YorkieTalk.com Forums - Yorkshire Terrier Community - View Single Post - My little guy has slowed down a lot over the past six months or so

QuickSilver · 12-25-2014, 06:20 PM

Hi, everyone! I don't know if anyone remembers me. It's been a really long time since I posted here, so long, I don't really know where to start in terms of saying hello to people.

So I guess I will just get to it. My yorkie, Thor, just turned 8. He's always been very healthy, slender, and energetic. He does have LP in both knees, and has for a while.

Over the past few months, I've noticed quite a drop in his energy level. He used to be impossible to tire out. Even after twelve-mile hikes, he would still want to play fetch. Now he's okay with thirty-sixty minute walk every other day. If I try to take him more than that, he leans against the leash until we go back inside.

He seems fine otherwise. No changes in his eating, pooping or peeing habits. He's been to the vet twice in the past month for check up and follow up. His lymph nodes are fine. he actually gained a bit of weight on the second visit. His belly is normal. He doesn't show any pain if you touch any part of his body.

We tried an anti-inflammatory daily pill for about a month, but I didn't see a change. Granted, it was raining constantly during that month, and he hates going out in the rain... but I don't think I saw anything.

The one thing that has been definitely going on is that San Francisco had a monster flea season, and Thor had fleas probably for a few months. I had him on Frontline, but the vet told me that it wasn't strong enough for this season. I just started giving him Comfortis. He was scratching non-stop for several weeks, and he now has a bacterial skin infection, which I am treating with a medicated shampoo. So I suppose another possibility is that he still isn't feeling up to snuff.

I know this is super-long, but has anyone else seen a marked slowdown that occurred over ~six months that wasn't caused by a health problem? The vet said that nothing appears to be wrong, but the next step would be an ultrasound to check the liver and I guess also for severe arthritis.

I didn't think 8 was that old for a yorkie, so it is worrying me to see this change.

Thank you so much for reading.

12-25-2014, 06:20 PM	#1
QuickSilver Thor's Human Donating Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: San Francisco, CA Posts: 5,929 Blog Entries: 31	My little guy has slowed down a lot over the past six months or so Hi, everyone! I don't know if anyone remembers me. It's been a really long time since I posted here, so long, I don't really know where to start in terms of saying hello to people. So I guess I will just get to it. My yorkie, Thor, just turned 8. He's always been very healthy, slender, and energetic. He does have LP in both knees, and has for a while. Over the past few months, I've noticed quite a drop in his energy level. He used to be impossible to tire out. Even after twelve-mile hikes, he would still want to play fetch. Now he's okay with thirty-sixty minute walk every other day. If I try to take him more than that, he leans against the leash until we go back inside. He seems fine otherwise. No changes in his eating, pooping or peeing habits. He's been to the vet twice in the past month for check up and follow up. His lymph nodes are fine. he actually gained a bit of weight on the second visit. His belly is normal. He doesn't show any pain if you touch any part of his body. We tried an anti-inflammatory daily pill for about a month, but I didn't see a change. Granted, it was raining constantly during that month, and he hates going out in the rain... but I don't think I saw anything. The one thing that has been definitely going on is that San Francisco had a monster flea season, and Thor had fleas probably for a few months. I had him on Frontline, but the vet told me that it wasn't strong enough for this season. I just started giving him Comfortis. He was scratching non-stop for several weeks, and he now has a bacterial skin infection, which I am treating with a medicated shampoo. So I suppose another possibility is that he still isn't feeling up to snuff. I know this is super-long, but has anyone else seen a marked slowdown that occurred over ~six months that wasn't caused by a health problem? The vet said that nothing appears to be wrong, but the next step would be an ultrasound to check the liver and I guess also for severe arthritis. I didn't think 8 was that old for a yorkie, so it is worrying me to see this change. Thank you so much for reading. __________________ If you love something, set it free. Unless it's an angry tiger.