We adopted this beautiful boy from the animal shelter last Friday. They tell me he is (in part) Norwegian Elkhound. Melissa and the boys gifted him to me for an early Father's Day.Over the weekend we noticed he was acting lethargic and refusing to eat anything. He had diarrhea and a persistent cough.
Upon contacting the veterinarian, we discovered that the animal shelter had suffered an outbreak of distemper (an incurable canine disease that causes dogs to die a miserable death). Long story short, a blood sample was sent away to determine if our beloved Augustus had become a part of our family only to suffer an untimely death.
While we've been waiting for the results, he has been behaving more like a dog of his age (two years). Gradually eating more and moving around. Twice daily I've been cramming an antibiotic and another pill down the poor guy's throat, so I thought maybe the energy was a temporary side effect from the medicine.
But, the good news came back today! No distemper! He has a case of canine pneumonia. Still uncomfortable (fever, loss of appetite, diarrhea, runny nose), it is curable, and temporary.
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