Took both dogs to vet. Radar get his nails cut and allergy meds- $60-Sigh Delilah looks good according to vet. He is like us and do not think she is full blood GS- which suits us iust fine. For one she is very small for a year old GS. She weighed in at close to 38 pounds. She has a very sweet disposition and loves everyone. But Mark has got to train her more and teach her not to hop in on my side of the bed at 3:12 in the morning
Well ya'll Radar is not doing to good last few days. That hacking is back and seems to have lost control over his functions. I have spent the last three nights awake with him while he hacks and coughs like it is his last. At some point he calms down then it starts back up again. We got his heart meds refilled and does not seem to be working like before. Mark shocked me while eating the other night, making comment that Radar who will be 15 this month probably should go to doggie heaven soon. . I said well lets try these heart meds again and see if they help. Nope do not seem to, plus his lack of body function control only makes things seem even worse. Once all the meds are gone, with no improvement, well it may be time. Missing sleep and constantly cleaning up wee messes is tiring. I have never found a diaper that will fit him, that he cant remove. Delilah we had fixed Monday and she is home and mending well.
I am sorry to hear that @Hedi Mitchell . Radar looks pretty happy and alert in the picture that you posted; but if his heart is getting worse, then that is not a good thing. Prayers for you and Radar and hoping that he gets better again. It is heartbreaking when we have to lose a beloved pet.
It’s such a hard thing but we always have to think of them first. If we followed our feelings, we would never let them leave us.
Belly bands? with a cone? It won't make him better but might give you a bit more time without issues. My go to cough med is elcampagne. You can get it at the health food store and online. But if you need a hug, you can get it here.
Delilah our new dog, is well a pain. One minute she seems fine next it is questionable. She eats everything,,,not chew, eats it. Tennis balls,shoes, stuffing, wooden pieces of my puzzles, remote control . It is called PICA . Regardless, she now has sensitive stomach.Which of course calls for special more expensive dog food. We have not taken to the vet yet, as it costly. We have taken out pet insurance but only the basic plan- $ 33 a month! But the worse issue with her is her jumping up on everybody. In fact I am sporting band aids across my lower arm- again. It is doctored well but still look really bad. She is not mean aggressive- she is overly friendly aggressive. WE have got to break this habit! We are working on the problem,but in the mean time she has some sort of fixation with me and that really bugs me.
One thing that has helped for me is getting lots of dog toys, and when they get something like a shoe, then squirt or scold them, and say”Not Your Toy ! “ , and then give them one of their toys and pat them when they have that in their mouth. (Good Girl) Bobby’s dog, Rusty, chewed on things until he was around 2 years old, including dragging his tools out of the workshop. The chewing bones help, too. I forget what kind of dog you said she was, but some dogs (like working dogs) just need to keep busy, and some (like Poodles) are happier to just lay around next to you. I have found that the little squirt gun works about as well as anything with most dogs (unless they love water) to stop the jumping up attacks, and then once they lie down, you can pet them. They will learn that jumping up gets squirted, and lying down nicely means pets and maybe a dog treat (Milkbone). When I had better balance, I could step on their toes when they jumped up, or knock them down with my knee, but my balance will not permit me to do that anymore, so the squirt gun was my next best defense or the fly swatter and telling the dog NO, and DOWN, until they get the idea. Good Luck, @Hedi Mitchell !
Having dealt with a lot of dogs, I would say @Yvonne Smith's recommendation of the squirt gun is a good idea, but you--and everyone else in the household--have to be consistent and do it every time there is an unacceptable behavior. When I was younger, I would grab their front paws, step on their back (if possible), and throw them over backwards. At our age, the latter usually isn't possible, so the water usually does the trick. Getting guests and visitors to arrive armed with a squirt gun may not be possible though. Chewing is usually pent-up energy, and, as Yvonne says, the working dogs are the worst at this, but almost all puppies exhibit this behavior. Chew toys help a lot, and playing tug-of-war helps if you can stand to do it. One dog I had would fetch a ball for hours, but a frisbee would wear him out in 30 minutes. Eating stuff may be a disorder, or it may be just some dietary deficiency. A vet may be the best way to deal with that if it doesn't stop with the dog food change.
My friend had to take her dog to have some items actually removed from her dog. One was only a sock but surgery is more expensive than dog food. I had a GSD that ate a pack of dog chews (american made) every day!!! for about 4 months till he outgrew the chewing issue.