Eli . . . the good and the bad.

So Eli went to the vet today. Per the vet, he is not blind (good news) but has nystagmus (rapid eye movement--his movement is side to side) which could be either neurological or inner ear problems (does not think vestibular disease at this point). The vet is hoping inner ear as both ears were extremely dirty and we are on 14 days of Otomax Ear ointment, clean ears every 2-3 days, and 10 days of carprophen.

Good news, he is HW negative. Bad news, he has an extreme case of whipworms (treatment: 3 days of panacur), good news all of mine are on Interceptor which helps them from getting whipworms. Bad news, he has bad hips; good news is the carprohen is supposed to help that as well as the ears. Bad news, he cannot be neutered until we determine the cause of nystagmus because if it's neurological, anesthesia could kill him. Good news: 6-8 years old rather than original estimate of 8-10 years, teeth aren't too bad but worn down from chewing rocks, fence, or crate. Vet feels he has not been on his own too long because of HW- and ground-down teeth, but very neglected due to his weight. Weight today, 39.1 pounds, should be about 55 pounds.

Eli also appears to be head shy, has probably been hit based on his reactions occasionally when approaching him, and tonight has shown some aggression toward my smaller dogs as well as myself with no provocation and no warning other than body language, kind of a stiffening. At this point, he will stop immediately upon being told no but I am worried once he starts feeling better. If he has any alpha tendencies, he will not get along with Buddy, our golden mix, and I don't think Rott'n will take anything from him either. I will admit, I would not try to take something of value from him at this point until I can better gauge his temperment and he sometimes grabs hard when presented with a treat. It probably doesn't help that neutering will be put off for awhile.

Only time will tell . . . If he doesn't work out with my crew, I will continue to try and foster for a while and keep him separated from my dogs. Right now, I would guestimate that 95% of his time he is very sweet, likes belly rubs, and is fairly calm; the other 5% when he is trying to walk around, sometimes something will set him off, thankfully right now controllable. Since AGA is involved, if he doesn't work out they will work trying to find him a good home--it may be that he needs to be an only dog. He has a follow-up appointment in two weeks to check his progress. I will try and get more pictures this weekend.

Will keep y'all updated.