Sick Dog....

No, not *me*!
Had to take the older of our two dogs to the vet yesterday. She's 13 1/2, which is really getting up there for an American Staffordshire Terrier, a.k.a., "Pit Bull". She's gone deaf in the last 9 months or so, and her vision isn't quite what it used to be, be she still loves taking her evening walks with me. And despite the bad rap that the media gives Pit Bulls, they're really very good dogs. Very loyal and loving, as long as you rear them like you're supposed to rear *any* dog. It burns me the way some people treat their dogs, but that's a subject for another day. Yesterday morning she started hacking up all kinds of crud (looked like melted ice-cream), and she was very lethargic and wouldn't eat. The girlfriend and I were starting to think maybe it's "time". All our Internet Expert Veterinary friends said she had "kennel cough", but after looking it up myself, I doubted it. Well, the REAL Vet took her temp (I never knew a dog's normal temp was around 101), listened to her with his stethoscope, and gave me the news. He said "Her heart sounds terrible, and her lungs sound terrible." We've known for the last couple of years that she's got an enlarged heart, and has fluid retention problems. He suggested another round of blood tests and chest X-ray, but rather than OK it right there, I said I'd take her back home, and talk to my girlfriend about what we wanted to do. In the meantime, her gave her a shot of diuretic to help her pass out the fluid, and warned me to be sure and have her home within 30 minutes because she was going to be going to the bathroom big time.
Well, this morning she was like a puppy. No wheezing, and very active. Had a nice 45 minute walk tonight, and the term "Miracle Drug" comes to mind. She's still pushing 14 years old, but for now we're happy to have our "old" Domino back. I just don't want to think about the next time we have to take her in........