Good to hear that doggy medicine is growing and that our pets are living longer.
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She can't hear well, just lost her last tooth and has cataracts, but Denise Schroeder's tiny dog Muffin is hanging on.
She's an old dog, a witness to family events, and through the years, a four-legged companion to Schroeder's two daughters. Schroeder calls her dog a legend, and she thinks Muffin is 20 years old, maybe older.
"She's awesome as a dog, and everybody is amazed she is so old," Schroeder said. "I get up every morning and check if she is breathing. She has a pampered lifestyle, and she sleeps on a pillow under the covers. She likes to lie in the sunshine and sit on someone's lap."
Dogs, like people, are living longer. Diet and genetics are contributing factors to their increased longevity, veterinarians say.
In the late 1980s, Schroeder found Muffin standing in the middle of a busy Norman street on a Sunday morning. She put the dog in her car, completed her errand and brought the dog home. The dog was house-trained, good with kids and seemed to fit in with the family.
They posted signs but didn't receive any calls claiming the dog. A week later, Muffin -- possibly a poodle, Maltese mix -- disappeared. As the family walked the neighborhood searching for the dog, neighbors came out of their house with Muffin and asked whether she was the dog they were looking for.
"From then on, she was ours and we took down all the signs we put out," Schroeder said. "Before we had Muffin, we had a dog named Nick the Convict because he dug out and escaped all the time. People from all over Norman called us about Nick. We put in railroad ties to stop his digging, but it went on and on until one time Nick didn't come home."
Muffin, a 6-1/2-pound dog, stays close to home and is taken for walks. She doesn't like wet paws, and Schroeder said if Muffin's feet get wet, her husband blows them dry with a hair dryer.
A new "sister," a 3-pound Yorkshire terrier named Mallory, came to live with the family a few months ago. Mallory wants to play and inches up to touch the old dog's nose.
"She is such a loving dog," Schroeder said of Muffin, "I hope she just goes in her sleep."
Jim Lee, veterinarian at Wedgewood Clinic in Oklahoma City, said many pet owners want to provide a good quality of life for their older pets.
"Clients are much more informed, and they are demanding better care for their animals. And they are willing to pay for it," Lee said. "As pets are living longer, people often have to make some choices about their pet's care."
There is help for dogs with almost any health problems, including cardiac disease, diabetes, allergies, liver disease, kidney disease and geriatric problems such as arthritis.
Medicines, vitamins, nutrition and surgery are available to improve and prolong the life of four-legged family members. It's not unusual for a dog to have an electrocardiogram or an ultrasound, Lee said.
There are highly trained, board-certified specialists available in such fields as dermatology, ophthalmology and internal medicine.
Dogs, like humans, can be treated for cataracts or can receive an artificial hip. There are new dental techniques available, and some animals are treated for diabetes.
Responsible and dedicated pet owners who find out the pet they love is diagnosed with diabetes learn to administer insulin shots daily, along with monitoring food and water consumption.
"The whole thing with senior dog care is a team effort," Lee said.
Sylvie, a 16-year-old Bassett hound, is on medicine for congestive heart failure. She's living a quality life, healthy and loved by Nancy Chapline and Chapline's husband, children and grandchildren.
"Literally, she rules our house, and my life is controlled by my 89-year-old mother and my 16-year-old dog," Nancy Chapline said. "Bassetts are so gentle, and they don't want to miss a thing. She wants to be where we are, and she follows me from room to room."
Sylvie wandered to the Oklahoma City Arts Festival in 1994, probably more for the companionship of people than for the pottery and paintings. The co-chairman that year, a friend of the Chapline family, knew they loved animals and called with news of the homeless, sad-eyed Bassett.
"There is always room for one more," Nancy Chapline said. "At the time, we had three cats and Sam, a black Lab who died two years ago. Sylvie loved him, and she used Sam for a pillow."
Sylvie sleeps in a bed by the Chaplines' bed. Her one bad habit is a desire to chase UPS trucks.
April Garcia, veterinarian at Westwood Pet Clinic in Norman, said 12 or 13 years is considered old for a large-breed dog.
She said many people don't have pet health insurance, and the cost is often a factor in their choice of treatment. There are pets on kidney dialysis, and others under chemotherapy and radiation therapy.
Dudley, a 13-year-old dachshund crying in pain, unable to jump and urinating in the house, was diagnosed with diabetes. Garcia said the disease is manageable, and she taught the dog's owner how to give insulin shots and provided other health information.
"The dog is now his usual self, bright and alert," Garcia said.
Kristen Holzer and her husband, Michael, have been married 14 years. The family dog, Divine, 17, came with Michael as part of the marriage package.
Divine, part blue heeler and hound dog, is relatively healthy considering her age. She has arthritis and is nearly deaf. A few months ago, she wandered from home and spent the night with a neighbor who had a dog ramp for an old dog she was caring for. Divine reunited with the Holzers the next day.
"Divine has a tendency to take a stroll," Kristen Holzer said. "She barks but she can't hear herself. And she thinks she is barking big and bad. She's a good girl, and she is pretty active."
Muffin, Sylvie, Dudley and Divine have added happiness to their families. And as one young owner of an old dog said: Dogs are your best friends because they never get mad at you.
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