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A very sobering week

Posted: Wed Jul 10 2019 21:37
by Fentiger01
I've two little Shih Tzui dogs, one is 13 and the other 10. Both bought by my wife but at early ages they both seemed to have adopted me, presumably because I take them to the countryside, the river and let them loose to chase whatever they want to run after (mostly themselves) in a field (providing other bigger dogs aren't doing the same thing, in the same field)..... As well as offering them the odd 'treat'. The younger one Fizz has never changed since she's been a pup, I took her to Pophams Eau to see a proper Fen Drain when she was only about 14 weeks old. She is absolutely nutts but it has to be said, she is very good with the kids, always giving them fair warning before the final 'snap in the air' moment that makes them stop their misbehaving.

Image
'Sunbathing' - Tuesday night!

During a nightmare last week poor Fizz went from right-as-rein to deaths door in literally hours. She seemed a bit quiet the weekend before last, which we put down to the heat. As the week bore on though, she deteriorated so much that despite challenging Alfie for some food on the Wednesday, when I went to take her out on Thursday morning for her usual early morning walk I couldn't get her to jump out of the front door. I immediately booked her into the vets that morning (we'd already booked an afternoon slot for that day) and took the kids to school before coming back to pick her up. When I got back, poor Fizz had thrown up some water she'd drunk but was laying in it and couldn't get up.

Straight into the vets as we waited for the inevitable news, she was to be overnighted. What a nightmare, it sounded to me like something similar to human gallstones being removed and a bit of surgery required to flush through some of her intestines was required. I was dragged out of work on the Friday morning and told in no uncertain terms that if I didn't take her to the surgery (70+ miles away) by that lunchtime, then poor Fizzer would likely be brown-bread by the end of the weekend and so without any delay, in the car went Fizzer and I!

Good news, the surgery place turned out to be the Langford Small Animal Referral Hospital not too far from Cheddar and they are totally amazing. We spent Sunday going down to visit little Fizzer once she'd had surgery and she was happy to take food from us, the nurses/surgeons were ace and very pleased with her response. Despite a cut from her throat to her lower abdomen, she was allowed home on Monday night, I drove down after work to pick her up.

Image
Monday night - my youngest daughter donated a T Shirt to stop her licking the wound

Today, I had her out for a short (200m) walk at 0530hrs and she enjoyed it. She's actually a graceful little old lady and does her 'Elvis' lip anytime Alfie (the older one) comes anywhere near. In short she's getting her mojo back.

I put this on here because I'm sure that there are loads of you dudes who absolutely love your dogs and would do anything for them. It was just too soon for my little Fizzer in my opinion!

Re: A very sobering week

Posted: Wed Jul 10 2019 21:45
by suffolk si
Good on you Dave, I would have done the same, the majority of us hairy arsed pikers are complete softies when it comes to our dogs, hope you get plenty more years with her👍

Re: A very sobering week

Posted: Wed Jul 10 2019 21:50
by Andytheammer
Ain’t that the truth Si!
Got a 14 year old Springer who atm thinks she’s the same age as my 3 year old Rottie,
Already dreading the day when she goes!

Re: A very sobering week

Posted: Wed Jul 10 2019 22:00
by suffolk si
Spaniels are crazy as a box of frogs lol( my lab isn’t much better!)

Re: A very sobering week

Posted: Wed Jul 10 2019 23:20
by Will Smith
Did they tell you exactly what it was Dave ?

I hope she makes a full recovery very soon.

Will.

Re: A very sobering week

Posted: Thu Jul 11 2019 08:36
by Fentiger01
suffolk si wrote: Wed Jul 10 2019 21:45 -
Good on you Dave, I would have done the same, the majority of us hairy arsed pikers are complete softies when it comes to our dogs, hope you get plenty more years with her👍
Cheers Si, she's always been a little bundle of fun and I too hope she continues to be for many more years! :thumbs:

Re: A very sobering week

Posted: Thu Jul 11 2019 08:41
by Fentiger01
Will Smith wrote: Wed Jul 10 2019 23:20 -
Did they tell you exactly what it was Dave ?

I hope she makes a full recovery very soon.

Will.
Cheers Will, it was a gallstone type growth on her liver that had spread to and blocked her intestine. :pale:

She's making a great recovery so far, not just one but two Urtha Kitt's this morning (good sign all is working well again). :laughs: :laughs: :laughs:

Re: A very sobering week

Posted: Thu Jul 11 2019 09:17
by Nige Johns
Glad to hear she’s on the mend :thumbs:

Re: A very sobering week

Posted: Thu Jul 11 2019 10:27
by Will Smith
When you were describing her symptoms I thought it sounded like a blockage Dave, I have had experience of similar scenarios with three of mine, always because of something they had eaten mind you, not a growth as in her case.
They go down hill extremely quickly and can not even keep water down, anyway sounds as if she is on the mend :thumbs: .
Try to keep her quite for a few weeks and don't let her go mad, give the wounds to heal well. One of mine died from septicaemia after rupturing his internal wounds about a week after his operation and he died through the night.
It was very sad, the strange thing was, I knew he had died even before I got to him in the morning :cry: .
Will.

Re: A very sobering week

Posted: Thu Jul 11 2019 10:52
by Mike J
Thanks for posting.
I hope all goes well for them both and that they continue to live their lives to the full.

Wouldn't want to be you when the Vet's bill arrives.

Re: A very sobering week

Posted: Thu Jul 11 2019 12:00
by John Milford
Andytheammer wrote: Wed Jul 10 2019 21:50 -
Ain’t that the truth Si!
Got a 14 year old Springer who atm thinks she’s the same age as my 3 year old Rottie,
Already dreading the day when she goes!
Glad it was a happy outcome Dave :thumbs: Bloody dogs! They're heart-robbers, especially if you're the one they make their 'special' bond with. There's something unconditional and completely non-judgemental about the love dogs give - totally unlike most humans!

And I think that's why we all dread their passing Andy. All we can do is treasure every moment we have with them and not dwell on the thought that one day they will be gone.

I lost my Cocker Archie six years ago and I still miss him, although the sadness inevitably passes and is just replaced by fond memories. He went downhill very quickly as he had pancreatic cancer. The vets kept him going for about a month after he initially crashed without warning. With hindsight I wished they hadn't as those few weeks of limbo were awful. I wound up angry with the vets as they must have known he was a gonner when I first took him in, but they wrung every penny they could out of his insurance with palliative treatment. Not good for either him or me but 'earned' them thousands.

I now have a Cockerpoo called Barkley who is an amazing dog. The breed name is stupid, but he is the most intelligent, funny and fearless dog I have ever known. He loves friendly, sociable dogs, but I've seen him mix it with big aggressive dogs several times and he just made them look stupid before seeing them off. I swear he knows Kung Fu! (He's hilarious with small, aggressive dogs too. He just stands his ground and stares them down with a look of utter contempt! :laughs: ).

He's also brilliant with kids. He loves rough play with me, but adjusts his behaviour to the size of his playmate. He like a lamb with our little grandkids.

We waited six months after Archie went before getting Barkley, but we're thinking about getting another pup now.

Two dogs seems a good number to me?

Re: A very sobering week

Posted: Thu Jul 11 2019 16:08
by Alan_dalton
:thumbs: great news she on the mend...mans best friend!

Re: A very sobering week

Posted: Thu Jul 11 2019 21:09
by Andytheammer
Fentiger01 wrote: Wed Jul 10 2019 21:37 -
I've two little Shih Tzui dogs, one is 13 and the other 10. Both bought by my wife but at early ages they both seemed to have adopted me, presumably because I take them to the countryside, the river and let them loose to chase whatever they want to run after (mostly themselves) in a field (providing other bigger dogs aren't doing the same thing, in the same field)..... As well as offering them the odd 'treat'. The younger one Fizz has never changed since she's been a pup, I took her to Pophams Eau to see a proper Fen Drain when she was only about 14 weeks old. She is absolutely nutts but it has to be said, she is very good with the kids, always giving them fair warning before the final 'snap in the air' moment that makes them stop their misbehaving.

Image
'Sunbathing' - Tuesday night!

During a nightmare last week poor Fizz went from right-as-rein to deaths door in literally hours. She seemed a bit quiet the weekend before last, which we put down to the heat. As the week bore on though, she deteriorated so much that despite challenging Alfie for some food on the Wednesday, when I went to take her out on Thursday morning for her usual early morning walk I couldn't get her to jump out of the front door. I immediately booked her into the vets that morning (we'd already booked an afternoon slot for that day) and took the kids to school before coming back to pick her up. When I got back, poor Fizz had thrown up some water she'd drunk but was laying in it and couldn't get up.

Straight into the vets as we waited for the inevitable news, she was to be overnighted. What a nightmare, it sounded to me like something similar to human gallstones being removed and a bit of surgery required to flush through some of her intestines was required. I was dragged out of work on the Friday morning and told in no uncertain terms that if I didn't take her to the surgery (70+ miles away) by that lunchtime, then poor Fizzer would likely be brown-bread by the end of the weekend and so without any delay, in the car went Fizzer and I!

Good news, the surgery place turned out to be the Langford Small Animal Referral Hospital not too far from Cheddar and they are totally amazing. We spent Sunday going down to visit little Fizzer once she'd had surgery and she was happy to take food from us, the nurses/surgeons were ace and very pleased with her response. Despite a cut from her throat to her lower abdomen, she was allowed home on Monday night, I drove down after work to pick her up.

Image
Monday night - my youngest daughter donated a T Shirt to stop her licking the wound

Today, I had her out for a short (200m) walk at 0530hrs and she enjoyed it. She's actually a graceful little old lady and does her 'Elvis' lip anytime Alfie (the older one) comes anywhere near. In short she's getting her mojo back.

I put this on here because I'm sure that there are loads of you dudes who absolutely love your dogs and would do anything for them. It was just too soon for my little Fizzer in my opinion!
How’s Fizz doing Dave? Hoping all’s well.

Re: A very sobering week

Posted: Thu Jul 11 2019 21:20
by Andytheammer
Don’t think I’d ever have only one dog tbh John.
Been great fun with these two,
The older Springer definitely helped teach the Rottie pup good habits,

Mind you the reaction on people’s faces when the Rottie comes out of the forest with a Rabbit or a Squirrel is definitely different to when the springer does!
Racists!!! :laughs:

Re: A very sobering week

Posted: Fri Jul 12 2019 17:15
by Fentiger01
Cheers for the kind words Chaps, you're all right of course. There is something totally unconditional about the way our dogs feel for us and it really strikes a chord.

I had Fizz back for her first post-Op checkup yesterday and all seems to be going well, although we're under strict instructions to keep her quiet for another week yet.

:thumbs:

Re: A very sobering week

Posted: Fri Jul 12 2019 20:36
by Ben
Glad Fizz is on the mend Dave 🐶🙏🏻

Well done for the great care you made sure she received 👍🏼

It’s so true that they are mans best friend and for as long as I’m alive I’ll always have two dogs

Re: A very sobering week

Posted: Fri Jul 12 2019 21:12
by Fentiger01
Cheers Ben, bill came in this afternoon and is only a few pints shy of £4k :eek: :eek: :eek: Good job she is insured! We'll have to pay a decent wedge of that but in truth I'd have paid it all without hesitation, had I needed to. In fairness, the Wife would have as well.

Little Fizz Bomb seems very quickly getting back to her old self, she has another week recuperating then it's stitches out and (fingers crossed) back to normal for her.

Re: A very sobering week

Posted: Sat Jul 13 2019 09:03
by Alan_dalton
Fentiger01 wrote: Fri Jul 12 2019 21:12 -
Cheers Ben, bill came in this afternoon and is only a few pints shy of £4k :eek: :eek: :eek: Good job she is insured! We'll have to pay a decent wedge of that but in truth I'd have paid it all without hesitation, had I needed to. In fairness, the Wife would have as well.

Little Fizz Bomb seems very quickly getting back to her old self, she has another week recuperating then it's stitches out and (fingers crossed) back to normal for her.

:thumbs: :thumbs: :thumbs: money doesn't come onto it. There a family member Great news shes on the mend :thumbs: :thumbs: :thumbs: :thumbs:

Re: A very sobering week

Posted: Sat Jul 13 2019 09:04
by Alan_dalton
Alan_dalton wrote: Sat Jul 13 2019 09:03 -
Fentiger01 wrote: Fri Jul 12 2019 21:12 -
Cheers Ben, bill came in this afternoon and is only a few pints shy of £4k :eek: :eek: :eek: Good job she is insured! We'll have to pay a decent wedge of that but in truth I'd have paid it all without hesitation, had I needed to. In fairness, the Wife would have as well.

Little Fizz Bomb seems very quickly getting back to her old self, she has another week recuperating then it's stitches out and (fingers crossed) back to normal for her.

:thumbs: :thumbs: :thumbs: money doesn't come onto it. They're a family member. Great news shes on the mend :thumbs: :thumbs: :thumbs: :thumbs:

Re: A very sobering week

Posted: Sat Jul 13 2019 18:54
by Fentiger01
Alan_dalton wrote: Sat Jul 13 2019 09:03 -
Fentiger01 wrote: Fri Jul 12 2019 21:12 -
Cheers Ben, bill came in this afternoon and is only a few pints shy of £4k :eek: :eek: :eek: Good job she is insured! We'll have to pay a decent wedge of that but in truth I'd have paid it all without hesitation, had I needed to. In fairness, the Wife would have as well.

Little Fizz Bomb seems very quickly getting back to her old self, she has another week recuperating then it's stitches out and (fingers crossed) back to normal for her.

:thumbs: :thumbs: :thumbs: money doesn't come onto it. There a family member Great news shes on the mend :thumbs: :thumbs: :thumbs: :thumbs:
Spot on Alan mate, 100%. :thumbs:

Re: A very sobering week

Posted: Mon Jul 15 2019 00:02
by sebshelton
Glad all’s turned out well Dave & fingers crossed for the future. 🙂

Re: A very sobering week

Posted: Tue Jul 16 2019 21:58
by Fentiger01
Cheers Seb, trying to keep her quiet now and not jumping around is getting pretty difficult but she's in 'convalescence' until Saturday morning 0830hrs mate, then it's stitches out and hopefully back to normal.

Thanks everyone for your kind messages, dogs are ace! :thumbs:

Re: A very sobering week

Posted: Mon Aug 26 2019 21:09
by Fentiger01
Just got back from a really relaxing week at Woodland Waters up in Lincolnshire, Fizz is right back to her best and was happy to leg it out on at least two walks a day. I'm amazed at how quickly she has gotten over something so serious. She was giving me the Elvis lip this afternoon as I was winding her up a bit while she relaxed in a cool spot during the heat. :laughs: :laughs: :laughs:

Thank you all for your very kind words and messages! :thumbs:

Re: A very sobering week

Posted: Mon Aug 26 2019 21:35
by Andytheammer
Fentiger01 wrote: Mon Aug 26 2019 21:09 -
Just got back from a really relaxing week at Woodland Waters up in Lincolnshire, Fizz is right back to her best and was happy to leg it out on at least two walks a day. I'm amazed at how quickly she has gotten over something so serious. She was giving me the Elvis lip this afternoon as I was winding her up a bit while she relaxed in a cool spot during the heat. :laughs: :laughs: :laughs:

Thank you all for your very kind words and messages! :thumbs:
Great to hear :thumbs: