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Ah Tetto, 14 years and your 1st dog, wow. You are a wonderful pet parent to her, reminds me of John and Schoep. You should talk with your vet and see if she's suffering and what can be done to make her life easier. Dogs sleep a lot and like humans they slow down as they age. If one day she just doesn't want to get out of bed you'll know its time to say goodbye, but that might be a long while from now, the vet might be able to help.
A nurse I work with had 2 goldens, one was deaf as a post and blind but it got around fine as long as she didn't re-arrange the furniture. Dogs are very adaptable, and don't forget they can smell a thousand times better than we can! They can also feel vibrations so when their other senses go they learn to depend on touch.
I hope you and your girl have many more days together, and when they come to an end you find comfort in warm memories of your time together.
I had two labs they are both dead now. They were sisters, one of them died at 15 and the other 17 but we live in a farm and fed them very high quality food. We asked our vet why they were living so long because the average life expectancy is about 11 and the doctor said that because we live in a farm and she still hunted rabbits etc. he said that it kept here natural hunting instinct alive whereas if she just sat down inside it wouldn't be much fun. Don't worry too much our dogs started breathing very heavily at about 11/12 and sleeping a lot and were still fine for a few years, just make a huge fuss of them my vet said it makes them want to live, that and the best quality food you can find.
I have a lab that is 5 months. I have research on how to keep her in the best health. I feed her Nature's Recipe, take her to the vet when required and give her plenty of exercise. What does the fish oil do?
While it is important to provide activity and play for your puppy; you should be careful not to over-exercise a 5-month-old dog of any breed. She would not necessarily benefit from very long walks at this age; a few sessions of 30-40 minutes of running and playing would be better than a long walk/run at one time, per day. As she grows, increase the length of the running/playing sessions. I would not advise jogging with her (you did not mention that, but some people do jog/run with their dogs on leashes) until she is 2 years old/fully grown; since a dog off-leash can make his/her own pace, but a dog on leash attached to a human runner will try to keep up, even if he/she is tired or his/her feet hurt.
It's good that you're researching how to best care for your growing Lab; too many dog owners don't.
I am not a vet, but have owned several dogs, observed many more, and read a lot.
I have a lab that is 5 months. I have research on how to keep her in the best health. I feed her Nature's Recipe, take her to the vet when required and give her plenty of exercise. What does the fish oil do?
We lost our Alex 3 days ago, he was 12 and was going to be 13 on October, we were beside him when he passed, it was so sad vet said he had arthritis and kidney failure, he was so happy that day though even if he cant stand up on his own he would try to move around his bed slowly i really thought he would get better but i guess he was just hanging on for us, still miss him a lot he didnt go blind or deaf he always responds when we get his attention but i guess it was time =(
Our beloved Golden Sam had to be put to sleep for the same reasons six years ago. He was just about 13 years old. Couldn't walk, couldn't go to the bathroom, wouldn't eat or drink. It hurts to type this. Is it very common for labs/goldens to experience this after 12?
We had to put down our Golden Retriever Lab "Hooch" about 4 years ago. She was going blind, hard of hearing, had one tumor removed 6 years ago and 3 more came back. She was getting to the point of becoming a shadow of herself. I hated putting her down but it was the right thing to do when she turned 12. I swore I would not get another dog because the end is too painful. However, a year and a half went by and I started dreaming of having a Yellow Lab and I already knew what I would name her. LOL
So, I looked high and low and found a breeder a few hours from us. We got the pick of the next litter and the rest is history. I love this dog so much. She is now just over 2. (got her at 9 weeks). I try not to think about when the day comes and her health fails!
Our chocolate lab is 14 and still doing remarkably well. I like the extra personality his grayed eyebrows give him. Vision does seem to be getting to be an issue as he will run into the odd thing, but he's always been a bit of a block head so hard to tell any real difference in behavior. Still has a good amount of energy and will play with the puppy, run on the beach, run up stairs, etc. But most of the day he is a couch potato. After longer walks/hikes we do give him some tramadol for arthritis pain as otherwise it is visibly painful for him to get up and move around. But don't keep him constantly dosed on that as that turns him into a bit of a zombie and saps what energy he has. He's also taken to panting a bit excessively even in cool temps. Vet suspects and is currently testing for Cushing's but he's not really showing other signs.
Oh and growing fatty lumps in various places is a hobby of his, but none have had to be removed.
Has been fed Blue Buffalo Lamb recipe most of his life. Only started giving Cosequin a few years ago. As the vet says, the best thing we've done for him is keep him at a healthy lean weight.
Know he's going to break our hearts and likely not that far off, but trying to keep him as happy and adventurous as can be until then. He was even enjoying a nice mountain lake swim just recently.
Our chocolate lab is 14 and still doing remarkably well. I like the extra personality his grayed eyebrows give him.
Has been fed Blue Buffalo Lamb recipe most of his life. Only started giving Cosequin a few years ago. As the vet says, the best thing we've done for him is keep him at a healthy lean weight.
Know he's going to break our hearts and likely not that far off, but trying to keep him as happy and adventurous as can be until then. He was even enjoying a nice mountain lake swim just recently.
AWWW, Very sweet doggies. I can see the white part in the eyes of your Chocolate lab. It's so hard to see them decline......Ugh
Glad you are doing right by him. Enjoy every minute!
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