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A sad topic indeed.
Wednesday was just like any normal day, dogs playing and the usual daily chores, no hint of what was about to happen. At 6.30 Steve came home and as we have a gravel drive the dogs were alerted to his arrival and in their usual fashion they charged out of the door to greet him. Molly always gets there first followed by a lolloping Duke, Megan always brings up the rear, so there was nothing unusual in this daily routine.
8pm approaches ( their normal feed time) and Megan starts to let me know it's supper time, nothing unusual in that. I get their food ready and Megan, Molly and Duke go to their respective places. Megan goes to her bowl and collapses on the floor! In a split second she right herself and starts to eat but she is a little unsteady on her feet so goes into the sitting room to lay down. We check her all over, back, limbs, eyes,neck throat, in fact all parts of her body. No sign of anything untoward. There was no pain, she wasn't distressed, in fact she was totally calm. We let her rest thinking it was just one of those odd things that just happen. At bedtime she got up to go to bed and was like a drunk, very unsteady on her feet. But she was still very calm and just lay down again and went to sleep so we let her stay in the sitting room, a real treat for her and she showed her appreciation by wagging her tail. Mentally she was very alert and we just thought she must have twisted her back or something (she did slip a disk in her lower back a few years ago). I checked on her a couple of times during the night and she was resting comfortably and gave me the usual tail wag.
5am I went down and tried to persuade her to go out for a wee. She couldn't get her back legs to work at all and there was no reflex when I tried to stimulate them, the front ones were stronger. Now Megan is 12 years old so alarm bells began to ring. We got her down to the vets and was seen immediately in the back of the car. She was completely paralysised from the neck down, There was no reflex in all four legs and neither did her skin react to stimuli. The vet couldn't feel any abnormality along the spine and said her heart was strong. After a thorough examination the vet said she was sure that the cause was due to a Fibrocartilaginous Embolism - FCE, apparently not uncommon although we had never heard of it before.. The location and severity of the embolism will determine the degree of paralysis; some dogs may just be weak in the affected limb, while others become completely paralyzed. Megan had the worst form of total paralysis from the neck down. There is no cure, although minor cases can be controlled by drugs. No use to Megan. We were given time alone with Meggie to say goodbye and she was put to sleep with dignity and love. We were both with her and she had no fear or pain. We were both wrecks!
God bless you Megan and thank you for filling all our lives with so much love and unconditional loyalty.
Steve and Ian (not forgetting Molly and Duke's loss)
______________________________________________________________ The hurrier I be, the behinder I get
The following members of MHF thanked suffolkian for this posting
So sorry for your loss, a very sad day for any pet owner, & one where I am sure most of us would also be total wrecks.
Remember the good times - I'm sure there were lots & lots
______________________________________________________________ Remember; theres a Whole Wide World beyond the WorldWideWeb...
The following members of MHF thanked Kelcat for this posting
A sad topic indeed.
Wednesday was just like any normal day, dogs playing and the usual daily chores, no hint of what was about to happen. At 6.30 Steve came home and as we have a gravel drive the dogs were alerted to his arrival and in their usual fashion they charged out of the door to greet him. Molly always gets there first followed by a lolloping Duke, Megan always brings up the rear, so there was nothing unusual in this daily routine.
8pm approaches ( their normal feed time) and Megan starts to let me know it's supper time, nothing unusual in that. I get their food ready and Megan, Molly and Duke go to their respective places. Megan goes to her bowl and collapses on the floor! In a split second she right herself and starts to eat but she is a little unsteady on her feet so goes into the sitting room to lay down. We check her all over, back, limbs, eyes,neck throat, in fact all parts of her body. No sign of anything untoward. There was no pain, she wasn't distressed, in fact she was totally calm. We let her rest thinking it was just one of those odd things that just happen. At bedtime she got up to go to bed and was like a drunk, very unsteady on her feet. But she was still very calm and just lay down again and went to sleep so we let her stay in the sitting room, a real treat for her and she showed her appreciation by wagging her tail. Mentally she was very alert and we just thought she must have twisted her back or something (she did slip a disk in her lower back a few years ago). I checked on her a couple of times during the night and she was resting comfortably and gave me the usual tail wag.
5am I went down and tried to persuade her to go out for a wee. She couldn't get her back legs to work at all and there was no reflex when I tried to stimulate them, the front ones were stronger. Now Megan is 12 years old so alarm bells began to ring. We got her down to the vets and was seen immediately in the back of the car. She was completely paralysised from the neck down, There was no reflex in all four legs and neither did her skin react to stimuli. The vet couldn't feel any abnormality along the spine and said her heart was strong. After a thorough examination the vet said she was sure that the cause was due to a Fibrocartilaginous Embolism - FCE, apparently not uncommon although we had never heard of it before.. The location and severity of the embolism will determine the degree of paralysis; some dogs may just be weak in the affected limb, while others become completely paralyzed. Megan had the worst form of total paralysis from the neck down. There is no cure, although minor cases can be controlled by drugs. No use to Megan. We were given time alone with Meggie to say goodbye and she was put to sleep with dignity and love. We were both with her and she had no fear or pain. We were both wrecks!
God bless you Megan and thank you for filling all our lives with so much love and unconditional loyalty.
Steve and Ian (not forgetting Molly and Duke's loss)
the dignity and compassion demonstrated and reflected in this post, does such credit to both people and animal. For your loss, I offfer boundless sympathy.
______________________________________________________________ Adrian
The following members of MHF thanked bandaid for this posting
Having a pet come to the end of their life is always a sad occasion as they become such a big part of any family.
We recently had one of our two Cavalier King Charles put down at 15 months old due to endless illnesses including Pneumonia (which ended up knocking out her immune system) and Domadex mange which is heredetary! In other words her mother should never have been used for breeding. We paid pedegree prices but made the mistake of buying from a 'breeder' who sourced her pups from somewhere in Wales. So we never saw the mother. A very sad and expensive error!
We now have just the one and it has to be said that for us there are distinct advantages, particually when away in the motorhome.
It just grives me the way some people breed dogs with problems. Anyone see that documentary the other week? That was sad and hard for us to watch one week after having ours put down.
We just rest in the knowledge that we did everything within reason possible for ours, and it came down to her quality of life.
But we have the (albeit short) memories .....
Mark
Last edited by Senator on Fri Sep 05, 2008 12:33 pm; edited 1 time in total
The following members of MHF thanked Senator for this posting
Sorry to say this Geoff, but if Ben is suddenly drinking and eating massive amounts this could indicate diabetes, and kidney failure is on the cards. Is Ben showing signs of weight loss?
I once had a dog who developed diabetes, at 7 years. It's treatable with canine insulin, but you need to get this checked out quickly.
Best wishes,
SD
______________________________________________________________ "Banking establishments are more dangerous than standing armies."
- Thomas Jefferson, third President of the United States (1801–1809)
The following members of MHF thanked SpeedyDux for this posting
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