It's Nice to Have a Pet Dog

I know, I know. There is probably not any site regarding PKD which mentions this, but I think having a pet dog did wonders for me.

PKD, I can tell from personal experience and from visiting pkd websites is one disease where you will experience pain often. And as pain-reliever, you cannot just take a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) especially when your kidneys are already impaired. And so it helps that during pain episodes, your mind does not dwell only on the experience of pain.

This is where pets (in my case, a dog) come in.

My dog seems to have magic. He always manages to bring a smile to my face even in times of pain.



He makes this Scooby Doo-like sound which is funny and "entertains" me and my wife with the way he "sits" on the sofa or the way he positions himself to sleep. Believe it or not, he barks while asleep (like a man talking in his sleep.)

He loves to have a massage but he hates taking a bath. He loves it when somebody touches his belly.

One time I had hematuria and abdominal pain, he seems to be also sick. Like he's also going through my suffering. I have always heard that talk from barrio folks before that pets especially dogs "absorb" their masters illness and I did not believe it but strangely that time, my dog was weak, unable to go up and down the bed, had difficulty standing and was dragging his body to crawl toward us. It was a poor sight to behold.


Luckily, he's now back to normal as I was also pain-free with no visible hematuria. He continues to be the clown in the house bringing us much joy making me forget I have PKD.