I don't like incidental findings. They're never fun especially when they are directed at your beloved pets.
Gracie, my Aussie, may be in the beginning phases of renal failure. I'm really sad but realistic that she's 12 years old and isn't going to live forever (Keeper will though, lol). I had though several weeks ago that she wasn't looking as great as she usually does and opted to pull some blood for a "geriatric" profile. I've never run a blood panel on her and with her age, it was certainly time. Don't get me wrong, Gracie is acting like a puppy as always which is why this is really hitting me hard. My job has forced me to be more realistic about the lives of our animals and that they can go any time, no matter how great they look.
This profile did not include a UA but since we have a new gal training in lab, I offered some of Gracie's urine for her to practice on. The specific gravity of her urine is 1.010 which is often associated with the end stages of renal disease. It basically says how well the animal is concentrating the urine. We thought maybe she just had a bunch of water or something so I was told to run it again before I left for work this morning. Much to my disappointment, it was the same. I'll wait until tonight and bring another sample in to check. Dr's say that without knowing her BUN and Creatinine, there's no way to know if she's Azotemic. I'm really lucky to have a staff of Dr's who love me and my pets!
All I can say is that I pray, pray and pray some more for her to be OK. I love this dog so much it hurts sometimes. She's been a wonderful companion and I'll hate to see her go when the day comes. Of all the breeds, I would have never chose an Aussie but someone had just adopted one and I really liked the look and intensity of her dog. I'll write more about Gracie when I know the results of her blood work.
Sadly,
-AD
I am so sorry. We've got two very, very old animals here as well, and it is tough. Job (Jim's R.Ridgeback/Akita) is 14 now, and I'm worrying about his renal health as well. He's been drinking copious amounts of water, and has been incontinent quite a few times. Whiskey is having digestive system problems, but she's hanging in there. She's about 35 (vet confirmed it last time here teeth were floated). Once she starts showing signs of ptosis, we'll have to put her down, but she seems content, and hasn't been losing any more weight. Yeah, it totally sucks. Job and Jim have been together for 14 years, and that dog went EVERYWHERE with him, including a cattle drive.
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry to hear about Gracie. I hope her test results improve. You and Gracie are so fortunate to have an entire staff of vets watching over you.
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