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Hello, all. I don't even know where to begin with this poor creature. I guess I should say that we have tried our best to give him the best life he can have, and that he is loved. We got him from a breeder as a puppy. I'd done a lot of reading and talking to breeders, and she was supposed to be reputable and careful. She interviewed us, we visited her and the dogs there. I loved what she said about prioritizing health and temperament--These were my 2 biggest desires: a healthy, happy family dog.
Long story short, he has not been either of those things. His tummy issues became apparent almost right away. He was prone to diarrhea and vomiting, often with blood. We took him to a mixed holistic and western style vet who tried hard to work with us on diet, nutrition, and figuring out who he was sick so often. We were also working to socialize him -- puppy kindergarten, playdates with other dogs, visits with family and friends, and we took him with us wherever we went when he was well enough to do so. He was well-mannered at home, learned tricks quickly, and loved other dogs, although his behaviors with them weren't always appreciated.
Fast forward a few years and the chronic GI issues continued. We did cooked diet for a time, prescription diet for a time, raw diet for a time, always with a slow transition, and probiotics, digestive enzymes, etc. Nothing seemed to make a difference either way. He was tested for Addison's, multiple times, and was negative. He was tested for every kind of paracite, bacteria, infections, etc. Nothing every came up positive. By 3 I had to make him eat at least once or twice a day, and the methods for doing that got creative and required a lot of time and effort.
At the same time, he got less and less sociable with people. He was never able to relax, cuddle, hang out calmly, even with us. He was always on edge - wound up. Our trainer finally recommended a behaviorist because his anxiety was increasing so much. The behaviorist agreed, and prescribed Prozac. It took the edge off a little, but he was still wound pretty tightly. He became unpredictable, even with people who frequently visited like my daughter's therapists. Eventually, after he lunged and snapped at visitors we became concerned that he would hurt someone, and sadly crated him when we had company. Our kids friends couldn't come over for sleep-overs anymore because of the dog.
And his health was still poor--poor enough that it was difficult to work on the behavior because he would get stressed and sick all the time. I can't count the times he's had subcutaneous fluids and Flagyl for the bloody diarrhea and vomiting. At 5 he bloated. We caught it in time and it was resolved surgically and his stomach tacked. Once he recovered from the surgery and the aspiration pneumonia he got during recovery, his appetite improved somewhat. The visits to the ER for fluids decreased, although I usually had to hand-feed him 2x a day, but they still happened. I managed flares with doggie pepto as soon as they started, and that helped with the severity, if not the frequency.
But the behavior continued to deteriorate. His dislike of any people outside our family was a growing issue. We had to learn to schedule our lives around what to do with him when we wanted to travel or have company. I had to learn to groom him at home so that he didn't go off on someone, and so that the stress of being handled didn't make him sick. Trainers agreed that his aggression was fear/anxiety based, but didn't feel comfortable taking him because of his health problems. And he wasn't food-motivated, so using rewards to desensitize him didn't work, either.
About 6 months ago his annual check up included a thyroid screening. His Free T4 came back low, and the vet suggested that his thyroid might be an issue, and we should start him on Thyro-Tabs. We did, hoping that, although he didn't present as typically hypothyroid (he's skinny, has a lovely coat, normal energy, etc) that it might finally be an answer to his issues. At first it made him lethargic. After that he perked up again, but the GI issues started to get more frequent. In the last 2 months they've gotten worse--he needed subQ fluids and meds again before Christmas, and while the Flagyl tamped down the bloody diarrhea for a week or two, he's back to it now, even with the pepto. I'm waiting to hear back from the vet about whether she thinks he's reacting to the thyroid meds at this point. And I am so tired.
I am literally at my wits' end. He is 8 years old and has never had a really healthy year. My life revolves around giving him medicine, forcing him to eat, cleaning up vomit and diarrhea, taking him to the vet to spend hundreds of dollars for temporary fixes, trying to find things to make him happy and calm, and keeping him from biting people. I have 3 kids with autism to care for as well, which means that the added burden of his intense needs is just breaking me. I don't want to resent him, but I often do, as well as pitying him for not being able to just be a normal happy dog ever. My youngest adores him, and he tolerates her the best, even loves her in his own way, although he will still sometimes growl if she tries to hug him or sits too close to him on the couch. He's beautiful to look at, and I honestly think that this is the best he knows how to do. One of the trainers said that he seems to have a sort of doggie autism because he doesn't read body language or understand social interactions with people or dogs, he can't read emotions, he's obsessive about routine, and he's uncomfortable with affection, and she's probably right. He's just wired this way.
Every other dog I ever had was just a love, even when they were sick or injured, but this dog is just hard. Has anyone else ever had a dog like this? If so, what did you do? Is there some crazy thing we're overlooking after all these years? This dog is simultaneously killing me and breaking my heart.
Long story short, he has not been either of those things. His tummy issues became apparent almost right away. He was prone to diarrhea and vomiting, often with blood. We took him to a mixed holistic and western style vet who tried hard to work with us on diet, nutrition, and figuring out who he was sick so often. We were also working to socialize him -- puppy kindergarten, playdates with other dogs, visits with family and friends, and we took him with us wherever we went when he was well enough to do so. He was well-mannered at home, learned tricks quickly, and loved other dogs, although his behaviors with them weren't always appreciated.
Fast forward a few years and the chronic GI issues continued. We did cooked diet for a time, prescription diet for a time, raw diet for a time, always with a slow transition, and probiotics, digestive enzymes, etc. Nothing seemed to make a difference either way. He was tested for Addison's, multiple times, and was negative. He was tested for every kind of paracite, bacteria, infections, etc. Nothing every came up positive. By 3 I had to make him eat at least once or twice a day, and the methods for doing that got creative and required a lot of time and effort.
At the same time, he got less and less sociable with people. He was never able to relax, cuddle, hang out calmly, even with us. He was always on edge - wound up. Our trainer finally recommended a behaviorist because his anxiety was increasing so much. The behaviorist agreed, and prescribed Prozac. It took the edge off a little, but he was still wound pretty tightly. He became unpredictable, even with people who frequently visited like my daughter's therapists. Eventually, after he lunged and snapped at visitors we became concerned that he would hurt someone, and sadly crated him when we had company. Our kids friends couldn't come over for sleep-overs anymore because of the dog.
And his health was still poor--poor enough that it was difficult to work on the behavior because he would get stressed and sick all the time. I can't count the times he's had subcutaneous fluids and Flagyl for the bloody diarrhea and vomiting. At 5 he bloated. We caught it in time and it was resolved surgically and his stomach tacked. Once he recovered from the surgery and the aspiration pneumonia he got during recovery, his appetite improved somewhat. The visits to the ER for fluids decreased, although I usually had to hand-feed him 2x a day, but they still happened. I managed flares with doggie pepto as soon as they started, and that helped with the severity, if not the frequency.
But the behavior continued to deteriorate. His dislike of any people outside our family was a growing issue. We had to learn to schedule our lives around what to do with him when we wanted to travel or have company. I had to learn to groom him at home so that he didn't go off on someone, and so that the stress of being handled didn't make him sick. Trainers agreed that his aggression was fear/anxiety based, but didn't feel comfortable taking him because of his health problems. And he wasn't food-motivated, so using rewards to desensitize him didn't work, either.
About 6 months ago his annual check up included a thyroid screening. His Free T4 came back low, and the vet suggested that his thyroid might be an issue, and we should start him on Thyro-Tabs. We did, hoping that, although he didn't present as typically hypothyroid (he's skinny, has a lovely coat, normal energy, etc) that it might finally be an answer to his issues. At first it made him lethargic. After that he perked up again, but the GI issues started to get more frequent. In the last 2 months they've gotten worse--he needed subQ fluids and meds again before Christmas, and while the Flagyl tamped down the bloody diarrhea for a week or two, he's back to it now, even with the pepto. I'm waiting to hear back from the vet about whether she thinks he's reacting to the thyroid meds at this point. And I am so tired.
I am literally at my wits' end. He is 8 years old and has never had a really healthy year. My life revolves around giving him medicine, forcing him to eat, cleaning up vomit and diarrhea, taking him to the vet to spend hundreds of dollars for temporary fixes, trying to find things to make him happy and calm, and keeping him from biting people. I have 3 kids with autism to care for as well, which means that the added burden of his intense needs is just breaking me. I don't want to resent him, but I often do, as well as pitying him for not being able to just be a normal happy dog ever. My youngest adores him, and he tolerates her the best, even loves her in his own way, although he will still sometimes growl if she tries to hug him or sits too close to him on the couch. He's beautiful to look at, and I honestly think that this is the best he knows how to do. One of the trainers said that he seems to have a sort of doggie autism because he doesn't read body language or understand social interactions with people or dogs, he can't read emotions, he's obsessive about routine, and he's uncomfortable with affection, and she's probably right. He's just wired this way.
Every other dog I ever had was just a love, even when they were sick or injured, but this dog is just hard. Has anyone else ever had a dog like this? If so, what did you do? Is there some crazy thing we're overlooking after all these years? This dog is simultaneously killing me and breaking my heart.
