My lovely Scarlett <3

Today, my Koko went to heaven. Hug your pets a little harder. He was very loved and was just under 14 years old. Today on the day of the dead for pets. My bestest boy, until we meet again and go for the longest walks, rest in paradise and wait for me to join you once again. You lived a full happy life my goodest bestest boy.

Long time lurker first time poster. Struggling with this. Our boy is 12 years old. Great health bloodwork wise and mentally. However, he has been diagnosed with DM. The official diagnosis came in JUNE 2026 but we suspect symptoms started around October 2025.

OCT 2025 we noticed him hopping more than running. Our boy has been active all his life and we would take him on morning walks 1+ mile every day. We started noticing he wasnt quite running anymore. No big deal hes old prob joints, stiffness , etc.

Fast forward to 2026 and we started notice the knuckle dragging. Back legs dragging against the pavement occasionally then gradually constant. We noticed hair missing from his back legs and took him to the vet which was when he was diagnosed with DM. Vet recommended no more walks so we sidelined him. He didnt seem to mind as he knew it was prob more painful to walk vs sitting.

Well heres the point of this whole post, the disease has progressed very rapidly. He struggles to go up stairs , jump on the couch , loses all traction on any surface not a rug. we have planned around him as much as possible, laying carpet down , harnesses to help him up the stairs. Hes still a puppy in his mind, he wants to get into bed with us, wants to jump on the couch, etc.

Managing him has been..............interesting. But , now, we notice him struggle to defecate. He goes, but you can tell he is shifting all his weight to the front legs. Vet said the next thing to go will be his front legs.........we tried every supplement, every treatment out there but mostly nothing is going to work. Its a degenerative disease so accepting it for what it is has been stressful.

Hes ........a shell of his formal self. He tries to engage and get up and def struggles to stand but is still able. Wants to play with his toys knowing he cant really move or do anything. Hes still hungy, wants to eat, begs for treats but , my wife and I are aware that his movement is getting worse and worse. He constantly pants when he stands or lays down due to the effort it takes for him to engage his rear legs.

We are debating when its time. Its such a painful disease because ........hes there, in his mind, but his body is not. Vet says hes prob late stage 2 of DM. Im just looking for insight, if anyone went through this what they experienced. Im struggling to know when to put him down.

Sorry for the long post , prob just posting to get my thoughts out there as its been weighing on me, i dont know what to do for him.

Pic for attention

Hello! So she’s in her teenage phase, about 10 months but I’m having issues with her training and not sure if it’s typical. The biggest thing is, while training she refuses to actually chew her treats and every minute or so stops to cough the ones she didn’t chew back up. I just use her kibble to train. Shes also very distracted and keeping her dialed in is quite difficult.

Any suggestions ?

Freya wants to be a ghost for Halloween!

Doc says he's a healthy boy, one year post adoption. 103 pounds ,heartworm is on the way out. Lane has done more for me than I could ever repay.

He really likes his ball

She’s stayed outside from 8 am until late night the past few weeks. I don’t blame her, but come on, this is PRIME beef, girl!

…and the sniffs obviously🤣🐾

Also, what is everyone’s honest opinion about the situation with the ball and her scraping the chin of the shelter worker?

My beautiful Zelda is still kicking despite her best efforts. Lately been noticing her bow legged stance. She is over 6 months old now, and if you have seen her story before you’ve seen she’s been a very sickly puppy her whole life and blew up in size that 8weeks-12weeks stage because she was getting proper nutrition and treatment for coccidia (round 1) and went from a 9 pound potato to 25 pound in those 4 weeks. I was warned to monitor her growth and weight and try to follow a good feeding guide as to ensure she’s being well fed but not growing too quickly because of the bones of her front paws can be weakened by growing too fast. Wanted to ask everyone else’s opinions and if they have seen the same. Don’t worry, she will be getting a nice vet visit and X-rays done again when I can next month. My other dog is needing a tooth extraction so I’m saving for that right now. :)

Hello, this is Riot!💙he’s currently 6 month old and I believe he has most of his adult teeth in. I was just wondering what people used at this age?? appropriate bones, chewing toys, anything

Hello everyone. I’ll keep this vague but might be long.

I adopted a 6 month old German shepherd from a humane society in August 24.

A little about me. I am a 28 year old veteran. I just got out after 10 years in the army. Diagnosed with all the goods.

I found this dog and made a decision it would be fun for me to get back into a routine while I get back into school and transitioning out the army.

Unfortunately. 2-3 weeks in I notice he is limping and walking with a. Strong sway. The vet diagnosed him with severe hip dysplasia and said he will need full hip replacement .

I was/am devastated . This guy has been my best friend and companion I have never felt such an attachment so fast and we have just had the best time together.

Unfortunately with the transition , the move, school. I just can’t afford a 10-15 thousand dollar replacement and I talked to the humane society to ask for its options but also to express some concerns on if this was caught before hand and etc.

They express to me I can bring him back so they can operate on him however it would be me surrendering but ensured to emphasize on I will not be able to readopt him after he recovers. I said I was fine with that but with the bond him and I created , I asked if I could just visit him or even just foster during his recovery or whatever the case is. I’m trying to think of best case for him ya know?

They say no. I can look for updates on social media when he’s ready and I can call for updates but I can not visit .

So I must make the decision do I take him in for his quality of life . Or do I selfishly keep him and save up for a surgery myself .

Mind you, he jumps on the bed, the couch, he plays ball, and shows rarely any concern of pain at all. He’s on meds but a small dose. He eats plays normal and everything. But I’m thinking. Long term. Would this be the best avenue ya know?

It’s a tough decision. He’s my best friend. I can’t express the emotion I have to him. And I’m just feeling like I’m doing something bad?

Apologies for the train noises in the background.

Was going through old videos and photos, then I found this gem.

He got a bunch of new plush toys, a new frisbee (I have a stockpile), and a heart shaped meatloaf cake.

And he rocked this weekend and earned his AKC SWMB and is chipping away at his overall SWM. Love this dog.