Loving my Oldies

Is her name Dianna? Where did I get idea she’d gone to a Brisbane? Did she have Whippets?

@juice, now that you mention Stormy, I have some vague recollection of going out there with a rescue dog - it would be years ago. I used to keep a document detailing the people associated with rescue who I’d been in touch with and for what reason as well as their IRL and DOL names. I wonder if I can find it. I seem to recall that she moved to Brisbane ?? Maybe she returned ?

That’s the thing, @persephone . So worried to find someone experienced and knowledgeable to deal with the myriad different needs of my littlies.

That is some recommendation, @tdierikx Galston is not far as the crow flies, but the roads around here are getting worse and worse. Even before restrictions were lifted, I had to go out to Dural and it took me ages. The traffic was horrendous. I can get to my current vet in under 10 minutes. I have had some very promising recommendations from my queries on FB and will investigate a couple of places closer to me. Will certainly keep Galston in mind, though.

Thanks @jemappelle. I have posted on a couple of local community pages and have been inundated with recommendations LOL. My head is spinning. A couple of places are beginning to stand out, though. Among other plaudits for a particular vet, one poster said the vet was “pratical” which sounded good to me. I can certainly understand people selling up for a better lifestyle, but there has to be something wrong when there is such a huge turnover of all levels of staff. Four of the vets where I have been going would get unending gold stars from me, but two have gone and the two I have continued to see are not there enough. Sad and scary.

I have been going to the same veterinary clinic for over 13 years. Last year, without any advice to clients, the hospital was sold to Best For Pets. Vets who’d been there for years were suddenly gone and vets who’d always been there started to work fewer and fewer days. New vets appeared (and disappeared) and did not inspire confidence. A “practice manager” was appointed who had never heard of giving clients a smile and chewed gum. My little boy, Mezza, isn’t well and I rang on Thursday only to find that the vet who has worked his case for a long time isn’t available until late Monday - now working only Mondays and Tuesdays. This particular vet has always been so wonderful and so caring, ringing late at night with follow ups, etc etc, but if you need to book a week or more in advance that caring and wonderfulness aren’t much use when your pet gets sick suddenly. One of the vets who has been there as long as the one mentioned above was also one of my absolutely go to vets - caring, excellent and experienced, always helpful - has changed as well. She used to be unfailingly cheerful, instilling confidence. All these attributes seem to have disappeared and she now looks unhappy most of the time. Some one else mentioned to me how she seemed to have changed. I don’t know whether any of these changes have to do with the change of ownership, but it has to be assumed that that is the cause. So many changes in so little time. Anyway, as hard as it is (and scary) I need to start looking elsewhere I think, but where to start? There are a few veterinary clinics around me (I live near Hornsby), but vets are a bit like doctors: how their abilities or otherwise are viewed is very subjective. I have rung today and the only vets on are one to whom I would not take a pet rock and the other is one of the newcomers and I know little about him. Damn damn damn. I hate changes.

They are a great pair. What is that marker to the right of the trees about 3/4 way up the photograph?

Tamar is doing well. She eats like a horse, but is not putting on much needed weight. Back to high calorie Nutrigel. I took this photo this morning - note the absence of dining chairs . Only two remain, but Tamar continually likes to get underneath the rungs. Please don’t be worried for her: after I took the photograph, I kept watching her to see if she needed help. She certainly didn’t - she moved from under the rung, did a couple of circles and walked back under. Love this litle girl more than I can say. Coming up to 16 years (July 2004) when I swooped down and took her from Canterbury Pound. One of the most welcome changes is that when I go downstairs to collect her, she comes when I call her and she does not struggle at all when I cuddle her - something she always did even when she was a young dog - and snuggles into me as I give her a heap of kisses. fullsizeoutput_c4d by Cynthia Waters, on Flickr

This is the thing, of course. Finding that person. However, with all the good reviews, I am starting my search.

Yep, talking about my dogs. Thanks for the link, @Dogsfevr

Does anyone have a recommendation for a practitioner in Sydney, please? Hills/Hornsby area but could travel. A discussion popped up on FB which made me wonder if my littlies could be helped. Experiences good, bad and indifferent welcome. TIA

WOW. How did you find this thread? It is from 2013. I hope both John and Carrie are well and happy. It would be good to know more about how you became involved and helped them. Great news.

My brother, long retired, ran his own veterinary hospital for over 30 years. My blood still runs cold when I recall some of his stories. Unpaid bills were the least of it and he was constantly being told “if you loved animals you’d do it for free.”

Oh, @Kirislin, what a shocking, devastating thing to have happened. Poor, dearest little Arkey, so young and so beautiful.

@Cat, Hamish was very special and I, for one, loved following his antics on FB. You must miss him dearly. As @sandgrubber says, emotions, like and dislikes etc of our dogs will mostly remain a mystery, but real grief can be interpreted; I have seen it personally in my dogs and others and it doesn’t seem from your description, Yuna has it, acknowledging of course that she has you at home during these restrictions. As for Yuna's wanderings, I wouldn’t read too much into it .... I think it is something some older/elderly dogs do. Are Shar Pei known for getting dementia? Maybe a little bit of this has started? I have to agree with @Dogsfevr. Wait until YOU want another dog and start a bit of a routine with Yuna for when you go back to work. Thinking of you and Yuna.

Not at all . I did suggest stickers

Thanks, Marg. Tamar is fine and, at the moment she has polished off a meal of roast chicken and kibble and has moved on to finish what Sooty left. Yes, it is obvious she is getting worse, but she is amazingly resilient. I have an appointment with my vet on Monday, so I hope I am allowed to be face to face - I actually forgot their Covid-19 regime when I made the appointment . I have glass sliding doors from the house onto the patio and I always make sure the screen door is aligned with the glass door, otherwise dogs, whether sight impaired or not, will bump into the glass thinking the door is open. With your Sasha it could be that she is just getting old and not completely blind or has your vet confirmed sight loss? If you don’t have screens, perhaps you could put some decorative film over it.

She definitely will be let go with more love than I can express .... when the time is right. Tamar is still a happy and, UMN notwithstanding, healthy little dog. She loves her cuddles and her food and as I said above she and Mezza still have little bouncy mouthy play times. Thank you, @PepperP. This is how the situation stands at the moment. She is not in pain and I would never countenance that. There are 24 hours in a day and for probably half that time my dogs are asleep or snoozing as they are all very old. Then there are the times downstairs, or with Sooty, dozing sitting up in the patches of sun on the deck, feeding, getting cuddles, eating, etc etc. Those who think I should “let Tamar go” please be assured she is not at that stage yet and the second that happens, I will do so.

All the Corgis I’ve ever met have been delightful and I call them all, regardless of gender, Queen Elizabeth. My recently deceased little Bunter was, I believe, a Corgi x Pom. He was a delightful little fellow who was devoted to me. He became a little snappy in his later years, but I think that was because of his age (he was 17 when he passed away) and a little bit of senility. I didn’t notice any great shedding, in fact the worst for shedding was Jeune, who was a large Chihuahua. One cuddle and I was several pounds heavier .

@Papillon Kisses, my vet told me that UMN affects the brain, too. It became obvious a while ago that something was going on when I took her downstairs last thing at night; she wasn’t able to find her way upstairs. At first I thought it was a case of night blindness until my Vet told me about UMN. I would also have to start talking to her before I approached and make sure she had computed my presence otherwise she’d jump a mile high and run away. That seems to have stopped of late which is good. It is horrible to see them startled because they’ve lost some of their cognitive abilities.

You bet

Thanks @Snook. You are right - I won’t be relying on physical pain in terms of making any judgement, there certainly is more to life than just not being in pain. Her stumbles don’t seem to disconcert her, but getting caught can a different matter. Sometimes she just seems to go into a bit of a trance and even at those times when she realises she can’t extricate herself, she doesn’t seem to get too upset. Last night’s experience of getting caught down in the garden was just awful though. I am moving some of the dining table chairs into another room to help her in the house and I have put up a barricade at the back stairs. The vet I want to see is now back on deck and I have an appointment for Monday. Happier days when we were all a lot younger: Tamar Jeune 2 by Cynthia Waters, on Flickr

I saw on FB that parcels were taking an inordinate amount of time to be received and so let it go for a little while and sent another email, to which I received a reply today saying that it was on its way and giving me a tracking number. So far I haven’t clicked on that because I am concerned that it is a scam. I will try the website again.

@Rebanne @persephone At the moment, Tamar is happy and healthy. She eats well even if sometimes she falls over her bowl or ends up standing in it!!! When I take her and the others downstairs which I do several times a day, she still enjoys sniffing around. I watch her to gauge when the enjoyment changes to “the wandering”. The best is that she and Mezza still have their moments of puppy play. ETA: Tamar is not in pain and if she were and it could not be controlled, I would never let her suffer.

Thanks @stellnme. I did some googling when my vet first told me about UMN, but found the below just today after doing more searches for UMN in dogs. My vet also told me that little dogs manage better than big dogs, because of the difference in weight as the larger dogs cannot support their weight. I thought the same re your comment about wheels and at the time my vet said she had UMN he said that despite all the wonderful videos we see on social media, etc, dogs can find wheels very difficult. That said, I think Tamar’s front legs would be very strong as, all her life, her way of doing wees was to stand on her front legs and totter forward weeing the while !! I do have a video somewhere and will try to find it. "Spinal muscular atrophy is a collective term for a group of motor neuron diseases. Motor neurons are the nerve cells which transmit electrical impulses to the muscles in order to generate movement. The exact symptoms of these disorders depend on the specific condition however generally your dog will have difficulty in supporting their own weight, degraded reflexes, an awkward gait, and a loss of muscle mass. These diseases are currently incurable and with the exception of the German Shepherd they will also worsen over time. Treatment will consist of keeping your dog comfortable until they need to be put to sleep."