Bobby is sick
My boy is sick...
He had been losing his appetite for the last few weeks, and getting slower.
He also started licking walls randomly.
And after bringing him on a walk myself last week, I realised he was getting really slow and the wall licking around the house was getting more and more serious. And that's when I finally made an appointment with the vet yesterday morning.
I thought it would be just a simple check out, and all the signs simply pointing that he had grown old.
Afterall, he is a 13 year old dog that is going 14 in four months.
And that's when the vet diagnosed that Bobby has a mild heart problem and may have kidney problems as well.
Bobby also had dental problems, so despite knowing that putting him under anaesthetic is a risk, we had to let him go for a dental cleaning.
And then the vet prescribed a whole bunch of meds - painkillers, vitamins that Bobby would have to eat in the next 10 days.
As well as meds for his heart and kidney for the whole of the next 30 days.
We were told to bring Bobby home and wait for the blood and urine test which would take a day.
The vet called me today and told me that Bobby has kidney failure. His urine test came back with markers high above the average scores.
I definitely wasn't expecting this. And I kept wondering if there was something I could have done to have prevented this. Or maybe I could have noticed it earlier and the problem wouldn't be so serious.
In the evening, mom, Padauk and I bought Bobby to the vet again. And the vet taught us how to insert the drip needle under Bobby's skin ourselves. For the next 10 days, we will have to do this at home ourselves. Hopefully this dialysis would help to stop the damage to Bobby's kidneys and stop any further deteoriation.
We would also have to change Bobby's diet to a full low sodium KD diet. In a nutshell, no more tidbits, meat or fruits. Of course it would be a gradual change, maybe over half a month. But Bobby would have to be on this diet for the rest of his life --- which maybe anything between 1-2 years if things go well. This is maybe the most difficult part as Bobby has always been very picky about this food.
The vet also assured us that Bobby is sick not because of improper care from our end. It's simply because he is growing old... being assured of that was a great relief... but I just wish there was something I could have done.
Han told me that some things are just beyond our control. Rationally I can understand it but emotionally I'm just not ready to see him suffer or die. This feeling of helplessness is just so... helpless. I wish I could turn back time to when Bobby was healthy and happy and just timefreeze and stay in that moment with him forever. Or that he could talk and tell me whether he is in pain, or is he happy, does he need me beside him, or what I can do to make him feel better...
A long time ago, about 11 years back, Sharon Dajie told us that we should always let him go when it's time... than to let him suffer in pain. I always thought I could do it... but now I'm not so sure. Maybe because I feel it's not his time yet. Hopefully I'll know it when it's time. And I hope that I would be with him when it's time.
He had been losing his appetite for the last few weeks, and getting slower.
He also started licking walls randomly.
And after bringing him on a walk myself last week, I realised he was getting really slow and the wall licking around the house was getting more and more serious. And that's when I finally made an appointment with the vet yesterday morning.
I thought it would be just a simple check out, and all the signs simply pointing that he had grown old.
Afterall, he is a 13 year old dog that is going 14 in four months.
And that's when the vet diagnosed that Bobby has a mild heart problem and may have kidney problems as well.
Bobby also had dental problems, so despite knowing that putting him under anaesthetic is a risk, we had to let him go for a dental cleaning.
And then the vet prescribed a whole bunch of meds - painkillers, vitamins that Bobby would have to eat in the next 10 days.
As well as meds for his heart and kidney for the whole of the next 30 days.
We were told to bring Bobby home and wait for the blood and urine test which would take a day.
The vet called me today and told me that Bobby has kidney failure. His urine test came back with markers high above the average scores.
I definitely wasn't expecting this. And I kept wondering if there was something I could have done to have prevented this. Or maybe I could have noticed it earlier and the problem wouldn't be so serious.
In the evening, mom, Padauk and I bought Bobby to the vet again. And the vet taught us how to insert the drip needle under Bobby's skin ourselves. For the next 10 days, we will have to do this at home ourselves. Hopefully this dialysis would help to stop the damage to Bobby's kidneys and stop any further deteoriation.
We would also have to change Bobby's diet to a full low sodium KD diet. In a nutshell, no more tidbits, meat or fruits. Of course it would be a gradual change, maybe over half a month. But Bobby would have to be on this diet for the rest of his life --- which maybe anything between 1-2 years if things go well. This is maybe the most difficult part as Bobby has always been very picky about this food.
The vet also assured us that Bobby is sick not because of improper care from our end. It's simply because he is growing old... being assured of that was a great relief... but I just wish there was something I could have done.
Han told me that some things are just beyond our control. Rationally I can understand it but emotionally I'm just not ready to see him suffer or die. This feeling of helplessness is just so... helpless. I wish I could turn back time to when Bobby was healthy and happy and just timefreeze and stay in that moment with him forever. Or that he could talk and tell me whether he is in pain, or is he happy, does he need me beside him, or what I can do to make him feel better...
A long time ago, about 11 years back, Sharon Dajie told us that we should always let him go when it's time... than to let him suffer in pain. I always thought I could do it... but now I'm not so sure. Maybe because I feel it's not his time yet. Hopefully I'll know it when it's time. And I hope that I would be with him when it's time.
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