Good Thoughts for Pongo

It's been a rough couple of days for my original spotty dog. Yesterday morning he woke up and couldn't walk without collapsing. His hind legs were going in every direction. It was a very bad day - his hind end has been weak for quite some time now, but he's never had this much difficulty moving. We had to carry him outdoors and even with support, he couldn't stand on his own. Overwhelmed by feelings of sadness, I spent the day trying to come to terms with the possibility that the time had come to say goodbye to one of my best friends.

This morning I woke up with hope. Pongo seemed a little better and could stand on all fours without my support. He couldn't walk, but he could stand. And he was trying soooo hard to get around. I couldn't leave him without him trying to follow. I also noticed a bit of a head tilt today, and a quick online search led me to the possibility of a vestibular disorder, which happens to have a very good recovery rate.

I took him to the vet and they started with a CBC and chest x-rays to rule out a tumor. The x-rays looked good, but his sodium level was abnormally high. They recommended keeping him overnight so that he could receive fluids to hopefully bring his sodium level down. I guess there is a slight chance that levels that high could cause neurological problems, and/or be a symptom of something else happening. As much as I didn't want to leave him, I agreed - so they'll do more blood work and a urinalysis in the morning. If everything comes back good, I think they'll assume it's most likely vestibular and we'll go from there.

One of my vets was kind enough to call me at 10 pm tonight to let me know that he was resting and seemed to be comfortable. That's my one comfort with leaving him - Pongo is such a good boy and he is always happy to stay with whoever will feed him. :) Of course, I still miss him.

The reality is the Pongo will be 15 in one week from today...I know that our time is limited and I realize that I am so blessed to have had almost 14 wonderful years with him. But when I look into his eyes I see that there *is* life left. And while I refuse to subject him to any treatments that will lessen his quality of life, if there is any chance that he can recover, than I feel like I owe it to him to give him that chance.

Even though his legs are failing him, he still manages to smile...that's my special boy.