A bit OT - My new dog and OSA...

General Discussion on any topic relating to CPAP and/or Sleep Apnea.
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ekubaskie
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A bit OT - My new dog and OSA...

Post by ekubaskie » Sat Oct 03, 2015 6:52 pm

Hey, all - long time no post...

Back in February, I lost my bestest buddy. We had him in great shape for his age (15) thanks to Rovera and the Chondritin (sp?) / whatever supplements. Then one night he started barfing and standing straight up but with his head hanging down. That, folks, is a bad thing. If your pal starts losing his lunch and just standing like that, get him/her to the vet *immediately* as in "don't lay it off until tomorrow!!!" Next day was it, the vet called us in to be there for the end - an incredibly hard thing to do, but it's the right thing to do. Don't let your bestest die alone. Sniff, I still cry from time to time.

Come around May, after we have spent some time fostering a big lunk husky mix named Max, and a pair of inseperable 8yo labs - Riley and Lucy. Loved them all, especially Riley and Lucy. Helped them all become more adoptable, then had to let them go - but to some great forever families. Hurts and feels good at the same time.

After Riley and Lucy, I decided it was time... checked out the local city shelter website, and there was an unknown lab mix named Emma. We went to check her out and fell in love at first sight. She has proven to be a bit of a challenge, withe separation anxiety that leads to her eating portions of the house or car. So far the cures have been doggie day care and a kennel in the car. She had learned how to blow the horn, too.

So, why is this only a bit off topic? My wife is out of town this week, so the doggie day care has been needed, but otherwise we're OK. This is one of those "she loves you more than me" cases... she even growled when we were in the bedroom and she heard the wife coming up the stairs, but actually she likes both of us. Just that I am *her* human, and she's not much into sharing. There are some subjects that dogs just don't get, you know?

But one subject she DOES get is OSA. Wife's out of town - she's in the bed with me, and I get up for a potty-break at 3am. You all know how it works - sometimes you just fall back to sleep before you remember to mask up. The inevitable happens and I app out, maybe 30 to 45 seconds without breathing. And I wake up with Emma standing atop my shoulder, poking me in the cheek with a foot. Her claws aren't BAD, but they are enough to ensure that I pop out of the app and wake up.

Well, that's the deal. I'm sure if I didn't wake up in a couple seconds, she'd get noisy. We think her mix is equal parts lab, heeler, pit, and demon.She's got a pretty solid howl when she is REALLY upset.

So how about it? How many of you get the same monitoring from their dog? Is this enough to classify her as a "service dog"? Or is it likely she's just checking if I'm dead before she turns me into a 3am snack? Mmmm, long pork, raw!!

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Gasper62
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Re: A bit OT - My new dog and OSA...

Post by Gasper62 » Sat Oct 03, 2015 7:22 pm

Yup, she's definitely a keeper ! What a peach !

Janknitz
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Re: A bit OT - My new dog and OSA...

Post by Janknitz » Sat Oct 03, 2015 7:30 pm

Lol, my husband belongs to the dog. I'm sure she'd be happy if I app out so she could have him, and my side of the bed, all to herself.
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yoshi
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Re: A bit OT - My new dog and OSA...

Post by yoshi » Sat Oct 03, 2015 7:36 pm

Dogs are awesome, but I'm biased because I'm a dog lover. My schnauzer Ada seems to be very in tune with me. She's gotten older and is set in her ways, so most of the time she wants to snooze through the night alone on the couch downstairs. Rarely she will come to bed with me, but the past few months she's been regularly checking in on me as I've been "puke tired" and I had no idea why. (I was sleeping insanely long hours but feeling like I got maybe 10 minutes worth of quality sleep)... so off to a sleep test (again) and finding out I needed to be on cpap and that my UPPP surgery wasn't too effective. UGH. So Ada has been sleeping WAY inside my personal bubble space... and gets angry if I try to move her or get her off the bed and she developed this lovely habit of jumping on me during the night--One night I woke up every hour because Ada was jumping on my head or pawing at my face. She's usually a very still sleeper and stays off in her little section of the bed; when she's down for the night it's like sleeping with a warm furry boulder who won't move for anything. Who'da thought a 12 lb dog can be so heavy when asleep. lol Anyway after that night of being woken up literally every hour by her, I noticed I had the first non "puke tired" day that I've had in a really long time. What I think happened, is she sensed I was either having an event or was about to and she was alerting me to wake up. Since I started treatment two days ago, Ada has come to check on me and has been back to her better behaved sleeping style.

Now, I don't know for a fact that Ada is sensing these things, but I want to think that she is... because I do know dogs can be very intuitive, and because she's emotionally helped me through a lot of things.

As for my other Schnauzer, Roxy... not so intuitive. But she's the best cuddler ever. And we have snore-offs together. So yes... I think your situation could qualify as a "service dog"... or at very least a very intuitive/helpful furry friend.

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ekubaskie
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Re: A bit OT - My new dog and OSA...

Post by ekubaskie » Sat Oct 03, 2015 7:48 pm

On the way home from the shelter she was hanging her head out the window, and folks were honking and waving. One lady at an intersection pulled up and rolled her window down to tell us how cute she was. All black except for a white chest blaze and the last white inch of her tail. One ear flops, the other up. The wife says, "YOUR dog", but you can tell she's smitten, too. Just jealous. She's been looking at taking on a crippled husky, no more than 10 pounds full-grown, but even she goes nuts when she sees me, and hunches her way across the floor or yard to get to my feet.

I just love dogs, and they can tell. I've been thinking that down the line, a good retirement gig would be working at a doggie day-care place - if not running one of my own. They say that you should be in a job you love... Engineering designer I like, but I'd like watching over a pack of a dozen or so more - and dogs tend to see me right away as alpha, but lovable. A lucky trait to have!

yoshi
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Re: A bit OT - My new dog and OSA...

Post by yoshi » Sat Oct 03, 2015 8:03 pm

That would be an absolutely amazing thing to do for retirement! How awesome would it be to make those puppies as happy as they make us humans? I would almost feel guilty asking for pay, because I think loving animals is as enjoyable to them as it is for me. I could totally play fetch, do walks, and give tummy rubs all day to members of the canine community. Sounds like Emma is a real sweetheart, give her some ear scratches and treats from me from afar.

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zoocrewphoto
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Re: A bit OT - My new dog and OSA...

Post by zoocrewphoto » Sun Oct 04, 2015 12:10 am

I had a cat who would paw at my face and mess with me until I woke up. Then he would turn and leave. This was before i started cpap. It took me awhile to figure it out, but I was probably making more noise than the normal snoring. I know I used to snore most of the night. But I also had choking, gasping fits, though rare until after that cat died. Then they became much more frequent. So, I suspect he was pawing at my face because of the strange noises. Once I sounded normal, he would leave.

My other cats have shown very little interest. Jay Jay did paw at my mask a few times a couple weeks ago, and when I got up, I wasn't sure if I had hit the button to turn off the air, but it was off. So, it might have been off before I woke up. if so, I may have made some strange noises, attracting my cat's attention.

Our dogs get into trouble at night, so they are not allowed to roam the house when we sleep.

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Who would have thought it would be this challenging to sleep and breathe at the same time?

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Re: A bit OT - My new dog and OSA...

Post by chunkyfrog » Sun Oct 04, 2015 10:30 am

Fur babies can be incredibly intuitive.
And they are good for our health.
Our dog makes me get up and take a walk --frequently.
As he gets older, he needs more walks, as his bladder seems to be shrinking.

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ekubaskie
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Re: A bit OT - My new dog and OSA...

Post by ekubaskie » Sun Oct 04, 2015 9:38 pm

Many thanks for the opinions and encouragement. Emma seems to have only one real problem - separation anxiety. The doggie day-care place is the only place I can leave her without her going nuts - even so she tries to keep me from leaving. 10 minutes later she's just fine, playing with the pack and all the attendants rave about her. I can only admit that I'm nuts about her myself. I didn't think I would find one like Pascal. He didn't have the separation problems, but I love her just as much. I really connected well with the foster-doggies in between, too. Especially the two older labs. They had their own separation problems - from each other. Have you ever heard a dog scream? Riley did it if Lucy was taken out, leaving him behind. It's incredibly creepy, but they were both great dogs and the way they played was hilarious. Toss a ball, and they'd go for it, and wrestle over it for 20 minutes. Exercising them was a snap. Toss a ball 10 times, and they're worn out. But after a while, Riley would go get the ball, and then give it to Lucy, and she'd take it back to you. The family that adopted them got more than they might have hoped for. I wanted them myself, but since then I think it's OK. Emma was about to come down the road.

And she's helping with my treatment! When I fall asleep before remasking, she's sure to nudge me when I stop breathing. Then I know to mask back up. Between Emma and my wife Pillow, I think I'm a pretty lucky guy. Where would I be if Pillow hadn't nagged me into that sleep study? And how many of you out there know exactly what I'm talking about. Sometimes that's what it takes, and you do the right thing just to shut them up.

Maybe one of these days I should check my stats again, but I fall asleep fairly fast, only wake up a couple times a night, and I don't have keyboard marks on my face at 10:30 am. I guess it works, with help. Ta!