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10PM ET Small Dog Chat - Long Term Illness Support
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10PM ET Small Dog Chat - Long Term Illness Support
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Posted by saratech on October 09, 2002 at 14:09:35:
Sophie has been my pet for 12 years and I could image no better companion. I work at a veterinary hospital and have very long hours and come home everyday with scents of other animals that have always made her very jealous. Sophie is a female Germ. shep. mix and has had trouble with hip dysplasia/osteo-arthritis for the past 5 years. She has been on everything from anti-inflams to steroids to glucosamine-chondroitin. Even homeopathics and alternatives did not help her. In order to keep her comfortable I was giving her several pills twice a day. Last year I opted to stop the prescription meds with my veterinarian's advice because of the potential effects on her aged kidneys and liver. On April, 1st 2002 I awoke to take Sophie out for her morning walk (if you could even consider that distance a walk) and she did not come to me. For the next 4 days I watched her deteriorate. When I say deteriorate I don't mean that her physical condition was diminishing, I mean that when she looked at me I knew I would not be able to face those sad eyes much longer. She was unable to walk and had to be carried outside to go to do her "duties". For the last 11 years Sophie had not had one accident in the house and when in the hospital it happened at least once a day and she was so ashamed. I honestly never knew how much she meant to me. I spoke to my veterinarian (my employer and family friend) in depth each day. Knowing what an optimist he was I was taken aback when he told me that there was not much else that could be done. He had only one other option. Honestly I did not even consider it an option because it was a alternative therapy that was recently patented. A physician developed a "complex meridian unit" after 5 years of research and was using it for pain management in humans. My veterinarian was adapting the units into jackets for dogs to ease the pain of chronic conditions. It is a form of biomagnetic therapy. I put the jacket on Sophie on April 5th, 2002. The next day she took two more steps and struggled to get up. Over the next week she slowly regained her strength and began to walk for longer and longer distances. Today she is her old self--meaning she still takes short walks and sleeps alot. But if you are not blessed with a geriatric pet you do not know the dedication that they have for you. I still have her in my life and I know that if I had not looked "outside the box" she would not be here today. The main objective of my story is to let anyone with a dog suffering from chronic pain that there is an alternative. Even the "Doubting Thomas" should try alternative and homeopathic methods because surprisingly Western medicine doesn't always work. The alt. med. referred to in my story can be found at polarwearzforpetz.com Maybe you know someone with an suffering pet and can help them not to be forced to make a terminal decision.