If you’ve been following the blog you know that Ruby has been having a tough go at life lately. It all started when she started would always have her head tilted….like this.
She was having accidents in the house…wouldn’t go upstairs. She had become at old dog at five years old.
After some testing we found out she was having thyroid issues and started taking the same meds I take! How weird. Anyway the vet was worried that there was more wrong and might possibly be Cushing’s Disease.
We have been back and forth to the vet. Kelli has been fabulous on helping me get her there. I’m so thankful for her. Well last week on Monday Kelli took Ruby in three different times. She had to get a blood draw each time. Poor girl. They were testing for Cushing’s. If you had ever ridden in a car with Ruby, you would know this was a painful process for Ruby. SHE HATES RIDING IN CARS!! She pants and whimpers…she hates it. It’s a painful process for the driver too.
Well Friday the results came back…No Cushing’s. We’re so happy about that but now it’s time to get the thyroid really under control.
Now her main problem is shedding. It’s terrible. She’s fluctuated up and down with her thyroid. know in people hair loss can be attributed to thyroid levels so I’m guessing it’s true in dogs too. Look…This is after one stroke across her back. ALL OF THIS HAIR. She won’t let me vacuum her. It’s so hard to deal with childcare here too. I find myself vacuuming daily in the evenings and often during the day too. UGH.
I can vacuum all these times and it’s still bad. On Saturday when I was at Wal-Mart I bought her a dog bed to put on the couch. My hope was the hair might stay a little more confined to there rather than the whole couch…so what did Ruby think of the bed…this!
What a stink pot!
I worked and worked to get her to lay in the bed….well by Sunday evening, I think she got the hang of it.
She’s liking the bed…NOW. The hair is a little more contained but still it’s bad. My hope is that once the thyroid level is under control then the shedding will go back to normal too. Who knows??? She’s my dog and shedding or not, I’ll keep her.
I know some of you will say “train her to stay off the couch”. Well Ruby used to sleep in my bed in the mornings after Hubby left. She used to sleep in the spare bedrooms. She doesn’t do any of that anymore because she can’t jump up anymore. I’m not taking the couch away from her too. We’ll make this work and hopefully in a month is will be greatly improved. I know I had a crazy time of things myself when my thyroid was out of whack!!
Keeping Ruby in my prayers!
So glad to hear that its not Cushings! hopefully you can get her meds to work to her benefit and she will be a happier dog.
I know you are glad to have those results on the Cushing’s test. I hope the thyroid can be figured out. Our dogs sleep on the couch all the time! I don’t blame you for not taking the couch away. We even bought a wider couch one time so we could fit our beagle on with us while we watch TV at night! Our current dog is not a beagle but he sheds like crazy! We should have stock in the Swiffer company!
Will she let you brush her? That would pick up the loose hair before it falls off her.
Our dog is 12. Four years ago she had ligament surgery on one of back legs. She was always a good traveller in the car, but I worried about her hurting her leg jumping around (front seat .. back seat), so we bought a canvas crate that we tie down with bungee cords. She whined at first, but after several car rides she settled into it, and now she always rides in it. They always say dogs feel “safe” in a crate/kennel. The crates come in lots of sizes and I think most pet stores carry them. Ours is a “Noz-to-Noz Sof-Krate (you can check them out online). We even bought a second one from Amazon for our truck. You can put in a nice soft cushion in the bottom. Anyway, just an idea for Ruby if she has to take lots more car rides. Hope she feels like herself soon! Candy
Glad Ruby hasn’t got Cushing’s . Maybe put old towels where she lays and then you you can throw them in the washer. I will keep thinking of Ruby.
poor baby!
Sorry, but I had to laugh when I saw Ruby beside the bed, using it as a pillow. A thought, maybe petting or rubbing her down wearing one of those garden gloves with the little nubbies would pick up the stray hairs. I’ve seen special gloves advertised for this purpose, but I thought you might have the gloves already. Hope she gets better soon. Thanks for sharing.
I’m glad Ruby is on the road to getting better! You can try the “furminator” brush. It’s pricey, but it really gets a lot of fur off my cats. Most pet stores would have them, and probably Amazon.
I have a pug that sheds like crazy. I bought a tool called “the furminator” that works well to remove the lose hair to help get rid of it before it’s on the floor.
So glad Ruby doesn’t have Cushings! I’ll be praying for her. I’m glad you are letting her on the couch, she’s such a sweetheart.
Maybe Ruby has developed an allergy to her food? A change in diet to grain free might help or a different protein?
It’s crazy how we get attached to our pets, and the things we are willing to do for them!! I hope Ruby is back to her old self soon.
Glad Ruby does not have Cushings. We ALL get crankier as we age. So she is earning her right. Love the bed/pillow picture. Hope her thyroid problems get straightened out. I need to see her in the quilt pictures like she used to do. Go RUBY!
Glad to hear that Ruby does not have Cushings. I hope that you get the thyroid situation under control quickly.
Poor doggie! Thyroid problems can be such a stinker – never felt more awful in my life when mine was out of whack. Hope she feels much better soon!
So glad to hear good news about Ruby! Can you please tell me the finished size of the wedding quilt you made. Thanks much!
Happy for you & Ruby on no Cushings disease! Love the first pic of new bed! I was using a well known kibble to feed my precious king charles cavalier dog (naturally sheds) & co changed formula to more grains. Even yr round my dog began shedding more. Then co changed again adding more grains & I had to vacuum drk hardwood floors twice a day! I changed food to one that contains more protein. More protein diet has really helped to lessen shedding & vacuuming!
Poor Ruby! I have a maltipoo that has hyperthyroid also. The symptoms that made me wonder, and finally go to the vet, were: she couldn’t lose weight, she lost her personality, and she couldn’t walk for 100 yards. The vet checks her thyroid level once a year, but I’ve still had times I’ve taken to him in between. She started losing hair and developed scabby sores on her back.
Good luck with Ruby! It will get better, sometimes it just takes a few adjustments to get the proper level of medication. I think it’s funny that your dog and you use the same hypertension medicine!
No I completely sympathize with you on the shedding situation, I have 3 Boxers but never really had a shedding issue until my oldest Boxer had to have her front right leg taken off due to cancer. That was 3 years ago and it seams as though since then she is shedding like crazy. Hair is everywhere! No amount of vacuuming, dust mopping or sweeping gets it all up. Maybe I need to talk with our vet about her Thyroid.
JOANN……where did you get your Furminator and what was the cost? The seats in my truck look like they grow dog hairs. Nothing seems to get them out. It’s almost like they are Velcro to the seats.
Jeri
Jeri. I just ordered a Furminator off of Amazon. The one I got was $20-ish. I’ll do a blog review of it.
You will LOVE the Furminator. Totally worth it. We can make an extra dog off the fur we pull from Bruce.