Speck’s an old dog. Old age isn’t being very kind to him. When we leave the house, Speck stays in his crate (kennel). He knows that if I pick up my purse or if we get the keys, it’s time to go in the crate and he rarely has to be asked to “kennel”. He doesn’t mind being in there and often, if he’s tired or not feeling well, he prefers to be in the crate.
Saturday we left to go to Home Depot and run a few errands and were gone a couple of hours. When we got home, we opened the crate door and he didn’t come bounding out to greet us and that was unusual. I figured he was sleeping soundly but knew it was unlikely that he hadn’t heard us come in. He was all wrapped up in his sheet, which is how he loves to sleep, so I tugged at his sheet, he peeked out at me but wouldn’t come out of the crate. I just left him alone figuring he’d come out when he was ready but after a while, he hadn’t budged and I knew he wasn’t ok. Both Vince and I did everything we could do to entice him to come out and it was hours before he did make his way slowly out of the crate. He was obviously sick. We don’t have any emergency vets around here and he didn’t seem in any imminent danger. Sunday morning he was his usual energetic self and I figured he had a bit of a bug and was thankful he was ok but by Sunday afternoon, he wasn’t doing well again. He was barely walking and was wanting to spend most of his time in the crate, so we let him. There’s about a 3″ drop off at the porch and he wouldn’t even hop up that after making a trip outside to do his business.
This morning I took him to the vet and he had a bit of a temp and blood work wasn’t real conclusive but the vet is treating him for pancreatitis. There were several levels that should have been elevated to confirm pancreatitis and Speck only had one that was elevated. His red blood count was high and the vet thinks he may not have been drinking enough water and is a bit dehydrated.
Dog Food
The vet put him on a low fat “GI Restore” dog food and said that feeding less vs. more is recommended so Speck gets 1/4 cup of food in the morning and 1/4 cup in the afternoon. He’s taking several meds and the vet will check him again next week.
Searching for Crumbs
He still feels really bad but he’s hungry and when he’s up and moving around, he’s searching for crumbs . . anything he can find to eat. If he starts feeling really good before the vet says he can have more food, this is not going to be a happy place to be.
It’s no fun for anyone, pet or parent (99).
Aw. I hope he perks up soon. Ozzie’s had a few off days lately. One turned out, when I took him for his walk and he pottied, to be that he had eaten a Ricola cough drop! He must have taken it from the little bowl on the coffee table when I was outside. Ozzie sends kind puppy kisses.
Judy
I understand how you are feeling with Speck. Just give him some loving. I remember 3 years ago one of our dogs was on that diet—he was recovering from Parvo–we had only had him for a few days. I had to make him eat it–but he is now a big boy–and had his birthday last week—I know Speck is a lot older, but it is going to be one of those things we all hate to think about–but one of these days—there will tears that will flow—I pray that he gets better.
Sibyl
Thanks for the update, had noticed the FB post earlier, and wondered how he was doing. Hope he is able to bounce back from this. <3
Hope he feels better soon.
I hope he is feeling better soon. Carter did the same thing this morning–seemed a lot better. I almost didn’t take him. However they did say he had a corneal ulcer, so he really needed meds. Carter isn’t as old as spec, but we were worried it might be a brain tumor or something (his eye turned out), but instead it’s just a scratched eyeball. The sad thing about owning dogs is one day you look at them and realize your time with them won’t be a lot longer.
Hope he’s back to his ‘old’ self again soon (excuse the pun) x
Awe.. I hope he does well on the new food .. It’s hard on both parents and pup!!!
Poor Speck. Growing old really sucks. Chris went to see not-his-dog Stanley yesterday, Stan had to have a leg amputated today because all of the tendons were destroyed…he likes to chase cars and got too close one too many times. I think he will feel better and be more active once he recovers from surgery. Regardless Chris will probably start visiting once a week. Funny how attached he is to someone else’s dog!
Judy, My heart goes out to you. It’s always so frightening when our dear pets are sick, especially when they’re old. Hang in there. Just love him up. My dog is on a hypo-allegenic diet for 2 months. She’s searching all over for food, especially food that she used to eat.
Judy, So sorry to hear that Speck is ill. Saying prayers for his .speedy recovery
Judy, I feel your pain. We’ve been through pancreatitis with our 14 year old mini schnauzer,. I hope Speck is on the mend soon.
Our dogs have been on low-fat dog food ever since the first attack.
I have Speck on my puppy prayer list. That food does work, though. Penny has GI issues this past year, got dehydrated, and my vet gave her this exact food. It worked wonders.
Poor Speck! Max, Maisy and Lula send puppy love! Friday night, I stepped on Lula’s toe and we had a trip to the vet on Saturday to make sure it wasn’t broken. Luckily, Max hasn’t had any issues with his back or his leg/hip recently, but he did have an abscess at Thanksgiving which was another trip to the vet. I think I have seen them more in the past year than in the prior 3 or 4 years combined!
I hope Speck’s levels go back to normal and he is feeling better. Sick dogs are the pits! My parents are dealing with back issues and seizures with one of their’s and the vets won’t give them muscle relaxer so he is just in constant pain.
Oh poor Speck..it’s so hard when the fur babies are sick cause they can’t tell us anything. I tell Mr. Fang all the time I wish he’d just tell me what he was thinking. I know pancreatitis is awful in people–my mom had it when she was in her 80′s. The dr. said it was like having a 4th degree sunburn on the inside. YIKES!
So sorry, Speck! My Dweezle was on that food for a few days about a month ago. She had a bad case of Montezuma’s Revenge. Seriously, one spoonful of that stuff and she was better. Hope it does the same for your sweet friend.
Judy–I’m glad you took Speck to the vet; pancreatitis can be dangerous. Smokey, our Lhasa, had it about 6 years ago and was really sick. He wouldn’t even go down a single step because he felt so bad. Hope Speck is better soon.
Judy be super diligent about only giving vet canned food. We went thru this and it sets them back so bad if u give any other food before vet sez. Good luck.
Awwwwww. I hope he bounces back quickly. Poor baby.
Getting old is hell for everyone….dogs included. Poor guy. Hope he gets to feeling better soon.
It is so hard when the pets are sick – hope he perks up soon.
My dog has done the same thing, with the vet telling me the same thing. That was about 2 months ago. He got better…..and then he got sick again. I took him to the Vet, this time I saw a different Dr. This Doc is my fav, he operated on one of my other dogs…last year, with great success. He has been around for awhile.. He suggested an x-ray. When he came back it was pretty clear. Toby has a pinched nerve. His spine was evenly spaced except for one spot. He always cries when we pick him up to go back in the big truck(Peterbilt) That was why. So ours wasn’t pancreatitis, which the first doc had diagnosed. I know that Speck is older, so is Toby. Just like people there backs get bad. They showed me how to pick him up, putting my hand and arm under both his front and back end. He doesn’t mind the pick up so much. I thought I would just let you know because….our original diagnoses were the same and if Speck gets bad again…maybe you should check his back. Toby had a hard time walking and his back legs sorta folded under him. 3 inches would seem like a mile. Well I hope Speck gets better. I just needed to tell you in case it might help….We sure love our little critters
PS Toby is a very good eater to
So sorry to hear Speck isn’t feeling well. I remember when our dog would get sick we worried ourselves silly. If they could just tell us where they hurt ……..
I hope he gets better soon. Stick to the food and the correct amount even though it will be tempting to give him more when he acts hungry. More will just make him hurt more.
In a few days he’ll be feeling better..
Oh no, Judy!
I hope Speck is better in no time! It’s always so hard when our pet-children are ill and can’t tell us what is wrong…
Hugs to you & Vince, (and Speck!)
BLM
Tough times. Until you’ve shared the love of a dogs people don’t always understand the bond, the unconditional love. I hope Speck feels more comfortable soon. Love and hugs to you both xxx
My 9 yr. old chubba wubba chihuahua has been on the R/d for afew years and it’s kept his weight down from what it would be…he loooovees food. Hope Speck is feeling better soon.
Hope Speck is feeling better soon. I had a cat on the feline version of the same food and it really helped. I had to be really tough about saying No to treats because the appetite came back before he was allowed to eat anything else.
i wish our beloved animals had a longer life span…doesn’t seem fair that a turtle can out live us and we outlive so many of our dogs and cats…gets us prepared for heartache i guess…
It is so hard to have a sick baby. Even if Speck is getting old, I know that he is still your baby. My dog has had to go on a special diet because of skin and ear issues (they think that it is allergies) and she is not one bit happy. Her “Daddy” always gave her one small bite of what ever meat we had for dinner and now that he con’t she is beside herself. Like Speck she sniffs the floor in the kitchen all of the time, just hoping that somebody dropped a bite of something good!
We have a 15-year-old toy poodle who has various health issues and has to be on a special diet. He has his good days, but he sleeps a lot and doesn’t always eat like we think he should. It’s hard to watch, but he still seems happy most of the time. I’m sorry you are going through something similar with Speck.
Poor Speck! Pancreatitis is so painful for dogs. He must have eaten too many people goodies over the holidays. I hope he gets better soon.