped eating. It was like he aged 5 years in 5 days and Jason and I were crying in bed one night because we thought this was the beginning of the end for him. We're just not ready for that so...
It was off to the vet A.S.A.P. They believe it is a tick born illness (not Lyme) but that's really just their best educated guess.
So, our old man is on a white rice and boiled venison diet and loving it. (very glad we have deer in the freezer by the way). He's got an antibiotic for the tick born disease, a steroid for the itching that caused him to rip his hair out to the point of having a bald patch, and the dreaded cone around his head to keep him from doing more harm to his poor skin. If this course of treatment helps, then the diagnosis is correct.
He has regained his appetite and a little pep. But he's still itching like crazy and his limping is only a little better. So back to the vet we go tomorrow and see what they say.
This is a little boy who had brain surgery in the first days of his life because blood was covering most of his brain. The doctors asked his parents 4 times in the first few days if they wanted to just take him off life support. They said no, and have an army of people praying with them.
It is our THIRD bean picking. I have already canned 17 jars of dilly beans, frozen two pounds and eaten plenty more! There will be AT LEAST two more pickings from what I can tell. 