Duke (AKA Butter)

Butter - Male Blenheim Cavalier King Charles Spaniel

Duke, AKA Butter, is a male Blenheim 7 year old, (02-2004), owner turn-in, but looks much older.

Bilateral cataracts- completely blind. Bumps into everything in the house and outside but is still very happy. Doesn't seem to bother him at all, he seems to like to sniff and explore. Insulin shots, twice a day- don't seem to bother him at all. Weighs in at 17lbs, though last year he was 28 lbs. He is skin and bones. Was covered in fleas, therefore his coat is very sparse and dry due to chewing it. His teeth are terribly infected, and his ear leathers were cut by the owners (possibly trying to cut out mats) and are infected - on antibiotics for both.

Sweet as can be. Loves to be petted and have his belly rubbed. He is hard of hearing?? Very laid back. Hasn't had any accidents but I have been taking him out frequently. Did just fine with my dogs - owner says he likes kids, which I believe, as he is so mellow.

Doesn't seem to be traumatized or missing his family or other Cavalier buddy that he grew up with. Would probably do better with other dogs just to help guide him around.

Slept in his crate. Cried a bit but settled down- I think he cried due to confusion more than anything else.

He's now at his foster home in Bartlett, TN. He wasn't here more that an hour when Elaine said she'd changed his name. He's now being called Duke. She said that Butter was not a guys name and he acts so regal, so Duke it is. He can only hear high pitch noises, so it doesn't really matter.

He continued his antibiotics until they were out. We took him to the vet here and all infections are cleared up. His diabetes is under control, he's now getting 1 cup of Merrick's Grammy's Pot Pie kibble and 9 units of insulin twice a day. He's gained a couple of pounds already and is slowly learning his way around the house.

We've found that his sight, like is hearing is extremely limited. In bright light, it seems he can see shapes and movement.

His diabetes was finally was stable and he's infection clear, so he made a trip to the vet to get his teeth cleaned. Besides having an extreme buildup of tartar, he lost 6 teeth. It hasn't slowed down his eating any and his breath is sooo much better.

We now have another failed foster. This time instead of me, it was my wife. She fell in love with him, so he won't be going anywhere. :-)

We've got his weight and diabetes under control. He's also had cataract surgery on both eyes. What a difference. You wouldn't think he's the same dog now that he can see.