PSA and Vet Rave

Yesterday I got a call from my dad that I have been dreading... our family dog Duncan (a 14 - and a half - year old black lab) seemed to have taken a turn for the worse and they had a vet appointment at 2:00, so this was my heads up that things might change quickly.

Based upon my raves my parents recently switched veterinarians after 14+ years and went to see Dr. Gurtman at Towne Line Veterinary Group. Since he had seen Duncan most recently, that is where they were headed yesterday.

It turns out though that Duncan did not have a stroke or a brain tumor as my dad feared - sudden head tilt, couldn't walk, wouldn't focus on anything, wouldn't eat - but Vestibular Disease. Apparently it is very common in "geriatric" dogs (over 12) and one of those things that just shows up but then goes away on its own within a week.

I did some research and unfortunately there are many stories where dogs are mistakenly put to sleep assuming it is something much worse, so please, if your dogs ever exhibit "stroke-like" symptoms ask the vet if maybe it is Vestibular disease before you make any decisions!

While Duncan will be hard to care for these next few days, he should recover and go back to his grumpy old man self.

Dr. Gurtman is great though and knowing Duncan was unable to walk came outside and performed the entire exam in the back seat of the car. He also 100% agrees that despite being old and senile and arthritic - and this temporary disease aside - our dog still has a good quality of life so he never even suggests that he should be put down.

When I got my dog Amber, it was so hard for me to know what was and wasn't normal for her, being 2.5 when we adopted her and not knowing her history, so I emailed him constantly and still often shoot over a question here and there and he always responds and is never (outwardly) annoyed by it.

There is a small chance that perhaps Duncan does have something worse, and if that is the case, we will deal with it when that time comes, but we are hopeful we will now have him with us for another Christmas.

Re: PSA and Vet Rave

Awww poor Duncan. I pray he is ok And thanks for the info. I had never heard of that disease before.

Re: PSA and Vet Rave

I'm sorry Duncan isn't feeling so hot, but really glad that it wasn't more serious! This:

Re: PSA and Vet Rave

Thanks for the good thoughts for Duncan! And anyone looking for a veterinary, definitely go to Towne Line Veterinary Group!