|
January, 2000
Wednesday, January 5
meds given approx 7:30am, 7:30pm
Well, I have certainly been lax in keeping this up!
The hectic schedule in the end of December ran right
into my vacation, and I haven't had a chance to update
this until now.
On December 24, Dr. B authorized me to raise Bacall's
meds to .25mg am and pm, which allows me to keep her
on a balanced dosage, as well as for now to dose her
with half of one of Sam's pills. While at the vet I
had both of the girls weighed. Bacall is 37 pounds (!!)
and Samantha is 48 pounds. Bacall is looking
a little "thick" these days, though not fat
by any means. I've cut back on food for both of them
from a heaping 1 cup scoop to a level 1 cup scoop, and
will watch their weight more closely. Sam hasn't really
lost weight, but does look thinner than she has been
in the last year or more. A great deal of that may very
well be her improved "posture". She stands
a little taller, more alert, these days, I assume because
she is feeling better. When I returned from vacation
(last night) Sam did seem even thinner than when
I left, and the "pouch" on her belly seems
to have shrunk a bit. I can definitely feel more ribs
on Sam than I could before. Bacall seems not to have
gained or lost a bit in the last few weeks. Bacall and
Sam both have appointments for rechecks on their thyroid
levels a week from Saturday.
Note on Samantha: she is drinking noticeably more water
than she did pre-treatment, though she was never much
of a drinker. To go with the increased thirst, she now
has problems getting through the day without urinating
on the carpet. She can't seem to go longer than 9 or
10 hours now, where she used to be able to hold much
longer. I'm trying to locate a spare crate to use for
her until we can diagnose this problem and get it under
control.
Upon my return from vacation, Bacall had one very runny
eye (thick, green discharge). It was quite bad last
night, requiring me to clean it off her face every 20-30
minutes. Today it seems to have improved a great deal.
Bacall is being slightly hesitant and submissive with
me, probably because I've just returned from being gone
for nine days. It may take a few days to settle back
into her routine...I hope.
The sitter took notes while I was away, excerpts below.
Sunday 12/26/99 PM
. . . Let Bacall out of her crate and
she was a normal excited dog. All of [the dogs] seemed
a bit confused when I let them out the back door (they
wanted to go out the front door). . . Let the dogs
back in. Everyone got into their spot and stayed until
I put their food down. Couldn't remember the "you
can eat" command, so they looked at me funny
and then followed Bo when he went to eat. Sam and
Bacall took their pills beautifully. Sam seems the
most unsure of my presence and is a bit mistrustful.
She's not unhappy, just confused. All of the dogs
ate all their dinner and drank plenty of water. .
. Tucker hung out in the living room with the dogs.
. . Bacall let me pet her with not one problem.
Monday 12/27/99 AM
Both Sam and Bacall took their pills
well. Bacall seemed a little more nervous today -
licking my hand and being submissive. Everyone ate
their breakfast - Sam was slow to start eating and
finished last. Took Bo for a short walk . . .
Sam was unhappy that she didn't get to go. :( Bacall
spent a lot of time in the cat hall but hasn't knocked
over the gate. . . Tucker hung out with us in the
living room again. Bacall needs more exercise as she
is running in the house a lot. She brought a
bone to her kennel this morning.
PM
Dogs were again happy to see me. They
are behaving very well and normal. I'm continuing
their routine and they are holding their place well.
Everyone is eating. Bo has been testing me on the
"stay" command, but he eventually minds.
Bacall and Sam are taking their pills well. . . Bacall
seems to be getting more submissive to me - no idea
why. She likes sitting next to me on the couch. Everyone
is shedding like crazy. Caught Sam in the cat food
dishes tonight - she didn't eat much.
Tuesday 12/28/99 AM
Dogs are behaving well - they need
more exercise and I wish I were a runner. Sam seems
to be most unsure - she looks at me mistrustfully
and suspiciously. Bacall continues to do well. Eats
and drinks normally. . .
PM
Sam didn't eat today. Wanted human
attention. I took her out on a walk alone on the retractable
leash and she seemed happier. . . Bacall was grumpy
with Sam today but then they came to sit by me and
was fine. I think she just needed more attention.
Bacall was not at all submissive today.
Wednesday 12/29/99 AM
Bogart wasn't eating today. Bacall
was the only one with a decent appetite. Sam ate after
I put some safflower oil on her food. I gave Bo an
Ascriptin because his back leg was shaky. No particular
behavioral changes. Bo started to eat while I was
scooping the litter box. . .
PM
Samantha had a piddle accident today.
. . Everyone ate and took their pills. Decided
to take a leap of faith today and take all three dogs
out at once. I heeded your advice that Bacall was
the best at coming when called, so I left her off
leash. Sam and Bo were on the retractable leashes.
Everyone did very well - arms are still in the sockets
- and the dogs were ecstatic to be able to run. Bo
came back inside and crashed to rest on the kitchen
floor. I decided to watch TV here a while so they
would have company and suddenly had a very attentive
crew. Bo to the left, Sam on the right and Bacall
on the coffee table (I made her get off). They are
such good dogs. {Note from Lead: honest, the sitter
said that! I didn't bribe her or nothin'! These are
her own words, I swear...hehe...though I've deleted
the less than flattering comments about Harvey, The
Meanest Lovebird On Earth. *wink*} Well as soon
as I said that I noticed that either Sam or Bo tore
off the corner of your Stephen King book, probably
Sam, if I remember correctly. Played ball with Bo
in the fenced yard.
Thursday 12/30/99 AM
Sam had another accident today in the
same spot. Other than that everyone is fine. Bacall
is behaving normally. Took both dogs out on leashes.
Bacall loose. They enjoyed the excercise.
PM
Sam is having accidents twice a day
now. . . Walked the trails today. Bacall became less
obedient as we walked further back but overall she
was good. Played ball with Bo - Sam's barking is annoying.
{Note from Lead: Ahha! I have proof...a witness!
I'm not just a bad dog owner because I can't stand
her yacking all the time.}
Friday 12/31/99 AM
Dogs are fine; Sam peed in the house
again. Bacall is nervous today as I am moving around
cleaning up the urine. Sam refuses to eat even with
the oil. . .
PM
Came early (5:00ish). Dogs were all
hungry and ate well. Made a quick walk out front then
played ball a bit. . . Left the dogs and kitties to
have their own 2000 party. Sam did not have an accident
today. Stopped back by at 10pm for extra walk.
Saturday 1/1/00 AM
The new year arrived amid no fanfare.
Dogs are fine. Sam or Bogart peed in the hallway (they
were only alone 10 hours){Note: that would be Sam,
as Bogart NEVER has accidents in the house, and if
he did, it would be a HUGE spot, taking a week to
dry...hehe}. . . Took dogs out for a long
walk then stayed until 1:30. Played ball with Bogart
until Sam's barking drove me nuts. Played tug with
Bogart - what a great dog. Took Bacall out again by
herself (to feed the horses mints). Some children
were out with a Chow mix dog (fat) and Bacall barked
at them but didn't do anything beyond that. I haven't
seen any aggression in Bacall at all. . . I
see that Sam can climb under the gate without knocking
it over and eat the cat food. She looked really guilty
shimmying under the gate. . . All is well.
PM
Since I left so late yesterday, I decided
to come back later - 9:00pm - so the dogs wouldn't
have to hold their bladders so long. It appeared to
work because Sam didn't have an accident. I brought
Tom with me, understanding that Bacall might bite
him or be fearful. I came in first and let the dogs
into the back yard. Tom came in and sat at the desk.
When the dogs came back in, everyone, including Bacall,
ran up to him for petting. Bacall would dart out every
now and then and she kept her tail tucked but was
otherwise fine (Tom has a very gentle nature and was
speaking in a high pitched happy voice). With company,
I had a hard time getting everyone in their place,
but they did finally get there and eat. Bogart loved
Tom and Tom loved him. We took everyone out on a long
walk. Since Bo was very attached and obedient to Tom,
we let him off leash with Bacall. Sam was on the leash
and did okay. Bo was just in bliss. We left about
10:30 and everyone was exhausted and happy.
Sunday 1/2/00 AM
. . . Took all the dogs out - only
Sam is on the leash now. Everyone pilled and ate fine.
Drank all the water from last night and a while bowl
today.
PM
Dogs are all fine and cats too. Everyone
ate and pilled fine. Took all the dogs out off leash
except for Sam, who just hates not being able to run
free. I've tried to spend extra time with them on
the weekends and evenings. I hope they didn't miss
you too much. The cat (Cori, the blue-eyed one) is
lonesome and sleeps with the dogs on the futon.
Monday 1/3/00 AM
Came by normal schedule again - 7am.
. . Everyone is doing great. Bo tripped over Sam's
retractable leash and cut the back pads on his front
feet. They are bleeding - looks like a bad rope burn.
He is licking them so I cleaned them with peroxide
and neosporin. . . The bleeding isn't bad and it looks
superficial.
PM
Came by about 6:30. Bogart's leg is
looking okay - no bleeding - just raw skin. I heard
Bacall cough today a few times - a "barking"
cough but her appetite is good. Both Sam and Bacall
took their pills as always.
Tuesday 1/4/00 AM
Well, this is my last day with the
dogs. They are wonderful and I will miss them. I wish
my pack was as well behaved! {Note: Did I mention
that I didn't even pay her to say these things? LOL!}
So, it would seem that the dogs did just fine without
me. *grin* Sam is indeed being a little...unsure. Like
she's suddenly got all this energy, and now realizes
she isn't sure what she's supposed to be doing all the
time. As I used to do with her long ago when she was
unsure, I run through some commands with her. Having
a job -- even one so small as down and stay -- puts
her at ease. Bacall hasn't done any coughing since I
got home, even with a lot of running around, and as
I noted above, the eye is gooped less today than it
was last night, so I'm hopeful that she's pulling out
of whatever it was she was under.
Wednesday, January 12
meds given approx 7:30am, 7:30pm
Interesting week. Bacall has been moderately jumpy
all week. The last time I went on vacation, when I returned,
her first attack on Sam came within a day or two. I'm
wondering if my absence is the cause of her being more
jumpy this week than she has been the last month or
so. She seems to be calming down a bit, and it hasn't
been very bad. Just a little more submissive than she's
been recently.
On Saturday morning I awoke to some loud ruckus taking
place in the bedroom. It was Bacall and Sam. Playing.
Playing hard. Very hard. *grin* They were jumping on
each other, wrestling, chasing each other through the
house, play biting, play growling, and generally having
a great time. This is the first time the two of them
have played like this since the first attack on Sam
last June. There was no hesitation from either of them,
no raised hackles. They didn't stop when they realized
I was watching. In fact, I got up, walked to the kitchen
and got a glass of water, and walked back to the bedroom
to get back into bed, and they didn't even seem to notice
me. In fact, because of Sam's increase energy, I think
this is the best play I've ever seen them engage in.
And it wasn't a one time occurrence. They've been playing
together a few times a day ever since. It's a welcome
relief, and after watching them carefully the first
few times, I now feel comfortable just letting them
play.
Duke and his owners moved out of the trailer next door
last week. I think Bacall is going to miss Duke a lot,
and Bogart is going to miss Duke's owner! The new family
moved in yesterday, and it's going to be interesting.
They have a small Pomeranian, adult, and an 8 week old
Chow mix puppy. I came home early this afternoon to
take my pack out for a hike, since the weather is incredible.
This was the first hike in nearly two months, between
cold, wet, and short days, and my vacation. So everyone
was excited, and all three were doing great. We'd just
completed the hike and gotten back to the yard, when
the Pom came around the corner of the yard, barking.
Of course my three headed over to see who the new playmate
was. The Pom took off screaming, before mine got even
close to it. Luckily, mine returned when I called, and
I let them into the house before going over to meet
the new people and make sure the Pom was okay. Well,
I met three young teenagers, one of whom was screaming
and swearing up a blue streak at me when the dogs had
been headed for the Pom. They let me meet the Pom, and
the Chow puppy, who is already showing alarming signs
of aggression -- growling and biting, not in a playful
way, but in an aggressive way. I would prefer not to
let my three have any contact with either of their dogs,
or the teenagers. Leaving out the details, I don't trust
the kids, and don't think the dogs are going to be compatible
with mine. All in all, it feels like trouble. After
I came back over, one of the girls came over to ask
me something, and when I slipped out the front door
to see what she wanted, Bacall peed on the carpet by
the door. All three dogs were barking like crazy at
her -- not so much the type of barking like they
were excited that someone was at the door, but like
they didn't like who was at the door. I don't blame
them. They were probably picking up my feelings. I should
work on that.
Monthly Journals
Thyroid Links
Copyright © 1999, 2001 by OffLead Productions.
Reprinted with permission of the author.
|
