I have a 15 yr old spaniel cross, he lost his eyes due to glaucoma 3,5 years ago, not long after that he developed diabetes , and about a year ago he started with urinary incontinence, and now he walks in circles everyday, until I stop him.
I have taken him to the vet, numerous times, and due to his age and diabetic status, any kind of surgery is a big NO.
so my vet has in very minimal words told me to give him love until he has no quality of life left, or perhaps passes away naturally.
I am not even sure what constitutes quality of life for him… I mean, he still wags his tail, he walks around, even though he bumps into everything and gets lost in the garden for hours… he enjoys his food, and affection from me, I dont walk him a lot because its a very slow walk… but when we go he does enjoy walking.
I have to make sure he eats and gets an insulin injection every 12hours… that means sometimes no matter where I am I have to excuse myself or leave early due to my dog… not many understand this
he is on medication for urinary incontinence but doesnt always work… I often have to wash his bedding and him regularily …not to mention that he does accidently walk into his poo or the other dogs poo, and brings it inside too, I am more often than not washing poo off from under his feet
are there other people out there with a similar situation.?.. how do you cope having such a needy dog?
some days I am so tired, he is hand full, and has meant some sacrifice from me, but I just love him, and he makes me laugh and he is very cute and fluffy… so having him PTS is not an option
I just want to know how other people out there deal with their dogs that demand lots of attention and time.
from
Marilyn
please share your stories with me .
Your dog’s quality of life doesn’t sound bad to me! I mean yes he has limited or no sight, but that’s not a big concern since the sense of smell is how dogs get around anyway. his diabetes are managed by his wonderful owner. and maybe he has some dog dementia. which i am sure you lovingly manage also. i would take him off the urinary incontinence meds. does too little good with too high risk of side effects.
but don’t rule out PTS in the future. my dog suffered from kidney disease, and he died violently seizing. to think of him having awareness for those seizures wrenches my heart and i can’t let myself think that he felt them. i would have put him to sleep if i had known. your vet is wrong. dogs rarely die peacefully in their sleep. but you will know when it is time, and now is probably not the time yet.
yes aren’t dogs a lot like elderly people? they go through the same..loss of senses, dementia, loss of bladder and bowels..disease..arthritis.. but it is so worth it. you gave him this chance at life and will see him through his death, he will never suffer heartache.
a tip for the incontinence..try putting an old plastic or vinyl tablecloth on the floor or over his bed. easier to clean.
add: I just read the other answers and have to say i’m shocked people say this is a bad or no quality of life. since when does urine incontinence, blindness and diabetes mean bad quality of life? that’s part of having senior dogs.