DAWNMERIE
Active member
Ok, I'm at work last Friday, on my way to the bank with my Pop, I get a call from Vin's daughter (30) and she says Zeke refuses to go up the steps. I say give me a little bit and I'll be home, she's already been outside with him for over an hour. I stop at Micky D's and grab a cheeseburger and head home. I get there with my Pop and Zeke is happy to see him and I give him the cheeseburger thinking Zeke will follow him and low and behold up the steps and in the house he goes. It was warm and I could see he was to hot and frustrated but still not sure what happened or why so I decide maybe it's a pain thing and I give him 2 tramadol with the rest of the cheeseburger. That night he's zonked and doesn't even get up for last call around 11pm.
Saturday... at breakfast, for the first time ever he doesn't finish, we both find that odd but chalk it up to the tramadol. He goes out and refuses to go back up. We stay outside most of the day, doing yard work with the hopes he'll do it on his own. Nope, it's dinner time and he won't go up the step even for dinner
At this point Vin runs to get stuff to make a ramp. By the time he comes back it's getting dark and now he thinks he's gonna build the ramp in the dark with a 40yr old saw. You know how that went, so as Vin goes to get another piece of plywood, I get the harness out cause it's not like I can leave Zeke outside, my yard is not completely fenced.
Vin comes back and he's in a mood cause he messed up the plywood and now had to buy another piece and a saw for in the morning. He takes the messed up plywood and lays it on the few step and drags Zeke up by the front harness and once he's up he runs across the deck to get to the cement landing and is in a panic, I open the door and let him in. He eats and then zonks....what a day. That night I cut and clean and inspect his feet, not that he's giving me any indication of an issue but it just seems like the next thing to do. Everything looks and feels fine to me. When Vin lays next to him and starts massaging and checking him over he finds a little lump in his wrist. My heart sank to a depth I didn't think existed.
Sunday...early rise (since I couldn't sleep anyways) to start building a ramp, Zeke eats his full breakfast and Vin decides to give him a Rimydal today just in case we have a pain and inflammation issue. Zeke goes out and once again refuses to go up. We let him hang outside with us again and he watches us build his ramp. When he's outside he's walking around normal, barking at skateboarders as normal, everything is absolutely normal accept going up 3 steps, which he's done all his life.
We finish the ramp, and harness him up (this time both front and rear) and we try to allow him to do it himself, with a cheeseburger broken up all the way to the front door. No luck, walks a few steps up and jumps off the side. It's getting close to dinner, it's been a long weekend and patience are running low. We both lift him up (Vin of the front--me on the rear) place him on the middle of the ramp and have his daughter try bribing with a cheeseburger. Get him to the top of the ramp and he wants to bolt but can't, we have him. Standing on the deck and he's trembling in fear, I talk to him calmly and try to get him to relax, he refuses and won't even think of food/treats. We both are at a loss, no idea what happened, why on earth is this happening?? We all go in and calm ourselves and have a good dinner, Zeke included.
That night it's all we talk about and discuss, he's had a few issues here & there with things....like storm drains, like walking down the hall at the condo when we went to Ocean City and the boardwalk, like guys in beards, like how he will only cross the roads in certain spots but yet I can take this dog outside in the middle of a thunder and lightning storm to pee with no issues. Mind you as he's getting older we both notice he comes and sits near us now with thunder or fireworks. I decide to email the vet about the entire situation and then the phone rings, it's our mobile vet asking what happened. Love this vet, when else would you expect a phone call on a Sunday night. He booked us for his last appointment on Monday night.
Monday morning..... breakfast and Zeke & I go out the door and I tell everyone pay attention, I'm gonna need some help with him, I bring the harness outside and leave it on the deck, he does his business and up the freaking steps he goes!!!!!!!!! Now I walk in and say did we put the fear of God into him with the harness and the ramp??? What the HELL but it's all good! I'm still worried and my heart can't stand the thought of losing him to cancer but it will not leave my mind. I think to myself if I can keep him until the first snow, that would be a good time to say goodbye but yet nothing makes sense why am I thinking this!!!
We held off dinner Monday night. Vet shows up around 7pm, we ask him to take a seat and let's discuss everything. Now, while we were discussing all of this, I remembered something on FB (our local neighborhood page) that one of the local bases we’re doing drills/testing, vet says that could do it. As we are talking about him, he usually runs away from the vet, we notice he's laying down right in between us enjoying our conversation like he never has before, all of us caught on to this oddity. Then the physical exam, first thing he does is feel the lump that Vin felt, I'm guessing he must have known my worry cause he looked at me and said, it's movable, I don't think that's a big worry but just to have peace of mind let’s do a quick biopsy, which only showed fatty cells. My heart came back up into my chest and I felt a smile come across my face. To be honest, the vet coming was only about that lump to me but Vin had other thoughts. So currently we have prescriptions for Zanax, Prozac & we've had numerous fights about CBD oil. I haven't filled anything because Zeke is his normal self. Vet did note that turning his head left seemed to be an issue but we think we may have done that getting him up the steps.
Sorry it's a freaking book!
So let's hear all your thoughts and your take on the weekend from hell!
Saturday... at breakfast, for the first time ever he doesn't finish, we both find that odd but chalk it up to the tramadol. He goes out and refuses to go back up. We stay outside most of the day, doing yard work with the hopes he'll do it on his own. Nope, it's dinner time and he won't go up the step even for dinner
At this point Vin runs to get stuff to make a ramp. By the time he comes back it's getting dark and now he thinks he's gonna build the ramp in the dark with a 40yr old saw. You know how that went, so as Vin goes to get another piece of plywood, I get the harness out cause it's not like I can leave Zeke outside, my yard is not completely fenced. Vin comes back and he's in a mood cause he messed up the plywood and now had to buy another piece and a saw for in the morning. He takes the messed up plywood and lays it on the few step and drags Zeke up by the front harness and once he's up he runs across the deck to get to the cement landing and is in a panic, I open the door and let him in. He eats and then zonks....what a day. That night I cut and clean and inspect his feet, not that he's giving me any indication of an issue but it just seems like the next thing to do. Everything looks and feels fine to me. When Vin lays next to him and starts massaging and checking him over he finds a little lump in his wrist. My heart sank to a depth I didn't think existed.
Sunday...early rise (since I couldn't sleep anyways) to start building a ramp, Zeke eats his full breakfast and Vin decides to give him a Rimydal today just in case we have a pain and inflammation issue. Zeke goes out and once again refuses to go up. We let him hang outside with us again and he watches us build his ramp. When he's outside he's walking around normal, barking at skateboarders as normal, everything is absolutely normal accept going up 3 steps, which he's done all his life.
We finish the ramp, and harness him up (this time both front and rear) and we try to allow him to do it himself, with a cheeseburger broken up all the way to the front door. No luck, walks a few steps up and jumps off the side. It's getting close to dinner, it's been a long weekend and patience are running low. We both lift him up (Vin of the front--me on the rear) place him on the middle of the ramp and have his daughter try bribing with a cheeseburger. Get him to the top of the ramp and he wants to bolt but can't, we have him. Standing on the deck and he's trembling in fear, I talk to him calmly and try to get him to relax, he refuses and won't even think of food/treats. We both are at a loss, no idea what happened, why on earth is this happening?? We all go in and calm ourselves and have a good dinner, Zeke included.
That night it's all we talk about and discuss, he's had a few issues here & there with things....like storm drains, like walking down the hall at the condo when we went to Ocean City and the boardwalk, like guys in beards, like how he will only cross the roads in certain spots but yet I can take this dog outside in the middle of a thunder and lightning storm to pee with no issues. Mind you as he's getting older we both notice he comes and sits near us now with thunder or fireworks. I decide to email the vet about the entire situation and then the phone rings, it's our mobile vet asking what happened. Love this vet, when else would you expect a phone call on a Sunday night. He booked us for his last appointment on Monday night.
Monday morning..... breakfast and Zeke & I go out the door and I tell everyone pay attention, I'm gonna need some help with him, I bring the harness outside and leave it on the deck, he does his business and up the freaking steps he goes!!!!!!!!! Now I walk in and say did we put the fear of God into him with the harness and the ramp??? What the HELL but it's all good! I'm still worried and my heart can't stand the thought of losing him to cancer but it will not leave my mind. I think to myself if I can keep him until the first snow, that would be a good time to say goodbye but yet nothing makes sense why am I thinking this!!!
We held off dinner Monday night. Vet shows up around 7pm, we ask him to take a seat and let's discuss everything. Now, while we were discussing all of this, I remembered something on FB (our local neighborhood page) that one of the local bases we’re doing drills/testing, vet says that could do it. As we are talking about him, he usually runs away from the vet, we notice he's laying down right in between us enjoying our conversation like he never has before, all of us caught on to this oddity. Then the physical exam, first thing he does is feel the lump that Vin felt, I'm guessing he must have known my worry cause he looked at me and said, it's movable, I don't think that's a big worry but just to have peace of mind let’s do a quick biopsy, which only showed fatty cells. My heart came back up into my chest and I felt a smile come across my face. To be honest, the vet coming was only about that lump to me but Vin had other thoughts. So currently we have prescriptions for Zanax, Prozac & we've had numerous fights about CBD oil. I haven't filled anything because Zeke is his normal self. Vet did note that turning his head left seemed to be an issue but we think we may have done that getting him up the steps.
Sorry it's a freaking book!
So let's hear all your thoughts and your take on the weekend from hell!
