Jingles

Update: 01/28/10

It’s been 2 1/2 months since Jingles had his surgery, and:

Jingles has not been to the vet since follow-up from his adrenal gland operation.  He has done very well!  His entire body shape has changed from a  pot-belly shape to a “Golden” shape.  When we first met him, I was almost convinced he was part pit-bull because of his broad, stocky shape!  The change has been startling. His incision is well-healed, though his fur is still growing in where it was shaved for surgery.

Compared to the way he was at first, Jingles is MUCH MUCH MUCH better in the house.  He no longer counter-surfs unless a piece of meat is left unattended and even then the effort is more half-hearted.  He is not the  wild-child goofy thing he was when he arrived. The one thing Jingles just can’t seem to control is his penchant for raiding the kitty box. (:  We have put up a gate separating him from the utility room where the cat box resides, but because of the doorway configuration he can sometimes knock it down. He still occasionally chases our cat Avi, but I must admit that sometimes Avi instigates things by "whapping" Jingles on the head when the cat is sitting on a piece of furniture and the unsuspecting Jingles strolls innocently past.

Jingles is VERY high energy.  At his age, too—I cannot imagine what he was like as a puppy!! He is very good on a lead as long as he has a chest halter on, and he’ll run if I let him.

We are very proud of Jingles!  He has earned our trust and graduated to being loose with the other dogs in the house.  He remains sweet, lovable, and happy to be in our home. After getting to know Jingles all these months, I believe he would do best in a family with one other dog and someone  who’s home a lot of the time and likes to go for plenty of walks. He craves & adores human contact! Combine that with lots of exercise and you’ll have one very happy Jingles.

Update: 11/09/09

It’s been two months since Jingles’s last update – and a very eventful two months, too. Since coming into foster care back in mid-July, the spunky senior had improved immeasurably on the behavior front – transforming himself (with loads of help from his supremely patient foster family) from complete wild man into a model indoor citizen (well, almost). However, he started out chubby and wasn’t really trimming down as much as we would have liked – in fact, his foster family became increasingly concerned over the apparent growing size of his belly, which gave him an almost sway-backed look. Bloodwork done early in October  looked “relatively unremarkable for his age,” but his vets felt he might have an abdominal mass or Cushing’s disease—a condition in which the body produces too much natural cortisone, leading to symptoms including a pot-bellied appearance, poor hair coat, and a ravenous appetite (Jingles had all three). To find out just what was going on, we did an ultrasound—and found a tumor on one adrenal gland. Yep, it was Cushing’s.

While the diagnosis wasn’t good news, the location of the tumor certainly was. This is because Cushing’s is usually a result of a benign mass on the pituitary, in which case the only option is to proceed with medication to reduce & control the tumor while monitoring the dog’s progress with  frequent bloodwork. It’s a lifelong and costly undertaking. But Jingles belonged  to that small group of dogs in whom the tumor was on an adrenal—and that meant it could be excised. The catch? It’s a very risky and difficult surgery, since the adrenals are hard to get to (on top of the kidneys, tucked up under the rib cage; three layers of muscle must be cut to access the site) AND situated very close to a number of large blood vessels. There was a chance that Jingles may not survive the operation. But if he pulled through and the surgery was a success, the condition would be resolved.

He’d already come so far – he deserved the chance to be really well! We went ahead with the operation on 10/27 -- and crossed our fingers.

10/27: The vet report: The tumor was successfully removed. It was about half the size of your thumb.  Everything else looked good. The other gland (the left one) is normal in shape but a little bit smaller than normal.  The incision is on the right flank instead of the midline.  This is in part so that all the weight from his “pot belly” won’t be pulling down on the sutures & putting pressure on the incision.  Since Jingles has so much cortisone in his system, his healing time will be longer than normal, so the vets used heavy duty sutures for the body wall and non-absorbable sutures for the skin.

10/30: Note from Jingles’s foster mom: Jingles  had the operation Tuesday late morning. We brought him home Tuesday evening, but by Wednesday night he still hadn’t managed to keep anything down. We were worried and took him back to the clinic Thursday morning.   He is such a  sweetie though.  Right before he and Michael left for the vet, we were  still getting tail wags when we would sit next to him and stroke his head, even though he must have felt just awful!

11/9:  The latest: Jingles is doing MUCH better!  The two days of IV fluids and steroids at the vet really helped.  The vet explained that the excess cortisol put out by the tumor effectively shut down his other adrenal gland, so after the surgery he had too LITTLE cortisol.  The  low level of cortisol and the post-op pain he was likely feeling despite the pain meds probably caused the vomiting that led to his return to the clinic for those two days.  He will be on a gradually reducing dose of oral steroids for the next couple of months while his other adrenal gland revs up again. He is so amazing! As bad as he felt, he insisted on going outside to potty and did not have a single accident!  We were prepared for him to have trouble in that regard, but he surprised us again!  

The tumor was benign (Yippy!!!).  The bottom of his incision developed a little seroma last week because, as he felt better, he managed to scratch it.   To keep him from worrying it any more,  he is now dressed in a t-shirt (bottom pulled up and fastened with ponytail holder along his spine) to loosely cover the incision and a sock on his right hind foot.  With his floppy Elizabethan collar on (which is blue) he looks quite funny. I have been trying to get a picture of him in his “outfit” but getting him to stand still right now has been hard!

His appetite has come charging back and he is eating very well.  In fact, we have had to supplement  between meals with veggies.  His favorites are raw carrots and sweet potatoes.  He is still on exercise restriction, so he has a bit of cabin-fever, which he manifests by constantly hanging out by the front door. We are calling him an honorary cat,  since he seems to have nine lives!  The whole family, including  pooches Sallie and Peanut, is very glad he is on the mend.  The vet wanted me to tell GRR she was glad the surgery was authorized because he should make a full recovery.  Our family too is grateful that GRR was willing to provide this live-saving treatment for him.  He remains the most energetic “elder”  dog I have ever seen.  It has been very hard to keep him quiet.  Last night, he tried to steal a chicken from the kitchen island, so he obviously needs some reminders about “leave it.” It was the first time since the surgery that he has tried to jump up, however, so his abdominal muscles must be less painful.  Anyway, he is doing GREAT! 

 Ultrasound, surgery, post-op hospitalization for a truly Super Senior: $1,100.

Update 9/03

Sing to the tune of “Jingle Bell Rock”:

 Jingle Dog, Jingle  Dog, Jingle Dog rocks!

Jingle dog swings and Jingle Dog rings,

Dancing and prancing and wagging his tail

In the frosty* air!

(* due to air conditioning, of course)

 Someone forgot to tell this bouncy boy he’s a senior! And who can complain about that? He’s living proof that old Goldens can have fun and kick up their heels with the best of the pups. Still, his foster family’s patience is being rewarded… instead of “jingling around the clock,” Jingles actually can turn it down a notch. He’s really coming along:

 He is still rowdy at times, but it is so, so much better. He soaks up all the petting he can get and we feel like he is blossoming in his indoor life! He’s really improving at not jumping up. He wants to be with our two dogs and the three are all getting along better. He is slowly but surely learning his house manners. This weekend, for the first time, we let him roam in the house without a lead on and he did very, very well. He still tries to jump on the kitchen counter if we are cooking (ah, all those smells!) but gets right down with a "leave it."  He comes to sit next to us when we are eating, but after a couple of soulful glances, he lies down under the table. He is still a very heavy chewer and can bite tennis balls in half and shred a stuffed toy in less than a minute! The best chew toys for him are large, heavy sterilized bones, thick rope toys, and the black “ultra” Kong.   Despite having such powerful jaws, though, he takes treats from my hand ever so gently, with a velvet touch of his muzzle. He’s pretty calm with grooming, too. 

One thing hasn’t changed, and that’s how surprisingly good he is on lead! He stays to the left and LOVES to go on walks.  He has SO much energy that he will run a little if I let him.

Jingles will need a home where he can get enough exercise to tire him out and keep him out of trouble! He does not like to be alone, so a home with someone there a good portion of the time would be best. He does very well with school-aged children, but he is so big and moves so fast that he could easily knock down a smaller child (or an elderly person, for that matter). He is really a sweetheart!

Update 8/10

Oh my goodness! Do we need more proof that age is just a number? Exhibit A: Jingles. Read on:

 Jingles is VERY high energy.  If I did not know his age, I would put him at 2 to 4 based on activity level.  He will need a home in which he can get LOTS of exercise. He’s bouncy and silly around everyone, including children, but does not try to jump on them.  He is beginning to play with our two GRR dogs, but can get very physical when excited. Really he just acts like a puppy who needs to learn how to play properly. But at the Pet Hotel last weekend, the staff first exercised him alone, then tried him in “doggy day camp” with 10 or so other dogs of all sizes—and he did very well!

 Our cat Avi is petrified of this bounding goof.  Jingles is eager to play with him, but Avi takes off if Jingles gets too close.

 Jingles just loves being inside (no surprise given his history) but we still have to keep him on a lead to keep the counter surfing and general exuberance under control. My husband refers to him as our “feral child.”  He is very sweet, though, and not at all aggressive. And he is doing SO much better than he was at first!  He will sit on command most of the time.  He loves to be petted.   Funniest thing he does is his  “flop.” When he wants his belly rubbed, he leans against my legs and then does a quick slide down and flops on his back with paws in the air.  In that position, he will let our Golden boy sniff him all over and wants me to rub, rub, rub his tummy and under his chin.  He blisses out completely.

 Jingles needs a home with someone who can give him lots of exercise and work on his training. He’s really the soul of good nature and, since he does want to please you, we know he’ll keep on improving as he learns basic commands and boundaries. Despite his naughty habits, you just can’t help but become attached to his sweet personality and goofiness!

Update 07/25

Jingles is settling into his foster home and gets this report:

Jingles is a fast learner! When he came to stay with us just 2 weeks ago, he was a wild and crazy goofy thing. (Sensory overload! Jingles spent most of his time before coming to GRR in a garage or outside. He apparently was not allowed inside after he was 18 months old. And all of the sudden—other dogs! Lots of people! Living indoors! No wonder he went a little bonkers.) He was rude to Peanut, our 6-year-old Golden boy, who then decided he wanted nothing to do with the boorish houseguest. And he scared Sallie (our 6-year-old Golden mix) so much with all of his running and leaping around that she jumped in my lap! All this from a 10 1/2-year-old! Someone forgot to tell Jingles that he is a senior citizen.

Just a few days after he arrived, Jingles went to the vet for neuter surgery. Because he’s so active and energetic, we had to keep him on a lead whenever he was out of the crate to keep him from injuring the surgical site. He doesn’t mind the leash, and it has helped us teach him some basic manners. We found out quickly that Jingles is very smart and eager to please. Within a day or two, he was spending longer and longer periods uncrated without becoming a complete nut-dog. Even Peanut has warmed up to him, and now licks Jingles’s nose when Jingles comes out of the crate. When Jingles is crated, Peanut and Sallie even lie next to his crate. Of course, they still scatter if he barks, since his bark is very deep and loud (but not aggressive or “growly” at all). We are working with him to use his “inside voice”!

We have also learned that Jingles knows some commands, like SIT and STOP when on a lead. In fact, he has been a good leash walker from the start; he stops when you do, and sits right down if told to so. (Off the lead, he still gets a bit excited, and his attention is easily diverted.) He responds very well to treating for good behavior. Jingles LOVES to be petted, especially under his chin and on his chest. Sometimes when he is lying down, he will roll on his side and put his legs up to have his tummy rubbed. If he is standing up as you pet him, he leans into you in a sort of swoon. What a love-hound!!

One really funny thing about Jingles is that he loves music and calms visibly when soft classical or “easy listening” music is played. We keep soft music playing for him at night and he sleeps quietly until morning.

Now that Jingles is just about finished with his post-op activity restriction, we’re really working on teaching good inside manners. The really good news is that Jingles likes living inside, wants to make his housemates happy, learns fast, and is settling in. We are confident that our next report will have lots of details about how much he has learned!
 

After nearly ten years (his whole life so far!) in Michigan, Jingles recently moved to Texas with his family. They already knew their boy didn’t care for thunder, but once they arrived in Central Texas they found out that he hated gunfire too—it just so happens that their property borders a shooting range. “When there’s a lot of shooting going on, he’s frantic.” The family made a room for him in the garage, but for a social Golden, that was no fun—so he howled. After that he began spending his time tethered to the fence—not a good situation in any Texas summer, but especially not this year! It was clearly time for a new plan—especially since the family was also dealing with health issues and anticipating spending less time at home come fall.

Jingles is freshly shaved, but all Golden! He’s loaded with energy and super happy at living indoors with lots of people at last. At first he was so thrilled and excited he hardly knew what to do with himself, but his foster family is working hard to introduce the new things bit by bit. That, plus his recent neuter surgery, will help soothe Jingles’s jangled nerves. “He is a sweetie. He just needs love, attention, good food, and a family to give him guidelines and manners and he will be an amazing dog!”
 

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