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What an experience! Glad Cleo is getting the attention and meds she needs.
"You are a GREAT mum!" ~Cleo
Mary
Ruffles May 1997~~12/6/2010~~She was "a heartbeat at our feet"~~ Izzy--BD unknown;~~ RIP 7/13/2013 ~~; she was a sweet Yorkie spirit and we miss her
Bella--Yorkie rescue; BD 9/2013 +/-; RIP 5/2015
Ruby--senior Yorkiepoo foster
Never a dull moment! Hope Cleo gets better quickly! Hugs!
Shell and Hank (aka Mr. Pickypants) - now deceased (4/29/1999 - 12/4/2015) Cairn Terrier mix who was diagnosed 8/18/2011 and on .75 U Levemir 2Xday. Miss you little man!
It’s been a few months since I have cried on everyone’s shoulder and I thought I’d thank you all for your support with an update on Cleo.
We are now at peace with our decision not to pursue all the suggested testing and biopsy for liver issues etc. Cleo has been doing remarkably well, many of the neighbours and at the vets are commenting and amazed at how good she looks. My girl is now 12 and aging gracefully and living the pampered life. There is no question that she has changed significantly since Buddy left us however, she no longer appears to be sad or wonder around every room looking for him. She hates to be alone but that OK because we had so dramatically changed our lifestyle because of Buddy and we haven’t reverted back to going out regularly. She hoards the king size bed, needs a cushion on her garden chair when joining us on deck, rides shotgun with daddy when he is running errands, needs/demands more cuddling from one of us, herds us regularly and let’s us know when she is in a playful mood.
She is eating well twice daily, seems to enjoy and digest her food well and has normal poops etc.,and hasn’t had any more flare ups on her paws. Thanks to HealthyMouth, her teeth are nice and white and gums are infection free. She still wants her twice daily walks (leash free) and just loves to dawdle and visit with the many dogs in the neighbourhood. She has shown on a few occasions that she still has some spunk left in her. She is definitely daddy’s girl cause mommy does all kinds of things that she doesn’t like… brushing her teeth, putting drops in her eyes, cleaning her ears, giving her meds, a bath, brushing. She may not be a pure Westie but she is a pure high maintenance drama queen.
After getting out of bed in the morning, this is where she slowly wakes up for about 30-45 min.
We still take care of Quentin for days or weekends and they have learned to cohabit and to ignore each other. However, we made the mistake of agreeing to dogsit a 3rd dog (Oli) for a few hours. In that short time, he peed on the rug in the family room, living room, Cleo’s cushion, wood floor in the only room where the finish is wax, bit my husband and all hell broke loose in our house even after trying to calm him down by walking him for 1 hour ( I threatened my husband with divorce if he puts me through this again). This little dog was a little terror, and kept attacking Quentin and that really got Cleo mad and she was defending Quentin and nipping at Oli’s butt and legs. We put them in the yard knowing that Quentin can outrun any dogs and Cleo joined in and of course, she could barely walk the next day (thankful for daily Tramadol)…. But she was a pup for a few hours.
The X-rays confirmed that both back legs are severely degenerated so we ramped decks, added steps to reduce heights, pick her up on/off the couches and the bed. Also, Missy won’t go pee and poop if the grass is too long so she does her business right on the patio.
PS: If anyone is wondering about her right ear being down. Some of you will remember that one of Buddy’s ear was quite a bit shorter because it was burnt on a heater at the breeder (?&&%?). When we got them both out of there at 10 weeks, Cleo’s ears were up straight and within 2 months, her ear came down (mirror image of Buddy) and we never bothered to do anything to correct it, concentrating instead in bringing them back to health.
We are thankful for every day we have her to fill the void of Buddy's passing as we very often talk about him and miss him dearly
dogs can be very territorial when a new member pops in and the new guy tries for dominance
jesse visiting one of her cosines in reno had a time of it the first couple visits coco a Yorki just wanted to be in charge and let jesse know it every chance she got jesse being a mellow girl just accepted it until one visit pushed jesse over the edge and she fought back after that no problems .
thats great cleo feels better life is quite amazing its ok its not perfect and thats expected with age and its nice to age gracefully as cleo does so well
enjoy all these beautiful times together they are so special
Jesse-26 lbs - 16.5 years old ,11 years diabetic, one meal a day homemade and a vitabone snack . 3 shots of Novolin( under the Relion name ) a day . Total insulin for a 24 hour period is 6.5 units of NPH insulin .
Jesse earned her wings on 6/21/2021
That's the way life should be, she should expect...
1. Fresh cut grass to pee on
2. You stopping the world the stay with her all the time
3. A king size bed all for her (why else would you buy it, duh!)
4. Peace when she needs it
And yes, you are the bad guy and daddy's are good. That's how it was here too.
She sounds very happy and so do you.
I'm Debbie and Nibbles is a 16yo beagle mix ~ Diagnosed in Feb. 2011 with Diabetes and Cushings ~ Currently at 11 units Humulin N ~ Eating Wellness canned food.
Aw, this is such a wonderful update on Cleo! I'm so glad she's doing well and enjoying life! It IS the little things...like being continually catered to...that make life worth living, huh? ! LOL Glad you decided not to put her thru all the testing...sometimes it's just better to let them be. Great update! Hugs!!
Shell and Hank (aka Mr. Pickypants) - now deceased (4/29/1999 - 12/4/2015) Cairn Terrier mix who was diagnosed 8/18/2011 and on .75 U Levemir 2Xday. Miss you little man!
Happy to read such a positive update on Cleo! I saw her pictures in her album and she is adorable - love the one where she is all snuggled in her daddy's arms. Makes me just want to snuggle her too! Holli
Holli & Decker // diagnosed November 5th, 2011 // Journeyed to the bridge January 26th, 2013, surrounded by his family at home // 9 years old // Levemir insulin // Hypothyroid // C1-C5 cervical spinal lesion // weight 87 lbs // Run with the wind my sweet boy. Run pain free. Holding you close in my heart till we meet again!
Aw Louise, I have just read through Cleos thread and wanted to say how wonderful she is. Loosing her sibling Buddy must of been so hard, but good to hear she is getting used to him not being there. Her new playmates seem like great fun too. She sounds like a very happy, spolit, opinionated darling, who has been through quite enough in her 12 years. Love that shes a daddys girl and loves cuddles, thats fab! Great pictures too, snuggled in her dads arms like a little munchkin.
My Pippa is a puppy farm westie too . Makes me sad to think of her poor start and wonder if thats why she has been more succeptible to diabetes? She also has a luxating patella, but its mild and transient so we have left alone for now, and to be honest bothers her very little. I know what you mean about not being able to leave them in those awful places, what would of happened if we had not taken them home?????? Thank goodness you happend on both Cleo and Buddy, Im sure their lives would of been very different without you and your husband caring so much for them.
I think that you are entirely right in your thinking re quality of life v investigations and treatments. We were thrown a dilemma right at the begining when my first vet found enlarged lymph nodes in Pippa and wanted to proceed to lymph node biopsys and kept mentioning lymphomas, scared me stupid too. I have changed vets and her lymph nodes are still borderline enlarged, but this may be a normal variation or it may be a nasty , but we are following a watchful waiting process and 6 months in no change. She seems so well in herself and I cant help but think this is a red herring. Time will tell. At the moment her diabetes is regulated, shes happy, naughty and active and we will watch this space.
So sorry I did not know Buddy, I must read his thread one day, and you must all miss him so much still, But your Princess Cleopatra is georgeous!
P.s. I also had a siamese cat called cleo, after cleopatra, she sadly died 2 years ago and I miss her still very much. Lovely name Cleo.
Thanks for sharing this update and look forward to more good news on Cleo.
Hugs, Jen x
Pippa; Westie, diagnosed 17th April 2012 at 6.5 years old, 8.7kgs, 6.8 units canninsulin bd, Burns high oats food . Lives with George 9 (Black lab), Polly 19 (cat) and Basil 15 (diabetic mog for 5+ years). Im Jen and we live in West Wales where it rains too much!
That's the way life should be, she should expect...
1. Fresh cut grass to pee on
2. You stopping the world to stay with her all the time
3. A king size bed all for her (why else would you buy it, duh!)
4. Peace when she needs it
Hahahaha . Love this update Louise! Glad Cleo is living well!
Sounds like Oli's visit will be a one time deal...you have to wonder how such a small dog can have so much in his bladder in such a short time!
Patty and Ali13.5yrs 47lbs diagnosed May '08 Ali earned her wings October 27, 2012, 4 months after diagnosis of a meningioma~ Time is precious ~
Debbie: that is so funny. We suspect the long grass tickles her tummy and she tentatively goes on the grass and walks out as if there were landmines all over the yard.
Patty: Yes, dogsitting Oli was a first and a last. The strangest thing is that our friends were at our place before with Oli. He tried harassing Cleo and she let him know in no uncertain terms to back off. We suspect the peeing was because of Quentin and it was territory marking. I suspect there is not much training going on, they both work, the daughter plays hockey and they travel a lot and have a very active lifestyle. I have very rarely seen such an aggressive and nasty dog.
Jenny: When I think of what the first 10 weeks of their life was like, I cringe. We wanted a male and we thought we were dealing with a breeder which had been recommended to us. It was only when we got there that we realized that she was a backyard breeder. She took them out of a barn, put Buddy on the floor and Cleo in my arms and Buddy just went crazy. It was only when I put Cleo on the ground that we saw she was limping. Buddy bald and covered in bleeding sores, Cleo with a hip fracture. We paid the ransom and got them out of there. We were often criticized for having done so but we never once regretted doing it.
Yes, we are happy that she is doing so well and that she is living her <golden years< in style and will not be leaving this earth the same way she arrived.
Tks people and extra belly rub for all your furbabies. It is so heartwarming to witness the care and love that is displayed in the various posts on this site.
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