Dash: Caring for a Senior Dog In Long-term Hospice

For those of us pet parents to have a senior dog, we must become caregivers to them just as when they were puppies, or if you have human children, when they are infants. Today's blog is about the long-term hospice care I'm giving our dog Dash to keep him comfortable in his ailing senior years. He's got kidney failure, and we discovered a growth in his abdomen, and he's on a bunch of medications. He's still mobile and not in pain. The daily care may seem like a lot to some people, but not to me. He's our child whom I treasure every day. Here's the story.

(Photo: Dash almost always lays next to one of Tyler's toys to fall asleep)

On Tuesday, January 6, 2025, we took our 17 1/2 year old Dachshund/Chihuahua mix, Dash, to the vet, because blood was covering his right eye and he hasn't been eating much. Since his brother Tyler passed on July 29th, he's been grieving deeply, lost almost half of his weight, become 100% incontinent and has gone 95% blind. The vet checked his eye, and examined him and told us something else was going on so we're treasuring every day.

After a physical exam, our vet, Dr. Matt, found a growth in Dash's abdomen. He said it could be benign, but is likely making him feel full, thus, the much-reduced appetite. It brought back memories of July 25th when we discovered Tyler had a growth on a blood vessel to his abdomen.

(Photo: Dash, napping in his diaper on a fuzzy blanket on his bed)

I asked about cleaning the blood from Dash's eye, and the doctor said removing the coating may damage the retina underneath. Dash is blind in that eye anyway. But he needs rewetting drops 3 times a day. His other eye has a small growth on the eyelid, so also needs the eye drops to prevent irritation.

Fortunately, Dash is still mobile. He can still walk around, although sometimes unsteady on his back legs. He also has some dementia, so he tends to walk around in circles until I pick him up and put him in his bed, or carry him if outside.

Dash's Care Now - He wears a diaper 24/7 and is still really great about letting me know when he needs to go outside, even in the early mornings, like 3am or so.

Tummy issues - He's always had a sensitive stomach, and now he's on a daily dose of Metronidizole to prevent diarrhea, which is working! I've also had to change his probiotic from a chew to a capsule to break open and put into his mouth directly.

(Photo: Dash often walks around in circles outside, but he's still mobile).

He also takes a daily prescription of predisone for his chronic bronchitis and another to reduce the excessive protein in his urine, plus tracheal cough medicine.

Eating Habits Changed - He has refused to eat wet dog food about two weeks ago and stopped eating his daily morning fresh boiled chicken (we've been giving that to the kids for many years). He won't eat cooked hamburger, turkey burger, sliced turkey, sliced chicken, cheese, etc. I've tried everything. The vet suggested baby food, so that works. Because he has pressure on his stomach, I learned he can't eat a full small jar (he threw up), so I'm feeding him 1/3 of a small jar over the course of a day.

Every night at 7:30pm we do "3 treat time" and the dogs get three different treats. He no longer has much interest in those treats, either, so get gets baby food.

So, there's a lot going on to keep him comfortable, but he isn't in pain. That's what's the most important thing to me.

My Thoughts - If you aren't willing to care for your dog like you'd care for an elderly parent, than you should think twice about adopting a dog. These kids need the best care.

Be sure to tell your dogs, cats, rabbits, horses, etc. how much you love them every day.