My Buddy Karsten Bear with me, because this is long... Karsten has been doing pretty well on about three different medications since an April ER visit and a June follow up confirmed Congestive Heart Failure, but out of nowhere while I was gone in DC last week he went from OK to terrible over Wednesday night and into Thursday morning. My wife took him to the same ER clinic and the prognosis was grave. The vet straight up told her that she suggested putting him down. His respiration rate was over 100. Horrible shortness of breath and suffering as if her were drowning. Advanced pulmonary edema. Could pass at any moment with no real likelihood of recovery. Wife called me at 6 am hysterical. She didnt want to put him down without me being there and the kids being able to see him. I asked the vet if they thought they could keep him alive and comfortable until I got home at 9 pm. She was less than reassuring. I was a sobbing mess. It would cost about $900 to try, so I said lets give it a shot. The wife left him there, in the oxygen cage as they tried to get some fluid off his lungs and do whatever else they could to improve his breathing while keeping him comfortable. She was heading out of town to get my daughters teeth worked on, so they could check back later in the day if he made it that long. They would only call her if things got much worse or if he died. Which they reinforced could happen AT ANY TIME. She got such no call, so after the long dental appointment the two of them headed in to see him and arrived at about 4 pm. Hed improved, but not all that much better. Respirations down to 60, but still far above the normal 20 or so theyd like to see. My daughter with him at the vet. Im getting updates as I fly back in to town, and so were all now in the mode of getting emotionally ready to put him down. Probably tonight when I get in, so hes no longer suffering. We all shed some tears as we head back over to the vet at about 8:45 pm. After arriving, we walk in the front door and I can immediately hear him barking in the back. Sort of an Im annoyed, get me out of this cage and give me some attention bark. They put us off into a room and tell us theyll bring him out to see us before sending in the vet. Karsten arrives and while groggy, is half-wagging his tail and obviously happy to see us. We sat there with him for a few minutes - fairly shocked at how well he looked before the vet came in. The PM shift vet introduced himself and talked to us about what had transpired all day, how he felt it was shocking/surprising how well he was doing at the moment considering his condition (as reported by the intake vet) at 5 am. The reality being his condition could be re-aggravated at any time and without warning. I asked if he thought that apparently making it though this crisis had bought us hours, days or weeks and he thought that it would be an extremely good outcome if he lived for another month. That was kind of disheartening, but considering that I walked in the door ready to put him down, it was pretty positive. I just looked at Karsty and said theres no way we can put this dog down right now. He doesnt even look sick. Obviously exhausted from the event, but this is not a dog that is about to die at all. And he didnt appear to be in pain or discomfort, so I said were taking him home. I think everyone was happy I made that call. We upped all his meds in an effort to ward off the return of symptoms, but its a guessing game how long that will be. Weve been on pins and needles since then, but if you saw Karsten right now you wouldnt think he was sick. Maybe just a little tired. Im really spending some quality time with him and were all loving him up - not that he ever lacked for love an attention before. I consider him to be on his victory lap. Hes been able to say hello and maybe goodbye to a lot of our friends and neighbors who know and love him for his gentle disposition and love of all creatures great and small. Ive never owned a dog for this long and never had one which epitomized what being mans best friend is supposed to be. He was in so many of my daughters plays and costume events. Heck, he is in her senior photos. As weather conditions allowed, he rode in the car with me 1-2 days a week for the last decade as I did my job, ever patient for a few minutes where we could play catch or take a short walk. He was and is an incredible companion and calming influence on our home and family. At the same time, he loved to wrestle with me and had a ferocious play bark with made it sound like he was going to kill me, but he never so much as did anything but softly gnaw on my hand as I played keep-away with his favorite toy. He is king of making you feel like the most important person on the planet, just buy lying next to you on the couch. Which is still his specialty. I dont know how long we have left with him, but I know I wont be able to type this when hes gone, so heres to you, buddy. Youre the best dog a family could ever hope for.
Posted on: Tue, 19 Aug 2014 00:02:03 +0000
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