Yeah, so, my buddy Homer is getting old. It’s sad.
He’s going to be 15 years old in October. It’s a bummer to watch your pets get old. He’s really starting to show his age, and he’s having all kinds of issues.
“I’m old. Give me that cracker.”
We took him to the vet for an eye infection, but it turned out he had a slew of other issues.
Like a lot of older dachshunds, Homer has back problems now. This is very common for wiener dogs. Two of his vertebra in his lower back are kinda rubbing together, and it can be painful. We had no idea he was in pain. He wasn’t acting like he was in pain; however, he is walking stiffly and slowly. Occasionally, he would lose his footing and fall over, or his legs would slide out from under him. But there was never any whining or crying. We really had no idea. Thankfully, he has some doggy ibuprofen that he is taking now, and he seems much happier.
So, we got drops for his eye infection and pills for his back. Oh, and he’s got diabetes. I know, right? Poor Homer. Getting old fuckin’ sucks. He’s getting insulin shots twice a day now. After giving myself shots last summer during chemo, giving Homer shots isn’t that big of a deal. I just put some Cheerios on the ground, and while he is stuffing his face I grab some skin around his scruff and poke him. He doesn’t even notice. Still, it’s not our idea of a good time.
We’re keeping a close eye on him, and we plan to make him as comfortable as we can for as long as we can. He’s been a good boy (most of the time), and we’ve been through a lot together. Almost 15 years I’ve had this dog. My niece Lorelei wasn’t even born yet. We’ve moved five times. I met David, got married and pushed out a kid. I got breast cancer (twice). Homer sat on the couch with me while I recovered from multiple surgeries and last year’s chemotherapy. My life has changed a lot in 15 years, but the one constant was my Homer. He comforted me when I needed it. We looked out for each other.
And now, David and I are taking excellent care of Homer, and probably spoiling him too much.
I’ll end this post with a really cute story.
After Homer’s vet appointment, we went to pick up Calvin from preschool. One of the teachers told me that this is what happened: Calvin saw me first, and said, “Mommy’s here!” Then he saw David. “Daddy’s here!” And then he saw Homer, and he started jumping up and down, “They’re all here!”
He ran to the door to meet us, and when we opened the door he said, “Thank you for coming, Homer!” And then Calvin proudly showed Homer off to his teachers and classmates. It was ADORABLE!
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