GoldenOldie

Looks like he's got mum wrapped round his paw well and truly. Hope all goes well with his check up

Your lovely pictures brought back many happy memories of my children when younger and subsequently grandchildren walking summer and winter on the beach. The RSPCA held their annual 5 mile dog walk on the beach and over 25 years the family and assorted dogs did the walk several times. My mini long haired dachs. used to cope well until his coat got water and sand logged and would then cadge a ride in the toddlers pushchair! I now live in rural Derbyshire and occasionally hanker after my bracing Sunday walks by the sea.

Mac (1 & 2) Max Meg Bunty Tiggy Bonnie Lily Lucy Daisy Tinkie Kim Cindy Lady Polly Wonderful memories

How frustrating for your family when they have actually left the place cleaner than before. On the other side of the coin my son and his wife rent out a flat in Southport and are very happy for tenants to have pets. Their last tenant, however, was a single businesswoman and she left the flat in a terrible state, not only not very clean but was obviously a very heavy smoker and it took my son ages to do a surface clean followed by a professional clean before the flat could be rented out again. Thankfully their new tenant appears to be as good as your son and his partner have been in caring for the property.

Positive thoughts for you and the lovely Sophie. Sally.

What a sad time for you, the ultimate decision is never easy no matter how right it is. Think of the 5 good years you gave her and all the love and care at the end. Sally.

Just wondered how the lovely Jess is getting on after her travels on Saturday - I was one of the transporters. She was an absolute gem in the car and sat looking out of the window or lay on the back seat. I have since found out that her previous owners found out about the Oldies Club through a friend seeing a poster I had put on the notice board in my local vets, and I know the staff promote the cause. Sally.

Got up early to finish off a report for work and successfully distracted myself trying to post pics! Unsuccessful here but managed to get pics of my 4 on the OC Gallery. Sally.

I'd like to be able to sing - I 'm third generation of a family of professional musicians and singers and am tone deaf!

I was asked to foster this lovely old girl by a local sanctuary in Stockport. When I went to collect her the practice manager at the vet she had been taken to did say they had been trying a number of places so good for them, they really did try their best for the old girl! She had a little moment of excitement today when I got her lead out and the least bad eye - is that grammatical - is now fully open and the white is clear. She also showed interest in her dish this evening and ate with the others so it's all small steps but in the right direction. Sally.

My third foster girl since last October has arrived! My beloved old GSD had to be pts in January because of multiple health problems, no. 2 (Millie Bichon) arrived with a sackload of behavioural issues, mainly fear aggression and in 6 weeks her lovely intelligence and personality shone thro' and she is now with her new family. On Friday I collected Millie - yes, another Millie! -a 9 yr. old spaniel from a local vet where she had been taken by her 89 yr. old owner to be pts because he can no longer walk her and kept falling over her in the house. He agreed for her to be rehomed and signed her over. She is grossly overweight but has clearly been a very loved pet and the sanctuary manager was told by the vet she appeared to have only a minor eye infection, however, I now have a lovely old lady in the throes of a false pregnancy, borderline pyometra (she had a scan on Saturday) and the most horrendous conjunctivitis with entropian in one eye which may need surgery, She's responding well to treatment and in spite of her life being turned upside down in a matter of days has the sweetest nature and is endearing herself to everyone. My 3 resident oldies are as welcoming and calm as always with newcomers and the cats are, as always, resigned to more dogs! She is lovely with the grandchildren and ignores the cats. When I become more competent I will post a pic of her and my other lovely oldies. Sally

Am I imagining it or are they bigger than ever this year - I've seen some whoppers recently, usually in my conservatory being watched by the dogs!

It really is a stressful time and you have all my sympathy. My eldrly GSD foster had epilepsy and cdrm and the massive doses of medication needed to keep her stable made her wee vast quantities; she was never incontinent but needed to go out every 2 hours at least and on the days I was at work for 3-4 hours the floor was flooded, fortunately she liked to spend time in the conservatory and kitchen so I used massives of newspaper and towels. The need to go out continued at night so for 4 months so I had little sleep and occasionally slept on one of the cane chairs as it wasn't worth going back to bed! In her post ictal phase she was also disorientated and the pacing was constant, day and night and I agree, this is very wearing. However, she was worth all the effort and I miss her a lot. She had had a particularly good week when she just couldn't get up one morning and I knew her time had come. Even on that day she struggled to go out and I helped her go outside but then she just returned to her bed. She had a peaceful, dignified and gentle end surrounded with love. I t never gets any easier no matter how many times we have to let our beloved pets go but I firmly believe in their own way they let us know when they have had enough. My thoughts are with you.

My very old cat. pts last winter at 19, had extensive dental surgery at the age of 17 and recovered very well from the surgery and happily lived on for another 2 years, having a huge appetite and continuing to hoover up dry food as well as her normal favourite pouches, cooked chicken, tuna and salmon! I have recently adopted another elderly cat, left outside the vets in a pet carrier with a very bad mouth (probably the reason for being left) and she had to have all her teeth removed. She is a lovely healthy old girl, again, with a huge appetite, and manages both wet and dry food with no problem. In my experience with older dogs and cats modern anaesthetic techniques do reduce some of the risks of surgery although there is always risk with any op. I don't know how your cat would manage raw food , interested to know. Would you need to mince the chicken for example. Whatever your decision, good luck.

I was very sad to read about Troy and his rather lonely end but how wonderful of the Oldies Club to have stepped in to try and get him a home. Two of my three oldies, now 14 and 13 were 'home alone', coincidentally both for 6 months living in their old owners homes with friends/family popping in to feed them and let them out. My lab. was 11 when I adopted him and was 53 kgs. and had breathing problems because he had been overfed and only let into the garden by very well meaning family. My other girl I adopted this year and she is profoundly deaf and has a significant heart murmur but is a very sprightly old girl and bounces around like a puppy most of the time. Both of them have the most wonderful loving temperaments and are very sociable, adoring dogs/cats/children and everyone in general! I can only imagine how lonely their lives were without stimuli and TLC, shut up in a house all day,especially my little deaf girl who has very quickly learned some basic hand signals and absolutely loves to be out and about being made a fuss of by everyone. In both of their cases I'm sure there was no intent to neglect but all animals need more than just feeding and toileting . I believe there was also a genuine feeling of not wanting the previous owners, in both cases in permanent residential care, to think family had just got rid of the dogs. Interestingly neither has ever shown any separation anxiety - I know how strange that sounds when they were used to being left so much! - but completely and quickly adapted to my routine when I work part of the week and they settle down after their morning walk and tend to sleep several hours, even on days when I'm at home. The only vice my dear old boy has is his love of emptying bins and I have many times been half way to work and remembered with sinking heart that I forgot to empty/hide the kitchen bin. He also loves to sort out my fruit and veg. shopping if I forget and sit down with a coffee before putting it away - particular favourites are strawberries, tomatos, bananas and melon topped off with carrots - his most spectacular being the day he opened and ate a vacuum pack of beetroot (5 beets) which he took into the living room to eat on the carpet when I nipped out for a forgotten item. No ill effects but I am paranoid about certain things like grapes and peppers and get those away first. He is, after all, one of the better known canine dusbins - a lab.!

I have always kept dogs and cats and have been fortunate in not experiencing much difficulty. Currently I have 2 cats and am collecting a new girl on Friday. My old labs. don't do stairs so litter trays (covered ones) and food are kept in my spare room. Someone I met ages ago had their cat's litter tray in their bathroom! Introductions are vital and cats are very good at sussing out bad vibes - and getting as high as they can. I recently fostered a little bichon and my cats, including the most dog savvie one, avoided her for almost all of the 5 weeks I had her. I fostered a GSD last year and more recently a yorkie pup and they took no notice at all. You can actually buy stair gates with a central cat flap type opening for indoors. Good luck.

Signed

The sheer callousness of human beings never ceases to amaze and anger me . There is a similar horrifying story about a poodle on another forum posted yesterday. I have worked in social care for 28 years and been involved in animal welfare for over 30 and ,while there have always been cases of child cruelty and animal cruelty sadly , it seems to me that recently it has been getting worse and the levels of neglect, abandonment and injuries have got worse - am I imagining it?

How can any so-called intelligent person , and a dog owner to boot, interpret any dog (of any breed) running into her leg while playing as anything but an accident! Thank heavens for at least one sensible judge! What a waste of time and money and what a worry for the lab. owners.

My 14 yr. old lab. had 2 little episodes a week ago, both during the night with some head tilting, slight disorientation and unable to stand. On both occasions he had recovered within a couple of hours and so far there have been no further episodes, however, he has slowed down a lot in the past few months and I know he is on borrowed time but his heart is very strong (much to my vets astonishment!) and his will is even stronger. He is very happy, enjoys a little potter out every morning, follows me round the house and is very reponsive to visiting family/friends/dogs etc. He has a spark of life about him, slowly dimming but still there, and will be loved hugely until the spark has gone.My lovely old GSD foster went this year, surrounded by love, and had a peaceful dignified end. As you say, it never gets easier, often harder, but do take each day as it comes, your dog is clearly so well loved and cared for and you will know when the time is right to let him go. Best wishes.

How dignified this boy looks in spite of his misery. Don't animals show up so called humans at times like this. Please update the forum on his condition, he looks so lost. Sally.