Geriatric Vestibular Drunk Disorder Syndrome

So, my sweet saintly pooch is sick. I noticed it when she attempted to jump on my bed and missed three times in a row. The next day I ran into a friend, Amy, whilst running Sky on Town Lake and her dog looks a lot like my precious. Amy disclosed that her dog had suffered a stroke and was very, very sick. Of course, I immediately started freaking out. Skylar is my life, you all know that. For the rest of the evening, Skylar was cocking her head to the right and looking at me with confused eyes. Yes, more confused than normal. I consulted a few friends via Facebook and one of my high school vet buddies thought that she had an inner ear infection or a neurological problem. "Uh oh" I thought to myself. "She is already a dodo and she can't afford to loose any more brain cells." I scheduled a vet visit the next morning and crossed my paws for her.

I learned that Sky weighs 54.8 pounds (only 1/3 of her owner's weight-WHO SAID THAT??) and does not like the vet clinic. Okay, I already knew this because we obviously visited before and Sky was being overly protective of me (barking ferociously, you know the drill). The vet cautioned me to calm her down. I asked him if he had any cooked steaks in the lab area. He wasn't amused.

This time, however, she was a little better. He took a long q-tip and swabbed her ear, smelled it, cocked HIS head while observing her, and announced her fate: "Yep, she's got Geriatric Vestibular Syndrome. My mother had it and my sister had it. She feels and acts drunk, but she should be fine." I asked him if I could have given this to her, given the close proximity we share and the accuracy with which he had described my own behavior. Failed vet joke #2.

He told me the story of his mom's experience with GVS and assured me that she improved, mostly. Will Sky ever be a normal Sky again??

I think I will get a second opinion, but for the meantime, I will walk around with a cocked head in solidarity.

Here is the greatest example of the Sky/Jaimie team: we are both a little slow, both a little goofy, and both a little un-photogenic. Or a lot.

Insert funny Bobby comment: "Skylar is drunk all the time and vomiting. Maybe she wants to go to college."