Tuesday, June 30, 2009

Clean Bill Of Health

I took Katie to the vet for her annual checkup and vaccinations, and she got a clean bill of health. Well, as much as a nearly 14 year old dog can have, that is. She has lost 4 pounds since her last checkup, but the vet says that is normal for dogs as they age to lose weight, just like people do. It's also normal for them to start losing bladder control. So Katie's leaking when she naps is just part of the aging process. The vet said that if it gets to be frequent, they have medication that helps. Since it just once in a while for now, we are going to wait on that.

Katie is terrified of thunderstorms, and the older she gets, the worse she gets. I asked the vet about tranquilizers, and she said I could give Katie benadryl. It's what she gives her own dogs, and it puts them right to sleep. I said that I didn't even know you could give a dog benadryl, and the vet said "Oh yes. It's what we use to treat dogs with allergies. It works just as well as a tranquilizer, and is a lot safer and has fewer side effects." So, next storm, benadryl it is. Maybe it'll keep her from climbing me.

So that was Katie's annual checkup. She is doing great for a dog her age. Hopefully, we'll have her for a few more years.

2 comments:

Bag Blog said...

I have given my dogs Benadryl when they seem to have a bite or sting of some sort. I'm glad to hear Katie is doing well.

Opal said...

wow! benadryl! what a multi-purpose drug!

so glad to hear katie has gotten the a-ok from the doc!