I put the visit off, as I couldn't find any solutions offered on line,
and been through this once before with a family dog, nothing was
available then either.
Marlin spins. He turns to the left, over
and over and over, non stop. This morning, he'd been going almost 3
hours by the time our appointment came up (made that yesterday).
Vet
said she's seen this before, mostly w/ small dogs, mostly w/ poodles.
In 17 years, she never saw anyone so dedicated to his spinning as
Marlin is. (He went non stop for half an hour in the exam room while we
talked, after she examined him)
It is either a symptom of the
dementia, or it is a brain tumor. No treatment for either,
unfortunately, so she did not recommend spending the money for an MRI to
see if it is a tumor. She could suggest some dementia meds she used
in UK, not approved here but I could get them online via a Canadian
pharmacy. Also she is going to look in to an OCD med. He is COMPELLED
to spin, he will be lying down and give a little cry and hop up to spin:
"I can't just lie here, I have to SPIN!" So I'd asked about an OCD
med. She is going to research that. Either way it will be
experimental, not an obvious fix.
She noted he does keep track of
where I am as he spins - she had me move around the room to 3 different
spots and stop. She said he is in no pain and really not aware of what
he is doing. When he searches me out, you can see his eyes focus (I'd
noticed this in the back yard, already).
This came on gradually
over 5 weeks, first he'd spin a bit then be alright for several hours.
Now, he either eats, sleeps or spins. He sometimes gets up in the
night to spin. Exhausting to watch him!
He is unsteady on his
feet and may get himself dizzy; after a time, he will tip and his rear
end goes down. This only keeps him for seconds and he struggles to get
up and resumes his spinning. The other problem we have is, in him
getting up, he waves his legs about a bit. That sets Willy off, he
rushes in for the kill - a bite to the neck. This started with Willy
last summer, so I've been on watch for it. Willy has not actually
bitten Marlin since last August. I have to keep a water bottle handy.
And to help Marlin up, or hold him and cuddle him, I have to either put
Willy outdoors, or one of them in the bedroom with the door closed. I
discussed this with the vet as well. She has seen Willy go for Marlin,
last year at one vet visit when I lifted Marlin off the exam table to
put him on the floor. Marlin has never been one to stretch his legs
down to meet the floor, no, instead he always has waved them around. I
knew it would happen, and had the vet tech holding Willy's leash. It is
a primal instinct, to put a pack member out if having a seizure, or if
seriously injured, and so on.
Anyway, so she suggested I not
leave the 2 of them with access to one another anymore when I have to go
out. I need to start separating them before I leave the house. As
there is no telling what Marlin will do, when, no clear prognosis as to
what comes next in this decline.
Dad is not able to manage any of
the dogs any longer, so it doesn't matter if I leave and he is home,
that is the same as me not being here.
Marlin could stay this way for some months, or could get worse at any time. He eats fine, he is still Starvin' Marlin.
Oh,
and I've been walking Marlin a few times a week. Slow to start, and
slow moving but he is steady. She suggested I stop walking him;
neighbors have commented to me that the dog does not want to walk.
Unfortunately, she said someone could call Animal Control, and I'd have
another big mess to cope with. I will perhaps take him up to the farm a
few times, as he loves to potter about at the entrance where all the
dogs leave their p-mail. In a way I'm glad about this, it was hard to
poke along and go 1/4 mile in 45 minutes. On the other hand, I enjoyed
seeing him find a smell and sniff, sniff, sniff! I do understand
exactly what she is saying.
So, that is the update for Marlin. Sad, to watch him age like this.