Not Old - Ill

Honey has not been feeling well for the past few days. She was not showing signs of age, she was getting sicker. Turns out that she has Canine Addison's Disease. She was lethargic, tired, and unable to eat.

We got her to the Animal Emergency room in time, and the vet that took care of her really knew the disease, so we got the right diagnosis right away. She's been in the animal hosptial since yesterday afternoon, and we will get her back sometime today.

Sleep was hard last night. I missed her laying next to me.

I will update you once she is back home.

Sunny Afternoon, Long, Slow Walk

In what seems to be the pre-spring start, we had a pretty sunny afternoon today. Around 5 or so, Honey and I took a long walk together to take advantage of the nice weather.

The long walk (about 2.5 miles) usually takes us about 40 minutes, and Honey usually leads the way. We haven't done it in a long time, since this winter has been so cold. It's been hard to take her on long walks because the cold really gets into her bones.

We headed out and started in our usual jaunty way . . . with Honey in the lead. About one third of the way through, Honey began to slow down. I think it was the arthritis.

We still took the whole course, but we went about it very slowly. It took us nearly an hour to get it all done. I had to encourage her a lot, and I had to fight the impulse to carry her for the last block. She is now curled up in her little bed, fast asleep.

Aging is not a pleasant thing, but seeing your dog begin to show that she is getting old is downright sad -- especially when she's trying to show you she still can keep up to please you. I'm sure things will get better as we adjust, but right now, things are not well in our world.

Doggie Gets Old, Doggie Needs Help

Well, the day has finally arrived. Honey can't jump on the bed anymore. Last night, after an evening of watching movies with Honey laying by my feet, we headed to bed, and I asked her to get on the bed, as always.

Usually, after I point to the bed and say "up, up," Honey jumps on the bed, curls up and lays down for sleepy time. This time, she tried to jump and ended up halfway up, with her front paws on the bed, gripping the edge, and her hind legs trying to push up. She slid off the bed, and gave me this look that said both "I'm sorry" and "I really want to get on the bed." To say the least, she was a little anxious.

I helped her get up on the bed, and she proceeded to lay next to me and to seek my comfort. I spent about 30 minutes holding her, petting her, and making her feel that it was OK. For some reason, I got the idea that she thought I wasn't happy with her not being able to jump on the bed. I knew this day was coming for a while, but it still broke my heart nonetheless, because instead of being glad that she was helped on the bed, Honey was trying, in her doggie way, to let me know that she was sorry for not getting up on the bed on her own.

After a lot of hugs and assurances, Honey finally curled up and let out a big doggie sigh. All was well with her again.