Monday, November 30, 2009

I gots to zooooooooooom!

oh holy poop every gray hair I have can be blamed on this mutt! We went to rehab and he got tired out, then he had a raw meal with much bone chewing to tire him out. Well I took him out he did his business and boy oh boy did he go for it.

I GOTS TO ZOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM MA!

no you don't

I TELL YA I GOTS TO ZOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM

no you don't, enough! settle down and go slow

harumph

put him inside take the leash off and off he went. Way off!

Ran through the expen and over the coffee table, tail tucked
"sometimes ya gots ta ZOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM"

dh - WHAT'S GOING ON DOWN THERE?
I can't stop him, help.

went on for about 5 minutes we would corner him get him in a down and try to get him to relax, he'd just be there ready to launch and then do so

He's now curled up in a ball, sleeping like an innocent angel

as funny as it was, it wasn't!

Sunday, November 29, 2009

wow some days this really hurts

I am deeply and utterly sad today. I think the whole TPLO process is just kicking my butt, I knew eventually the dark reality would hit. Seems that day is today.
Bugsy has been doing so well through the recuperation process that a false sense of 'this isn't too bad' came over all of us.
But then we had the problems with the Rimadyl and stopped it. Then last night he was limping. Limping as badly as he did the first few days. My heart broke.
I considered giving another Rimadyl but couldn't find it in myself to intentionally rip up his healing GI tract but goodness did I want to stop his pain.
I have started a homeopathic Traumeel that has strong reviews and recommendations so I gave another of those but I am unsure it did anything.
So he is back on tighter restrictions today and likely for this week.
And to think we are not halfway to the 8 week x ray and not yet a quarter of the way through the whole process.
Send me some strength folks, thanks.

Friday, November 27, 2009

Happy Thanksgiving!

Bugsy is allergic to turkey but that has never decreased his interest in the lovely roast bird, as you can see below -
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That picture was taken when he was still a free boy :-(
This year he had a rough time. We did our best to contain him for his own good but he loves the people that were here and he whined and cried for ages. Hours. Many hours.
Eventually after over five hours of crying and whining he fell asleep. Deeply asleep.
All of us breathed a sigh of relief.

In other news he has had a terrible time with Rimadyl so he is off that now, he doesn't appear to have pain issues and I hope that the lack of anti-inflammatory doesn't cause any problems. Send a good thought our way, OK?

He had two rehab sessions last week and he is making great progress. He went from (4) 1.5 minute sessions on his first visit to (6) 2 minute sessions and work on an exercise ball on his third visit. I wish my fitness level improved so quickly, LOL.

He isn't too keen on the fish tank though as you can see
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We'll keep doing it though.

He is now sleeping calmly in the sunshine, he's such a good boy!

Thursday, November 19, 2009

I thought he would be tired?

Today was a big day in Bugsy's rehabilitation. He had his first laser treatment and also his first underwater treadmill exercise. He did really well and was surprisingly OK with being in a fish tank with a moving floor!
His therapist is very sweet and picked up on a simple technique to motivate and distract him; ask for kisses LOL.
He kindly lifted his leg for her to massage - loves the luxuries of life this dog - and despite being slightly spooked by the sounds and by random (in his mind) starting and stopping of the floor he just got on with it.
Amazingly he showed no discomfort today and he also was clearly energized by the opportunity to exercise - definitely not exhausted.
I am so happy with how things have been going - I recognize there is a LONG way to go but so far his recovery is way beyond my imagination.
It is two weeks today that he had his surgery and despite having to be so much more involved with his activities I miss him. I miss getting the newspaper with him in the morning, exercising with him and most of all I miss having him asleep next to me at night.
I hate thinking this way but you know I haven't any idea how I will live without him. Long may he live

Sunday, November 15, 2009

oh boy, oh boy , MY boy is feeling good!

I think the hard part of this process has hit us hard this weekend. Bugsy my boy is feeling very well. He still limps, sometimes badly, but his joie de vivre and mischievous soul his back. He's done with the anti-biotics and tomorrow morning is the end of the sedatives. He wants to do all the things he loves to do. Sigh. But I know it isn't in his best interest to do so. He must rest. I see much crate time ahead.
I say this with sadness. You all know I love this dog and one of the things I love most is this joie de vivre and deeply embedded mischief so now that I see it back and I want my buddy back. I want him back bad. But he isn't back and I and he will survive. I'm sure we will have some times where we both slip up but I pray that they aren't bad slip-ups = damaging slip-ups.
I know that the day I can put away the ex-pen and he joins us upstairs for the night will be wonderful times.
Some people will never understand how you can love a dog so much, honestly I can't explain it but I can tell you I love this beast more than I thought possible. I need to be strong and show tough love until he is healed. I would appreciate you sending me some strength.

Friday, November 13, 2009

He's feeling better - let the fun begin

Uh oh Bugsy is feeling better. He is still sleeping most of the day and he still has times of serious pain but trust me he is feeling better.
This morning he made an escape from his room to the kitchen and looked back at me like 'caught you snoozing!'. So we are going to have to get a bit more serious in our containment efforts.
He also was limber enough for somersaults and pouncing on his kong. He may now have to be solely restricted to 'his room' as he doesn't have room for those sort of antics in there.

At other times though he is so desperate for human contact it makes me sad. He has never been a dog that cuddles but now he tries to sit on me or even funnier tries to curl up on my lap. Earlier he was doing the latter and found a comfy spot and was making a sound as if he were purring. I was glad to appease him for a bit.
In the evenings he often just whines while he lay there, and his leg shakes. I know he is in serious pain at that point and it stinks to not be able to do anything about it. Usually he is like that for about an hour before he gets his next dose of pain medication.

I feel certain we have done the right thing for him long term but I admit that when I hear him whining and his leg is shaking I feel awful.
Send my poor boy some loving OK? He's a big fella but he is just a baby. And he sure doesn't know what happened to him.

Wednesday, November 11, 2009

Well it is 1 week tomorrow!!

Bugsy is healing very well. Most of the swelling is gone, the incision still looks very good and he continues to use the leg. You can tell when the pain meds wear off but otherwise he is doing well.
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We have discovered that he really doesn't like the e-collar aka cone of shame, but he must wear it when unattended because he is starting to be interested in the wound.
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Yesterday my DH came home after a week away - so he left before the surgery - and Bugsy was way too excited to see him. This presented our biggest challenge thus far. This dog is a vigorous wiggle butt when happy and it's a pretty large butt!
Our next challenge arrived in the form of Tropical Storm Ida which is dumping huge amounts of rain on us. So now I have a livelier, 105lb, 3 legged dog to escort with one good arm on wet ramps and flooded grounds. He of course doesn't want to 'do his business' in the swamp but we can't walk the whole yard to find a pseudo dry spot. ARGH!
Not fun. The mud, the wind, the rain, IT'S COLD! And Mr. Prissy Pants looking for just the right spot.
Someday when he is running zoomies again splashing through puddles at will, perhaps I will laugh at this time. Perhaps.

Sunday, November 8, 2009

day 3 post TPLO - no more bandage

Wow taking the bandage off was a tough job - poor guy lost even more hair and it was really stuck on in some spots.
He does seem to be feeling better, which means when we went out to do his business he wanted to trot about the yard. Um not for another few weeks bud!
After several visits and much aggravation he finally peed and had his first poop. In the 'my dog has had a TPLO' circle that first poop is real important.
I have now drugged him sufficiently and he is asleep in his crate. I am not going to let him out until much later. His ankle is fairly swollen and I want him to rest as much as possible.
I knew this was going to be tough but I am already exhausted. Having a suspected torn rotator cuff isn't helping - I mean it is tough enough to move around a 105lb dog with two healthy arms. When one is in constant searing pain it is really tough!
So I think it is time for me to take a muscle relaxant and try to calm my shoulder/neck.

Saturday, November 7, 2009

2 days post TPLO

Well I am not sure who was happier me to see him or him to see me, I can say we were both very happy.
Bugsy did well and I am happy to report that his knee had no additional damage which is good news. The girls all fell in love with him and as always were wondering just what sort of mix he is, LOL one tech said may be he is part Angus steer?
He has been good since coming home but he doesn't want to pee. He didn't go while there and has been once since coming home. I know he can hold it for ages but it would make me feel better if he would go!
He is eating fine and drinking occasionally (which is his norm)
This morning the bandage had some blood on it but my vet said a small amount is OK. The pain killers seem to put him to sleep so that is great. The poor guy was quivering this morning I presume from pain
I have been putting hot compresses on as instructed and giving him lots of loving. Poor guy sure doesn't seem to know what happened to him.
Hopefully when his recovery is complete and he is running pain-free it will all seem worth it.

a few pictures
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Monday, November 2, 2009

TPLO is now looming

In just a few short days Mr. Bugsy will be having his surgery.
I have set up 'his room' with his crate and a bed and lots of non-slip rugs. There is a large sofa in there for me to sleep on those first few nights.
We have a ramp for going outside and I am going to create a small outside pen, which will be easier than trying to keep him on leash for 'his business'.
Today I stopped his supplements because some can apparently slow the clotting process.
For the record this boy get fish oil with Vitamin E (if you give the former you must give the latter). He also gets Vitamin A, MSM, glucosamine, Chondroitin, Nutri-joint and sometimes Vit D, acidophilus, Vit C, milk thistle, and coconut oil.
LOL now that I look at it no wonder he is so hearty!
Some of the above we started to deal with his allergies which have become much more moderate since starting thyroid supplementation.

I guess everything is ready. I talk to him each time I see him limp and tell him we are getting it fixed. Although the first weeks will be worse than he is now the idea is that he will be running pain free this summer and beyond.
I am totally committed to taking rehab slowly and getting him back to his full muscular self. I understand that we need to carefully work him so as not to over stress the other leg.

I will try to put some more light-hearted posts on here again, just difficult at the moment. He still makes me laugh each and every day with his fine sense of humor but I find myself feeling sad that it will be a long time until he is 'free' again.
So apologies for he gloominess and I promise to report his progress as well as share our laughs!