Miko's Health (updates and more)

A quick bit about penning Miko. I don't know if it's old age or what, but awhile back I tried that (I'm sure I posted it in this huge thread, lol). Even when I put him in the kitchen, within an hour, he pooped out of stress. I cleaned it up and left him in there. I could hear him pacing for a couple of hours. After that, I felt sorry for him and let him out. He immediately went to sleep in his usual spot. My heart couldn't do that to him. If he was young, fine, but at his age, why put him through all that, right? Sigh. I'll just wash my carpets once a month. I may just leave my Aunt's Bissell here if they'll let me.

The newest thing. So, I have an appointment with my regular vet tomorrow. He'll check out his eyes to see if Miko is now going blind too, or what.

But.....this morning before lunch, Miko woke up and was limping. Sometimes he does that. I just figure he sleeps on his leg weird, like we may, and maybe it's stiff or asleep. Usually by the time he walks to the grass, he's fine. But not today. Nope. He was limping badly all the way to the grass. So much so, I didn't have the heart to make him walk.

I carried him back into the house and figured maybe whatever stiffness will go away by the time I get back from lunch. Um nope. Still there. And still there now and it's 7pm. He just sleeps because walking is tiring. I haven't even taken him out to poop yet and don't know how he'll eat dinner. Sigh.

I have squeezed, felt, bent, stretched his leg and not a sign of discomfort. It's the weirdest thing (it's why the vet ppl said don't go to ER, come in tomorrow). I even maniupulated his rear legs, in case he was compensating, but trust me, it's his front leg.

Ugh! Y'know. I'm took off of work to deal with some other stresses going on in my life. And it seems like they keep coming one after another. My poor baby. Not sure how he's going to poop when he's limping so badly.

Thanks everyone. I just thinking quality of life. Lots of love and ear scratches.

ETA: just took him out to poop/pee. OMG. That was heartbreaking watching him limp as he tried to poop. Sigh.
 
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I've been thinking about Miko every day and am so sorry to hear about this latest problem. If it's come on so suddenly, hopefully it's going to be something transient like a pulled muscle and you will see an improvement tomorrow :fl :fl

I can sympathise with the penning issue. While my younger two are fine in their crates, Revel also gets quite het up if penned for any length of time when I'm around. He's never really taken to confinement so like you, I would be reluctant to inflict it on him.

I don't know if it's something you're already doing or have considered but in the past we have put down puppy training pads on the floor for Merlin. It doesn't help the peeing/pooing but it does help the carpet. Many of the issues you're describing are similar to the experiences my Auntie is having with Merlin. The other night we were talking on the phone and he peed on the floor although she'd only let him out minutes beforehand. :rolleyes2:

As always, keeping Miko and you in my thoughts and prayers. Give him a gentle :hugs from me and the boys. Hope tomorrow is a brighter day.
 
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seashel said:
I don't know if it's something you're already doing or have considered but in the past we have put down puppy training pads on the floor for Merlin. It doesn't help the peeing/pooing but it does help the carpet. Many of the issues you're describing are similar to the experiences my Auntie is having with Merlin. The other night we were talking on the phone and he peed on the floor although she'd only let him out minutes beforehand. :rolleyes2:
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Thanks for the thoughts. I'm going to post what I found out after this. But first, puppy pads. OMG. I tried. I did. I tried one, then two, then 10 and he would pee right NEXT TO IT!! I got so frustrated. The pads became a "cleaner" way to soak up in the urine in the carpet, that's about all it was good for. Sad, but true. I'm sure if I carpeted the house with it, then it'd work. Sigh.
 
Update: Limping Miko

I took Miko to the vet.

But first, I had to beg my mom to come down and ride with me. Miko hates the crate and was never one to lie down. But as he aged, he can't counter balance himself as well so now, I hear thump when I accelerate and brake. Sad. And with a bad leg, I knew it'd be worse to put him in a crate. So my mom came down so someone could hold him. Thankfully I was off work and she's retired. And I got a free lunch out of it. Love mom's!

I was getting angry at the vets office. My appt was at 10:30 and by 11am, they still didn't have a room. I was holding Miko because I forgot his leash and finally asked for one by saying, "I forgot my leash and would like to put Miko down because he's really stressed out." so they would get the hint that something needed to happen. ARound 11:15 someone finally said, there's no room still, but would you like the vet to look at him in the back room until there is a room. Which meant, at least diagnosis would go faster. So I said yes and off Miko went....limping, but not bad anymore.

Finally got a room. Vet said he's really hunched over due to his lack of muscle mass in his rear legs and the spinal degeneration which means he's putting most of his weight on his front legs. He said he manipulated his legs and said he could see some discomfort and said Miko has arthritis in his shoulders. I said, "I must not have manipulated them enough? cuz I did that and saw nothing" and he said, "most people wouldn't push it like we do to really see range of motion" and I said, "oh". LOL.

I asked about his limping, because at one point, he was lifting his paw off the ground completely. Vet said "he's got arthritis but probably puts up with a low grade of pain. He's a Sheltie and you know how they can be about pain." And I nodded. My mom looked confused so he explained how they don't show it very much. He said maybe he slept on it funny so it just hurt more yesterday.

He continued with, "The question is, how can we make him more comfortable without compromising his failing kidneys and without taking away his quality of life by sedating him too much. I'm going to call your internist and discuss a couple of medications and will let you know what we can do."

I told him about the meds for his cognitive dysfunction that he's no longer on since it stopped working, just in case my internist commented that he's on that. The vet suggested something else and said I'll also discuss that with her to see if maybe that'll help his cognition.

Sigh. It's now 5:30pm. I haven't heard from the vet so I'm assuming I won't hear anything until tomorrow or Monday. I told him I just let Miko sleep since he's not in pain and don't force him to walk too much. Maybe I was making him walk too much. Sigh, poor thing.

So, an answer. Arthritis. Which I never knew was there. And obviously he's in pain. :( I feel so bad. It could be why he's been sleeping more recently. Maybe he's just been in more pain. My poor baby. I wish he'd sleep on something soft, but anything I put on the ground, even one of those memory foam bath mats, he won't lie on.

Bigger sigh.

Oh and his eyesight. The vet said, his eyes are cloudy from old age, no glaucoma. They don't have the means to check his retinas, but he can tell he does have some vision loss, but how much, he's not sure.

I told him how if Miko sees a big "seam" in the concrete, he'll think it's a step and "jump" down. Vet said, yup, sounds like his depth perception is off, which you were concerned about years ago, so maybe now it's just getting worse. And he sees the line and isn't sure, so he thinks it's a step. Hey, better safe than sorry right? I really do think it's his depth perception. I had forgotten that I mentioned it years ago. This guy is good. LOL.

So that's us. Waiting to see if there's any pain meds we can use to keep him aware but comfortable. He mentioned one, no clue what it was, and suggested a very low dosage.

Like we've all said here, right? Quality of life. At least he's gained weight back. Went from 15.4 to 16. Yay. He's eating all his food and eating it voraciously. Okay, maybe not voraciously, but he's enjoying it. His kidneys are stable. It just seems like age is catching up to him at this point.

My mom asked me how old he'd be in human years, I said, 15 times 7 for an average. She said, "this was depressing. Are you going to pull me around in a cart so I can get outside and smell and see things?" (vet suggested that with Miko, just so he can enjoy being outside, LOL). Then she said, "actually, I may enjoy being pulled around in a cart versus a wheelchair, nevermind. you should do that". great, now my mom wants to be pulled in cart when she's older. what did I do? LOL.

Miko gets lots of love and ear scratches and homemade food. I think when he goes, he'll go happy, and hopefully not in pain.
 
Looks like Miko will be getting Tramadol. I hope it's not super expensive. Ugh. And at least I'll only be giving him 1/4-1/2 pill.

The vet said to give it to him 2-3x a day as needed.....meaning, on his bad days. How am I supposed to know what is a bad day? I didn't even know he was in pain. Darn Shelties! :rolleyes2: I mean, if I see him limping, that's obvious, so is that a "bad day"?

He just finished his dinner. I'm grateful he's eating well. :)
 
Sounds like a good appointment for Miko and you. I always admire how you think of Miko's needs. Tramdol is a human med so it's pretty cheap-at least in our neck of the woods. Sounds like you should give when limping or panting or restless or maybe just try giving it to see if it helps him feel better in general. Might help him to sleep better at night too. Prayers of peace for you. :hugs
 
mellie said:
Sounds like a good appointment for Miko and you. I always admire how you think of Miko's needs. Tramdol is a human med so it's pretty cheap-at least in our neck of the woods. Sounds like you should give when limping or panting or restless or maybe just try giving it to see if it helps him feel better in general. Might help him to sleep better at night too. Prayers of peace for you. :hugs
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When you said panting, I just realized. I posted about him panting, like he was hot or something. OMG. maybe he was in pain!!! I remember I checked him, but he didn't show any pain. Ugh! Again, darn Shelties! LOL.

Thanks for your kind words. I would do anything for him (if I can afford it). And I definitely wouldn't drag it out though.

Thanks for the advice about giving it to him at night. If you recall, I said he doesn't sleep as deeply at night for some reason (as in when I finally get into bed). Otherwise, he's typically out cold, so that's good.

Again, thanks for your support. This really helps me stay sane.
 
Oddly Merlin won't sleep on the memory foam bed I made him either.:no: Revel loves his.

At least you have a diagnosis now for what's wrong and a means of treating it. I forget how cold your weather is but cold/damp can make arthritis worse. I know because it affects mine. If he's sleeping a lot, especially a deep sleep, he won't be moving around as much so staying in one position for a prolonged time could account for the arthritis being sore too. Magnets on the collar is meant to help with arthritis. There is a product called Bioflow designed for this.
http://www.ecomagnets.com/bioflow-animals.htm
Also, have you thought about canine massage? It's something you can do while he is sleeping and will improve circulation and general stiffness and is completely non invasive.
http://www.monkeysee.com/play/2163-how-to-massage-your-dog

Pity about the puppy pads not being a success but good to hear he's eating well and has got some weight back on.:smile2:

:hugs to you and Miko.
 
Hugs to you! In many ways I was blessed because Timber tanked so quick. He went from healthy to emergency in one day, and then he was gone.

I feel your pain, but I know that you will know what is right for youand your baby.
 
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