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He is nearly 13 years old. Best pirate dog in the world.
But he is aging quickly. Over the last few months he has been losing his hearing and now his vision is starting to go (well it has gone pretty far already). He can still hear a bit, but doesn't seem to be able to pick out direction or make out specific words except for sit, go, no.
He has some slight cataracts but they are not bad enough to affect his vision. But he still is almost blind, especially when coming in from bright sunlight into a darkened room. It will take him around 1/2 an hour to see anything at all. After that he can make out shapes and motion and get around the house, but he still stumbles here and there. I will probably be taking him to an ophthalmologist if I can afford it. The problem is that they will most likely just tell me it is his retinas degenerating due to age and there is nothing to be done. I have been giving him some vitamins to see if that helps.
And now, after my vet told me to get some expensive tests done ($300) I find out he has Cushing Disease. It is caused mostly by a benign pituitary gland tumor that causes too much stress hormones which causes high blood pressure, muscle weakness, could have contributed to the early hearing and vision loss, and other bad things.
So he is on medicine, Veteryl 30mg, which costs $90/month at the vet, and $52 online. And he has to be retested in 14 days to see if it is the right dose (another $300 test) and then in another 14 days if the dose has to be changed (another $300) or in 4 to 6 months if the dose is correct. I pray the dose is correct.
I bought him a ramp because he seemed to be having trouble going down the steps on the deck (3 steps) - but he seems to be having more trouble with the ramp. He fell off the side of the ramp a couple of times already, even though it has some low rails on it. I might just return the thing.
But overall, he doesn't seem to be bothered by it all. He even seems to snuggle up to me more, because that way he knows where I am. He never was an active dog, so his routine hasn't changed much. Lay around the house, go outside, eat, sleep.
As long as I can afford his medical care and he seems to still be enjoying life, I will not put him down.
Pray for him for me though, that God lets him keep whatever hearing and vision he still has, or makes them better.
But he is aging quickly. Over the last few months he has been losing his hearing and now his vision is starting to go (well it has gone pretty far already). He can still hear a bit, but doesn't seem to be able to pick out direction or make out specific words except for sit, go, no.
He has some slight cataracts but they are not bad enough to affect his vision. But he still is almost blind, especially when coming in from bright sunlight into a darkened room. It will take him around 1/2 an hour to see anything at all. After that he can make out shapes and motion and get around the house, but he still stumbles here and there. I will probably be taking him to an ophthalmologist if I can afford it. The problem is that they will most likely just tell me it is his retinas degenerating due to age and there is nothing to be done. I have been giving him some vitamins to see if that helps.
And now, after my vet told me to get some expensive tests done ($300) I find out he has Cushing Disease. It is caused mostly by a benign pituitary gland tumor that causes too much stress hormones which causes high blood pressure, muscle weakness, could have contributed to the early hearing and vision loss, and other bad things.
So he is on medicine, Veteryl 30mg, which costs $90/month at the vet, and $52 online. And he has to be retested in 14 days to see if it is the right dose (another $300 test) and then in another 14 days if the dose has to be changed (another $300) or in 4 to 6 months if the dose is correct. I pray the dose is correct.
I bought him a ramp because he seemed to be having trouble going down the steps on the deck (3 steps) - but he seems to be having more trouble with the ramp. He fell off the side of the ramp a couple of times already, even though it has some low rails on it. I might just return the thing.
But overall, he doesn't seem to be bothered by it all. He even seems to snuggle up to me more, because that way he knows where I am. He never was an active dog, so his routine hasn't changed much. Lay around the house, go outside, eat, sleep.
As long as I can afford his medical care and he seems to still be enjoying life, I will not put him down.
Pray for him for me though, that God lets him keep whatever hearing and vision he still has, or makes them better.
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