Does a Dog Mom Ever Stop Worrying?

In this week’s post I’m just going to share some of my feelings on life with Rocko.

I worry.  All the time.  I worry that he’s not feeling well, that I’m not paying enough attention to him, everything.  When I leave in the morning I worry that I forgot to put the gate up and he might fall down the stairs. Some days I come home and he’s sound asleep on the floor and doesn’t hear my key in the door.  Some mornings I get up and he doesn’t hear me.  In those moments my heart stops beating until I see his chest moving.

Now I’m not obsessive or really overboard, although I have the number to our vet, Cherokee Animal Hospital, memorized and in speed dial on both phones.  I just want to believe he is going to be with me forever but every now and then reality peeks in.

A chubby Rocko, 2007

A few weeks ago I wrote that I had switched Rocko over to grain free weight control food.  Finally, after being overweight since his early years and being on the green bean diet forever, he started losing weight – 6 pounds.  He’s lost a couple more since then but it’s not worth the stress of taking him to the vet just to get on the scale.

I tried to find a good “before” picture so you can see he was pretty round.  I really didn’t worry about it until he got older and I finally figured out that the extra weight would be even harder on his old bones.  On one hand I’m very happy he has slimmed down.  But in the back of my mind the worry is still there.  Is everything OK?  Is he losing weight because of the new diet or could there be something else wrong? Why can’t I read his mind ??????

A slimmer Rocko, September 15, 2011

I had to buy another bag of food yesterday and debated on switching to the grain free that isn’t low calorie.  I fought my urge to fatten him back up and stayed with weight control.  Sometime in the next month we’ll have to go have his nails clipped and we’ll check his weight again.  If he’s gotten down to the upper 60s that will be enough and I’ll ask the vet what she recommends.  Hopefully his body will plateau at his optimal weight and stay there (fingers crossed). 

I know it’s better for him, I know he gets around easier with fewer pounds.  He’s a happy old boy.  If only his mom didn’t worry all the time.

It’s all part of loving a senior dog. .

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