Tribute to Ari (created Jan. 2010)

Arsenal vom Keashaborn (Ari)
(April 21, 1999 – December 18, 2009)
CGC, Therapy Dog, BH, TR1, RN
PSA-TC, PSA-PDC, PSA-1 Novice

Thanks to all the decoys who ever worked or caught him!

Shown in these photos in no particular order…

Bryan, Joe, Wayne, Greg, Matt, Jay, Jeremy, Ivan, Darryl, Sean, Todd, Chad, Harry and Chris

And the ones I remember who are not in these photos:

Michael, Terence, Daniel, Eric, Tom, Wolfgang G., Wolfgang L., Cory, Dennis, Chad, Gordy, Brice, Fred, Brian, Jerry, Joseph, Mark, Todd and Waleed

Ari’s Journal                Ari’s Photos

About the same...

Well…  there are other things I’m noticing and remembering from before.  He no longer gets up on the couch which says to me his legs are weaker.  That will be #7 on the list.  He’s really sticking close by me and when he’s sleeping he really shakes.  I hesitate to say it’s a seizure because it could be dreaming. 

He’s such a sweet guy…  These photos of Ari and Brita were taken a year ago.  December 23, 2008…  What fun they had! 
  

1. He wobbles when he gets up and walks and he paces instead of trotting.
2. His tail curls under his butt when he sits.  This happened before when he did not have the use of his rear end.
3. He seems always cold – his feet especially.  I put a coat on him even when inside.  One day he came inside with ice crystals on his feet.  This was before the big snow and deep freeze.   And his feet are as usual enlarged.
4. He is afraid of noises (mouse trap).  He will hang out be me or if I get up he will hide in the bathroom.  
5. He gets disorientated.  He will go out through the basement and then either I have to come and get him or he waits in basement and when I call him, he comes up.  It’s like he can’t figure out that going around the corner will bring him to the stairs.
6. He drinks lots of water and will urinate in the house – not in front of me but overnight if he’s not sleeping in the room with me.  Otherwise he gets me up in the middle of the night to go out which he never did before.
7. He no longer gets up on the couch which says to me his legs are weaker.  When you look at the them the skeleton look is returning from lack of use. 

Not any better…

In the last 2 weeks I’ve mentioned that he wobbles, his tail curls under when he sits, he’s afraid of loud noises or even not so loud noises and he is overall just not my Ari.  To add to that now is cold weather…  16 inches of snow this week and then in the deep freeze.  It seems like he is always cold.  His body feels cold to touch so he is living in his dog coat most of the time.  His feet always seem cold to touch.  He was outside before the big snow and when he came in his feet were covered in ice crystals… my feeling is that there was not enough circulation to keep the ice melted like on the other dogs.  He paces and seems to want to go out often…  you know…  I think I’ll start a list.

1. He wobbles when he gets up and walks and he paces instead of trotting.
2. His tail curls under his butt when he sits.  This happened before when he did not have the use of his rear end.
3. He seems always cold – his feet especially.  I put a coat on him even when inside.  One day he came inside with ice crystals on his feet.  This was before the big snow and deep freeze.
4. He is afraid of noises (mouse trap).  He will hang out be me or if I get up he will hide in the bathroom.  
5. He gets disorientated.  He will go out through the basement and then either I have to come and get him or he waits in basement and when I call him, he comes up.  It’s like he can’t figure out that going around the corner will bring him to the stairs.
6. He drinks lots of water and will urinates in the house – not in front of me but overnight if he’s not sleeping in the room with me.  Otherwise he gets me up in the middle of the night to go out which he never did before.

There ….  I'll add to this list if I notice something else…  <big sigh>








I’m glad I got him used to these coats over the years….  they sure have come in handy.  I’ve ordered a sweater for him for around the house because occasionally he hooks the velcro on something and it pulls open and then he is dragging the coat around with him.

I’m seeing some changes in Ari…

As I watch Ari closely, I notice some things. 

For one, he seems to have less feeling in his back end and tail.  When he sits, his tail curls under him and he can’t seem to put it anywhere else.  This was very apparent when he was at his worst. 

Secondly, when he has been laying around and then gets up, he really wobbles and his torso seems a bit twisted.  When he was having more seizures, this was a real problem as previous videos showed. 

This afternoon as he was trotting around outside, he seemed to have a grimace on his face at times which I’ve seen when he is in a bit of pain.   Also, he is “pacing” rather than “trotting” and any dog I’ve had when they trot, there is an issue.  I’ve read that a trot is easier on the body and that’s why dogs do it.

So, there you have it…  Just keeping tuned in…