Thank god i had a day off

[matt35]

What a day it's been. The mrs and i took the day off work today as my brother was home from abroad. I went into town to run some errands and was gone about an hour. When i got home i found her running in from the garden telling me that something was wrong with our dog. He was collapsed in the flower bed, panting hard and drooling heavily, he could not move apart from giving a small wag of his tail. He's a Rhodesian Ridgeback and has always been tough, i knew straight away something was wrong, i felt his chest and his heart was racing so i scooped him up (not an easy thing to do as he weighs 8 stone) and we rushed him to the vets. He has been diagnosed with atrial fibrilliation and we so nearly lost him as his heart rate was 250b/pm. They've managed to stabilise him during the day and we've now got him home for the night. We're having to monitor his heart rate throughout the night as well as administer medicine.

It's been a heartbreaking day to see my big strong dog suffer such a sudden and devastating collapse and have got eveything crossed we can see him through it. He's been my best mate for ten wonderful years and whilst i don't want him suffering i don't feel that he's ready to go just yet and i'm certainly not ready for him to go.

I do know that if i had been at work today i would have come to find him.....well you know........don't take your pets/family members for granted....

[WildWake]

Thank god i had a day off

Hope he's doing well, :)

[PorscheBoy]

Got two labs, and had a simliar experience from one of our previous two, really twists your gut doesn't it. I don't have kids, but I can't believe the feelings are any different.
Sincerely hope all goes OK, dogs are tough SOB's, just be there for him, he'll know you're there and pulling for him.
Good luck

[cupracing]

I hope he has a speedy recovery

[Idleup95]

All the best pal!

[450man]

I am really sorry to hear about your dog. All pets, especially a dog, aren't just pets. They become an integral part of the family.

I hope thing improve quickly.

[maddog7]

I honestly thank my lucky stars every time I get home and Millie is still there, since she's getting on a bit now.
I really feel for you fella and hope he makes a good recovery quickly.
D

[Liam B.]

I really feel for you, I have 4 pet cats, i have grown up with all of them, one since i was 3. They are really like family, (except they never argue with you :eagerness:). One of my pet cat's had a alergic reaction with the jab the vet gave him, within a few weeks his Red blood cell count was at 9% (if he was a human he would be dead or his skin would be blue!) . The vet gave him 2 weeks, then 2 weeks later he was still fighting. They said he would go any day, but a month later he was still fighting and with us. He was refereed to a specialist. They kept him in for a night and day, gave him blood, steroids and he is now with us and back to normal. Hope he has a quick recovery!
Liam

[barryorbik]

Hope he pulls through OK Matt. Our 17 year old Staffie has gone through some bad times recently and it can only be a matter of time before we loose her but there is no way to prepare yourself for that day.

Barry

[milly0812]

Thank god i had a day off

[QUOTE=barryorbik;987957]Hope he pulls through OK Matt. Our 17 year old Staffie has gone through some bad times recently and it can only be a matter of time before we loose her but there is no way to prepare yourself for that day.

Barry[/QUOTE]

17 yrs for a staffie wow !........... Lost mine to cancer at 12 :-(......... Almost finished me too so my thoughts are with u Matt ;-)

Edit : I meant the loss of my dog almost finished me not cancer

[snowy]

Hope the big guy pulls through ok.

[rachel]

I too am so happy for you having a day off , the speed you were able to get treatment for your beloved pouch, would have made a huge difference to his recovery :-)

I love my dog more than anything (i have no kids) , so My thoughts today are with you and I hope he will be wizzing around agin in no time .
Hugs and best wishes xxx Rachel

[RcRotaryMadness]

I hope he recovers quickly, we have a cocker spaniel hes a good 12 years old now and hes like the little baby of the family... It does pull on the heart strings when something like that happens... all the best anyway

[1chris]

oh!!!

[matt35]

Thanks everyone. i reall appreciate every single comment. I was up with him all night and he was improving slowly all the time. He's back at the vets this morning to have more tests. His heart rate was back down in the 80's this morning and altho obviously still feeling poorly he was wagging his tail and wanting to get out. We have no kids either and he really is my baby boy. They have found a growth on one of his kidneys, however that is not really treatable for now altho it is probably the cause of his heart problem. The vet just wants to get him comfortable and stable for now as the heart is the real life threatener.

Once again thanks for all your support