# Cooper thinks he's a puppy!



## Cooper'sMama (Feb 20, 2018)

Hi! I am a new subscriber and am excited to join your group.

My husband and I share our life with Cooper, our 14 year old Golden. We first brought Cooper into our family about a year after my husband suffered a debilitating stroke in 2003. Cooper has been a Godsend for both of us. We think of him as our "Emotional Support Animal".

Cooper has had an amazing life so far...he still acts like he's 2! He chases balls, plays tug-of-war and loves to tussle with our 12 year old neighbor, Sofia, who takes him for a long walk every afternoon after school.

We are noticing that Cooper is beginning to slow down and show signs of arthritis (he has had thyroid issues for the past few years and is on thyroid medication). Lately, our vet has put him on Metacam which does seem to help (we recently took him off it - at the vet's recommendation - to determine whether or not it is helping; after 3 days, he was limping so badly that he could hardly walk so we put him back on it).

All his life, Cooper has had difficulty tolerating extreme heat and humidity. As we spend our winters in Florida and our summers in Ontario, we decided a few years ago to clip him. The result was amazing! He is so much more comfortable. Unfortunately, lately we have noticed that Cooper is panting alot more than he used to. Our vet initially put him on the Metacam in the hopes that it would reduce the arthritic pain and therefore the panting. Unfortunately, such is not the case. We worry that this excessive panting may be putting a strain on his heart. After reading some of the comments concerning panting on this blog, we have decided to take him back to the vet and get X-Rays done to rule out a tumor.

I will keep everyone posted on the results. In the meantime, please say a prayer for our beautiful furbaby!


----------



## CAROLINA MOM (May 12, 2009)

Welcome to the forum, Cooper sounds like an amazing boy and has had a great life with you.

I hope the results from the tests are good. Sending good thoughts to you and Cooper.


----------



## brianne (Feb 18, 2012)

Any update on your Cooper? Sending good thoughts.


----------



## sdain31y (Jul 5, 2010)

How’s Cooper today?


----------

