RIP Bel......
I just decided to update this old thread on Bel since I had a Bel thread here. More in last message. Most of you probably already know this, but.....
Hey, I have this over on the Shiba side, and some of you may have seen it, but I know some people don't go over there, and I thought there may be a chance that someone over here might have some new thoughts/insights. It's basically the same stuff--her aggression and anxiety issues--but I'm kind of at wit's end with her and finally realized I may not simply be able to keep managing the dogs through separation.
anyway, here's the thread over there, and if anyone else has any ideas, I'd be happy to hear them. And thank you to everyone who has responded over there...
http://www.shibainuforum.org/forum/comments.php?DiscussionID=7858&page=1#Comment_135382
Hey, I have this over on the Shiba side, and some of you may have seen it, but I know some people don't go over there, and I thought there may be a chance that someone over here might have some new thoughts/insights. It's basically the same stuff--her aggression and anxiety issues--but I'm kind of at wit's end with her and finally realized I may not simply be able to keep managing the dogs through separation.
anyway, here's the thread over there, and if anyone else has any ideas, I'd be happy to hear them. And thank you to everyone who has responded over there...
http://www.shibainuforum.org/forum/comments.php?DiscussionID=7858&page=1#Comment_135382
Comments
Even without Bel, I'd still have to manage keeping two dogs separate, but at least Toby's dog reactivity seems relatively "normal" and he mostly minds his own business as long as other dogs don't get nearer to him than about 3 feet.
You never know though. There might be someone out there who lives alone and loves the Shiba reactiveness/fear. There's a woman I know who has no problem with her neurotic Shiba. She walks around the reservoir, and if any dog gets close to her Shiba is completely freaks out. I think it would try and kill another dog. She just loves everything about her. Anyways, if there's full disclosure on Bel someone may want her. I just can't see you doing this for another 7 years.
ETA: The right decisions are usually the hardest ones to make.
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There's nothing to do right now, and while I probably will bring her in and have them look at the eye just to make sure it's not something unrelated, I'm not feeling too hopeful. But I'm also going to give her some time. My vet said if I felt she was too much of a risk to the other dogs, they would understand that, but I also might be able to wait and see for awhile, though he suspected that she's not going to get better. I think for me the hard thing was just suddenly knowing, earlier this week, that I was going to have to euthanize her, that she will not live out her normal life span, and that she's not going to get better.
And now I know it, and I don't need to rush into it. It will take awhile before my husband really sees the depth of the problem (he wasn't here when she nearly killed Toby three years ago, so he doesn't quite have the same perspective), and I also do want to have more time with her.
Snf
http://www.broadinstitute.org/scientific-community/science/projects/mammals-models/dog/disease-research/dog-diseases
Do you think it would be worth saving up for that MRI, to at least give yourself a sense of finality?
Or perhaps a necropsy?
I'm sorry for asking so bluntly. I know you've done a lot of soul-searching about this, so forgive me if I presume...
I'm not going to do the mri....can't afford it, and I'd rather not spend that much money for something that won't do more than give me a diagnosis (or not. The vet pointed out it's possible all her behavior is NOT from a brain tumor, even though he thinks it is, and is instead part of her seizure disorder. Does a brain tumor cause the seizures? Maybe. But maybe not. Either way, the behavior is the same and is typical, apparently, of frontal lobe problems and seizure disorders).
I might ask about a necropsy though. I've thought of that. SnF, thanks for that link, as that is something I'll look into.
So my little crazy girl will still be around for awhile at least. It's just now we know there isn't much to do to try and "fix" her, beyond keeping her comfortable as we have been doing. Last night she got scared again, as she always does, as it gets dark, and she followed me around the house, and then got on my lap while I was reading (not her typical behavior) and then finally settled down on the couch as near me as possible. It was nice to spend time with her when she was being sweet, but I'm also aware that it's not really sweetness, but fear, and it's sad that everyday now she spends about 3 hours or so really scared, and she just comes to me to feel safer. Poor little girl.
Our Bel is gone. She was 8 years old on June 29.
Yesterday, she was struck in the face twice by a rattlesnake, in the yard. Most dogs can survive this--our Kai Ken was struck last year and survived. But Bel was having a bad reaction, and also, she had so many health issues. I'd actually had an appointment to euthanize her near her birthday. She had epilepsy and other neurological problems. She had liver/kidney damage and had not been eating at all and had lost 15% of her body weight in 3 weeks. She had LP and a torn MCL. She had broken teeth. All of this was just finally getting to be too much, and I knew her quality of life was not good.
But I canceled the appt. because she started eating again, and she perked up and was taking an interest in life again. I knew I was just delaying the inevitable, but I decided to give her a few more weeks. I'm glad I did--she seemed to enjoy that time.
But when she was struck by the snake, I knew it meant another several day stay at the vet with an IV and she would be in pain, confused and scared, and I didn't want her to go through that. So with my vet, I made the decision to put her down, and we gave her a peaceful death. I know my little girl is no longer in pain, no longer a victim of horrible anxiety and stress and confusion. We love you Bel, and will miss you.
*and this morning, I found the snake (or a rattlesnake) in the yard and killed it. Hadn't even had coffee yet. I hope it is the only one, but I live in the mountains, on a big wooded lot, and there are no guarantees. I'm glad, though, that the rattlers we have here are fairly docile--I found it be turning up a piece of wood I was moving! It didn't even try to strike, and I had time to go to the garage and get an ax and come back and kill it, and it didn't strike til it was already in two. I can see how if you stepped on one they'd strike, or if a dog stuck its muzzle in there, but I think in general they're not aggressive (though I will, of course, kill the ones I find in the yard for our dogs' safety)
Also, for anyone else who lives in snake country, I did the rattlesnake avoidance class with Leo, and he did very well, and has been super cautious about anything remotely snake shaped since.
And yesterday, my vet told me he finally could recommend the rattlesnake vaccine. He'd vaccinated several dogs, but none had (thankfully!) been bit, so he wasn't sure it worked that well. But a dog came in earlier this month that had been struck in the muzzle, and the dog had had the vaccine. He said that there was significantly less swelling, and they were able to treat the dog without an IV, and it recovered much faster than dogs that have not had the vaccine. It also gives you longer to get to a vet, so is good for people who are in the backcountry, or just live far from a vet. All my other dogs will get the vaccine in the coming week.
anyway, RIP Bel. You went out fighting, as you would have wanted.
Im sorry she is gone now. You will really miss her, but she will remain a part of you and all your family.