Posts made by imbj

Thanks for the comment/feedback!!!

Just wanted to get your thoughts on these vaccines. Do you get them together in one visit? Or does one need to be done first, wait a week, then do the other?

Whole Dog Journal article - What Are the Treatment Options For Dogs With Mast Cell Tumors?
A look at two promising treatment options for dogs with mast cell tumors.

@tanza That's great! Congrats!

@jh5927 Very sorry for your loss. The painting from your sons is a beautiful tribute to your beloved B's. They will always be in your hearts.

https://nypost.com/2021/03/02/popular-flea-collar-reportedly-linked-to-1700-pet-deaths/

Very sorry for your loss. She's loved and you had great times with her. Our thoughts and hearts are with you.

I'm so very sorry about your Cassius and that you tried everything to find a diagnosis. It's always hard and we cherish the time we had with them. Our hearts and thoughts are with you.
It's good you posted about this condition as it may be helpful in case these symptoms show up in other doggies. And would definitely want to know the root cause.

Share your B's quirk or the one "thing" they are adamant they must and will do (and will not compromise on).
With my Casey, it's the walk - she must lead the walk. With my Cosmo, it's the bed - she must sleep on the bed and my presence is required. They're kinda well-behaved and they made me smile when they "insist" so I just let them be (and of course I took lots of photos).
What about your basenjis?

I think some doggies get dizzy or nauseous when they don't see the horizon.
With my Cosmo, I have a hefty seatbelt safety harness in the back seat she's tethered to. She then positions herself in the center in the back seat where she can see the view from the windshield between the two front seats.
Maybe it will help if she's high enough in the vehicle (i.e. her eye-level) where she can see through the windows.

Thank you for your kind words and support. I think talking about it helps with the healing and that we're not alone in this difficult time.

My sweet old pups Cosmo has peacefully crossed Rainbow Bridge from home and is now with her siblings Raven, Jasper and my first B, Casey. In her annual vet visit in July, she was diagnosed with early stage renal failure. Followed the vet's instructions and got her Azodyl and also shifted from Merricks/Orijen Senior to low protein diet (Purina NF). At first she ate it then won't touch it at all. Then the blood panel in September showed she was in late stage renal failure. Got more info and help from the forum and got her on Epakitin and subcutaneous fluids every other day. I think the fluid is the one that helped her feel so much better as she seems to perk up after each session. Called her showhandler for more suggestions and got her on some raw food, variety of ground meat, since she won't eat anything that she used to eat except some treats. I know she's hungry but can't seem to want the food so not sure if she's feeling nauseous but nevertheless, it's clear she is not her normal self. I used to feed her twice daily all her life but now I was hand-feeding her six times a day and she was trying her best to eat. We spent our last weeks together doing our usual early morning walks, going to the park, driving around town, going to Jack-in-the-Box drive-through as she loved eating the french fries on our way home, gave her treats like vanilla ice cream and the whole life pure turkey breast that is her absolute favorite. We just love our quiet times together and above all, each other's company. Since the day I picked her up in Virginia at the breeder 12 years ago, I tell her I love her - every single day. I cherished every minute with my Cosmo and I know she does, too. I miss her so much. My heart feels empty. My.heart.hurts. I love you always and forever, my sweet, sweet Cosmo.

Thank you all for your support, help and sharing your knowledge and experiences! It's feels better to know there are options that I can explore. Her quality of life is of utmost priority for me and want her to be comfortable and happy. She's curled up beside me right now on the sofa and snoring as I'm writing this.
(oh, her phosphorus level is 5.7 and last year, it was 5.0)

@tanza Thanks! When searching, I think those paid ADs are skewing the correct results when googling for holistic vets. So I dug in a little deeper and found the American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association and they have a VetFinder (yeahhh!). It turns out there's a Vet (in the same clinic as my Vet, but in a different location). This Vet has a "Whole Food Formulator" certification. I think I'll contact that Vet but hoping it won't be awkward. And will catch up with Tayda_Lenny and check on the posts.

@tanza Yeah, Cosmo sniffs the kidney diet food first and whatever smell it is, she just walks away (and then looks at me with disappointment). Any suggestions on holistic Vets?

Thanks for the feedback and ideas! This morning, I just decided to give her a small amount of the regular canned and she ate it (all of it). I'll slowly introduce any new food and see if that works. @elbrant - I enjoy cooking so home-cooked meals is an easy thing for me to do. I'll check with my Vet on the recipe you kindly shared! We're doing another blood panel/urinalysis next week to check the values so keeping my fingers crossed.

My Cosmo is 14 yrs. old and recently diagnosed with early stage kidney disease. I have always done the full senior blood panel the past few years in her annual and all was okay. Until this June. The creatinine level is 1.8 (last year was 1.1), BUN is 35 (last year was 20), urinalysis had no red flags though she's drinking a lot more water.

For the past few years, I've been feeding her Merrick's Grain Free Real Chicken Dry mixed with the Merrick's Canned (there are 7 recipes of the canned that I rotate and she really loves them). Last year, I switched to Orijen Senior Dry (and kept rotating the 7 flavors) and she loves this, too. So far at this point, all seems fine.

Then last month, because of the bloodwork results in her annual check-up, I switched her food to Purina NF canned - she ate it for about 3 weeks then just outright refuse to eat it now. So I tried mixing it with the Merrick canned. For about 2-3 days, she ate some then just a little and now she doesn't want to touch it.

So then I tried the Purina NF Dry kibble with the Merrick canned. I can't believe she actually pick every dry kibble and removed it from the bowl! But only ate a little of the canned then walked away.

This week, I asked my Vet for a medication and she prescribed Azodyl (she said it will bring down the metabolites in the blood but this won't slow progression). I started giving it to Cosmo yesterday but I don't know when I'll see any improvement.

The Vet also suggested JustFoodForDogs and BalanceIt food. So I gave her some JustFoodForDogs (Beef and Potato). She seems to like for a day but now she's only eating a little bit of it. It actually tastes good (and definitely tons more flavor than the Purina NF). I'm also waiting for the prescription for the JustFoodForDogs "Renal Support Medium Protein" so I can get it and see if my senior pup will eat it. I may boil a whole chicken with carrots (with the fat removed) for soup/liquid.

I used to feed her twice daily but am now trying to get her to eat litte amounts 4-5 times daily. She's 14 so I feel I just need for her to eat. Other than eating less, she acts normal and is not lethargic. We walk every morning and we both enjoy it. She jumps on the highest part of the couch. She does her zoomies once in a while (though a little shorter time). She is alert and still full of life.

I don't think she's lost appetite because she seems to want some food - maybe just not the ones I've been giving her (she eats the treats).

Not sure if her health is deteriorating faster (even if she's just in the early stages of the kidney disease). Or did I just change/switch her food too quickly?

Does anyone have a similar experience and have some ideas or insights to share?

I'm really worried and it's just stressing me out. She's definitely eating less. Not sure what I can do to get her to eat more and enjoy the food.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/dr-gridlock/wp/2018/04/04/more-dogs-die-on-united-than-on-any-other-airline-heres-why/?utm_term=.8e8535466d14

https://www.thedodo.com/close-to-home/dog-flu-symptoms