Boomer an exceptional dog.
You know how it is when a child tells you they want a dog. You may put up some artificial barriers. This is to test the sincerity and reasonableness of the request. This runs the gauntlet of who is going to take care of it, feed it, walk it, take it to obedience classes and clean up the land mines. If you are a parent, this puppy or kitten question needs to be responded to with the right answers. The age of the child may have some bearing on your response. A six year old or a sophomore in college, you still need to hear it. I do not care if you have already mentally agreed with the request. I feel strongly about partnering up for what you hope is a long run. The run is never long enough.
My daughter Julie brought up this discussion eleven years ago. She and her mother "accidently" found this cute 10 to 12 week old puppy at the Humane Society of Huron Valley. He was going to be a "small" dog. They brought him home and I just laughed. Boomer weighed 21 pounds and had paws big enough to use as skis or snowshoes. His carpus joints (wrist) were huge round globes. They are an outward indicator that bone lengthening or growing is still going on until the anterior surface becomes flat. Boomer eventually weighed just under120 pounds at his peak mature weight. He honestly was 90 percent muscle and 100 percent heart and a tail of steel.
Boomer taught us about a new level of love and devotion. He had a black coat with a white and black spotted tuxedo bib. His right front had a white speckled stocking; the left front had a partial parti-colored sock. People thought he was part Dalmatian. I think he was Dane and something big. He spent his formative time in Milan . Learning the social graces was easy for him. He went to obedience classes at Country Kennel. He was an above average student. He was people orientated. When Julie moved into an apartment, he went and became her biological security system. He did not like people banging on his door.
He had extremely bad inhalant allergies. Most dogs do not develop allergy to ragweed until their second season of exposure. Boo reacted his first year with excoriation and hair loss around both eyes. He looked like a raccoon with big red fat irritated lips. I felt so sorry for him. Antihistamines helped with a little help from steroids. We took him to see Dr Paul Bloom, a Specialist in Veterinary Dermatology in Livonia . He was on "allergy" injections, medication and expensive dog food for life. The shots made a world of difference in reducing his discomfort and increasing his joy for life.
He was such an athletic intelligent dog. We were surprised to find he could open the back door of the house. It has a round knob; it will let you open it from the inside while being locked. The outer storm door has a push lever he opened by pressing with his nose. He flipped up the chain link latch on the outside kennel gate. When the wood gate to the back yard was unlocked but closed, he figured out how to get it open. There are two elastic black bungee tie straps holding it in the closed position. Boomer would paw at the gate, bounce it and time the wave until he got his nose to push it open.
Laser light, he was very addicted to chasing the red dot. Boomer would run after it until he would drop from exhaustion. He ended up with bleeding pad cuts on his accessory carpal pads. The abrasive action of pivoting on the living room carpet or concrete in the driveway would tear up his footpads.
I have never seen a dog consume as much junk as Boomer. He would delight when he got to the newspaper plastic cover or paper towels. He would retrieve them out of the garbage and swallow them whole. I thought they would tie in a pretzel knot in his intestines. They would start out the exit and he would get down to business and push them out. I bought a pet insurance policy for him when Julie and Jake moved to Loveland , Ohio . I was sure he was a foreign body waiting to happen. He never used it for a foreign body. He did need it for eating extra goodies at a barbeque party and severe gastroenteritis. He also needed it when he completely severed his cranial cruciate ligament in his stifle (knee). He had a TPLO procedure and plate put in. It bought him four years of mobility.
I remember the surgery date, June 26, 2006; it was two days after Julie's first child Ashley was born. I thought he was a very good dog but he became an exceptionally gifted when he had his own children to take care of. Boomer became worth twice his weight in gold with the grandchildren. He was good with our son Brian's girls but he was spectacular with Ashley and Will. A panel of photos is next to my exam room showing him with his own kids. My favorite is with Ashley riding him as a magic carpet. When I think of it, he was magic. He interacted with four generations of my family, all appreciating his charms and talents. I especially like how he finished teaching Julie about life, love and living. She has taught her children to love and respect animals.
Boomers leg was giving him trouble. I had Dr Kyle Kerstetter at Michigan Veterinary Specialist evaluate his spine, hips and stifle Jan 7 of this year. He concluded there was extensive degenerative joint disease (DJD). The stifle was toast. Boomer was nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drug (NSAID) intolerant. All of the good joint meds gave him bloody diarrhea. Boomer went home and needed to go to the ER, he had enteritis. He had to go back because of anorexia and vomiting. The poor bud had an ultrasound exam, they found with multiple soft tissue sites with neoplasia in the lung, liver and kidneys.
It is something to hear the love and concern in your granddaughter's voice saying, "I am so sad, Boo Bear is so sick." Julie loved her dog enough to let him go. The legacy of loving dogs continues into the next generation.
The cure for old dog blues is a new puppy. In this case, it is a new Great Dane puppy. They get Nana the first week in March.
For more information about a specific case, consult your veterinarian.
The outside of a pet is good for the inside of a human.