Our 15 year old dog, Heidi, is sick...again

[WillParkinson]

She started throwing up her food. This is an automatic trip to the vet. They did some tests and found that her white count was very high. She's had this problem before. They gave her some meds and told us to keep an eye on her.

She was taking her meds with cheese but then started turning her nose up at that. Yesterday she would not eat at all so I decided to try some wet cat food. Not the optimal food, I know, but I needed her to have something in her stomach and to take her pills with. She ate it quickly. This morning she turned her nose up at that.

We made an appointment today for her to go back to the vet tomorrow. Growing old sucks.

[gbate]

1. Sorry about Heidi.

I have a "Heidi", also. Can you give her some homemade food? Ground beef with rice seems to go over well.

[WillParkinson]

3. Stuff she loves...

Like cheese and lunch meat she's turning her nose up. She starts to eat it and then walks away from it. I told Paul to have them check her mouth to make sure it's not something wrong in there that is causing her pain when she eats.

She's got pancreatitis, something she's had many times in the past. The pills are fine, but only if I can get her to take them. Yesterday I tried to put one in her mouth and she bit my thumb. I'm sure there's a lot of pain in there somewhere because she's never done that before.

[grasswire]

5. what meds are used to treat feline pancreatitis?

If you need to get calories into the girl, there's a paste made for this specific use. You can get it at petco and other places. It's high-calorie, and you just put some under the upper lip and kitty will ingest it.

When my former best cat Chester was losing weight with renal insufficiency, I read about offering canned sardines. That was a hit for a couple of weeks. Also try jarred baby food -- the chicken or lamb might work.

Best of luck.

[WillParkinson]

6. Heidi is a dog, but I think the basics might be the same...

The only reason we gave her the cat food is it was the only soft food in the house (after she turned her nose up to pasta) and I had to try something.

[Minimus]

2. So sorry to hear about your Heidi being sick. I hope the vet can

give you some answers.

You are right... growing old does suck for us and our beloved pets.

:hug:

[WillParkinson]

4. Thank you kindly...

Heidi is the one who sleeps at my feet when I'm working on the computer. I'm going to miss that when it's time for her to move on.

[applegrove]

7. Any chance she is a Saint Bernard?

[WillParkinson]

10. No. We're not sure what she is.

She's a smaller dog. Has a bushy curly tail that when she was young would always curl up and touch her back. Now it just kind of hangs there.

[kimi]

8. So sorry to hear this

I had a feline Heidi who made it to 17, my baby, and I love it that I feel she still visits me on occasion. I hope your vet can find out what's going on, taking care of a senior pet is a special thing and I know you love her dearly. One thing I've done with my senior pets is to try baby food meat to tempt them, sometimes mixing with a bit of warm water to make a sort of gravy-ish consistency. Best of luck to you all and Heidi!

[flvegan]

9. My best to your pup, Will.

Growing old does indeed suck.

[WillParkinson]

11. Paul took her to the vet again...

This time we're told that there is something wrong with her kidneys. They've got medicine in liquid form that we're going to try. I realize she's getting up there in years, but I want to make sure she's happy and comfortable, even if she's nearing the end.