Our dog is aged 15 and because of her age she is finding it hard to get up and when she is up she is wobbly when she first starts walking. On Christmas Eve she struggled to get up and when she did I burst into tears. Last night in bed I cried my eyes out because I know that dreaded time is nearly here. I have been here before 15 years ago when our last very loved dog was put to sleep at home. I know being put to sleep by a vet we are doing what's best for her but I hate it. I'm so upset now with tears running down my face as that time is edging towards us.

Before you do ANYTHING, get her checked by your vet.   There is medication to help her if this is something like arthritis.   Sadly they just don't live long enough and anybody who gives their heart to a pet, has to go through what you are potentially facing.   But don't anticipate - talk to your vet and see what else they can offer to make what time she has left, comfortable.

Thank you MamaBas we will.

This.  ^

Old age is rarely untreatable.  I will never just accept that one of my dogs is just getting old and sore - I fight to their last day to keep them pain-free, even if I know I can't actually cure them.  My old dobe had arthritis, HD, tendonitis and a slipped disc - he got acupuncture up to a few weeks before he died and tramadol twice a day to keep the pain at bay.  It worked very well until his last day, when lymphoma took over.

Thanks Nikita.

Just to say yes to acupuncture.   It can't hurt and may well help.   Our current bought-in Basset had premature closure of the growth plates, ulna both sides (full skeletal x-ray at around 8 - 9 months) and was having some lameness.   He had 2 courses of acupunture and clearly enjoyed it.   He went to sleep!    And I believe it did help.   On the other hand, I had one given Tram. for her terminal cancer.   It so totally spaced her out that I took her off - fast.   She was only given this (long story) after the Metacam was said to be starting to give her diarrhoea.   Not so as her brother started similar 24 hours later!!   But what works for some, may not work for another.

Remy was the same, he just flaked out and loved every minute!  Made the world of difference too, it gave him months longer than he'd have had otherwise because of that slipped disc.  Up until the acupuncture, nothing was touching the pain.

But it is horses for courses - Paige had it for her slipped disc and spondylosis and it never made a jot of difference.  Tramadol help but in the end, it's been plain turmeric that's really done the trick for her.  That's all she has now.

My oldest girl started to wobble and fall over but she has recovered with time and pretty high doses of steroids and Meloxicam....what ever it takes to make the last period of life a good one.
Sometimes they just feel their age and can recover ....but in the end we always have to face that it's our responsibility to do our best for them.
We all understand what you're going through x

my girl's just gone 12 and has had arthritis for some time. I had that same moment as you about a year / year and a half ago. She'd been on Loxicom, but that became useless. She struggled to get up, was so stiff and sore when walking, didn't want to go out or be up and about. She's been on Prednoleucotropin since, and she's like a different dog - like she used to be. She can be a bit wobbly, isn't great on uneven ground and can easily slip on the laminate if she goes too fast or gets excited (we have rugs dotted around to help). She has to have 3 month check-ups and it's not cheap (i, perhaps stupidly, get the prescription through the vet and it's £148 a month - the insurer pays all but 20%), but it's worth it. The only downside is the's a greedy bugger! She'll eat anything now, she was a picky princess before!!

Definitely get her checked out. I was convinced we'd have to put my girl to sleep way before the PLT. I'm under no illusion that she'll get better - she won't, she will get worse, but she's happy and has a good quality of life again for now. As long as neither me or the vet are concerned, we'll continue as we are.

Yes arthritis crossed my mind on top of the fact that any aging mammals system takes longer to get going e.g. blood supply, oxygen, muscle degeneration etc to start to circulate adequatly for the aged land mammal system, the day has yet to come when a 15 YO dog will spring up first thing and show little signs of age, which is one of the things you see.
I would certainly get her checked out for arthritis, loxicom is very good if it is & costs 15 quid online if you have a prescription, how much  a vet would charge for that is an individual thing.
.

Thanks everyone.

I had to make this decision for my 15 year old Bearded Collie just weeks ago.  I had to love her enough to do the right thing and I have cried a million tears so I know where you're at and empathise.

Still, it's important to remember that it is better to do this a week too early, rather than a day too late.   {{{{  HUGS  }}}}

Thank you JeanSW

> She's been on Prednoleucotropin since, and she's like a different dog -

Aaah  PLT tablets.   We had an 8 year old Basset go off his back legs.  Spondylitis.    Our then vet was ready to call it as he was in pain BUT I wasn't so ready to call it, provided we could control the pain.   X-ray showed what was going on with him.   She put him onto PLT and boy, what a difference.   He still took some time to get up again and I had pretty much reached the point, pain or no pain, that we couldn't keep going - it was doing my back in as much as his. .... 80 lb Basset needing to be helped out lots.   He did still have feeling back there, but just wasn't getting up until that day when I called my vet and said I was bringing him in etc.   He was in the room and I swear, listening.  He sat up, licked himself and GOT UP!   Couldn't believe it.   He never moved as he should - very roached back but he was walking.   He had the occasional days when he was in pain at which point I put him back onto PLT.   He lived into his 15th year before old age really caught up with him.

So PLT - yes.  And you can buy this online (I haven't checked to see if under prescription or not).   Checked - you do need a prescription, but it's almost bound to still be cheaper than buying from a vet I'd suspect.

We lost our 11 year old retriever just 4 weeks ago, she had to go to Rainbow Bridge because she had a tumour and while she was still wagging her tail. We could have kept her longer but she would have got worse and what is the point in that. Love and miss her so much. My little Bettie is fine now, running free.

RIP Bettie  xxx

MB
She put him onto PLT and boy, what a difference.

What is PLT, does it differ in purpose to loxicom? which is a anti inflamatory and pain killer combo
.

PLT,
Prednoleucotropin (PLT) tablets contain Cinchophen 200 mg and Prednisolone PhEur 1 mg.

A drug that has been around for many years & has (I believe) a rare combination of anti inflammatory with steroid. Our 10 year old with autoimmune & arthritis improved immensely while taking it but unfortunately developed an eye ulcer (like his older cousin) so can no longer use it due to suppressing the natural healing process.

PLT is the shortened name for  Prednoleucotropin.   I'm not familiar with Loxicom but the two may do the same job?   However, all drugs have side effects.   For me, it's more about the medication that works!!

http://www.norbrook.com/usa/products/loxicom-1.5mg-ml-oral-suspension-for-dogs

Prednoleucotropin (PLT) which is a combination of NSAID and steriod.

It's about finding what works.  Loxicom (generic version of metacam) might help but it does nothing for any of mine - PLT did wonders for Saffi but she can't tolerate it any more.

Turmeric remains the best thing I've used for any of my dogs but even then, a combo can improve things - it does the job by itself for Paige but River needs tramadol alongside it.  It did help Saffi but again, she's not tolerating it now and is now getting sore on her back end.  She's on coconut oil again and that seems to be helping, thankfully - I'm really limited in what I can give her because of gut sensitivities and daily steroid which is a necessary daily evil (she has auto-immune anaemia).

> Turmeric remains the best thing I've used for any of my dogs
> It's about finding what works.

Agree & have found that just a change of medication can improve things for a while, do you use just Turmeric or make Golden paste? Have the same problem due to gut sensitivities.

At the moment I just use plain turmeric.  Last time I made paste I trialled Raine on it and she lost most of her fur so I haven't made any since!  But, I do want to try the others on it again to see if it improves things any, now they've only been on the plain for a while.

Update.
We took her to the vet and he said it might be arthritis so we are going to give her a course of tablets for a week to see if it makes any difference and I hope it does.

Have you tried Cartrophen?

PLT are very old school vet medicine and IMHO fabulous :) Had a working dog with chronic injury and he was maintained on PLT form may years with no ill effects. Much cheaper than the new age anti inflammatories and IME more effective

See if you can find a Mctimmoney animal chiropractor on your area. My dear old 13 year old has just had a couple of sessions and the change in her is amazing. It's a very gentle treatment and stress free for the dog.

It's heartbreaking watching them get weaker but some of these treatments can make a huge difference.... Good luck x

> we are going to give her a course of tablets for a week to see if it makes any difference and I hope it does.

Sending positive vibes and Good Luck.  I hope she improves soon.

Happy New Year everyone.

Hope things improve.

My old lad will be 15 in April and is getting very ricketty bless him. He still enjoys our little strolls and eats well so we just see what each day brings

> so we just see what each day brings

For me, it's when the tail stops wagging.

>For me, it's when the tail stops wagging.

That's still there thank goodness