Dylan, our older lurcher, has given me some headaches over the last three months or so. He has become more reactive on walks, which I have put down to two bad experiences with other dogs.

Just recently, I have also just had a feeling with him not being quite right, though I can't put my finger on it... sometimes he is more lively than I would expect him to be (as in not settling) and other times he seems deep in thoughts as if slightly uncomfortable about something.
The other day, he had a quick go (bark) at my OH when OH rested his foot on Dylan lying on the floor. Fine, he could have caught him and hurt him by accident, but it still seemed weird.

But what really worries me now is that Dylan is drinking water from the bowl. For the last six years (since we have had him), Dylan has not really been drinking any water. The only time I have ever seen him drink water from a bowl was when he was really hot after a summer's walk or at training class. His urine was in fact so concentrated, that I started adding lots of water to his dry food which I have done for years now. This way I knew he would get enough liquid.
But over the last two weeks or so, I noticed Dylan drinking more and more often from the bowl... and fairly frequently throughout the day.

So, I have booked him in next Tuesday to come along when Jesse needs to have his stitches out anyway. I am going to try to get a urine sample too to I guess test for diabetes... and will ask my vet to do a blood test for kidney function etc.

I hope it is nothing serious! Dylan is almost 7 now, so not a youngster anymore! I'll let you know what the outcome is next Tuesday.

Vera

Aww everything crossed its something simple to sort out Vera give Dylan a gentle hug from me please and let us know when you have been to the vets . Can we see a pic of him please ? :D

Fiona xx

Your wish is my command. ;)







And one with his partner in crime Flash

:wub: :wub: Aww they are both gorgous Vera , i love Dylans stripey coat , Flash looks so alert in all his pics , what a change in him from when you first got him eh ?

Fiona xx

Dylan seems to be back to normal - why do my dogs always do that... get back to normal after I have booked them into the vets but before the appointment? Well, I am not complaining... but I am going to take him in tomorrow anyway! It won't do any harm to have him checked over.

Vera

I took a urine sample in today so my vet could test for diabetes. Luckily, the test was negative.

Mark (my vet) has taken some blood to test for various stuff and we'll have the results back tomorrow.

Vera

Awww everything crossed here that the bloods come back clear too Vera , I am sure our babies just like to worry the life out of us , and i always think they just laugh at us when it comes to vet appointment time and they go skipping in all happy and waggy tailed after we have worried our selves silly until the appointment time , just as well we love them to bits is'nt it :lol: :lol:

Fiona xx

My vet called me this morning. Dylan's urea levels in the blood are slightly elevated. They are not a major problem (yet) and could possibly be normal for Dylan, but they are higher than would generally be expected.

We will do another blood test on him in a month time to see whether there are any changes. Until then, there is nothing that needs to be done.

I am glad that it is not devastating news, but of course, it is still a bit worrying that Dylan's kidneys may not be functioning normally. We'll know more in one month after the other test.

Dylan's retest shows that the values are stable, but it is minor kidney disease. So we will watch his diet and we will retest him in 6 months time; my vet is not particularly worried at all. Dylan is still drinking more than normal though and of course, I will watch his water intake carefully too.

Vera