Bear with me as this is a long post: Last Saturday was officially National Dog Day. Tuesday is Salem's birthday. He will turn 17. The last 3 months have been difficult for Salem and our family. He has shown a surprisingly youthfulness in recent years, but time has caught up with him. The family has known that his final days are approaching, but we were not prepared to see him in the state that he was in last June. Unable to walk, wouldn't eat or drink, and would not acknowledge us. We learned that he was severely dehydrated and his kidneys were failing him; his lab work showed abnormal blood levels. We feared the worst, expecting to say goodbye to our sweet boy sooner than we wanted. Salem received IV fluid treatment for 48 hours at the animal hospital, and afterwards, another blood panel showed improvement. The real test was if we could care for him at home. We have done all we can possible to make Salem comfortable. We initially kept him on a strict kidney diet to build his strength back up; in recent weeks, he's gone back to begging for handouts. He has been walking better. He takes a lot of naps, and when he wakes up, he's usually looking to eat (even at 2 in the morning). He shows rejuvenation when we take him outside for a short walk in front of the house (he usually doesn't want to come back in). The house is once again baby-proofed so he doesn't get tangled up in anything or stuck in a room and can't get out. Salem has had his ups and downs all summer. There have been several days throughout where we felt it was time to give him his peace. Then the next day, he would turn it upside down by running in the yard, slowly wagging his tail, or looking for Daddy when it's dinner time (at this point in his life, Salem is getting what he wants when it comes to food). He's still showing some quality life, and we're milking it for what it's worth. One thing we do know is that we don't want Salem to suffer. He has lived a wonderful life. And we will know when the time comes to give Salem the peace he deserves. Every day is National Dog Day. We love you Salem. And a Happy Birthday to my sweet boy ❤️
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