If you read my last post you know that my dog Artie is having renal problems and has started throwing up. She started having the problems in July and at that time weighed 60 pounds. Saturday she weighed 44 pounds. Last night she threw up every thing she ate just 3 hours after eating it.
I called the vet this morning and brought her in on my way to work. While I was there they drew some blood. Some of it they were going to spin down on site and the rest was sent off. The vet who saw her thought she might look a bit jaundice but the blood they spun and her urine sample didn’t show signs of a liver problem.
Artie stayed at the vet for the day. They checked her over and gave her some food and monitored her to see if she’d throw up. She didn’t. When I picked her up I was given a prescription for an anti-emetic to give her twice a day.
This morning when the vet tech told me that Artie was down 2 more pounds in just 3 1/2 days I started to cry. I know she’s sick and not doing well but she doesn’t act like a sick, aging dog. She was jumped up and down when she realized she was going for a ride in the car. At the vet’s she jumped up to see the people behind the counter and rolled over to let people rub her belly. Even the vet said that Artie wasn’t acting the way you would expect a dog in her condition to act.
It makes it hard for me to decide what to do because she doesn’t seem to be suffering.
I was a wreck at work today. Hell, I still am. And I’ll be honest, this is not a decision that I think I can make until after the results of the blood tests are back. If Artie would act like a sick dog it would be easier to figure out what to do. I’m happy, though, that she doesn’t seem to be suffereng.
Toriach says:
My heart goes out to you. A situation like this is never easy. I think you are doing the right thing in letting Artie be your guide. Even if the test results bring bad news so long as she is not suffering unduly you at least can take some time to say goodbye. Take care of yourself.
Toriach.
3/5/2009, 2:34 ammoinoh says:
i am sorry to hear about your dog. My dog was sick about 6 weeks ago and had some thing wrong with his liver. The vet gave us a fix but i think in the end it will not work in the long run, so i took have to chose what to do.
3/5/2009, 1:01 pmfwdemails says:
Sorry to hear that
3/6/2009, 2:24 amDJ says:
I’m so sorry. I’ve gone through this and it is such a difficult time.
DJ
3/7/2009, 11:42 ambrettbum says:
Terribly sorry to hear about Artie. As long as Artie isn’t suffering, just try and hang in there, it sounds like Artie is. There’s no rush to decide anything unless the situation changes. Hang in there!
3/7/2009, 11:16 pmRobin Bastien says:
Can I ask how things are with Artie? I’m so sorry that you have to go through this as well, the same happened with my cat. Namaste
3/9/2009, 12:21 am