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So this is my dog. He's a Shetland Sheepdog (Sheltie), he's about half the size of a Collie.

He's 12 years old now and I doubt he'll live out the summer. A couple years ago he contracted a skin infection which caused him to break out in lesions which he couldn't stop biting at and were causing his fur to fall out. Since then he's been on medication to suppress the disease, but the medication is slowly killing him. Our only hope was that with the help of the medication he could fight it off, but it just came back when we tried to reduce the dosage. He's lost a ton of fur throughout it all, but most people won't notice since Shelties normally have three coats and his belly is so distended with the meds that it makes up for the lost coats.

Unfortunately, his health has taken another sharp downturn recently. His muscles have degraded to the point where he has trouble getting up when on wood or tile flooring and sometimes can't even manage carpet. I'm having to carry him down the two steps to our yard to watch his legs tremble constantly as he goes to the bathroom. He's nearly deaf and stumbles as he walks.

He is the gentlest mildest mannered dog in the world, and like most sheep dogs is absolutely devoted to our family. He still tries to follow my mom into every room and will cry when bedtime comes around and he realizes he can't get up and Mom's in the other room. This is my second dog, but it's not any easier now than when I was 14 to watch them slowly die.

I did this piece from a picture I took with my cellphone two months ago and now I doubt he could maintain a sitting posture long enough to take this shot. I'm going to be giving it to my mother (who has always been his favorite). She used to take tons of pictures of him when he was younger.

Description
So this is my dog. He's a Shetland Sheepdog (Sheltie), he's about half the size of a Collie.

He's 12 years old now and I doubt he'll live out the summer. A couple years ago he contracted a skin infection which caused him to break out in lesions which he couldn't stop biting at and were causing his fur to fall out. Since then he's been on medication to suppress the disease, but the medication is slowly killing him. Our only hope was that with the help of the medication he could fight it off, but it just came back when we tried to reduce the dosage. He's lost a ton of fur throughout it all, but most people won't notice since Shelties normally have three coats and his belly is so distended with the meds that it makes up for the lost coats.

Unfortunately, his health has taken another sharp downturn recently. His muscles have degraded to the point where he has trouble getting up when on wood or tile flooring and sometimes can't even manage carpet. I'm having to carry him down the two steps to our yard to watch his legs tremble constantly as he goes to the bathroom. He's nearly deaf and stumbles as he walks.

He is the gentlest mildest mannered dog in the world, and like most sheep dogs is absolutely devoted to our family. He still tries to follow my mom into every room and will cry when bedtime comes around and he realizes he can't get up and Mom's in the other room. This is my second dog, but it's not any easier now than when I was 14 to watch them slowly die.

I did this piece from a picture I took with my cellphone two months ago and now I doubt he could maintain a sitting posture long enough to take this shot. I'm going to be giving it to my mother (who has always been his favorite). She used to take tons of pictures of him when he was younger.