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my buddy keeps nudging his bowl, whines, then barks?

18K views 158 replies 26 participants last post by  Karen519 
#1 ·
Okay, so my golden is 14 years old and arthritis. As of this point we don't know anything else but he has been kind of lazy these days and lays down a often.

We were feeding him beneful for awhile, then he did what he does in this video. We switched over to canned wet food, now he does it for that. Any ideas why he would do this?? After awhile though he will eventually force himself to eat it... if he goes too long not eating sometimes I'll just give him table scraps.

Buddy and his bowl?? - YouTube
 
#134 ·
Yes, I can see sweet Buddy now, sending hugs and prayers. How is he doing? And I am sorry for Lea.
 
#135 ·
I haven't seen him in maybe over a week myself. I started school this week and was sick most of last week, I am going to set it up to go check him out tomorrow over the weekend. I just went back to the first page of this and the picture of him laying on the carpet made me so sad because I know he was hurting so much then :(

my brother's exact words when I just asked about bud was "he's thinning... but he still chuggin along and can walk with me. he isn't doing too well in the very cold weather though..".
 
#136 ·
He is such a sweet boy and I love his name. I hope and pray he has lots of time with you.
 
#137 ·
thanks so much! i'll give him a hug for everyone when I see him this weekend. I'm going to try to get a video of me sneaking up on him. I wanna see his waggy tail haha!

the name buddy is so common, but I feel like its unique in its own way. when I was younger, I'd be mean to him, if he humped my leg i'd kick him away. not beat him, but like, push him really hard. one thing about him is that he's always loved me and my lil brother no matter what happend. i remember when i lost my best friend to an accident in high school, he'd just come over and sniff away and wag. i really hope all dogs goto heaven, even if it sounds somewhat immature. i could never ever even yell at my buddy now, even if he was living with me still and had gone in the house.

when he was in my apartment, he'd vomit up water during onto my carpet and he'd just look up at me all innocently sorry and probably think i was going to yell at him. i'd clean it up and run up to him and just run up to him and hug him sayin how much i loved him and hoped he was ok. i could never ever yell at this poor guy. buddys so amazing, all buddies are!
 
#139 ·
Buddy



I've always LOVED THE NAME BUDDY!! Please give him some big kisses and hugs when you see him. I believe all dogs go to heaven!

So sorry about Lea's diagnosis. Hug her, too!!
 
#138 ·
Name is common but they are all unique and wonderful. And I too do believe they go to heaven. They are amazing dogs. My Buddy went to heaven more than 20 months ago I hope he is happy there, young and healthy again. Give your sweet Buddy lots of hugs and belly rubs from me.
 
#140 ·
i was able to see bud last week. i definately had noticed that he has consistently been losing weight due to his kidneys/arthritis.. my brother said that he has been eating but not as much. if he eats an entire can of the k/d food, he barfs it up. i think he said that he is able to eat about half a can at a time still, and he has been drinking which is good.

he is able to still walk as well. after i was there for almost an hour, he just sat down, then he had laid down on his side. i thought he was sleeping but his eyes were wide open just looking at the wall.. i don't know if this is good or bad, my gut tells me something is bothering him. his tramadol dose was upped by the vet, from 1 pill to 1 and a half morning and night. i wondered if maybe he was laying down because of tolerance? maybe the drug wears off in the middle of the day or something.

i told my brother to try and give him half of one around late noonish and see if it picks him up whenever he does this laying down thing.

photos:


for the past month, i guess randomly he has been propping himself up on the couch! my brother would simply go upstairs 5 minutes then come down and see him up there. they have hard wood floors and some carpets he got to help him so he wouldn't slip so much. he sleeps beside my brothers bed every night on a really big cushiony thing. he loves that! the couch thing also has me kind of curious though, he must be very uncomfortable to want to get up on the couch like that. he's never done that his entire life. i told him that his joints may be bothering him and to make sure he's warm since he's lost weight. you can see in the picture he looks pretty tiny.

couch pic:



and another pic:





direct links to photos if viewing problems:

http://i50.tinypic.com/rjikgw.jpg
http://i45.tinypic.com/2uyrds4.jpg
http://i45.tinypic.com/7315ap.jpg

on the brighter side of things, he still is showing signs of happiness! when i first went there he came over wagging and kept sniffing around me! he does walk outside here and there, but only when its warmer out since its been as low as 9degrees. when he does walk, it isn't for as long as he used to as a precaution so he doesn't get overworked.

i love this guy! i'll see him most likely this weekend as well and keep checking on him.
 
#141 ·
Cameron

Cameron

Thanks so much for the pictures and updates on Buddy. What a sweet looking baby. I would check with the vet and see how much tramadol is SAFE to give him. Also, do you notice if he is breathing o.k.? I'm wondering if he is having trouble breathing? Are his gums pink?
Please let us know how he is!!
Give Buddy some big kisses and hugs from me!!
 
#142 ·
Thanks for the update. I am glad you were able to make time and go see your Buddy. Hugs to sweet Buddy boy.
 
#144 · (Edited)
today... we had to let our dog go...

about a week ago, my brother's girlfriend had to put her down Leah down who was another golden living in the home.. she had cancer and one of her legs had swelled up so much that it popped when they woke up the next day. ever since, Buddy was not the same.. almost the next day his appetite was almost gone, he wouldn't eat the entire can of the food, he would eat like half of one.. a few days later, he wouldn't eat it at all so my brother put some bbq sauce on it and then he started eating again. on wed or thursday he called me and told me that something was wrong... really wrong with him. he was becomming VERY lethargic, he would have spurts of what we considered normal, then just feel out of it and lay down looking like he wanted to sleep but his eyes would just stay open and he has this look like he was uneasy :((

to help him in the last days, we tried to feed him some human food. he ate some steak fat when he started not wanting to eat anything at all which brought him back for a couple hours.. then again he was just stuck in this mode of not being able to do anything. on friday morning, bud was able to walk on his own but not for very long. by the end of the day.. it had gotten so much worse and his gums began to turn pale. in the process of his decline, he would randomly vomit yellow bile.. probably because he would not eat or drink. we found out that he would eat snow though.. but it wasn't enough to save him.

i woke up to a text from my brother who he lives with saying that we need to bring him to the vet immediately. when he brought him by my house... he was in bad shape. it broke me more than anything, it felt like my soul shattered to a million pieces. when he first was here he actually wagged his tail for about 10 seconds when he saw me ad my dad, but it was the last time he wagged :(

bud laid on the floor an we all hugged him, talked to him, told stories, cried, sobbed, everything.. we stayed with him at the house for a little more than an hour until we had to be at the vet to allow him to rest from all his pain.

he went very softly.. i was holding his paw as he went to sleep and literally felt the life drift away.. i collapsed into tears as everyone else who came to be with him at his last moment.

he had not eaten anything for over 24 hours and almost everything was tried.. i feel so terrible, but i know that he had a long life and we did the most we could.. loving him with every moment.

he was unable to walk, and when he tried, he was putting one leg in front of the other, his paws would curl up too.. i love him, i wanted another dog but i can't bear to see this ever happen again. at the same time, i'd feel bad for thinking i could replace him.. i told him right before he went that he was the best dog i could ever have and i loved him. this is hard oh my god...

the last
this is the last photo I have of him, i called his name and he looked up. it was within his last hour :(

Buddy
December 1st 1998 to February 23rd 2013

i love this guy..... i truely feel for everyone who has gone through this. there is something different about losing a pet that loves you unconditionally.. he was the miracle of my life. thank you to everyone on here, especially the 5k people who viewed my thread, the ones that replied, the suggestions, the ones that offered comfort, the one that offered the rimadyl, just everyone. thanks thanks thanks, and thanks from him too!
 
#148 ·
I am very sorry to read your post, tears are falling down I know how much hurts losing the best friend. You loved and cared for him so much, I am glad you were able to be there and give him that last hug. Your Buddy will live in your heart forever. Hugs.
Go sweet Buddy find my Buddy and run, run fast and strong.
 
#150 ·
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#151 ·
Im so terribly sorry.You loved him so much and he you in return. I too know the pain of losing a much loved Golden like so many here on the board and hope we can all provide you with some sort of comfort and support during this very difficult time.
Run free gorgeous boy, rest well and find our angels at the bridge x
 
#155 ·
thanks thanks thanks so much all! when I woke up today, I didn't feel immediately sad... but the thought lingers and it still eats me up. this is harder than losing my best friend.. I went through the photos on his thread, and most of them seem kind of sad, but the point of the thread originally was to talk about his problems in order to find positive support and ideas. here are some good photos of him which were taken from different time periods. I will stop posting in this thread hence it is probably way off topic and maybe start one about my experience with his renal failure so I can give guidance to those who face this problem with their woof woofs.

buddy<3

December 31, 2012


January 1, 2004


December 12, 2012 (LOL this is kind of funny)



Jan 14th, 2013



Jan 17, 2013


Leah is in that picture, she passed roughly a week before buddy.

Another one Jan 24, 2013 so cute!

--------

Sometime in... 2004-2006 at house me and my brother grew up in:


----------

From April 16, 2007
 
#156 ·
Buddy

What beautiful pictures of Buddy and Leah. It would be great if you could put some pointers about how you cared for Buddy in his renal failure here on the forum!
 
#157 ·
I want to definately start working on a thread about the renal failure 100%. I have spring break coming up I think in two weeks from class which should be a perfect time for it. I have so many pictures during his decline which may help a lot of people. I remember my thread beginning as something so unrelated to thinking he had all these meidcal problems.. what started as me thinking he simply didn't like his food, was actually something much more serious.

these dogs are so mentally and physically tough.. I really felt that buddy up until the end fought to hide all signs of pain and stress from my brother and I.. I'm sure we all wish we could prevent the inevitable, but they all go to a better place.

Anyway, I might actually be able to start working on it prior to spring break. I'll keep the community posted!
 
#158 ·
Just checking in, please let us know how are you doing. Your Buddy was beautiful and you loved him so much as he loved you and your brother. He is your sweet angel now watching over you two.
 
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