The Vet Called

We take Petey to the Berry Hill Animal Hospital.  We have been pleased with everyone there from the veterinarians to the assistants, to the receptionist.  Yes, even the receptionist knows Petey!  One of the doctors in particular, however, seems to have a special affinity for Petey.  John and I try to request her whenever we need an appointment.  Her name is Dr. Amanda Gansberger.

John called her after the episode several weeks ago.  After some discussion, they agreed to try Petey on a calming medication at night to help him rest.  (OK, to help us all rest.)  John and I felt like this was Petey's last real chance at normalcy.  And that if this didn't work, we'd have to make the hard decision that we'd been delaying for so long.

On August 1, we gave Petey the first dose of the medicine and we all slept all night.  It was amazing how much better all of us felt the next day.  With the exception of one night, when Petey refused to take his medication, he has taken it every night and is much like his old self.  And I do mean OLD as in old age.

I still had a little doubt in my mind as to how much pain Petey was in.  He seemed so much better that I pacified myself with that thought.

Then, one day last week, out of the blue, Dr. Gansberger called.  She was calling simply to check on Petey.  She wanted to make sure that the medication was working as she had anticipated and had other ideas if this didn't seem to be working.  I was so touched by her kindness that I cried as I told her that I thought Petey was better, but I still had some concern about his back legs/hips.

She explained to me that Petey is 95 years old and is not going to be chasing squirrels no matter what.  She and I discussed his daily activities, and she said they were very typical of a dog of his age and breed.  John and I had already decided that his jumping days were over.  We aren't letting him on the couch or the bed.  He can't be trusted to let one of us help him down when he decides it is time.  He has nice beds in the floor all around the house.  He's been OK with that for the most part.

She gave me a lot of comfort that Petey was acting just like Petey should act.  I think he'll be with us for a while to come.  Maybe he'll make it to 100, which is probably just February!

Pete's NDE

Petey is a drama dog.  I had never ever realized there was such a thing until Petey came along.  Some of my long time readers may remember that years ago I thought Petey was dying but he was far from it.  That isn't the only time Petey has been unwell somehow but we thought it was more extreme than it really was.  Of course now, with his advanced age, we know that Petey's days ahead with us are fewer than the days he's already had with us.  We've had sad conversations about his end of life and when would we know it was time to let him go.

Until the wee hours of the morning Sunday morning, Petey's biggest problem was arthritis in his back hips.  That seems to be managed well by medication.  Of course, some days he's perkier than others, but isn't that true for all of us.  We've largely gotten over the peeing in the house phase.  Turns out it wasn't a medical/physical condition at all.  Just a Petey condition.  So, we really have not made any concrete decisions about the end of Petey's life.

In the wee hours of the morning Sunday morning, we thought our decision had been made.  It started at about 1:30 am.  Petey got John up to go out, which is typical except it is more like 5:00 am when he wants out.  Petey took longer than he generally does outside, wandering through the back yard for a while.  John stayed on the porch watching but didn't really see every where he went or every thing he did.  They came back inside.  John went back to bed but Petey didn't.

Petey was very restless.  He would walk in to the bathroom and get a big drink of water.  Then he'd come scratch around on his yellow blanket.  Back to the bathroom, then on the bed, then the blanket.  Around and around up and down he went until we were all exasperated.  At about 2:30 I let him out.  He went out for a quick run and when he came back I gave him 1/2 of one of his doggie downers.  (These are the same pills, I gave him before our lake trip.) We had to get some rest.  All three of us.

Petey settled on his yellow blanket and we were dozing off when I heard some noise coming from the yellow blanket.  I got up to find Petey, in a state.  I wondered if he was having a stroke or maybe a seizure.  His posture was strange and his eyes weren't right.  He had his lips back in a snarl with his remaining teeth bared.  I was a little hesitant to touch him, afraid I'd be bitten, but I couldn't let him lie there in such distress.

I picked him up and that calmed him some.  He was rather limp; his breathing eased but his eyes still weren't right.  I woke John up and told him I thought Petey was dying.  We put him on the bed between us and he seemed to go to sleep. In just a few minutes though, he began almost panting; taking very short, shallow breaths with his tongue hanging out only he was on his side with his eyes closed.

John and I both thought the end was very near.  We cuddled him and told him 'bye' yet he kept on breathing and his heart was beating. We all settled again for another 15-20 minutes and then he began to thrash around.  He managed to get to his belly and proceeded to puke all over the bed.  We both thought this was indeed the end, yet he kept on breathing and his heart kept beating.

We cleaned up the mess and laid there on the bed until morning and then we had to decide what to do.  I had nursery duty at church and John had a class to teach.  Since he was in no obvious distress, we decided that one of us would stay home from church so that he would not be alone when he died.  We didn't think a visit to the vet ER for the 'big shot' was needed.  He wasn't going to last that much longer.  He didn't open his eyes when we touched him.

I went to church and dismissed John's class, explaining about Petey.  Everyone was kind and understanding, even offering to stay in the nursery for me.  I opted to stay, however.  I wasn't sure if I really wanted to be at home when Petey stopped breathing and his heard stopped beating.  On the way home, I wondered if John would wait for me to bury him.  I thought about how to dispose of his things.  I wondered if we could donate his medicine to the shelter.

While I was gone John shared that Petey had roused.  He thought maybe Petey needed to go out, so he lifted him off of the bed to carry him outside.  On the way to the back door, Petey had another episode and lost control of his bladder.  John gently laid him on the back porch thinking that it would just be a matter of minutes now.  Petey roused and wanted to go back in but couldn't walk.  John was fearful of carrying him, thinking that him picking the poor animal up, was what caused the latest episode.  He quickly fashioned a stretcher for Petey and brought him back inside.

I came home to find them both on the front bedroom bed.  Petey more alert than he'd been since I found him on the blanket in the night.  As the day wore on, Petey gradually came back to us.  His eyes got clearer and he was able to move around more.  By bedtime, Sunday night, other than a slight limp which he has off & on, there was no way to tell anything had happened.

Petey is the dog who cried death, much like the boy who cried wolf.  John wondered had this happened during the week, would we have taken him to the vet rather than letting him peacefully die at home.  If so, we could have let Petey go before his time.   There was no way he was faking, but still we believed the situation to be far more dire than it was.

Today, was a typical day for Petey.  He moved a little slower, but it was a rainy morning which often creates a little more creakiness in his bones.  And we all know his penchant for drama!!  Petey is here for a while longer.  As to how long?  Who knows?

Puking Pete

***WARNING!*** This post is disgusting! Anyone with a weak stomach should just keep going.  On the other hand, 12 year old boys might think this is cool.  Read on at your own risk.

Last night John, Petey and I were enjoying some TV courtesy of Netflix.  It was getting close to the end when John yelled out something along the lines of "Gross Petey!"  I looked over in time to see Petey puking in his ring bed.  John immediately got up and got something to clean up the mess.  Before he could get back with the paper towels Petey was eating the puke.  Again, John yelled out something like "That's disgusting!"  I was not saying anything because I was trying not to toss my cookies!  John starts talking about how that is in the Bible like that will make me not hurl.  I managed to squeak out that I didn't think Petey read the Bible.

We finished the show.  Petey got in the bed and I went to the bathroom to brush my teeth.  When I came out, I saw Petey licking his paws.  Nothing unusual there.  Not until, I got closer and saw that he was once again eating upchuck.  I ran screaming from the room, calmly called for John, managed not to puke and summoned John to the room.

We decided the best thing to do would be just remove the comforter where Petey happened to be when the deed was done, and wash it in the  morning.  I realized I would be too chilly without a little extra cover, so we got the single size comforter from the middle bedroom.  

I snuggled down to read a bit while John rinsed out the cloth he'd used to wipe off the comforter.  Before John was finished, Petey once again returned his stomach contents.  This time, I really did gag, and covered my head while John forcibly kept Petey from reingesting the foul matter yet again!!

We were able to clean up enough to get to bed at a decent hour, and Petey did not puke any more, since his stomach was empty.

As Promised: The Last Night of the Trip

John and I generally start packing the night before coming home when on a trip.  It saves time and panic in the morning to have the non-essentials ready to go.  So, as per our usual pattern we began putting away things that we were not going to need in the morning.  It seemed very normal to us, but not to Petey.

Pete got more and more agitated as the evening progressed.  The more things we packed the more he paced.  He was circling the cabin like a little white streak in no time at all.  We wondered if he was upset and didn't want to leave since he was having such a good time, not counting the boat part.  We also wondered if he was afraid that we were abandoning him.  We decided on the former.  Surely, the dog knew we were taking him home.  

I decided the thing to do would be to give him 1/2 pill of his doggie dope.  He's pretty good at taking pills now.  Most of the time, I just hold it in front of him and he eats it.  When that doesn't work I get out the peanut butter or just poke it in his mouth where some of his teeth used to be.  Lacking peanut butter on this trip, my only option was the poke it in method.  Only it didn't work.  Petey learned to spit somewhere along the line.

It took no less than five tries to cram that pill down his throat.  The thing with Pete is, we have to remain calm.  If John or I gets upset with him he freaks out all the more.  So, I am trying to use a soothing voice when I tell him that he's going to take this pill or else.  I'm gently stroking him as I try to pry his clenched jaws open.  I finally prevail.  Petey swallowed the pill.  I'm hoping that he'll be mellow by bed time and sleep through the night.  My hopes were dashed.

At bed time, Petey was as keyed up as ever.  Actually, we decided to go to bed early since he was so freaked out, hoping that would calm him.  Perhaps, if we'd waited another 30 or 45 minutes to go to bed he would have been calmer, but I doubt it.

The bed was pushed against the wall on one side.  I tried to keep Petey between me and the wall, but he would have none of it.  If he couldn't pace the cabin, he'd pace the bed.  Over and over we used our soothing voices to try and calm him.  It didn't work.  We tried to calm him by petting him gently but he would jerk away from our hands.

Finally, he jerked away from a soothing pat and fell off the bed.  Somehow, he managed to fall in such a way that his left legs were between the bed rail and the mattress and his right legs were on the other side of the bed rail.  He was straddling the bed rail and he was hurt.  It had to have hurt.  He hit his underside on the narrow edge of the bed rail.  He set up a wail the likes of which I'd never heard from him.

Of course John and I were right there to rescue him in mere moments.  But Petey always panics first.  John managed to ease him out rather quickly and held him in his lap to feel the damage and try and calm him.  Petey had no apparent injuries, but that did not matter to Petey.  He had to shudder and carry on, while John snuggled him.  Then he peed in John's lap.

Yes, Petey peed all over John and the sheets our last night of the trip.  Cleaning up pee was not the way we intended to spend our last night of vacation.  (Truth be told, we thought that we'd be cleaning it up all week!)

We finally all settled down to sleep.  Petey was curled up against John and would not move.  John didn't sleep so well because whenever he moved Petey was sure to be next to him.  It was like they were attached.  At least no one fell out of the bed any more that night.

I gave Petey the other half of the pill in the morning, and we made it home without incident.  We're not sure if Petey will travel with us in the future.

Petey Takes a Road Trip

John and I had resigned ourselves to not taking a vacation this year.  There were several very good reasons for this, not the least of which being Petey.  He is just too much to be left with anyone.  He is beyond high maintenance now.  We could not leave him with anyone knowing the damage he would likely cause.  We also knew that boarding him would be a death sentence for him.  He would not endure such as that. 

A couple of weeks ago, however, John ran across a pet friendly lake resort.  The prices, even with the pet fee, were very reasonable.  It was a gamble on a lot of levels to take Petey to an unknown place.  Just going to a place sight unseen is a gamble in and of itself.  Adding Petey is a whole new dimension.  We knew already that he is bad in the car.  We knew already that he does not like water.  Yet we forged ahead.

We (I) gave Petey 1 1/2 of his doggie Valium before heading out the morning of our trip.  He fights it so much, that I started about 2 hours before time to leave, giving him small doses at a time.  I was hoping the effect would sneak up on him and he'd be asleep by time to leave.  That didn't happen.  He was pretty mellow for most of the ride.  The trip was just over 2 hours driving time, and he finally conked out just before arriving.  John was fearful that I'd overdosed the dog and kept asking if he was still breathing.  He was.

We got to the lake and found a sweet little family run area that was much like taking a step back in time.  No cell phones, no wifi, but there were pay phones, more than one.  The cabins were built in the early 1950's.

On the inside the rooms made a circle, which Petey loved.  Or at least he walked it constantly.

We were quite surprised how much of the Petey we once knew returned on this trip.  He was feisty and fun, except for the part when we were actually on the lake.

That is him in the boat trying to hide.  Otherwise, he did seem to enjoy himself until the last night of the trip.  That is a post for another day.  In the meantime, here are a couple of shots of the lake and Petey from our week.

Petey and Miss A

I have a niece I'll call Miss A.  I love her very much.  She lives in another state so we don't get to see very much.  Usually two or three times per year is all we get to see her, but we text or email almost every day.  I love hearing from her.  She always asks about Petey.

Sometimes I go to her house and sometimes she comes to mine.  Petey only sees her when she is at my house.  He doesn't like to travel.  He never has.  We've tried to take him places but it just doesn't work out.

When Miss A comes to our house she always gives Petey treats.  He likes that.  He doesn't like most people, but he likes her.  Maybe it is because of the treats or maybe it is because she always asks about him.

It could be that he likes her Mom.  Petey jumped in her lap the first time he met her; one of about 3 people he's taken to right away.  (The other two are not me and John.)  He bit my other sister the first time he met her.  She may be the only person he's actually bitten.  Most of the time he just growls and barks.

Anyway, Miss A is coming to my house in a couple of months.  I have already told Petey so he can look forward to seeing her too.  We can't wait!  We will have a lot of fun when she is here.

A Reenactment

Apparently, Petey got hot during the night.  When we got up the yellow blanket had been dragged away from the radiator and the fan had been knocked over.  Petey was laying on the yellow blanket with the fan blowing on him.  Of course he got up before I could get a picture.

He was kind enough to pose for a bit of a reenactment though.

He was closer to the fan and asleep this morning.  When this picture was taken, I think he was mad that I was messing with his stuff.  He gets territorial sometimes.