Sylvie

When I said reacting I meant noticing an other dog: ears pricked, looking or standing up. But yes rewarding calm behaviour as much as possible too, not with the marker though just a "good boy" and a pat or cuddle.

No, we leave him in the backyard with no road sight when we are not there. He would be on the patio and in the front garden only when we are home and under close watch to start with. He is very responsive to the verbal marker and very food motivated so if I see the other dogs on time it's all good. I also try to watch his body language and give the marker as soon as he start reacting but I can get distracted sometimes too and that's when I miss the signs. He seems to like it out there, and hopefully when the fence is up and all the garden hedge grown up he will fill more secured with no need to guard the place.

Thanks Sheena, That is what I am trying to do every time we see a dog on a walk, at the beach, .... I don't use a clicker but he responds pretty well the "Yes" marker. As soon as I see him looking at an other dog (and sometime before if I noticed the dog before him) I say Yes and, if I am not too late, he turns and looks at me and I give him a treat. On the walk, when we are far enough from the other dog (other side of the road), he looks at the dog, then look at me, then look at the dog, then me and so on as if to say "I've seen the dog, look there, where is my treat". But when we are home and dogs are passing in front of the house, I have to call him or say Yes very quickly before he starts to react otherwise the only way to stop him is dragging him inside or out of sight of the other dog. If I am on time he does all right even if he keeps checking on that dog passing until it's gone. The problem is I don't know when a dog is going to show up and there are 3 directions they can come from, so some times I miss. Well I'll keep trying and may be read "Control Unleashed" again to try and improve. PS: I might try the clicker, but this little dog is scared of squeaky toy so I'm not sure he'll like that noise.

We are building a new patio at the front of our house. We are on a corner block, so there can be a lot of traffic at dog walking times. We only have the slab on for now and the front yard is not fully fenced yet. We have started sitting outside, on the slab in the evening with Apollo (9 years old JRT) on a lead sitting with us. He loves it but can be pretty reactive to dogs passing by. I have a box of kibble handy and each time I see a dog coming, I through him some kibble and play with him. That works most of the time, but sometime I am too late, specially if someone is running their dogs. He is easily distracted from calm and quiet dogs, but dogs that are staring at him or running got him pretty upset. Once the patio is finished and the yard fully fenced, we would like for him to be able to stay with us without getting off at every passing dogs. He does not care about people, cars, skate boards or even motorbikes (except some loud Harleys), but as soon as he smells a dog he is up and ready to have a go. Most of the time he is just lying on his mat, but very alert to every noise or smell. He pricks his ears at most cars, every people passing but does not move. If there is a dog coming, he is up and ready. Am I doing the right thing trying to distract him the way I do, or does every time I miss a dog doing more wrong than good? Is there something else I could try to get him comfortable and ignore passing dogs? Thanks.

I have sent you a PM with some information on Addison's Disease that I found very helpful.

Sorry to hear that Treble has Addison's but as you said it is treatable or at least manageable. My little Ares had Addison's, he was 9 yo when diagnosed (and had other problems) but Addison's medication (Florinef) solved what we thought was arthritis and all his digestion problems with no side effects (he was on 1/2 tablet once a day). Make sure you get the right dosage, as low as possible so all symptoms disappear without excessive panting and appetite. He started with 1 tablet, twice a day and we reduced the dosage after a week to 1/2 tablet, twice a day and then a week later 1/2 tablet only once a day. As my vet said, once they start the medication, it looks like a miracle: they are so much better so quickly. Good luck with him. Sylvie PS: Do you know that your vet can write a script so you can get the medication from a chemist, and it is a lot cheaper? Chemist Warehouse was the cheapest I found.

Thanks Anne, I did post on your thread and Ams contacted me as she has an epileptic dog too. We are trying to organize a pick up as she lives not too far away from me. Thanks Clover, I gave him the gentle pat. He is still very quiet, but seems a bit more interested in the world around. I was a bit worried yesterday as I found he was a bit off colour: inner hear very pale and gum not quiet as pink as I would hope. But he had just vomited a little before I checked and was very keen on the walk later so I guess I am worrying too much (as my husband keep telling me). Keeping an eye on him though.

I have half a bottle (about 50 tablets) of phenobarbital that I don't need anymore if anyone is interested.

Thanks everybody. We are missing him a lot, and Apollo is pretty depressed. On Monday he did not want to eat (which is unheard of for him) and was shaking like a leaf (we had storms around and he hates them). A call to the vet and she told us to try roast chicken. So it was roast chicken for every one and he loved it. Still look very sad the following day, got sick in the morning (probably too much chicken, but seems a bit better since. I take him for 2 walks a day, and my husband took him for a ride to the tip yesterday and keep him next to him while working in the backyard. He is still very quiet, not reacting to noises or us moving around. Hardly wanting to leave his bed except is there is food involved. We try to keep him entertain as much we can and hopefully he will get better. Thanks again for all your kind words. Sylvie PS: Anne did you find someone to send the left over Phenobarbital? I have about half a bottle left, which is not much but if it can help someone.

We are lucky to have his brother to cheer us up, hoping he is not too disturb by Ares absence. And one of our preferred photo Please let me in.

The first couple of days were definitely the worse. He adapted quiet well to the wobbliness after that and went back to his old happy self, bossing his brother around, jumping on his feet every time we moved. "What are you doing? Where are we going now? Can I come? Can I have a cuddle? Now!..." Just so lively in spite of stumbling around. I told my husband on Friday morning how well he was going with the medication. Unfortunately, on Friday evening he refused to go for a walk, tail down and started shaking like a leaf. Took him to the vet who put him on a drip with Valium to try and stop the convulsions but she called us an hour later saying that they did not stop and his temperature was starting to rise. We took his preferred toy and went to say goodbye and accompany him on his last journey. Fly free my little boy

One 30Mg tablet twice a day. ETA: He is 9.3kg at the moment.

Ares is hardly able to walk just after standing up and he stumble regularly for the next few minutes. This morning he tried to jump on chair and did not managed to get up to it. He then went for a lap or 2 of the room, gave a nasty look at that chair and try an other one successfully. He stayed snoozing on it for a good while. Poor little thing. And now we are having a loud storm, that's going to help to settle them down!

Thanks, Anne, I know you know how it is. Ares is now sleeping like a baby at my feet while Apollo is sleeping on his bed. I just don't want to move and risk disturbing the peace!

Ares has been on Phenobarbital for 2 days now. I did not notice too much of an increase in appetite or thirst, but the ataxia is pretty impressive. And he is grumpier than ever. I have been working from home the last 2 days and I am having a day off today to keep an eye on them. They did start a couple of fights yesterday when Ares wobbled around Apollo and started growling at him. The poor things, they look very confused. Apollo is a very good boy, he stays son his bed most of the time, and tries to ignore Ares as much as he can. But Ares has always been a pushy grumpy boy. I try to distract them as soon as they start staring at each other which works most of the time. Then we go for a walk when they become a bit agitated. I also get their kennels out of the shed, so I can put them in it and close the door to get some rest (that's their crate). They seem to like it and settled in it for a while. I hope Ares is going to get better soon because it is very hard to see them so tensed and confused. I cannot imagine them (and me) living like that for too long. The good news is my husband is coming back from Townsville for good on Sunday (he just resigned to come home), so he will be home to help and supervise them for the next few weeks. I know it's only early days, so we will wait and see how it goes in the next few weeks.

Oh no, cowanbree that's horrible and exactly what I am afraid of. I will definitely find a way to separate them when unsupervised. Thanks

Thanks Jules❤3Cavs and sorry for your loss. Managing the interaction between the two while Ares is not 100% will probably be the biggest challenge to start with.

Poodle wrangler, it certainly will be part of the discussion with my vet. The brain tumor is the worse case scenario, but in the absence of any other identified causes, that is unfortunately a possible one. They are my first dogs and we only had them for 2 years now, so I am not sure I will know when it's time. I hope I will see some signs but for now he looks still full of life, chasing every birds, lizards and flies in the garden, doing zoomies when he thinks it's time for a walk. Does he have a good quality of life? I don't know. I hope. Anyway I'll discuss all the options with the vet and see what can be done. Thanks Anne, it's been pretty hot here these last weeks, so it might not help. His seizures always happened while he is sleeping, the last 2 were at midnight but I can't say I have noticed anything that could trigger them.

I am so sorry for your loss Anne. That is so sad when there is nothing more that we can do. That is something I am also starting to consider if it gets worse. I will try to make him feel better as much as we can but it is hard to see him struggle in the meantime. Addison's medication also increase thirst and appetite so it will be a juggle to balance that out. We just went for a short walk and he is still panting and already had a few drinks in the last 20 min. Addison's also affects his capability to deal with stress, so anything out of the ordinary, any noise is a big deal. Even going for a walk might be too exciting and sometime stressful if I don't manage to avoid other dogs barking behind a fence or walking on other side of the road. I don't know if stress can have an impact on provoking a seizure, I will have to ask the vet about that. If I am home when he has a seizure I can keep them separated, that's not a problem. Apollo is pretty good if I tell him to go outside or stay away. He has always been the submissive one, but as you say seeing his brother weaker might trigger the 'killing of the weak' reaction. And that is my big worry. Most of the time he tries to avoid conflict but if he is pushed too much he is the one snapping. My problem will be while Ares is adapting to the phenobarbital, if I have to go out or to work, to find a way of separating them without creating too much stress. In the meantime, I'll probably try to get as much work from home as possible and take some days off and see how they go. And I will try to find a way to separate them while I am home if they need to. Thanks you so much for your answer kelpiecuddles and Anne. Sylvie.

My poor little dog (9 years old JRT) has just been diagnosed with Addison's disease a few months ago and is now on a very low dose of Florinef (the lowest I can manage, 1/2 tablets once a day). He is a lot better now, his appetite and thirst are good, and there is no more sign of arthritis. But he had a seizure just before we did the tests for Addison's about 3 months ago. He since had 2 more about a month apart and my vet told me last week that I might consider medicating him to try and stop them. She suspects it might be due to a brain tumor or some sort of damage to the brain as he has a slight paralysis of the right side of his face (does not blink) and a bit of a head tilt to the right. Phenobarbital being the medication she would like to try, but she also mentioned that there was a few side effects. I have been reading about those side effects a bit and that is quite scary. For the last 6 months my husband has been working in Townsville and I have been there regularly (every 3rd weekend or about) and the dogs have been in a kennel while I was away. I was supposed to go back there next weekend so decided to wait until I come back to start the phenobarbital. But Ares had an other seizure last night, only a week after the previous one, so I will call my vet on Tuesday (she does not work Monday) to probably start him on the med then. I am worried about the side effects though, and the effect that would have on the other dog (litter-mate who is very confused by all this). During the seizure he just sits away, but after it is like he wants to help and lick Ares better. But he once lick a bit too hard and Ares lost his balance and start growling and I had to separate them for a while until Ares got better. If the side effects of the phenobarbital are as strong as I read, I am afraid of Apollo (the other dog) reaction to Ares loss of balance and all other weaknesses. I will try to work from home as much as I can, but I read that the side effects can last for a few weeks so I will have to leave them alone at some stage. Being litter-mate they are just tolerating each other, but take any opportunity for trying to shut the other off. And that is what's worrying me. In the 2 years we've had them, we never had full on fight, but a few quick scuffle, and they get pretty upset if they are separated and know the other one is not far. Anybody had experience in managing other dogs around a sick dog? What are the options? And what can I do to try and lower the phenobarbital side effects ( mainly hyper excitability, loss of coordination)? Thanks for reading and any experience or advice or anything I should prepare myself for. Sylvie.

Our JRT Ares (8,5 yo) fails jumping on the couch most of the time ( we have to get him on), but when at agility he jumps like a puppy a lot higher the the couch is. Go and figure. Our two 8.5 years young seem to love agility. I first started to try to get them used to be around other dogs as they are both a bit reactive, and they are doing pretty well, even running the circuit off lead now. Good luck with it, it is good fun.

Sorry, really did not mean to be rude.

It is Collioure. And one of my two at their last day at agility before Christmas taken with my SGS2.

That's what I was told. The vet did not see any physical sign but I knew he was not the same hyper he used to. In the afternoon, my OH came back from a walk and said that he found him a lot slower than he used to. That's when I remembered I saw him licking one of his paw a lot the day before. I had checked but found nothing. I checked it better that afternoon and find the little nasty deep inside between two "toes". During the evening and the night I checked the internet for the sign I was supposed to expect as I was mainly waiting for him to be unstable on his hind. That's when I read somewhere that it could be the last sign before it gets very bad, that I did decide to go to the UQ Clinic. I just knew he was not the same bouncy JRT he usually is. We only had them for 2 to 3 months and there was no way I was going to be too late. I hope you found the tick early enough and it is all going to be good.

I would go to the vet. The blue/ grey color is not good and the vomit is not a good sign either. Better get the vet have a look before you have to go to the after hour emergency clinic. Although when I took mine it was just before 6pm, he was already grunting and very slow, but they told to go back home with him and keep an eye on him until it get worse (they did not want to work overtime). Back home I was not sure what to look for, but kept asking him to come to see How he was walking. Still not sure. Tried to sleep on the lounge with him on my lap until it was too much, at about 3am, I drove him to the Emergency clinic where the vet treated him immediately.