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Rehab

A Note From My Mom

I know it has been awhile since I've posted and I haven't kept up regularly for a long time but I wanted to post this so that those who have helped support me with helping Chingu with his fear-aggression issues would know how much we have both appreciated this.

On Saturday Chingu bit my boyfriend pretty badly on the hand. Luckily no permanent damage was done but the bite was bad and very easily could have resulted in permanent nerve damage or the loss of a finger or two. The bite, sadly, was unprovoked and occurred after Chingu walked up to him and placed his head on his lap (which he always does when he wants to be pet) and my boyfriend began to pet him. We have both worked very hard to read his body language and Chingu gave none of his usual signs and he just lost it.

Unfortunately in recent months I believe his cognitive function has begun to diminish. He has begun to have accidents in the house (which he never ever had before), he becomes very restless at night, and will cry and whine continually at night in his sleep. The times when you can see that lost look in his eyes has become more frequent and it now appears that he forgets sometimes who his mom and dad are. He has also been snapping more and there have been recent nips which are increasing in frequency.

I am going to have him looked over by the vet (although he just had a check up) just to check everything but ultimately I know that the time has come to make the decision I had so hoped that I would not have to make, although I knew that I would.

Almost 2 years ago when he bit me we had a discussion with the vet about his behavior and how to help him. I put him on Prozac which has helped to ease much of his anxiety but she warned me that with his Canine Dementia more than likely the day would come when he would become too aggressive and I would have to make the choice.

Chingu has made so much progress and I am so proud of him for all the hard work that he has done and these past 20 months or so in Texas have been great for us. Most of all I'm so proud that he was able to not just love me but able to learn to love and trust my boyfriend (aka Dad). I didn't think in the beginning he would ever be able to trust another person besides myself but Chingu was able to open his heart and find a bond with another person.

However, he has begun to have less lucid periods and more periods of fear and confusion. I don't want our last memories together to be of fear and pain. I want them to be of happy times filled with peace, love, and warmth.

We're going to spend the next week together and then I will make arrangements to have him go to sleep at home where he feels comfortable and safe.

This will be a week of eating steak and liver and all things tasty. It will be a week of dancing, and petting, and lots of walking. It will be a week where my angel can do as he pleases and I will take every opportunity to tell him how much I love him.

This is not an easy decision but it is no longer a question of if he will bite but when and the risk has become too great.

However, I don't think of this is a failure. I believe were it not for the dementia that all the work we've done would have turned him around for forever, but as he slips more into the twilight of his life he is unable to forget behaviors of the past. That is not his fault and that is not how I want him remembered. I also know that he does not want to hurt me or his dad.

I want to thank everyone for the support they have given us and especially to those who shared their stories of inspiration. Several people have written us telling us that Chingu's story has given them hope about their own dogs' issues with fear-aggression. I hope Chingu's story continues to give people hope because having him as my best friend for the past 3 years has made me a better person and has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life. Chingu has taught me so much about love and forgiveness and I will forever miss my friend.

Updates and DINOS (Dogs in Need of Space)

Hello fellow Dogsters

The secretary has again decided to stop being a slacker for a moment and post.

So to catch up Mom and Dad moved into a house and while still no dog door - I do have a lovely yard, although it is cold and I'm not a big fan of being in the yard by myself.

But it is nice because while Mom still has to commute to work (although at least one day a week she works in town) Dad is local so he can stop by the house for me to pee so the dog door is not a big issue.

I also like the neighborhood walks - there are lots of dogs behind fences so lots of awesome places to pee, because I can leave my scent for the other dogs to smell and there's nothing they can do! Mom can tell I really enjoy that.

There also really aren't that many strays so the walks are less stressful.

Otherwise though we have just been bopping along. The winter months have been a little hard on the joints but mom made me a bed with some of that cushy egg crate stuff and that seems to help at night.

Mom is also going on vacation next month and she's going to leave me for a whole weekend ***gasp*** and Dad is going to watch me. This is good and bad - Dad is a little more forgetful than mom about remembering to take me out, but Dad does give me more treats so I'll probably eat better because Mom wont be there to say no. Mom promises though that she will call to remind dad everyday to take me out and check on me.

To all my pals though I hope they're having a good holiday season and my Mom and I wanted to leave you with this URL: http://notesfromadogwalker.com/2011/12/07/you-know-youre-liv ing-with-dinos-when/

Mom found it very entertaining and I am very much a DINO (Dogs in need of space) and thought since a lot of my pals are like me they'd find the humor in it as well.

Some of the highlights are You Know You're Living with a DINO when:
Blind corners are scarier than a Hitchcock movie.

You’ve considered adding “excellent horizon scanner” to the skills section of your resume.

Your hamster’s exercise ball is starting to look like a good idea for your dog, if only you could build one large enough for your Lab.

and Mom's favorite:
Your neighbor hasn’t looked you in the eye since “that time” you told her where she could stick her roaming off leash dog.

Happy Labor Day

So I'm finally back to my normal self. It only took about 10 days. Mom says thats why she went ahead and told the vet they had to take out the cracked tooth, period. Anesthesia is too hard on these old bones.

Mom says since all the bad teeth are out thats the end. Mom says next week when I can eat hard foods again the tooth brushing will begin. But Mom says no more dental cleanings if we can avoid it - this time just took a very long time to recover.

But I finally had some spunk back today and charged ahead like normal on our walk. So Mom and Dad were pretty happy.


I did have an incident after all Mom's bragging. Apparently I'm not a football fan. Mom isn't really one either, but Dad has suckered her into playing fantasy football with him this year (Mom would like to add here that while she knows nothing about football she has a way cooler team that the majority of the other people in the league). Anyways Dad was watching a college game and became very animated and was jumping up and down and shouting and I thought he was becoming aggressive, perhaps even towards Mom, and I snapped.

I said I was sorry but Mom said that wasn't cool. No real damage was done, but it was a reminder to Dad that I'm not always predictable (he thinks Mom is over protective). So Mom says the new rule is I'm not allowed to watch football with the family - at least certainly not if Dad cannot remain seated. We'll have to see how the season progresses. But I've been a very submissive to Dad and even gave him several kisses because I feel bad for the snapping.

Dad has been sweet and forgave me and gave me lots of head rubs today. Dad even gave me some 'love steak' since its Mom and Dad's last meal before they go on a 'for real' diet. Thats partly why I love Dad so much - he always gives me steak. Mom says he spoils me too much, but I say Dad doesn't spoil me enough.