Who knew? Dogs suffer from “empty nest syndrome.”
Because we are the expert when it comes to our 10 ½ year old chocolate lab named Bailey this was the only explanation for her changed demeanor.
It started in 2014 when our oldest daughter went away to college (south 1100 miles). She did not come home often but when she did Miss Bailey was delighted. When she left Bailey was confused but always bounced back to her normal self within a couple days.
Fast forward to 2016. Our youngest daughter is now off. She too ventured south.
Hello Christmas break! Full house, full hearts! Bailey acted like a puppy again. What a welcomed sight considering we had been noticing more gray hair, a slower approach and her resting more. She has had a problem with a “torn ACL” for years. If you can figure out how to keep a lab down let me know and we will attempt to get this fixed again J
We had a wonderful holiday, but then it was time for the kiddos to leave. My husband and I are very happy for our girls and love that they are happy and following their dreams. This makes the see you later easier on us. We were back in our new normal that evening.
The next day not so much Miss Bailey had decided that she was not going to eat, that she would much rather sulk and eventually became so withdrawn that she was spending all her time hiding in the basement. She no longer was helping with the dinner, doing the dishes or tucking us into bed. This went on for weeks if not a month. Our Bailey had become very depressed. So I called my friend Kat. I shared her new venture with everybody I knew but never had a reason to try these special treats until now. Bailey had a broken heart and given the fact that she is now a little older she just couldn’t get out of her funk like she did 2 years prior.
We noticed a difference in 2 weeks on 1 biscuit each day. Her appetite was coming back but she still was not engaged. I called Kat again asking her if it would be okay to give Bailey a second treat. So that is what we did 1 before breakfast and 1 before dinner (on an empty stomach, waiting at least 30 minutes before feeding )…it was working…we noticed a major change towards the end of that week. Bailey was back to being our little shadow.
- Misty and Jon Kashmer in Eliot, Maine
