Darswords

Good Old Dog: Expert Advice for Keeping Your Aging Dog Happy, Healthy, and Comfortable by Nicholas Dodman
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

My dog, Kali, is getting quite old. Her back legs don’t work very well anymore. She can’t get up on furniture or up or down stairs to go outside. She has cataracts, so she can’t see very well. Because of the leg issue, she is incontinent. She was urinating everywhere, even in my bed. She can’t control her bowels well. As much as we love her, this part of her life is difficult for all of us. We finally have a little bed at the end of my bed, so she doesn’t fall. We have wall-to-wall piddle-pads to catch her boo-boos. She gets baths nearly daily as she walks through her boo-boos and gets pooh all over herself and the floor.

I am lucky that there are four of us in this house to watch and care for her and the problems that come up. But we all know what is next in this flow of life. I needed someone to help me know what to do. I’m finding old age is a series of milestones like infancy. Watching the achievements fade is as painful as seeing the accomplishments in the beginning.

But here we are. So this book helped me. A veterinarian writes it, so the advice is given with experience and understanding of what the dog’s parents are going through. I wish we could put diapers on Kali, but she barely puts up with the baths. We need to be patient and give her love while we can. It breaks my heart. I remember when she was too much. Running, jumping, no keeping her quiet. Now it seems we have almost a different dog.

I plan to reread this book as she progresses. It is very useful. Our nearest vet is an hour and a half away, and she can’t handle the trip for little things. It will be the big issue that will take us all over that hill. It will be a very sad drive. Thank you for such a helpful book.

View all my reviews