Friday, January 23, 2009
Ladies Day at the Vet
Last Friday, we took Sol & Luna to the vet. Luna was going in for her annual exam and shots and Sol was going in for a thorough checkup, shots, microchipping, blood work and an overall evaluation on her current health.
Luna went first, took her shots like a champ and got a great report for annual checkup. Her blood work came back fine, her heart sounded good and everything appeared to be in working order. Her eyes continue to be her weak area and while they are by no means normal, we are doing the best we can to maintain her tear production and keep her vision from getting worse. She will be going to the ophthalmologist in a about a month to get her eye checkup.
Sol was up next and she was very well behaved while on the table. The doctor estimated her age to be between 10 - 12 years old (probably closer to the 12 end of the spectrum than the 10). We had a complete Senior blood work panel ran for her and received her results earlier this week. We were very relieved to find out that everything was in the normal range. From her exam, we learned that she doesn’t have any chronic issues, just some of the normal issue that can occur with aging. She has moderate arthritis in her hips and lower back. We will be putting her on Synovi soft chews (the same thing that Henry takes) to help with the arthritis for now. One day she may need to go on medication for her arthritis, but for now it is not necessary. She has a cataract in her one eye which impacts her vision a bit (mainly depth perception). And one of the things that hit me the hardest is that she is almost completely deaf. I had a sneaking suspicion that she didn’t hear very well, but the vet confirmed it with a little hearing test. She had virtually no response to the test.
She will be going in for a much needed dental in February and while under she will have the growth on her eyelid removed. I was worried about putting her under for a dental considering her age, but the vet assured us that she has no health issues that would make putting her under for a dental troublesome.
We are very relieved to find out that Sol does not have any pressing health issues other than those associated with aging. Her cataract is concerning, but I feel like we are very prepared to handle that issue. Luna has taught us a thing or two about caring for eye issues and we have a very good relationship with Luna’s eye specialists. When we take Luna in for her checkup in a month, we will take Sol and have her eyes looked at as well. I will be relieved to have a better understanding of her current situation and I would feel more comfortable having a baseline so that we can monitor things over the coming years.
The thing that has been weighing on my mind the most is her hearing. A deaf dog is new to me and I have been trying to digest as much information as humanly possible on the best ways to communicate with Sol and make her feel comfortable. Its hard because my only office mates are pugs and I pretty much talk to them all day long. Benjamin, Henry & Luna rely heavily on verbal cues and come on my whistle without fail. Even the cat comes on my whistle - most of the time. She is a cat after all.
My main worry is that one day she will be without two main senses - hearing and sight. Even though her vision is not great now, it is still a huge asset for her. Around the house, I don’t worry so much. Everything is pretty much dog proof and she can’t really get into to much trouble. However, I worry when taking her out for walks. I know that Luna’s lack of vision has gotten her into trouble a few times in the past and I worry that Sol’s lack of hearing puts her at a huge disadvantage when out and about.
The good news is that these are all my worries. Sol gets along very well. She isn’t timid at all when on our walks and is learning to trust and take cues from the boys and Luna.
I know I am going to learn a lot from this little girl.
Oh, and if you are wondering why we are taking Sol to our vet and planning on taking her to the ophthalmologist, check this out. Come on, you didn’t really think we weren’t going to be foster failures, did you?
I know adjusting to Sol’s lack of hearing and limited vision is worrisome, but like you said, she will teach you many things. Dogs are able to adapt so quickly. My Ellie had no hearing and very limited vision too, but you would have never really know from watching her 
Sue VDB
01/23/2009
Glad to hear that Luna and Sol are basically in good health. To hear that Sol is closer to 12 years old makes it clearer that she looks good for hee age.
Failures - never. Yeah Sol.