# Forum Noob, Golden Veteran



## duckdog (Mar 20, 2010)

Hello!

I'm a newb on this forum as I just joined, but we've had Goldens now for 25 years. Our currently 4th Golden baby girl joined us in late August 1997.

Here she is, and she is our wonderful Rosie:










She will be 13 on July 4 this year. Unfortunately, I am in new territory with this age. All of our other Goldens left us before they turned 10, and I need some advice for how to care for this wonderful young lady. 

Rosie is quite active, and has no showing stiffness or aches and pains. In fact, she slipped on our stairs a few weeks back and took quite a tumble with (fortunately) nothing to show but a few minor bruises. She has never once had a single ear infection her entire life. She has always been the perfect picture of good health with a few minor issues.

Now, the hard part. When we had her boarded at the vet clinic over the holidays, she developed a UTI, which took quite a bit of medication to clear up. Her eyes are starting to get a little rheumy, and need to be treated from time to time. And, over the holidays she dropped about 10 lbs of weight. I also noticed over the last couple of years that she seems to want to sleep a lot more.

We have changed her food from what she thrived on for many years to Science Diet Mature. I have started to give her daily vitamins for a senior dog, but I haven't put her on any other supplements. This all on the advice of our vet. 

What else can I do to ease her through her senior years?


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## FranH (May 8, 2005)

Welcome to the forum! Rosie is beautiful!

Our first two goldens lived to be 14 and 16. Ours both slowed down and did sleep more as they aged. I think that keeping them active as possible really helps. There's lots of members here with golden oldies.....I'm sure they will offer some great suggestions.


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## amy22 (May 11, 2008)

Rosie is beautiful. My last Golden, Sandy almost made it to 13 before cancer took her. She was the love of mylife....now I have 2 Goldens Sweeites...Misty age 2 and Holly age 12 weeks.
I remember Sandy slowing down as she aged, and she also slept more. 
I dotn know what more you can do....just LOVE her every day and make wonderful memories!!!
I would love to see more pictures


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## duckdog (Mar 20, 2010)

amy22 said:


> Rosie is beautiful. My last Golden, Sandy almost made it to 13 before cancer took her. She was the love of mylife....now I have 2 Goldens Sweeites...Misty age 2 and Holly age 12 weeks.
> I remember Sandy slowing down as she aged, and she also slept more.
> I dotn know what more you can do....just LOVE her every day and make wonderful memories!!!
> I would love to see more pictures



Well, let's see what I can do about the pictures. 

Here she is with her spring clipping. Over the winters, her undercoat gets so thick that we just can't keep it brushed out, so every spring she gets clipped down. It isn't such an issue over the summers, so we just brush, brush and brush some more. Silly girls loves to be brushed! 










Her favorite place on the bed. :uhoh:










Just got home from a grooming for her birthday last July and wouldn't begin to look at the camera. :lol:










Somebody loves to be hugged. 










"Helping" me shovel snow. 









Thanks for the complements. I've always thought she was a very pretty girl, and she has been a very good dog all her life. She was never naughty at all at any time.


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## amy22 (May 11, 2008)

LOVE the pictures!!!Thanks fo rposting them!!! What a beauty she is and she sure has a thick coat! Just beautiful!!!  Thanks for posting.


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## Karen519 (Aug 21, 2006)

*Rosie*

Rosie is a heartbreaker!!! You can tell how much you love her.

Sounds like you're doing everything right.

My rescued Female, Golden Ret., Smooch just turned 11 years old on Valentines Day and my Male, Samoyed, Snobear is 10 years old. We feed our dogs Pedigree Lamb and Rice and they go to the vet for their yearly checkup and shots and HW tests. We used to feed them food from the vet like Eukanuba K&O but it went upt to $55 a bag and we simply couldn't afford to keep paying that!!

Dave: So glad you joined.

Where do you live, or did I miss that?


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## Oaklys Dad (Dec 28, 2005)

Rosie is a sweetie for sure. I see where many members give Glucosimine/Condrointin (sp.) to help there aging pups joints. Keeping their weight down and keeping them active seem to be the best things you can do for your senior. My Cedah lived to 14 before her hips finally gave out.


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## Jazz & Jules (Feb 25, 2007)

Rosie is stunning!!!

I think some joint supplements would be great for her and oh ya, lots more kisses! Can never have too many of those!


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## MILLIESMOM (Aug 13, 2006)

What a beautiful golden oldie. I just love her haircut. We used to clip Millie in the spring too. There are difference of opinion on the clipping. We did it because Millie had a heat stroke on us when she was a puppy. One minute she was running around the next she collapsed. She loved her haircuts, by the time September rolled around her coat was coming in nice. Welcome to the forum. Brandy our first Golden lived to 14. I fed her Purina sensitive skin and stomach. She did very well on it.


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## duckdog (Mar 20, 2010)

Thanks, everybody, and Rosie loves you all. In fact, she's never met a stranger, especially if there is a cookie involved along the way.

We currently live in Wyoming, having moved here 7 years ago from Eastern Oregon. I got Rosie from a very respectable breeder in Hood River, OR, that I really, really hope is still in the game. This litter wasn't quite show quality, but they were sure a special group of pups.

The most hilarious thing about Rosie is that she has absolutely no hunting instincts whatsoever. This was much to my chagrin as a lifelong upland game hunter. She's not in the least little bit gun shy, just has no idea of the purpose of being out in the field other than to romp and play. LOL. On the other hand, if there is standing water of any kind to be found, she is going to be in it. 

Like I said earlier, I've never been so fortunate to have one of our Goldens live to this age, and I will need all the help I can get to make sure these last years are truly golden for her.


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## Cheryl and buddy (Oct 24, 2009)

My baby will be 14 this year and he has always had medical issues. He is on Potassium Bromide for Seizures, Joint Supplements for Arthritis, Marin for his Liver and Thyroid Pills. In spite of all that he is a happy playful old lug!


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## duckdog (Mar 20, 2010)

MILLIESMOM said:


> What a beautiful golden oldie. I just love her haircut. We used to clip Millie in the spring too. There are difference of opinion on the clipping. We did it because Millie had a heat stroke on us when she was a puppy. One minute she was running around the next she collapsed. She loved her haircuts, by the time September rolled around her coat was coming in nice. Welcome to the forum. Brandy our first Golden lived to 14. I fed her Purina sensitive skin and stomach. She did very well on it.


This is the only one of our Goldens that we've clipped in the spring. I'll have her raked with clippers in the summer to thin her coat out during her monthly grooming, but that is all. Its just that her coat is so thick, especially the undercoat, that spring is pretty miserable for all of us. A good close clipping and she's still full coat by mid May. Its not something I would choose to do to any golden, but with Rosie its just a matter of survival and comfort for all of us.


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## Dallas Gold (Dec 22, 2007)

Your Rosie is absolutely gorgeous! You are blessed to have her in good health at 13! 

My only suggestions are to do twice yearly medical exams and blood tests and give her fish oil supplements for the Omega 3s which help with so many things in the body. Also, if the only reason why you switched her kibble was because she was a senior, I'd suggest going back to what she thrived on in the past. 

My Barkley is 12 years 9 months and is a hemangiosarcoma "survivor" of 67 days. We really hope he makes it to his 13th birthday and well beyond! Our first golden also had hemangiosarcoma at 13 1/2 years. Every day we share with our golden oldies is very special.


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## duckdog (Mar 20, 2010)

I changed her food because she wasn't eating her dry and was dropping too much weight. She went from an ideal weight of 74 lbs to 64 and it was showing up in her blood work as being anemic. It was a good switch, and she is back to 70 lbs. This is a much better diet for her now.


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## AlanK (Jun 28, 2008)

Hello to you and Rosie:wavey:

Rosie is no doubt a gorgeous babe:smooch: Golden Oldies steal my heart!


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## duckdog (Mar 20, 2010)

Once again, thank you all for the warm welcome and the suggestions for keeping this precious girl healthy. 

You all are right about one thing: There's no Golden like an Old Golden.


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## BeauShel (May 20, 2007)

Welcome to the forum,

Your Rosie is just gorgeous. My last golden Beau lived to be 13 years old when I lost him. He wasnt expected to live that long because he had some heart issues, seizures and got stomach bloat but he proved them wrong. Your girl sounds like she is in great shape. I agree with everyone on the gloucosamine suppliments and fish oil tablets. Keep her weight down and a moderate amount of exercise. There is a member here that has a golden that is 16 and she is going strong. Erin is an inspiration. I love the golden oldies. 

We have a section devoted to the seniors that you might want to check out. It has some information that you might find helpful.


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## kwiland (Aug 27, 2009)

Oh my goodness, she is so cute! And very lucky to have owners who love her and are devoted to keeping her healthy! 

My boy Winnie just turned 8, so we are entering the senior stage of his life. I feed him fish oil, glycoflex III, and the holisitic 'healthy powder for dogs' (you can google it for info, if you want). I think all three supplements help his joints, as well as his overall health. Since starting them, he has been sneaking into our pool every day for a swim! We're in TX, so it's warm enough for him to swim. I also strive to keep him as lean as possible, because a leaner dog is a healthier dog. It's hard, because Winnie is a chow hound. He topped out at a huge 105 lbs! He's now at a very healthy 87 lbs, which the vet says is perfect for his size. Winnie is a bit larger, leggier, than the breed standard, and incredibly strong with a ton of muscle mass. 

Welcome to the forum! And please post more pictures! I love to see happy, healthy senior Goldens. And, Winnie has a soft spot for the older, pretty Golden girls, too! I didn't notice he liked the older girls so much, until he met a few of them at our doggie park. He's quite charmed by them!


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## duckdog (Mar 20, 2010)

The most joyful thing I have ever seen today!! Our 22 year old son is home and was on the floor loving and playing like she was a puppy. She was vocalizing how much she was enjoying having him home. 

I absolutely love that she can play like that at 12.75 years. 

When the time comes, it will really be hard for our son because Rosie has been a part of his life for more than half his life. I hope she stays this healthy for a long, long time.


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## Claire's Friend (Feb 26, 2007)

I am the lucky Mommy of Miss Erin Kelly. She was almost 9 when I found her and she was a mess. Overweight (bad thyroid), raging UTIs and incontinent. Her fur was so matted she had to almost be shaved , nails curled around like a snail shell, I don't think they had ever been cut. Any way to make a long story even longer, after the right meds and good food and tons of TLC, we just celebrated her 17th birthday in Jan. I have had her on Glycoflex III since we got her. Never took her off the loading dose because she does so well. I run blood work every 6 months and titer tests every other year. She has not needed a vaccince since we got her. She does get Heartworm meds in the spring and summer, but I don't use any thing else on her. She get washed in Dawn dish washing soap once a month. She had a mass removed that turned out to be cancer in Dec., so every day with her is a gift. She is a happy, happy girl now that the weather is warmer. I TRY to enjoy the days we do have together and not to worry (it's hard) about the days we won't. I hope you have many more wonderful years with your beautiful girl !!!:wavey:


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## duckdog (Mar 20, 2010)

What a pretty old gal.


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## Cheryl and buddy (Oct 24, 2009)

Claire's Friend said:


> I am the lucky Mommy of Miss Erin Kelly. She was almost 9 when I found her and she was a mess. Overweight (bad thyroid), raging UTIs and incontinent. Her fur was so matted she had to almost be shaved , nails curled around like a snail shell, I don't think they had ever been cut. Any way to make a long story even longer, after the right meds and good food and tons of TLC, we just celebrated her 17th birthday in Jan. I have had her on Glycoflex III since we got her. Never took her off the loading dose because she does so well. I run blood work every 6 months and titer tests every other year. She has not needed a vaccince since we got her. She does get Heartworm meds in the spring and summer, but I don't use any thing else on her. She get washed in Dawn dish washing soap once a month. She had a mass removed that turned out to be cancer in Dec., so every day with her is a gift. She is a happy, happy girl now that the weather is warmer. I TRY to enjoy the days we do have together and not to worry (it's hard) about the days we won't. I hope you have many more wonderful years with your beautiful girl !!!:wavey:


Sounds all to familiar, all we can do is give them the best care possible and enjoy every minute ( that's easy enough).


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## GoldenCamper (Dec 21, 2009)

What a beautiful girl your Rosie is. Tucker and Rosie are just 2 weeks apart, he turns 13 June 21st. Like other members here I also have him on a glucosamine supplement (Glycoflex 3) and fish oil amongst other things. He has gotten some arthritis in his elbows, never really showed signs of it until a few months ago. I wish I had started the supplements sooner. Our walks have gotten pretty short (used to be at least a couple miles a day until 2-3 months ago) but more often to keep him moving. Glad to hear your girl is doing so well and hope she continues to do so!


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## Abbydabbydo (Jan 31, 2007)

Awwww, what a doll! Good work getting Rosie to such a fabulous age! I admire your good care and know that Rosie has left a permanent impression on your heart.


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## coppers-mom (Jan 9, 2009)

Rosie is a lovely,lovely girl! I am thrilled that she is doing so well.

We have many threads in the senior section about their special needs. We discuss supplements, diet, checkups etc. I believe there is a sticky at the top that discussed what should be in a "senior" exam.

It sounds like Rosie is doing well on her new diet. I would recommend a glucosamine/chondriotin supplement and probably fish oil. Start slowly and make sure she is handling each well before adding another. I would also recommend a thyroid test because if her age.

Otherwise, it sounds like you are taking great care of her!

Welcome. Post more pictures. Golden oldies are beautiful to look at.


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