Old friends

RevSlobber · 03-02-2011, 02:12 AM

Hello all, I was wondering if there is an intro section? Anyway, I am the proud 'owner' or vice versa of a very senior basset that has been my best friend for 13 (!) years. He is my first basset. I am 57 yo and have had some sort of K9 companion for my entire live and have learned some hard lessons of living and love along with pain and responsibility of best friend with fur companionship (I detest the ownership word). Before Bogie, I had had only 'manly' dogs, you know pit bulls rottweilers and the breeds that the general public wrongly sees as 'aggressive breeds'. Then my beloved wife (deceased) talked me into acquiring a basset pup. I must say I disliked the breed. Big droopy eyes nubs for legs and not very motivated to stop a crook from breaking in! Ha ha...but now I am a basset slave, as the first vet I saw said I would morph into. Man was she ever right!

Anyway, I was wondering if someone would be so kind to direct me to where I can discuss health issues of age for this remarkable breed. It kind of terrifies me that he has two years past his normal lifespan. He is still active but has health issues, much the same as an aged man has, and just this last month has just recently had a decline in his general health. So I am worried and although I trust my vet he isn't a man of many words.

RS

Mikey T · 03-02-2011, 02:19 AM

Try the health forum on this board.

Basset Hound Health and Genetics

sadeyes2 · 03-02-2011, 04:44 AM

Hi Revblobber (love the name) I know what you mean when you say you didn't think much of bassets. I was the same. When you get one you realise that they are the most wonderful little creatures you could ever wish to share your life with.

Hopefully you'll get the help you need over on the health section. MikeyT is a font of knowledge concerning bassets.

RevSlobber · 03-02-2011, 05:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mikey T

Try the health forum on this board.

Basset Hound Health and Genetics

Thanks I will give it a look!

RevSlobber · 03-02-2011, 05:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sadeyes2

Hi Revblobber (love the name) I know what you mean when you say you didn't think much of bassets. I was the same. When you get one you realise that they are the most wonderful little creatures you could ever wish to share your life with.

Hopefully you'll get the help you need over on the health section. MikeyT is a font of knowledge concerning bassets.

* Cof * It's Rev Slobber ha ha....thanks for the kind words. Yes mine has enriched my life by giving me many warm laughs and happiness through out the years. They are just a different kind of dog, maybe its their expressive face, or their antics, or thier shape ( I noticed that they are shaped proportionally much like an infant, short, legs long body, big head) It's just a hunch. Anyway thanks for the tips everyone!

Lightning&Stomps · 03-02-2011, 10:47 AM

Welcome RS! There's very good advice on this board. I too have a 13yo basset, who (knock wood!!!) is still going strong. Based on the experiences of the people on this forum, I would think the average lifespan of a basset is more than 11 years. We've had several on here who made it to 13 and over.

Soundtrack · 03-02-2011, 12:38 PM

I currently have three sisters who will be turning 13 in June. Two are still going strong, but one has a cardiac tumor.

I generally tell people the average is 12-13, but I've known some that lived to be 17 & 18!

MollyMcFrecklesMom · 03-02-2011, 01:12 PM

A neighbor of mine has a sweet old boy named Friday. She told me he was about 14. Gotta love old Bassets!

Kirska · 03-02-2011, 01:22 PM

I was at a dog wash fundraiser last weekend and a large breed dog came in that was 18 years old! It was quite remarkable. I don't recall the breed but I think it was a boxer. Anabelle is guessed to be 9 years old but it's a crapshoot. Who knows, she could be 10+. Despite having heartworms, being shot, nearly starving, and everything else that's happened to her, she's really in good health. Amazing how resilient dogs can be.

RevSlobber · 03-02-2011, 07:49 PM

Thanks everyone for the wonderful news! Bogie has had the usual basset health problems, skin in the summer time that breaks out despite every treatment known to man and a tendency for ear and eye infections (treated with cautious use of steroids, antibiotic pastes and drops). He nearly died when he was about nine or ten from some kind of mystery infection that two vets could not ID but treated. Thinking back I now I suspect he had a combination of prostate/ urinary tract infection, including his anal glands that somehow became septic. I come very close to losing him, it was a nightmare. Then right after that he was diagnosed with Prostate cancer! However X rays and digital probing found no lumps and his prostate and while swollen the organ was bilaterally similar (I beleive thats how the vet put it, both lobes were the same size which is god news!) and blood tests were not indicative of cancer. The two vets told me they made the diagnosis primarily because he lost so much weight in a short period of time and his bladder was so unnaturally full with difficulty of urinating. It seems they made a misdiagnosis, (but he may still have a slow growing type). I maybe too hastily switched vets, however the pair of vets were already talking about putting him down etc (well when I composed myself). I now treat his swolen prostate with hormone therapy, an old but effective treatment.

Now yall' know more than you ever wanted to of bogies innards ! Ha ha (I was hoping that my experience might help someone).

As for senior bassets, I prefer them to the younger dogs. Bogie has drastically lower energy than his pup days, and he has mellowed out beautifully as a result of age. It was a blessing. Today he is a gentle 75 pound lump of love that would not bite his own fleas. But when he was very young he was a full on psycho pup from hell! (I think he was mistreated at the puppy mill, his back legs were almost paralyzed and the owner carried him to an unsuspecting me (we met them at a dairy queen). I thought he might of been brain damaged, he was that hysterical ! My hands looked hamburger from his out of control temper that escalated faster than I could react, before I knew the play had turned serious. Luckily time and love changed him. Now he is a spoon crazy mellow fellow that has a reduced energy level, but still would walk three miles a day if I could accommodate him. I have worn out two drive belts on my new riding mower walking him twice a day at least a mile each time* with him ranging out in front of me! Anyway that is material for another thread. Thanks again for the info.

* As a US army vet (101st) I have been waiting over a year for the VA to give me an operation to pull some metal out of my legs (non combat disabled) so I walk on crutches hence the riding mower thing. Oh yeah, I don't walk him in the heat of the summer day. Every since he has been a pup he can not tolerate heat, at all. I used to have a part time junk business and had an old truck with no AC, and would have to buy him a bag of ice to lie on when he rode with me, which was every day! He still loves to walk even in his old age.

RS

03-02-2011, 02:12 AM	#1 (permalink)
RevSlobber Junior Member Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: far east tennessee Posts: 22	Old friends Hello all, I was wondering if there is an intro section? Anyway, I am the proud 'owner' or vice versa of a very senior basset that has been my best friend for 13 (!) years. He is my first basset. I am 57 yo and have had some sort of K9 companion for my entire live and have learned some hard lessons of living and love along with pain and responsibility of best friend with fur companionship (I detest the ownership word). Before Bogie, I had had only 'manly' dogs, you know pit bulls rottweilers and the breeds that the general public wrongly sees as 'aggressive breeds'. Then my beloved wife (deceased) talked me into acquiring a basset pup. I must say I disliked the breed. Big droopy eyes nubs for legs and not very motivated to stop a crook from breaking in! Ha ha...but now I am a basset slave, as the first vet I saw said I would morph into. Man was she ever right! Anyway, I was wondering if someone would be so kind to direct me to where I can discuss health issues of age for this remarkable breed. It kind of terrifies me that he has two years past his normal lifespan. He is still active but has health issues, much the same as an aged man has, and just this last month has just recently had a decline in his general health. So I am worried and although I trust my vet he isn't a man of many words. RS

03-02-2011, 12:38 PM	#7 (permalink)
Soundtrack Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Ottawa, Ontario, Canada Posts: 2,581	I currently have three sisters who will be turning 13 in June. Two are still going strong, but one has a cardiac tumor. I generally tell people the average is 12-13, but I've known some that lived to be 17 & 18! __________________ Rosie-Ch Soundtrack Cracklin' Rose CGN AGN RA Am RN TT Melody-Ch Soundtrack Unchained Melody TT Sailor-Ch Soundtrack Expedition Sailor RN TT Chili-Ch Soundtrack Spice Up Your Life Curry-Ch Soundtrack Canadian Brass Pepper-Ch Pennieslogon Living La Vida Loca CGN Vina-Ch Soundtrack Grand Illusion Leila-Ch Soundtrack Almost Paradise Deela-Ch Soundtrack Wink Of An Eye Hermione - Soundtrack Spellbound Eowyn - Soundtrack Rain Dance

03-02-2011, 01:22 PM	#9 (permalink)
Kirska Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Dallas, TX Posts: 933	I was at a dog wash fundraiser last weekend and a large breed dog came in that was 18 years old! It was quite remarkable. I don't recall the breed but I think it was a boxer. Anabelle is guessed to be 9 years old but it's a crapshoot. Who knows, she could be 10+. Despite having heartworms, being shot, nearly starving, and everything else that's happened to her, she's really in good health. Amazing how resilient dogs can be. __________________ Mom to Anabelle and Lila, rescued ladies and Harley, Corgi/Beagle/Basset/?? mutt "Saving just one dog won't change the world, but it surely will change the world for that one dog." - Richard C. Call

03-02-2011, 07:49 PM	#10 (permalink)
RevSlobber Junior Member Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: far east tennessee Posts: 22	Thanks everyone for the wonderful news! Bogie has had the usual basset health problems, skin in the summer time that breaks out despite every treatment known to man and a tendency for ear and eye infections (treated with cautious use of steroids, antibiotic pastes and drops). He nearly died when he was about nine or ten from some kind of mystery infection that two vets could not ID but treated. Thinking back I now I suspect he had a combination of prostate/ urinary tract infection, including his anal glands that somehow became septic. I come very close to losing him, it was a nightmare. Then right after that he was diagnosed with Prostate cancer! However X rays and digital probing found no lumps and his prostate and while swollen the organ was bilaterally similar (I beleive thats how the vet put it, both lobes were the same size which is god news!) and blood tests were not indicative of cancer. The two vets told me they made the diagnosis primarily because he lost so much weight in a short period of time and his bladder was so unnaturally full with difficulty of urinating. It seems they made a misdiagnosis, (but he may still have a slow growing type). I maybe too hastily switched vets, however the pair of vets were already talking about putting him down etc (well when I composed myself). I now treat his swolen prostate with hormone therapy, an old but effective treatment. Now yall' know more than you ever wanted to of bogies innards ! Ha ha (I was hoping that my experience might help someone). As for senior bassets, I prefer them to the younger dogs. Bogie has drastically lower energy than his pup days, and he has mellowed out beautifully as a result of age. It was a blessing. Today he is a gentle 75 pound lump of love that would not bite his own fleas. But when he was very young he was a full on psycho pup from hell! (I think he was mistreated at the puppy mill, his back legs were almost paralyzed and the owner carried him to an unsuspecting me (we met them at a dairy queen). I thought he might of been brain damaged, he was that hysterical ! My hands looked hamburger from his out of control temper that escalated faster than I could react, before I knew the play had turned serious. Luckily time and love changed him. Now he is a spoon crazy mellow fellow that has a reduced energy level, but still would walk three miles a day if I could accommodate him. I have worn out two drive belts on my new riding mower walking him twice a day at least a mile each time* with him ranging out in front of me! Anyway that is material for another thread. Thanks again for the info. * As a US army vet (101st) I have been waiting over a year for the VA to give me an operation to pull some metal out of my legs (non combat disabled) so I walk on crutches hence the riding mower thing. Oh yeah, I don't walk him in the heat of the summer day. Every since he has been a pup he can not tolerate heat, at all. I used to have a part time junk business and had an old truck with no AC, and would have to buy him a bag of ice to lie on when he rode with me, which was every day! He still loves to walk even in his old age. RS Last edited by RevSlobber; 03-02-2011 at 08:08 PM.

03-02-2011, 02:19 AM	#2 (permalink)
Mikey T Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2000 Location: West Warrwick, RI Posts: 7,729	Try the health forum on this board. Basset Hound Health and Genetics

03-02-2011, 04:44 AM	#3 (permalink)
sadeyes2 Senior Member Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: glasgow Posts: 589	Hi Revblobber (love the name) I know what you mean when you say you didn't think much of bassets. I was the same. When you get one you realise that they are the most wonderful little creatures you could ever wish to share your life with. Hopefully you'll get the help you need over on the health section. MikeyT is a font of knowledge concerning bassets.

03-02-2011, 10:47 AM	#6 (permalink)
Lightning&Stomps Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Versailles, Ky. Posts: 1,203	Welcome RS! There's very good advice on this board. I too have a 13yo basset, who (knock wood!!!) is still going strong. Based on the experiences of the people on this forum, I would think the average lifespan of a basset is more than 11 years. We've had several on here who made it to 13 and over.

03-02-2011, 01:12 PM	#8 (permalink)
MollyMcFrecklesMom Senior Member Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Southeast PA Posts: 1,182	A neighbor of mine has a sweet old boy named Friday. She told me he was about 14. Gotta love old Bassets!

Remove Advertisements Sponsored Links
Basset.net Advertisement