[Dailydrool] Conley, and dentals for older dogs

[Mary Wilson via Dailydrool]

Bev, I wish I was a behaviour expert -- not though. But I do wonder about
the walking and general exercise. I'm wondering if it might be worth a try
to hire or otherwise recruit someone to take Doc and Conley for long
[presumably separate] walks? More exercise might help. I think with ours,
and especially Paddi B, it isn't even as much the exercise as it is the
chance to get out and see what's going on in the world. When she's feeling
cooped up you can absolutely see why females are called what they're
called. She's never bitten anyone but she gets really grumpy and when we
had Vernon Q, she was especially grumpy with him. (Really rude. Lots of
snarking and snarling and growling if he tried to sit anywhere near her
ladyship, or if she just walked by.) We were doing less walking as he got
older and less able, and my sense was that she resented him for this.

And about dentals for older dogs -- Vernon Q Basset had horrible teeth. I
worried when he needed an extraction at 13 or so, but he came through it
with flying colours and felt a lot better after. Don't quite know what
happened with him, but about six months after the first extraction he had
another vile rotten tooth and the vet (same practice but different vet)
said it looked like no one had looked at his teeth for years. He had a few
more extractions then and again came through fine. When three or four
months later he had another bunch of rotten teeth, we talked with the vet
and made the decision to extract them all. I know this sounds rather
dramatic and horrid, but it improved his quality of life tremendously for
his last nine or ten months. He did eat more slowly, but since that just
meant 'dinner in 3 minutes' rather than 'dinner in 18 seconds,' it didn't
seem to be a big thing. So I'd say go for it if there's no obvious reason
not to. Vern had a lot more energy after the extractions, and since his
mouth didn't smell bad he was also a much more popular couch companion --
quality of life improved all around.

Mary
with Paddi B Basset & Simba, the Foremost Formosan Mountain Dog (who sends
his regards to Doc as one bleke dog to another)

mary.gabriola at gmail.com
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