[lisaly]

Originally Posted by sashajade

My zac is 16 years and 8 months and still going strong
I sadly had to have his twin brother tye pts last tuesday because his kidneys gave up

TYE IS ON THE LEFT AND ZAC ON THE RIGHT

Your babies are so adorable. I am very sorry about your loss of Tye. You and Zac must be heartbroken without him.

We lost our little girl, Ashley, in June, one month before she would have been seventeen. We did a lot of preventative care with her and kept her physically and mentally active. She went for daily walks, which kept her heart and lungs strong. I carried her a lot as she got older because I was afraid that it would be too much for her, but I gradually increased the amount she was walking on her own. She was walking at least a mile a time on her own, usually a couple of times a day, up until a few days before she died. When it was too hot out or she seemed tired, I carried her. I took her at least once a week shopping, to a park, or somewhere else so that she had something that was exciting for her other than her walks. She absolutely loved people, especially children and even little babies. I really think the human interactions and mental stimulations helped her. She did have CCD, a doggy Alzheimer's, the last year of her life, but she was still very responsive with my husband and me. Her heart was enlarged, so we had to be careful with anesthesia, but she had regular dentals done, usually once or twice a year, prior to the age of ten. After that, we did dentals two other times due to infections. I strongly believe dentals help to keep them healthy and I think keeping Ashley active helped to keep her happy and mostly healthy. She always had some kibble each day, but I cooked for her also.