Longtime member, not active. Had a basenji with the same diagnosis back in 2004. He took a tremendous amount of bicarb each day, his Fanconi was being well managed, but he started having seizures at night. Our vet gave us something to stop the seizure that we'd administer rectally. We kept track of the number of seizures and they started becoming more frequent, to about twice a week, if I recall. The final seizure he had he went temporarily blind and howled and howled and we knew that was it was time. I just sat on the floor with him and cried. A couple months later we looked at photos we had taken of him right before and he looked very, very tired. Very much the hardest thing we had ever done was to let him go across the Bridge, but after looking at those photos, we had done the right thing. Our vet had told us that it was possible he would have a seizure and not come out of it, and we certainly didn't want that.
The end might be near. Wobbly and not eating.
-
It could be the end, or simple dehydration from the diarrhea. The vet will know.
-
He still seems to be a little wobbly, but a lot better than this morning. I think it might be something neurological, or maybe he's losing his vision. He's mostly deaf anyway. It seems like shadows freak him out. His tummy seems to be really upset. Not sure if he ate something strange. He finally ate a little bit of chicken breast, but then he wanted to go outside, where he ate a bunch of grass. And he ate a scrambled egg just now. It just seems like something is really making him dizzy. Might be a combination of tummy troubles and an inner ear problem. The vet's office never called me back. I have to work tomorrow. Mom's going to keep and eye on him, and another friend is coming over.
-
Find a new vet…..
-
… And get to one real soon, IMO, I wouldn't wait
-
Thanks to everyone for showing concern for my boy! All your prayers and positive vibes must've helped.
He seems to be recovering from whatever he had. I suspect he must've ingested something toxic or funky for him to get that sick. His appetite seems to be back, and he had a good BM. He was running around like a pup when I took him out. Senji is kind of "canis non grata" at the vet's office. He tries to bite everybody and needs to be muzzled when he goes. I didn't want to put him through that. It just stresses him out to the max. I was hoping I wouldn't have to take him, and that all this would clear up on its own. These dogs are amazing, aren't they? I want to apologize for overreacting. -
Do you have any choice of vets in your area? Perhaps a change of scene might improve his attitude. (has he always been bad at the vet, or did some incident bring this on?) Or can you get a mobile vet who will come to your home? I understand your concern over stressing him further, but it is worrisome not being able to get help when you need it.
-
I think you underreacted, not over reacted. He should have been at the vet immediately, even if you had to go to a new vet. Luckily he improved, but that was luck. Please, please promise that you will make the decision to get any sick pet to the vet immediately when they appear that sick– not wait to see if they recover on their own.
-
Do you have any choice of vets in your area? Perhaps a change of scene might improve his attitude. (has he always been bad at the vet, or did some incident bring this on?) Or can you get a mobile vet who will come to your home? I understand your concern over stressing him further, but it is worrisome not being able to get help when you need it.
I would agree with this statement. Kananga hated going to the vet until we switched to a different one. The vet we've gone to for the past couple years has been really great with him. They're a lot more progressive with the way they handle dogs. More specifically understanding when a dog is upset/anxious and using calming techniques to help make them be comfortable instead of simply resorting to restraining.
You'd be surprised how much of a difference there is between certain vets.
-
I would agree with this statement. Kananga hated going to the vet until we switched to a different one. The vet we've gone to for the past couple years has been really great with him. They're a lot more progressive with the way they handle dogs. More specifically understanding when a dog is upset/anxious and using calming techniques to help make them be comfortable instead of simply resorting to restraining.
You'd be surprised how much of a difference there is between certain vets.
I agree, my old boy OJ hated his first Vet and had bad experiences there since they (the entire practice) really didn't like Basenjis. We changed Vets (when he was 3 1/2) and he was a lamb… he loved all his new Vets and Vet Techs for the remainder of his 17+ yrs.
-
The vet thinks that he may have had a small stroke or spinal stroke. Due to his liver disease, I really didn't want him to be anesthetized for an MRI or CT scan. Senji doesn't seem to be in any pain at this time. He's able to jump up on the sofa and is eating and drinking pretty well now. He seems to walk at a bit of a diagonal sometimes and loses his balance a little when he lifts his leg. Otherwise, he seems to be able to run and climb around the neighborhood hills fairly well. In July, we think he may have gotten shocked when he chewed through an electrical cord. We think he may have had a small stroke from that too. He started to get spooked from shadows after that happened. Senji is going to be 16 at the end of this month. 5 years ago, he was diagnosed with severe liver disease. The vet didn't think he'd live more than a year. Here he is…4 years past his expiration date! He's had a good life. He eats good, mostly organic food, drinks filtered water, and gets lots of walks every day. As long as he's not in any pain or losing bladder and bowel function, I'm fine with the way he is. The vet just recommends palliative care at this point.
