Well, then let's name the grand dogs!

[Phentex]

My father in law has been in the hospital for a week... 85 with various things going on and his mind is not as sharp as it was. When we visited yesterday, one of the nurses was walking him down the hall asking questions about various things like how many kids he has, what year it is, etc.

We heard him tell her he has 9 kids! He has five and when asked to name them, he only recalled his son's names (and my sister-in-law wasn't too happy about that!)

When he came back to the room, the questions continued and it was funny to hear my mother-in-law taking it all so seriously, sorta snapping at him out of frustration (she has caregiver's fatigue) and reminding him of the "real" answers. So he named his sons and grandsons and then he named one of the dogs. My mother-in-law corrected him saying that was one of the dogs and he snapped back, "I know! Now, let me name the grand dogs!"

So even though he could not tell you the year, or recall the names of other relatives, he named every grand dog and great grand dog. The joy of a dog stays with you forever.

[hollysmom]

1. when my dad was in the throws of Parkinsons delusions due to an overdose of L dopa

He could not recognize my mother and kept mistaking my sister or myself for her, could not name his kids, but knew my dog was the dog of his daughter and what her name was. There is something to say for nonjudgmental love.

[Phentex]

4. Yep. What's funny is my husband said

they only had a few dogs when he was growing up and his parents made them seem like such a pain. NOW, my mother-in-law makes treats for every dog at Christmas and they do talk about the dogs like the grandchildren!!

[JimboBillyBubbaBob]

2. Great story!

I love me some dogs!

[Phentex]

5. and they love us back!

[TorchTheWitch]

3. that's funny!

My mom has dementia, and though she sometimes forgets my name or which of her children she's talking to or what you just told her 3 seconds ago she can sing songs and recite poems pages long word for word that she learned in grade school. Funny how the mind works.

Me, I certainly don't have dementia yet I can recall reams of worthless trivia though I'd struggle to remember what the hell I ate for lunch or where I just put my damn glasses or what I just did with the keys, etc. Lately I keep finding myself flushing the toilet a second time after getting my pants back up because I already forgot that I already flushed.

[Phentex]

6. LOL! I think I've done the flush thing...

hee hee.

Yeah, my father in law can start talking about things from when he was a kid, but he has trouble with many current events. The scan shows what they call atrophy but he is 85!

I met his mom (my husband's grandmother) only briefly when I was first married and she was much the same in the end. Super witty and funny but with dementia. She called me by the name of someone she went to school with!