I’m hoping that no news here is good news!
Me too. You guys are awesome. I think of all the people who dump their dogs because they stop being cute or because they just can’t be bothered, and you guys really make up for all that.
Riley hasn’t had any more seizures that we have seen. He was kept out of the spare bedroom last night (and boy, was there poop tracked ALL OVER to clean up in there!) and allowed to roam the downstairs.
I worry about him. He’s able to walk (quite clumsily) on his own, and can eat and drink food pretty normally, but I just don’t think he’s all there anymore.
He’ll walk himself into a corner and can’t figure out a way to back out. I just helped him get out of a pinch where he had wedged his head in between the downstairs couch and the wall. There was room for him to extricate himself if he could have remembered to just back up. But he didn’t, so he just stood there. I have no idea how long he’d been like that until I pulled him out of it.
He also doesn’t seem to recognize his name. If you whistle or clap he will look in your direction, but it’s as if he doesn’t “see” you, if you know what I mean.
Now for today’s big adventure: under the auspices that we are trying to get Riley to “re-learn” everything, since he seemed to be getting around downstairs OK I decided to take him outside to see if he’d enjoy it, and to possibly go potty where he’s supposed to.
Things were OK at first, he was wandering around (I had put his invisible fence collar back on him for this), seemed to like being outside and smelling everything…until he made his way into the woods behind our house. I was sitting on the back porch watching him and my fault, I let him get about 100’ away from me. He was right at the edge of our yard, so I was calling him to get him to come back in my direction to take him back inside.
He instead walked right onto the invisible fence border and started getting zapped. Instead of retreating from the border like he’s supposed to do, he just stood there, taking it. So I immediately ran up my hill into the garage to turn off the electric fence, and by the time I got back down to where he was he’d wandered into the woods and fallen down the hill and became trapped in the creekbed between two rocks.
Unable to get him out even with the help of my wife (it’s all uphill, muddy and Riley wasn’t cooperating), I ended up calling animal control and they actually came and helped me. Normally they wouldn’t come in a situation like this they told me, but they took pity on me and this huge dude (whom reeked of beer, but hey…it’s a Sunday and he wasn’t driving the vehicle!) and this very nice lady came.
Huge dude looks over the situation, determines Riley is friendly, and just picks him up and staggers up the hill with him, with me pushing his back to give him leverage.
Anyway, we talked for awhile, I hosed Riley off and towelled him dry, got him back into the house, and now here we are.
I think that I have made the decision in my mind that if there isn’t some dramatic improvement (like him being able to go outside and go to the bathroom) in the next couple days, he is going to be taking that last ride out to the vet.
We cannot live our lives centered around caring for an incontinent, mostly invalid dog.
I hope it isn’t true, but on the bright side, the animal control people told me that they have a lot of Boxers in the pound that need adoption…if it comes to that.
Well, he’s made enormous progress already. I know he isn’t where you want to be, but hopefully he’ll continue to improve rapidly.Whatever decision you make, you’ve dome more than most people would.
StG
I knew it was a ‘boxer’, mines a Sharpy (Shar-pei) mix/ boxer-same brown coat,
his attributes are many but he has a few bad habits.
Did you hear Michael Jackson memorial had many empty…
…errr sorry about that…
glad to hear you have scenic homestead, Gotta be? TX? VA?
You don’t make a lot of sense, smee.
I don’t understand anything you’ve posted in this thread either. What place exactly does a humorous reference to Michael Jackson have to do in this thread?
Normally, I like oddball attempts at humor, as I believe laughter is the single most unifying force for humanity in order to not take itself too seriously, and to help to understand or somehow come to grips with sad realities, but right now…I ain’t feeling it.
Thanks. I know. I just can’t help but wonder if we decide to say, put him down tomorrow, what kind of progress he might have made and that I end up regretting the decision to be his executioner.
But there’s two things: we don’t have the money to keep taking him to the vet for extensive stays and testing, and, we don’t have unlimited patience for putting up with his issues, either.
I love this dog, but I have a career, a wife, kids, bills, etc to worry about like everyone else and I only have so much available time and resources to devote to a dog that may very well be brain damaged beyond my help.
It’s this quandry that I find myself in that sucks.
smee goan, this isn’t a good thread for irrelevant remarks; pls. make an effort to stay on topic.
twickster, MPSIMS mod
Thank you. I am normally not sensitive about death or anything at all, but this particular issue has me tied in knots. Constantly.
I feel bad about what happened under my watch (the nine-hour seizure resulting in his current condition could have been prevented possibly if I had forced myself to put the dog in the trunk of my tiny Scion, put the boys into the backseat without their carseats which were in the van, etc…
I did call the vet in the hopes that someone would come and get him for me, but no luck, so I allowed this poor dog to have continuous seizures for almost nine hours before my wife got home from work that day and could take him to the animal hospital.
Anyway, this sucks.
Don’t beat yourself up. You did what you could, and it would not be reasonable to put your kids in danger to transport a sick dog. And since then you have done plenty for him. You are a Good Dog Owner.
And if worse comes to worst, yes, it’ll suck, but again, sometimes even dog lovers do have to put human concerns over those of the animal. Years ago Mr. S had a dog that got heartworms (he couldn’t afford the preventative back then, but all of our dogs get it religiously now). The treatment was more than he could afford, and success was likely to be low regardless. So with great regret and sadness he had her put down. Just about broke his heart.
A friend had a dog that was temperamental and snappish, but she kept it under control, put it away when visitors came, etc. But after she had a baby, it soon became clear that Dog and Baby would not mix. And since Dog would be pretty much unadoptable, she had it put down rather than stick a shelter with it.
It may well be that Riley has had enough brain damage to make him an unreasonable burden on any owner. And also that he wouldn’t be happy to continue in that state. I hope and pray that he keeps getting better and returns to some semblance of his former self, but if that’s not to be, then putting him down would be the kindest thing.
No matter the outcome, you’ve done your best.
FoieGrasIsEvil, my heart goes out, it really does. I hesitated to open this thread because I’m on that same precarious, watch 'em every minute roller coaster. My sweet mutt was diagnosed with auto-immune hemolytic anemia last week. Every day is an egg walk of doubt, worry, second guessing and very slim hope. I know just how draining it is and exactly how much it sucks.
So, from my doggie intensive care ward to yours, good thoughts, a few tears and some genuine commiseration. 
Thank you, and good luck with yours.
This just makes me pissed off at God. Yea, I believe, so sue me.
Take MY brain, take MY life, don’t inflict random problems on a helpless dog, you bastard of a God!
OK, I feel better now. OK, not really.
I don’t know whether this would influence your decision or not, but when our dog had bad seizures (she had a phase of cluster seizures - many and often), she would take a few hours to snap back to the dog that we recognised. She would do exactly what you were talking about - wander around with a blank, confused, not-there look. She wouldn’t recognise us, and wouldn’t answer to her name (she is normally very on the ball and attentive). Luckily, she always came back, and once we got the seizures under control, it wasn’t an issue.
All I am saying is that perhaps it might take longer for Riley to ‘come back’ mentally, because of how bad his seizures were. It might be worth giving him a bit more time to recover before deciding anything.
Either way, good luck with whatever you decide. You will know what’s best. The amount of time and effort that you have put in already puts many, many dog owners to shame. Good on you.
FoieGrasIsEvil, I’m so sorry. You’re in a really crappy situation. I know this probably doesn’t help anything, but if you end up putting him down, please know that you have already gone above and beyond to help this wonderful animal. There is only so much you can do, and I know that if Riley doesn’t make it, you’ll provide an equally terrific home for another dog that might otherwise not have one. My heart goes out to you all.
It’s okay. ((FoieGras))
Myself and my dogs on this side of the bridge are all pulling for Riley and your family.
My dogs on the other side have been advised to be on the lookout and give this fine fellow the best welcome any dog ever got should he need to cross over.
Either way, he’ll be fine. He’s in good hands, and paws, whatever the outcome.
You’ve done right by him and either when he recovers or when he passes, he’ll thank you for it.
Still holding you and Riley tight within my heart, and I just want you to know (as someone who hast lost and buried his share of four-footed friends), that I agree with everyone here who has written that you have done everything possible for your friend (and unfortunately, some folks wouldn’t even have bothered - just check with your local shelter).
We domesticated them. That makes us responsible for their care, and you have gone above and beyond the call.
If he could speak, Riley would tell you that too.
Thanks for caring about and for him!
Quasi
And PS? Being pissed at God is okay. If He can’t take it, then He needs to give up the job!
it is a toughy, you want to give a young one a chance at being an old one. sometimes it just doesn’t work out well.
i had a kitten i raised from 3 days old, we went to the vet’s nearly daily, for sure weekly, her file was bigger than she was. finally when she was 6 months old we got a bit of a handle on her tummy troubles.
at 5 yrs old she got immune to the anti-bio she was taking, it took a bit to find something else that worked. a year later it stopped working. then she was having only 1 or 2 good days a week.
finally at 7 years old, she and i decided she had enough. her bad days were so bad, and her good days few and far between.
it was tough, but it was right.
you and riley will know what is right. you both have the sdmb at your backs, sending you strengh, healing wishes, and peace. hang in there guys.
Goddammit guys…
I am weeping. Thanks for the outreach of support. I feel so bad for this damn dog, he WASN’T EVEN SUPPOSED TO BE MY DOG!!
Yet…I love him and hate what has happened. We’re going to give him a few more days.
The really, REALLY sad thing is that should we choose to euthanize him right now, we couldn’t.
We have to wait until payday in order to afford the needle. That makes me so sad.