Chris passed away August 1, 2008

[BestBuddy]

Re: Chris - Turned 14, Heart Rate is Up, Going to Vet

Hi Natalie,
Were you really surprised that Chris wasn't categorized as anything other than special! You know he doesn't like to follow the rules and he really is unique.
Jenny & Buddy

[bowens2]

Re: Chris - Turned 14, Heart Rate is Up, Going to Vet

Wow. That is interesting. A Designers Designers Designer dog. That's how I see it.

[rhodesian46]

Re: Chris - Turned 14, Heart Rate is Up, Going to Vet

It doesn't matter what he is He is still cute will those spots Hugs to Chris from Pebbles and I

[bgdavis]

Re: Chris - Turned 14, Heart Rate is Up, Going to Vet

Natalie,

You're so lucky to have a one in a million dog! Chris is truly amazing and now we know it's based on his breed!

Bonnie and Crissy

[Denise]

Re: Chris - Turned 14, Heart Rate is Up, Going to Vet

Very interesting!!! Darn though! I'd like to know more details as I'm sure you do too!

I've thought about doing this for Micah. I don't think she could be all Sibe and would like to know if there is wolf in there. Knowing that would also help me track where she came from and who had her tied so that her collar was imbedded. People that breed wolf into dogs seem to be proud of it so everyone knows who they are and I would like to know for my own reasons who's doing this to dogs.

Chris is a SBD (not silent but deadly) but special breed dog.

: )

[eyelostit]

Re: Chris - Turned 14, Heart Rate is Up, Going to Vet

Amazing isn't it, with his black spots, I'd thought some dalmation with a type of terrier like a jack russell, or a mixed short smooth coat terrier.

[k9diabetes]

Re: Chris - Turned 14, Heart Rate is Up, Going to Vet

I think I will check with them and see whether this means he definitely is NOT any of those breeds, which seems unlikely - though the 60-breed cheek swab test gave the same result - or whether his DNA markers are just so mixed up that they can't tell what's in him and it could be some of the dogs they test for but just can't identify them.

His coloring and personality are terrier - he's always been a rodent dog - rats, bunnies. No interest in birds, despite the Nova Scotia duck trolling retriever! No interest in herding or being herded. No interest in retrieving either for that matter.

I shared the information with his cardiologist and she says I should start listing him on forms I fill out as a Nova Scotia duck trolling retriever mix!

The family who adopted our stray Rhodesian Ridgeback mix had the test done and they got back Rhodesian, chow, and basset hound... don't know how strong the basset hound was!

Natalie

[eyelostit]

Re: Chris - Turned 14, Heart Rate is Up, Going to Vet

"I should start listing him on forms I fill out as a Nova Scotia duck trolling retriever mix! "

Thats a good one Nat !! Make there heads roll

[k9diabetes]

Re: Chris - Turned 14, Heart Rate is Up, Going to Vet

We tried Tramadol for a day and didn't like the reaction. He didn't throw up but kept going outside looking like he was about to.

So a couple of days ago we started Tylenol. So far he seems to be tolerating it okay. Not sure whether it's providing any pain relief though.

Friday and today he went for a hammie and a walk in a nice, small park that's shady and full of squirrels, birds, and probably bunnies. He really likes it there and it's not as exhausting as a walk along the river. He was a happy guy.

[eyelostit]

Re: Chris - Turned 14, Heart Rate is Up, Going to Vet

ya, its nice the walk, I took Niki down into the yard with me, i was cutting some limbs off some trees, she gets so excited and happy and jumps up on my legs, i can hardly believe she is blind. My little soldier.
I like when they hold their heads up in the air when they get a scent.

[Ricksma]

Re: Chris - Turned 14, Heart Rate is Up, Going to Vet

Natalie, I have been out of pocket for a while with minor health issues, and I just wanted to check in on Chris...hope he's doing better. I was reading some of the posts, and say that you have been using a patch on him. Maybe it gave him a measure of relief. Just checking in...

Love and hugs, Teresa and Ricky

[bgdavis]

Re: Chris - Turned 14, Heart Rate is Up, Going to Vet

Natalie,

I took Crissy to the vet's this morning and was looking through an old issue of 'Dog Fancy' and found a 'senior' dog that looked a lot like your Chris. The caption said he was a Louisiana Catahoula Leopard Dog. I'd never heard of the breed!

I located these sites that have descriptions and some pictures. The one I saw this morning had mostly white.

http://www.dogbreedinfo.com/catahoula.htm
http://www.dogbreedinfo.com/catahoulaphotos.htm

Did any of this breed show up in Chris' DNA?

Bonnie and Crissy

(This is a repost from this morning....guess it didn't take earlier)

[k9diabetes]

Re: Chris - Turned 14, Heart Rate is Up, Going to Vet

Bonnie, that's a cool looking dog! I don't see it on the list. In fact, there are a few hounds missing from the list and that could be one of the things in his background given his color.

http://www.whatsmydog.com/mixed_bree..._detected.aspx

I suspect though that he might have some more common breeds and that his DNA is so mixed up they just can't find any recognizable patterns.

He's been wheezing like crazy the past couple of days... have been considering giving him a lasix cuz his breathing whistles. But it's hard on his kidneys so I'm holding off. So far I can't tell if the Tylenol is helping. It doesn't seem to be hurting anything.

[k9diabetes]

Re: Chris - Turned 14, Heart Rate is Up, Going to Vet

Chris has been having a rough few days. Lots of wheezing and coughing. I think as much from lung disease as heart disease.

I finally broke down and gave him a little Lasix as it really helps his breathing even though it's a very small dose. Also gave him a little Zantac last night.

He's clearly uncomfortable but we don't really know why... maybe a combination of a bunch of small things. I feel bad for him. I'm considering some changes to diet and meds to see if I can get him to feel a little better.

The Tylenol didn't seem to hurt him but didn't seem to help him either.

Natalie

[k9diabetes]

Re: Chris - Turned 14, Heart Rate is Up, Going to Vet

Thought I'd copy some of an email discussion here...

Chris has a severe case of "old dog lung" basically... that's my understanding - just kind of a chronic bronchitis that's not infectious in nature. It always seems to be worse in the spring, maybe combines with allergies, although he's currently on a small dose of benedryl twice daily.

He gets a pretty good boost from the Lasix - I give him just 12.5 mg, not even enough to increase his drinking noticeably - and his breathing eases and he stops coughing.

His severe reaction, kidneywise, to Lasix, came after being given an injection of quite a bit more, even though it was a low dose for his size. His kidneys values changed immediately and took a long time to recover. So it scares me to give him any Lasix but I can also see that it's one thing that really helps him. This morning I gave him just half a 12.5mg tab with his food. That's how much Lasix our 9 pound cat was on when she had cancer!

We did try theophylline briefly... he didn't handle it well as it can increase heart rate, kind of like caffeine I guess?

We haven't tried other inhalers though...

I'm just kind of sifting through all his issues in my head right now debating what to try/change/eliminate. The doc saw some evidence of IBD when he did the ultrasound and Chris goes through panting jags. Last night after his meal he panted heavily for over an hour. So I'm thinking about changing his diet. This is the longest he's ever eaten Canidae... I actually hate to change foods as there are so few I feel comfortable feeding. But it could be there's something in it that bothers him.