Loving my Oldies

Well done . Wonderful news. I think that photograph of them on the bed together took away any doubts

@PANDI-GIRL, I’m sorry I missed this. Sooty is sleeping well on her bed on the floor beside me. She regularly sleeps through the night . . . even if I don’t I had to stop her sleeping on the bed as I was sleeping so poorly worrying that she would fall off and undo the operation on her leg. I was prepared to have to be deaf to her entreaties, but she just settled down. I was surprised.

Jeune is still losing weight - down to 3.65 at the vet today . Eats teeny tiny meals and if it weren’t for my giving her food via syringe she’d probably average about a tablespoon a day, if that. The vet I saw today had not seen her for a long time and she was somewhat taken aback at how frail she looks. Still, she continues to surprise me. I took her downstairs this evening so she could do a wee and left her for a few minutes to have a sniff around. When she was ready to go back up, she stood at the bottom of the stairs and waited for her slave. Not long after that, I went out onto the deck and there she was leaping up the stairs like a spring lamb. So she’d obviously gone down again !! I worry about her every day, of course, and I know the end is near; the tears are close most of the time ............

Oh my, she is gorgeous ..... as are her much larger foster siblings

Which one isn’t a Kelpie ??? Wonderful photographs which really had me wandering down memory lane and reminding me of my first dogs - two little white fluffy puppies in August 1993. Gosh I loved them . The only SWF puppy I’ve had since then (in fact the only puppy) is Tamar who was about six months old in July 2004 when I picked her up from Canterbury pound for another rescue group ----- 15 plus years later, she is asleep in her bed on the floor as I type this Looking forward to many more accounts of Esme's Escapades.

Thanks to all the suggestions (I’m so amazed at the efforts people have gone to to give me links, suggestions, etc ..... ) I started a search again and with more parameters from the suggestions, found the syringes in the pic below. At 30mls they are still big, but they are squeezy soft and I can pour the food into them and just use one throughout the day. Currently, I’ve been using about a dozen 3mls syringes which take me ages to fill and then use huge amounts of water for washing. At least a week for delivery though because I couldn’t find similar in Australia. fullsizeoutput_c22 by Cynthia Waters, on Flickr

100ml !!!! I can’t even push the plunger of a 10ml.

Thanks, @Two Best Dogs!. It isn’t the size of the syringe, but rather the size of the nozzle. All the ones I’ve seen and bought don’t have a graded size so cutting them would not solve the problem.

LOL. Jeune is a [nearly] 19 years old fragile little dog. I actually did buy a heap of small dispensers ages ago, but they weren’t pliable.

Over the years, particularly when Danny was still alive, I must have visited every syringe site on the web looking for syringes with wide nozzles. I looked at baby sites, I looked at baby sections in chemists and supermarkets, I’ve trawled ebay and the like, but simple can’t find what I need. I even looked looked at sauce bottles and on and on and on and on. I am now supplementing Jeune’s intake with syringe feeding with a mix of nutrigel, Recovery and bone broth, but I need a syringe with a wider nozzle. The ones I have are fine for liquids and meds, and I buy the 1ml and 3ml by the box of one hundred. I’ve tried 10ml and 20ml, but the nozzles are the same size as the little ones and I find almost impossible to push the plunger. Any help anyone ??? Many thanks.

Such good news. Perfect.

Good luck to you and to the dog.

It is so distressing to see our pets grieve and feel helpless to make them feel better. Perhaps, if you feel up to it, you could try fostering, as Juice did. Getting another dog often helps immensely.

I have many many urns, @Pollywaffle, the earliest is for Calypso who died 15 January 1997 at the very young age of 3 and a half (congestive heart disease). From time to time, I run through all their names recalling them all, their funny little ways and how much I loved them all. Polly and Bazil will always be part of your lives and in your hearts, as they deserve to be. Don’t give any thought to those who don’t understand that.

Sad as is seems at the moment, I agree with those who have said to return the dog or to find another rescue group. Under no circumstances have you and your husband failed - on the contrary. When I was in the business of rescuing and rehoming, I would always stress that your first consideration is your existing family: human and pets. It it is a very hard thing to do, to return a dog, but it needs to be done.

They have everything else known and unknown. I’m exhausted.

Is the chicken boiled or roast? It is a long time ago. Maybe it was the l/d. Sorry, YG. Well over 16/17 years ago!!

Jo, a long time ago I had a little dog diagnosed with [having a senior moment and can’t remember the ** “itis” ]. I kept her well and happy on the diet my vet suggested. One third each of i/d canned good, cooked rice and shredded boiled chicken. **Had to google .... Pancreatitis.

Jo, a couple of weeks ago I was collecting meds from the vet and going on about how desperate I was becoming for Jeune. The vet nurse suggested Royal Canin Recovery because it can be syringed. I tried a can and have since bought more. I make it a little bit more syringe friendly by mixing in home made beef broth. I also give Jeune 1/4 periactin tablet (on vet’s advice). Jeune seems to really enjoy the Recovery and I give her a few syringe fulls throughout the day. The fat content is 6.2, so that seems to be very low.

My advice? Don’t over think it and have fun.

They certainly did . I didn’t quibble though as the most important thing was to ensure Sooty’s safety.

When I saw a letter from the council in the mail, I thought it was just a rate notice reminder and left it lying on the table. Just opened it to find it was Sooty’s Certificate of Registration ............ TO ME !!!! She is now officially a Moocher. Sooooo happy and relieved. Her date of birth is stated to be 1 June 2006 and date of implantation of microchip 26 July 2006, so at 8 weeks of age. Does that suggest she would have been with a registered breeder?

Wonderful wonderful memories. Thank you for sharing.

Where do the animals go when they are all grown up and not so cuddly for children?