Emma Posted March 1, 2014 Report Share Posted March 1, 2014 It's no fun getting old. Brooke my little 12.5 year old staffy had to go to the vets yesterday as her re-curring ear infection was back once more in both ears and she's got a lump growing on her side. She's got to have drops twice daily for the next week or so and an ear cleaner used twice per week as a permanent thing. The vet said her lump wasn't anything suspicious and could be easily removed by surgery. He then listened to her heart and paused for a while, no "ooh that sounds good" which worried me a little bit, he then backtracked even further and said surgery was an option and she's in good overall health but that unless it becomes absolutely necessary to remove it then to leave it be, so for now she has a big lump that is a bit droopy and looks unpleasant but realistically isn't causing her any harm so we decided to listen to his advice and leave it be, for now. It's a bit of a predicament as you have to weigh up the pros and cons of the increased risk of anaesthesia against her quality of life. In this case, as it's just a benign lump and not bothering her (although Ice keeps trying to lick it better, bless him), we agreed to leave it for now. But will continue to monitor it incase things change. He weighed her and she was 17.8kg (tiny compared to Ice and Bear, lol). Her back legs are getting a bit stiffer, she's virtually completely deaf: have to use hand singnals to communicate with her which is great unless she's looking the other way! But she's still my beautiful baby girl. rather oddly is that she used to cry non stop in car journeys and has done all her life. Since she's gone deaf she's now silent, so I'm guessing whatever was bothering her must have been noise related. Also she's not as bad on fireworks night! She used to pace the house, panting and scared but now she's pretty much oblivious to it all, so I guess it's not all bad. However, she's now an onlead only dog, as you can't call back a dog who can't hear you! Bit of a shame as she always had an excellent recall, but it's for her own safety and I don't think she minds too much. So fingers crossed her lump doesn't get any worse. We've had Brooke since she was 8 weeks old, we got her for our eldest son's 4th birthday (he's going to be 17 this summer!) We always say they were pups together, lol. she's been a fantastic dog and although I know she won't last forever it would be nice to think she's got a few good years ahead of her yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
goingsolo Posted March 1, 2014 Report Share Posted March 1, 2014 Hope Brooke feels better soon. Something special about older dogs xxxxx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emma Posted March 1, 2014 Author Report Share Posted March 1, 2014 Thanks Tina, yeah there definitely is something special. Bear thinks Brooke is her mum, lol. When Bear came home Brooke immediately started to mother her and even though Bear now towers over her, she still loves Brooke to bits although Brooke's not quite so keen on her over zealous affection! she usually tries to keep out of their way unless she's in a playful mood, then she'll chase them round the garden for all of 30 seconds, lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Osinn11 Posted March 2, 2014 Report Share Posted March 2, 2014 Your right...no fun getting old. Glad to hear that the lump is nothing of concern. Feel better soon Brooke Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robke Posted March 2, 2014 Report Share Posted March 2, 2014 Feel better soon Brooke.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mydiamond Posted March 2, 2014 Report Share Posted March 2, 2014 hope you feel better soon Brooke xx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keeonah Posted March 2, 2014 Report Share Posted March 2, 2014 No fun getting old?...................Hmmmmmmmmmm .............not soooo sure on that one. I sometimes think that I'm having more fun now than I ever did when I was younger. Older, wiser and don't give a damn as much these days. :rofl: . Hope Brooke's feeling better soon, although, I suspect she's enjoying her car journeys more now that that darn noise has gone away Gary. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BingBlaze n Skyla Posted March 2, 2014 Report Share Posted March 2, 2014 Hope she's ok soon ,, bings also has lumps and I was told they are just fatty lumps so I left them too , really isn't nice watching them get older but like said there is something special about older dogs , give her a hug from Bings who knows all to well what she's going through :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emma Posted March 2, 2014 Author Report Share Posted March 2, 2014 Thanks. Well it's the end of day 2 and although she hates the drops with a passion, I must say she seems much more lively. I wonder if this infection had started deep inside her ear months ago and that's why she's been so much lazier. We just put it down to the cold weather affecting her joints but we might have been wrong. Visibly her outer ear was fine until recently but deeper down it could of been hurting her. Good job it's not Ice or Bear with this problem, there's no way in hell they'd stand still long enough for me to get the drops in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mydiamond Posted March 4, 2014 Report Share Posted March 4, 2014 yay for Brooke being livelier Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emma Posted March 10, 2014 Author Report Share Posted March 10, 2014 Thanks. Took her for a check up on Friday and she's much better. drops nearly done but she needs to use the ear cleaner weekly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Husky-gunner Posted March 10, 2014 Report Share Posted March 10, 2014 Thanks. Took her for a check up on Friday and she's much better. drops nearly done but she needs to use the ear cleaner weekly. :clap: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robke Posted March 10, 2014 Report Share Posted March 10, 2014 and good news.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wy Renegade Posted March 10, 2014 Report Share Posted March 10, 2014 Good to hear that she is feeling better. Our 12 year old Border collie rescue has some lumps and bumps as well. We got our pups a year and a half ago, and it has really made a difference in his activity levels, exercise, and general health. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carly Posted March 10, 2014 Report Share Posted March 10, 2014 Lots of love Brooke xx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BingBlaze n Skyla Posted March 10, 2014 Report Share Posted March 10, 2014 Glad to hear she's on the mend Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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