Howllo Fellow Basset Hound and hoping for the oldest basset hound ever…I have heard of some telling tails of really old bassets but there was never ever proof!
Recently, I saw a post on a basset forum regarding this topic and I thought I would share it with the residents…
Here is the post…
“I thought I would ask this group what is the oldest basset hound you’re aware of? I have a 19 year old basset hound named Norma. She recently had surgery to remove an infected lymphatic tumor that was benign but causing her some range of motion issues. The vet who did the surgery asked me if she was in fact 19 because if she is, she’s in fantastic shape! She had never heard of a basset hound being that old. I told her to look back in her records because I’ve had her since I was a sophomore in high school and I’m in my 30’s now, plus she’s been a patient at the clinic her entire life. She was born in 1995.
I was terribly nervous electing to do surgery on Norma, but her bloodwork came back all within normal range and the vet was extremely meticulous about being prepared in the operating room to keep her under anesthesia for the shortest amount of time possible. She had the staff prep for all possible scenarios so she didn’t have to wait for supplies to be found and brought in if they were needed. For that, I’m very appreciative. Norma’s recovery has been uneventful and she’s back to her silly hound self. She spends her days napping on the couch, eating and barking at the chickens in the yard. She even still makes it out every once in a while to do therapy dog visits to the local nursing home. She made me laugh the other day when she bounded across the yard and caught one of the chickens. She didn’t hurt it but sure did make it angry. LOL! Clearly she’s feeling a lot better now that the tumor is off her shoulder. The only old age issue we’re really facing is hearing loss. Either that or her hearing has become even more selective in her old age! There are times that I think she hears but there are times where it’s clear she doesn’t.
I love my old girl and hope for nothing more than the joy of being able to celebrate her 20th birthday. So tell me about the oldest bassets you know of!
She is by far the best dog I’ve ever had. Always just so laid back and loves people. Some of my fondest memories are of her at her therapy visits. At Children’s Hospital, I remember one visit in the play room with a little girl who was there for heart surgery. She had Down Syndrome and had a hard time communicating with the other kids. Norma sat with her for hours and the girl dressed her up, held crayons in her paws and made her color in coloring books, she had a tea party with her and Norma just sat there loving all the attention she was getting. She LOVES kids and just perks up when she’s around them.
She has her moments of naughtiness though. We call her the butter ninja. If you leave a stick of butter out on the cupboard, she will take it. She’s even been so quick that I put a stick of butter in the mixer and walked into the pantry to get my dry ingredients to make cookies and when I came back with the sugar and flour, the butter was GONE with no sound and no dog in sight! She’s even so determined that she pushes a dining chair over to the cupboard to climb up and hop over the baby gate to get into the bedrooms when she wants to sleep in the bed instead of the on the couch. That’s about as bad as she gets and even when she does that, you can’t be mad at her.”
“I will be devastated to lose her when that time comes and I really feared that it was going to be a few weeks ago when that infection took hold and we either needed to operate or put her down because she was in so much pain. I didn’t think the vet would consent to taking her in for surgery but she has surprised us all and is really thriving. We’ve been saying for years that Norma only has a short time left because we were always told bassets live to be 12-14 years old. But, at 19, Norma is proving everyone wrong and doing it in style!”
END OF POST…
More loving Norma later…Cat, Daisy Lynn, (Chaps and Emma ATB loving Norma and old hounds forever…)
PS – So, what is the oldest basset you have ever heard of?