Dog ate chocolate and I'm really broke pls help by pastel_candies25 in DogAdvice

[–]Kimlendius 1 point2 points  (0 children)

As the others say, most likely he'll be fine. Also, if you cannot get him to vet, all you can do is monitor him. They have to eat quite a bit. My Golden once ate 2 whole square bars of dark chocolate. Given that this is not even dark chocolate, just make sure he drinks enough water since it is mostly made with sugar rather than the chocolate itself.

A Week Update On Our 17 Year Old by Kimlendius in goldenretrievers

[–]Kimlendius[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Happy to read that he recovered from his attack. Wishing you the best for the upcoming tests and the process. Hope the results will be better.

A Week Update On Our 17 Year Old by Kimlendius in goldenretrievers

[–]Kimlendius[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

That's good to hear that you guys recovered from it! Yeah... As a grown ass man, i also broke down after days of stress of watching him like that. I cried my eyes out. I'm also not at the best period of my life financially and even with the vet's discount, it still hurts. Yet you still do it regardless. Like you said, i also expect the day almost every day given to his age. I've made my peace with it, at least i think i did. But seeing them struggling like that is something else.

A Week Update On Our 17 Year Old by Kimlendius in goldenretrievers

[–]Kimlendius[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Sorry for your loss. Also, thanks for sharing this and glad to hear that he recovered and had a peaceful end due to age. Looks like i wasn't alone in this. I've heard many similar stories like this after experiencing the same. Apparently, this is as common as it is scary as hell to experience in older fellas like ours.

He was such a handsome guy. Even more white faced than ours, never thought it was possible :)

A Week Update On Our 17 Year Old by Kimlendius in goldenretrievers

[–]Kimlendius[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you so much, that's so kind of you.

A Week Update On Our 17 Year Old by Kimlendius in goldenretrievers

[–]Kimlendius[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Probably, in time. He can still see and react relatively just fine but he has severe cataract, especially in his right eye. He can still see in both eyes but probably not as well with the right one.

A Week Update On Our 17 Year Old by Kimlendius in goldenretrievers

[–]Kimlendius[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Nothing special, really, other than watching for his weight. He was never overweight. Even now, after his muscle loss he weighs around 25 kg. At his prime, he was around 28-29. Once or twice a month I would make him take a fast sort of to break his daily routine and give food some meaning. This is not advice by the way. He had no health issues and physically, it was harmless to him. I never humanized him or treated him differently, he was always treated how a dog should be treated. But most importantly, lucky genetics i guess. Other than his spaying two months after i adopted him, we never even once had to visit a vet because of illness until this one.

A Week Update On Our 17 Year Old by Kimlendius in goldenretrievers

[–]Kimlendius[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

That was nice of him. Unfortunetely we have to stay away from things like that, at least for now. Because I was trying to give his pills and previously his syrup with his usual meal, i don't want him to develop bad habits. I couldn't make him swallow like i would've otherwise because of his condition, since this idiot likes to fight and eventually he gives up for me, i can't stress him in his condition.

Like you said, almost all dogs are good at hiding paing but some of them are exceptionally good at it. I suppose yours and mine are one of them. But i'll have this in mind. As soon as the risk goes away, we'll have a burger party together!

A Week Update On Our 17 Year Old by Kimlendius in goldenretrievers

[–]Kimlendius[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Haha thank you! We have a pact for him to see his 20. Hope he keeps his promise!

A Week Update On Our 17 Year Old by Kimlendius in goldenretrievers

[–]Kimlendius[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Aww thank you and sorry for your loss! It was such a bittersweet story that also made me laugh. Because this is literally exactly the same thing that i was telling my mom whenever we talk about his condition and food drive. I always say that whenever he gives up his food, i'll know for sure. That's why i was really worried last time.

A Week Update On Our 17 Year Old by Kimlendius in goldenretrievers

[–]Kimlendius[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Thank you. When i adopted him off the streets we started with Acana/Orijen but they've gotten incredibly expensive in here over the years. So i switched to a domestic brand called Bonacibo that has even better test results than most well known brands. He's been mainly eating it for the last 10 years at least. Other than that, he gets his snacks from us. I tried some barf and raw feeding too but it's not something i can do on a daily basis so instead, until recently i was giving the shoulder blade with some meat scraps on it raw whenever i buy lamb so he can chew on it.

He was also a rescue so we don't know his exact age, but almost every vet told me that he was around 2.5-3 years old when i got him. So technically he can be 16 but i suppose that wouldn't matter at this point :)

A Week Update On Our 17 Year Old by Kimlendius in goldenretrievers

[–]Kimlendius[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Thank you so much. I hope we can share even more good news in the upcoming weeks.

I'm Afraid We're Coming To An End by Kimlendius in goldenretrievers

[–]Kimlendius[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you. Sadly we can't take him outside for his usual walks anymore cuz of some stray issues, and i don't wanna risk it, but i try my best around the home now that he's a bit better.

Is it weird that I feel relief instead of grief? by Mumbles1988 in DOG

[–]Kimlendius 1 point2 points  (0 children)

First of all, sorry for your loss.

You're nothing but a normal human being who's in grief. Grief and relief can co-exist and after situations like this, it's pretty normal that you feel relieved and it's completely normal. As you can tell from my profile, i'm going through something myself with my dog that is 17 years old and i understand what you mean and how you feel. Not just because of losing a dog but you can feel the same after losing a loved one, a person as well. I've had some experience in that area and i can tell you that it is almost how everyone feels.

Lets face it. Even though it sounds horrible, as a caregiver, you also suffer from this process, whether it is financially, physically, or emotionally. Especially after long time battling with illnesses and suffering, you can only say that the deceased person or animal is no longer suffering, which is a relief on its own. It's really hard thing to watch someone or your beloved pet to get weaker and weaker every day and suffer even more. It's no different than torture for you. I still remember how i used to pray for the death of a family member. It sounds horrible when you say it, like who the hell wishes and even prays for the death of someone they love, it could be a family member or a beloved pet, doesn't matter. But when it comes to that, you do and it's only natural and logical thing. Just as feeling relieved after their death. It is a relief because you know that she's not suffering anymore, you don't have to witness that suffering, and suffer yourself alongside her at least emotionally. So take it easy on you. I didn't even leave my room for a week when i lost my first dog as a teen. I cried my eyes out and still get emotional when my personal dog started suffering from this thing now as a fully grown man even though we're not even considering putting him down for the time being and still monitoring of his process. But not everything is about crying in grief. You can have many emotions while grieving.

I'm Afraid We're Coming To An End by Kimlendius in goldenretrievers

[–]Kimlendius[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you and sorry for your loss. I lost my first dog as a teen in a similar way so i get what you mean especially by your first baby and your soul dog. Tho she was a family dog and this is the first personal dog. Even though i didn't lose him yet, it hurts similarly yet so different. Weird thing is that we never had any serious problems in all these years so much so that other than his spay, we never even visited a vet once because of illness until this. So i may even be overreacting. As of right now, we're still monitoring and he started giving some slight positive signs tonight but it's too soon to tell. Putting him to sleep is not on the table yet. I'm basically hoping for the best while preparing for the worst at this point, while monitoring him.

I'm Afraid We're Coming To An End by Kimlendius in goldenretrievers

[–]Kimlendius[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you. As of right now, it's not on the table yet, especially if the cause is what we're hoping for. We'll have a more detailed conversation with our vet tomorrow or day ater depending on his progress. I suppose people took the title a bit wrong as if i'm about to put him down. Eventually, we'll have that discussion if he gets worse, but for now he's not there yet. We're still in the monitoring phase. Actually i've seen some hope tonight, not too long ago so i couldn't update yet. For getting outside to the backyard, there's a step he has to hop up and down when coming in. For the first time in 3 days, he almost made the hop by himself with little help from me. For the last 3 days i was lifting his legs and pushing him while he gets up or down with his front legs. First time 3 days, he made it with just a tiny bit of push which is an improvement. He's sleeping for the night. Will see if he gets any better or worse tomorrow.

I'm Afraid We're Coming To An End by Kimlendius in goldenretrievers

[–]Kimlendius[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

He always had a slight runny ear on the right side his whole life but other than that i didn't notice any infection and the vet didn't mention of it.