Distress or stress?

Hershey displaying the patch on his leg from the IV

Hershey turned 11 last Thursday. His nail has regrown since the August 8 mishap. He was to have a beach walk for a birthday present, but we awakened to find he had vomited in the night. The vomiting continued through Thanksgiving weekend. Tuesday morning, we took him to the vet. He weighs only 69.8 pounds after being 83 pounds pre-Guinness. Some weight loss is expected with a new puppy (the question is – why haven’t I lost weight?), but this is extreme. He was dehydrated and needed to stay for an IV and testing. The results of his blood work are normal. Since their X-ray machine is not operable, the reason for his weight loss remains unknown. They started him on a regimen of medication to stop the vomiting, plus we are to feed him as often as he wants – several small meals a day.

I am wondering if depression could cause weight loss. Stress on the human body can create a plethora of mirage ailments. It could do the same to dogs. Hershey has plenty of reasons for depression besides Guinness with whom he has a love/hate relationship. He loves the little guy and lies next to his crate, but doesn’t want Guinness using him as a junglegym or disturbing his placid lifestyle. Other recent stresses:
-We painted our bedroom and rearranged the furniture. Since then, he refuses to sleep or even place a paw in his bed which has always been on the floor beside me. He insists on spending the night on our bed. I am told that this is not abnormal. If only he had told us he liked the rose walls better than green!
-August 8, he split a nail totally exposing the quick. He has been grounded from walks since then.
-In August, I visited my brother where our three dogs were confined to the kitchen. He was very sad about that.
-A week later, we house-sat for some friends. He and Guinness were closed into the spacious, elaborate “mud” room. When it was time to come in from a potty break, he stared at us blankly, and absolutely refused to obey, “Come.”
-A couple of weeks ago, we decided that he was ruining our sleep. Now he is closed into the den at night along with Guinness. He tries to escape us when we are ready to close the doors.

The vomiting could have been caused by mushrooms in the yard. But the weight loss is a concern. Or is it an obvious consequence of not keeping any food down for four days? If he loses any more, we will have an ultrasound.

For now, he is OK. His nail is healed and we will be able to resume our walks. That should cheer him up!