It’s sometimes rough seeing my dog getting old. For the most part he hasn’t changed, he’s still the playful puppy that entered our family almost 12 years ago. But there is no escaping it: he’s getting older and is now past the life expectancy for his breed.

This morning he threw his back out while on his morning walk. He couldn’t stand, couldn’t sit properly, couldn’t find a good position to lay down that didn’t hurt, and there was nothing I could do to help him. A few hours later he seems to be doing better, and we have a vet appointment for this afternoon where he’ll most likely get some anti-inflammatory meds that will bring him back to normal. It still hurts me to see him like that, when there is nothing I can do to help.