What is that? The simple term is ‘an enlarged prostate’.
As with so many things on our Boerboel journey, I feel that we are allowed to experience trials and tribulations in order to help others understand things that happen. This year has been quite the challenge for us and I watched my Baby Bu struggle on and off throughout the year. Two weeks ago I thought I would loose him…………..
Getting Back to Himself
A little thin, but happy once again!
In January of this year, I noticed that Bu was having difficulty with bowel movements. He would strain and strain with little output; his appetite went downhill and he just wasn’t himself. I took him into the vet for an x-ray to see if he had a blockage. The x-ray showed that he was constipated. Although the vet mentioned that it could be due to an enlarged prostate, a series of home remedies had Bu back on track in a little over a week. I chalked it up to the dogs not drinking enough water during the winter months and possibly too much bone in the diet.
Come April, Bu was again struggling. This time the home remedies did not work as quickly and so back to the vet we went for an x-ray. He was even more backed up than before. Two of the vets in our clinic tried to do a rectal exam to feel the prostate, but Bu is just too large and neither could reach it. A more aggressive routine of home remedies had him back on track, but much thinner than before. I made adjustments to his diet; less bone, more bone broth, ACV more regularly to help break down the food, ect.
I felt like we had a handle on it with all the adjustments and Bu was thriving again. …….for a couple more months…… and then once again the problem reared it’s ugly head. I was of course concerned about the possibility of prostate cancer rather than just an enlarged prostate, so the vet did an ultra sound which showed there was no abnormal growths or structure. He assured me that in tact males are not likely to have prostate cancer, but that benign prostatic hyperplasia is pretty common. The only solution is to neuter. I asked about homeopathic aides to help shrink the prostate and if it was worth a try.
I researched on my own, and had some great friends research for me as well. I added every supplement suggested to help reduce the prostate. Saw Palmento, CBD oil, Zinc, Vit. D, Vit. E, and many others. I added supplements for the digestive tract as well.
It wasn’t working like I had hoped and once again Bu started to not eat due to not being able to defecate. He lost his desire to play and looked like a ghost of himself. He began vomiting and I knew that he could not wait any longer. My vet got him in that day to be neutered and they had to manually remove the impaction. At this time my baby boy was down from 150 lbs to 120 lbs.
Even after surgery, for over a week, I thought I still might loose him. He just wasn’t ‘coming back’. I was liquifying high calorie food, adding nurti-cal and anything else I could to help him through. At about day 11 post-surgery he was able to have a bowel movement that got the last of the back up out. And my Bu started coming back! He’s already put several pounds back on over the last 5 days of eating well. He is happy again and playing!
Why did I wait and not neuter him right away? It’s a tough spot to be in not only as a breeder but as someone who really believes that natural approaches can solve most things. First, Bu is the epitome of what a male BB should be and I want to continue to reproduce him. Second, surgery is invasive and anesthesia scares me. If I could solve the problem naturally, I would be thrilled. But the reality is, I waited too long and I would never do that again. Seeing his backbone was too much. Loosing the spark in his eyes was going too far.
Baby Bu will always stay with us. He will continue to meet and greet, get rubs from strangers AND keep the unwanted out. He will raise my next male and continue to care for the girls the way he always has. I am so grateful to have such a wonderful boy come out of our foundation dogs, Nzuri & Johari. Thankfully we do have some of his swimmers frozen, so I look forward to having some baby Baby Bu’s in the future!