1992

Reunion: 1992

1997

Born: 1985
Adopted: December 1992
Rainbow Bridge: December 1997

I still miss the guy - but we had a great five years. Everyone who met him (at least the people) said the word for him was stoic. (I don't know what the dogs said, but he was friends with all the dogs in the neighborhood we met on our walks.)

He had more medical adventures than I've had. He developed Intervertibral Disk Disorder, which eventually led to him having an MRI, after x-rays and a myleogram weren't definative enough. He then had surgery and recovered completely. But it started out scary with a partially paralyzed dog!

My local vet had referred us to a wonderous Animal hospital in Fountain Valley - All-Care Animal Referral Center. (www.acarc.com) Dr. Robert Rooks and Dr. Craig Bergstrom were his vets there. The place is incredible! Not only emergency medicine, but virtually anything else one might need. They have their own lab onsite, they have their own MRI unit, and even an ambulance for pets. It's absolutely state of the art - the facilities are actually even certified so that it could serve as a human hospital in the case of a major catastrophe. I very highly recommend it to any Southern California pet owner. Dr. Rooks, the twenty-five or so vets, and all of the staff are great people.

In his last half year or so, he started showing neurological signs of Cushing's Syndrome. Very weak hind legs, and loss of balance. Memories of the IVDD before. He got involved in the clinical trials for the drug Anipryl (which is now on the market). He was doing quite well with the medication, and the vet didn't think the stroke was related.

But, we had a great time together. Walks and hikes in the San Gabriel Mountains were his favorites. A kees is wonderful to have along on a cold camping night!

"Benjamin's Nail Trimming Tip" - Keeshonds have black nails, and that makes it hard to trim them properly. Shine a small penlight through the nail. You can then see where the vein ends. I would mark that with a pencil, and then trim an eighth of an inch past that. His nails were kept at that proper trim, and never a painful cut into that vein. I'd make it a two-step process, because it was too hard to coordinate the penlight and the clipper - so I'd mark then cut.

Last Updated: June 28, 2000