Calliesmom
Moderator
The Spitfire post has prompted me to share about Destin. I've been pretty lax posting about our trials for a while- will have to get some posts written about the boys.
we've been chasing Destin's RACH for several months now- the plan was to get all the required master points and then go to Sheltie National, get our last QQQ and his RACH there. I also planned to get the younger boys their RN titles there. Davy was also ready for his BN title there. the young boys got their titles but Destin did not get the needed master points so we didn't finish there. our backup plan was to get it at our spring rally trial where we got the last QQQ but not the master points. about 2 weeks after the rally trial, Destin started coughing- he sounded like a goose and I got an appointment with the vet thinking it was kennel cough and it would clear up with meds. The vet gave us coughtabs that Destin did not like and wouldn't eat with his food so that became a challenge to get him to eat them. I had started him on leftover Doxy before we even got to the vet since it was the weekend when the cough started but the vet didn't prescribe anything like that for him. I asked the vet when he wouldn't be contagious as we had agility coming up and he said 5 days so we finished the doxy anyway and got ready for the local agility trial in mid May. his cough improved but didn't go away totally.
At the agility trial, I blew our standard run on Friday by being late with my cross causing an off course then we Qd in jumpers and on Saturday we got a QQ.
I was very hopeful that we'd get another on Sunday but it was not to be.....
standard was first on Sunday and we were about halfway through the course when he popped out of the weaves at 10 and I was bummed. so I was like, let's just finish the course. so he took the triple and turned to the Afame and just fell over. I go to him and picked him up and left the ring. one of our regular competitors is a vet and had been there Fri and Sat but she wasn't there on Sunday. friends from FL pointed me to another lady (new to our trial)- an opthalmology specialist but a vet. she examined him and determined likely not a stroke or seizure but heart related. so he got to be in the AC for the rest of the day and got a vet visit the next day.
The vet did xrays and said she thought his heart was enlarged and possibly a little fluid around it. so he was started on Vetmedin and Lasix and we got a referral to a cardiologist. interestingly, the cough cleared up in a couple days after starting the heart meds.
back at our rally trial, I had joked with the judge that I was going to look for this other judge and go where ever she was judging. conveniently that ended up being in LA a couple weekends later. there were 2 trials each day so I entered Destin in the am and pm trials on Sunday (Davy was showing in conformation on Fri and Sat). Destin got a 98 (he only needed a 95) and first place so he earned his RACH there. we also won a raffle prize there so we had a great weekend.
Then our appointment with the cardiologist was on Wednesday outside of New Orleans. Destin got the full workup- bloodwork, echocardiogram.......
the diagnosis was that he has a leaky valve that has led to enlargement of his heart particularly the left side. the cardiologist adjusted the dosages of his meds and said that he couldn't do any strenuous activity so he can no longer compete in agility. it's hard dealing with as we were so close to our MACH. but he's still here so.......................................................................
we've been chasing Destin's RACH for several months now- the plan was to get all the required master points and then go to Sheltie National, get our last QQQ and his RACH there. I also planned to get the younger boys their RN titles there. Davy was also ready for his BN title there. the young boys got their titles but Destin did not get the needed master points so we didn't finish there. our backup plan was to get it at our spring rally trial where we got the last QQQ but not the master points. about 2 weeks after the rally trial, Destin started coughing- he sounded like a goose and I got an appointment with the vet thinking it was kennel cough and it would clear up with meds. The vet gave us coughtabs that Destin did not like and wouldn't eat with his food so that became a challenge to get him to eat them. I had started him on leftover Doxy before we even got to the vet since it was the weekend when the cough started but the vet didn't prescribe anything like that for him. I asked the vet when he wouldn't be contagious as we had agility coming up and he said 5 days so we finished the doxy anyway and got ready for the local agility trial in mid May. his cough improved but didn't go away totally.
At the agility trial, I blew our standard run on Friday by being late with my cross causing an off course then we Qd in jumpers and on Saturday we got a QQ.
I was very hopeful that we'd get another on Sunday but it was not to be.....
standard was first on Sunday and we were about halfway through the course when he popped out of the weaves at 10 and I was bummed. so I was like, let's just finish the course. so he took the triple and turned to the Afame and just fell over. I go to him and picked him up and left the ring. one of our regular competitors is a vet and had been there Fri and Sat but she wasn't there on Sunday. friends from FL pointed me to another lady (new to our trial)- an opthalmology specialist but a vet. she examined him and determined likely not a stroke or seizure but heart related. so he got to be in the AC for the rest of the day and got a vet visit the next day.
The vet did xrays and said she thought his heart was enlarged and possibly a little fluid around it. so he was started on Vetmedin and Lasix and we got a referral to a cardiologist. interestingly, the cough cleared up in a couple days after starting the heart meds.
back at our rally trial, I had joked with the judge that I was going to look for this other judge and go where ever she was judging. conveniently that ended up being in LA a couple weekends later. there were 2 trials each day so I entered Destin in the am and pm trials on Sunday (Davy was showing in conformation on Fri and Sat). Destin got a 98 (he only needed a 95) and first place so he earned his RACH there. we also won a raffle prize there so we had a great weekend.
Then our appointment with the cardiologist was on Wednesday outside of New Orleans. Destin got the full workup- bloodwork, echocardiogram.......
the diagnosis was that he has a leaky valve that has led to enlargement of his heart particularly the left side. the cardiologist adjusted the dosages of his meds and said that he couldn't do any strenuous activity so he can no longer compete in agility. it's hard dealing with as we were so close to our MACH. but he's still here so.......................................................................
