Dinsdale Mersey Beat

Mersey is feeling much better, she is being treated for Pyoderma, a bacterial skin infection and I have switched out her food, she is now on a total raw diet.  Her eyes look brighter, coat and skin healthier.  Nice to have her on the mend, she had me concerned for a bit.

Becoming a senior schnauzer

Some dogs seem perpetually youthful, in our breed most are vibrant and active well into the early teen years.  If they have lived healthy lives the first glimpse into the geriatric schnauzer appears around the 12th year.  It happens quick, like.... you go to bed one night and wake up the next and you have a Senior schnauzer.  They move a little slower, sleep a bit more and start to not respond as quickly to your commands.  Mersey is going into her 11th year and I hate to admit that she is ageing a bit faster then I am use to with my dogs.  She is happy, eats well, but, she just seems...old.  I think it is time for a vet visit to see if there is anything out of the normal going on with her.

Cold outside...damp inside

Last Thursday while out performing my farmyard duties Hope was inside peeing.  Now, Hope is 13 years old and on heart medication that causes her to drink a lot and pee a lot, but, even so, she has never soiled her crate, or, peed in the house.  I cleaned up, cursed myself a bit, but didn't think too much of it.  Come evening she started trotting back and forth to the door, all evening, then she squatted and strained to pee in the house before bedtime.  I called my vet first thing in the morning, took in a urine sample which showed a very bad bladder infection.  I was somewhat relieved as I was imagining all sorts of problems.  Hope was in a lot of pain, panting, pacing, hunched up and straining to urinate all day and night.  By Saturday evening, after a day and a half of meds, she looked a little brighter, tail not clamped and she was no longer hunched over in pain.  But, OH the peeing!!!  If you have ever had an adult incontinent dog in your home you can feel my pain, I tried dog diapers with a pad inside, these would overflow within minutes.  Next step, incontinence pads....EVERYWHERE.  Although this was working to keep my furniture clean, it was upsetting to see Hope soiling herself, and worse she had no idea she was peeing until she was soaked,  poor girl.
Another call to the vets yesterday to confirm that this was not normal behaviour after almost five days of meds for a bladder infection.  Last night I started her on Propalin, a medication to help dogs regain control of their bladders.

Today, Hope is feeling good, tail wagging, a little happy roll and the peeing has slowed dramatically.  Fingers crossed that we are on the way to being able to remove the pee pads from my furniture.

This is the first bladder infection I have had with one of my dogs, and other then Gussy, who lost control of her bladder during the paralysis of her rear legs, never have I dealt with a totally incontinent dog in 25 years of owning dogs.  I have been discussing with other dog owners and am completely floored by the number of dogs that have suffered from Spay incontinence starting in very young dogs.  Hope is Spayed, but, she wasn't until her last litter at about 7 years of age.  I don't believe this episode is connected to her being spayed, but, due to age and I have a haunting feeling there may be something more serious behind this sudden change in Hope and her bathroom habits.
Having a geriatric dog is difficult, they suffer from the same ailments as us humans, but, they cannot tell us what hurts, this means we are usually behind the ball in catching and correcting them.  It is my hope that this is just a bit of a hiccup for my old girl and that she will pull through and carry on happy and comfortable for some time yet.

Cross that off my to-do list

Twenty-six individual doggie 'bunny' dinners done!

If you check in on my blog occasionally you may have seen my postings about the addition of rabbits to help supplement the dogs diet.  Really pleased with the results, its wonderful to know that I am supplementing my dogs with well raised fresh meats. 

 The occasional rabbit has also made it to our dinner table, yes it's true, once you get over the whole fluffy bunny thing, healthy garden fresh rabbit makes an amazing dinner.

Living in the moment

There are many lessons our dogs can teach us, Mersey demonstrates living and enjoying the moment.

I've been stung!

OUCH! A week and a half ago Gussy was stung by a wasp, the right side of her face swelled, her eye was swollen shut, her lip almost 2 inches thick. Benedryl, a cold soaking and prednisone brought it down over the next 4 days, whew. Then Thursday I put her in her crate for a couple of hours and when I opened the door....this is what she looked like ACK! I hustled her off to the vet thinking she was stung again. According to the vet it would be MOST unusual (as in he has never seen) for a dog to have a second sting cause a reaction. Best guess is an under lying staph infection from the first sting and an over reactive immune system. I hate when anything happens to Gussy as she is just the most wonderful schnauzer, she isn't demanding, is always grateful for any and all attention she receives and is never a bully or confrontational with my other dogs. On the plus side Gussy has enjoyed her pill stuffed hot dogs every day. Her eye is now open and the ulceration has calmed down and isn't nearly as painful looking. Hopefully she will be posing for much more pretty photos soon.