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One day, I
noticed
that Moto had diarrhea. It lasted about a day and a half
but then it went away and he seemed
fine and
active, so I was not concerned at that
point. About a week later, it came back
and he seemed
to have a decreased appetite. He was
already scheduled at our regular
vet in two
days, so I waited and took him in then. I
told our vet about it and we agreed he
looked
thinner. He would not vaccinate him at
that point and took full blood profile to
be
sent to a more
sophisticated lab for the results.
In two
days, I got the news that he was
indeed very
sick. His protein levels and albumin
levels in his blood had dropped to a 3 (
they
should be
around 6). He was critical. He explained
that in order to really find out what was
wrong we
should go to The University of Florida
Emergency Veterinary Hospital. We loaded
up at 3:00
a.m. to drive 5- 1/2 hours to admit him
first thing the next morning. They gave us
options of
varying degrees and we went for the most
extensive ones they could offer. This
meant a full
surgical biopsy of all internal organs, particularly
a complete section of his
bowel.
We wanted to
rule out cancer or toxins as a cause and
go from there.
We cancelled our
vacation and
spent five days in Gainesville awaiting his
release. The best diagnosis they could
come up with
was protein-losing enteropathy, meaning he
either couldn't absorb protein or
possibly he
was not making protein, an essential
necessity in the life of any human or
animal.
He was put on
antibiotics and Purina EN, a prescription
diet. We tried that for a week and
went for
another blood test. No luck, proteins down
again. We put him on Prednisone. Another
week, no luck.
We upped the dose. No luck. We put him on
Budisonide, a human drug, and
changed to a
diet of venison and potato. No luck. We
tripled the dose of Budisonide. He was
getting
thinner everyday, but still active to a
point.
I began at this point to feed him
steak
2 to 3 times a
day, just to spoil him as we knew he was
dying right before our eyes. This
past Tuesday,
we took him in for euthanasia. He had
gotten very weak and thin and did not
even want to
get up when I came home from work. Our
hearts are broken as he was only
4-1/2 years
old. The condition is often manageable,
although not curable to date, but for
some reason
nothing we tried worked for Moto. We will
never regret everything we did to
try to save
him no matter what the expense was. Just
keep in mind that while my story did
not have a
happy ending, in many cases they can
manage this disease with diet and drugs.
My moral is
"Never give up until you know that
you have tried everything you can for your
beloved
faithful friend".
I hope this
helps someone else out there that might be
going through something like this. In
loving memory to our cherished companion:
Koko
Moto Von Evman's Blackreisen 
From
Moto:
Dear
Mom I’m now at Rainbow Bridge
And as I’m
looking down
It makes me just so awfully sad
To see you wear that frown
If I could only speak to you
I’d have to tell you this
“I wish I could be next to
you
to
give you one more kiss”
The kiss would be to tell you
That I’m doing great up here
I’ve got new friends to play with
and I haven’t got a fear
I’d say “you took good care of me
You gave me so much love
My life was the best with all of you
But it’s great here up above
I’d say that sometimes things must change
Our time was the very best
And though it might seem sad
and strange
I’ve found my place of rest
I’d tell you that I love you
That you never let me down
Remember all our happy times
Please smile, don’t wear that frown
Thank you for our friendship
Your endless, tireless love
But please remember just one thing
It’s great here up above
And
if you get a puppy
Love him just like you did me
It would do my heart a world of good
To see your heart set free!
In
Playful Love forever!
Your Pumpaninka,
Moto
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Rottweiler
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