My dog is about 15 and 1/2 years. We live by a small town and for years used their vet, which we became very unhappy with. So we switched to one in a larger city about 20 miles away. It's a big office and the vets are extremely good. It's always been a hassle taking our dog there, because she freaks out so badly on the way. Another sort-of problem is that this place goes too far in the other direction than our older vet did. The vet there that we have always seen is almost OCD about things. Our dog is on about 5 meds/supplements. The thyroid and Gall bladder med seems to be the most important. But the vet has her on several very expensive supplements......like glucosamine/chondroitin with MSM, an omega oil, an NSAID, and he put her on a supplement paste to help with her cognition. It was almost $60 and made her worse, so I stopped it.

Our dog has hypothyroidism, GB disorder, arthritis, and now her mind is having problems. She is almost blind and very hard of hearing. Something she's done for a couple years, but it's worse, is her mouth tremors. She gets stuck under tables, in corners, etc. She drinks tons of water and pees a lot (the Vet knows about this). Another weird thing is her fur coat is huge, more than ever before. We had her tested for diabetes and she didn't have it.

The dilemma I'm having is that she's old! And I don't want to pile more meds on her if they are causing some of her problems. The vet says they aren't........but every animal is different. Just like people, dogs can't live forever and we have to decide what's help-able and what's not.

If I take her to the vet for her most recent deterioration, he will suggest another expensive med.

I'm thinking of stopping her expensive NSAID and trying some of the CBD oil for pets. Anyone use that? Do you have a reputable source for it?

Let me also say, that I will never have her euthanized. I don't even want a conversation about that being an option, or it's rightness or wrongness. I don't have a job and want to be here for her constantly, if she gets a lot worse.

Any tips for dogs that are almost blind and hard of hearing? Would a dog whistle get her attention?
And let me know about if you use a CBD oil on your dog.

Thanks for any good input you can give me.

DH always waits 'til the last minute to deal with things. I've been on him to dig a grave for awhile.......then the ground froze. Fortunately, we've had milder weather and he realized it was a good suggestion. So that's ready if we need it in the dead of winter. I will miss her so much.