Shadow Update

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Happy to say I have GOOD news to report!


Shadow had her follow-up ultrasound two weeks ago. The abscesses in her liver that I told you about last month are gone. The nodule on her spleen remains the same, unchanged. 

So, the vet said we’re going to leave Shadow on the Denamarin long term. The Denamarin makes her tummy feel “weird” for a few hours, so she eats very little – if any – breakfast.  I’ve had to resign myself to that fact and just give her lunch instead of breakfast. 

Unrelated, she’s been shaking her head off and on for the past couple of weeks. Her right ear seems to have an excessive wax buildup on the inner flap and close to the canal. I clean it up with a warm, wet gauze pad every few days. Tomorrow morning I’m taking her to see Doc, just to be sure there’s no infection causing that waxy mess. I don’t think there is – it doesn’t smell bad, just “waxy” – but want to be sure. Shadow’s ears have always been clean, and free of infection since she was a puppy. I want to keep it that way as she gets older.  

Time Flies…

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…when you’re having fun!

Friday is the last day of my externship for my Veterinary Assistant course. And I’m torn between remaining as a volunteer and getting back to my former life as a retired person. 

I have truly enjoyed the hands-on experience I’ve had throughout my time behind the scenes at our vet’s hospital. I know there are many things I need more practice with to become an even better vet assistant. But I also know it takes time to hone one’s skills. All the “girls” and both Dr. Steve and Dr. Simpson have been super-patient with my more-than-occasional lapses in concentration. And I appreciate it more than they could possibly know.  

From the start, my heart has cried for the pet parents whose furry “kids” have been diagnosed with terminal illnesses or been aided in their journeys to the Rainbow Bridge. And rejoiced with the pet parents who received good news.

Something I was afraid would “turn my stomach” – watching surgery on an animal – actually ended up fascinating me. I wouldn’t want to HAVE TO be the vet/surgeon performing the surgery. And I don’t know that I could handle watching surgery on my own dogs; but the surgery itself and the vet’s skill and devotion to his patients just blew me away.  So did the skill of the techs assisting with the surgeries. These gals are fantastic! 

While I am definitely looking forward to getting my former life back – to some degree at least – my life has been irrevocably changed by this experience. 

I am truly grateful to Dr. Steve for having agreed to let me do my externship under his tutelage. And I am grateful to Dr. Steve, Dr. Simpson, and the entire staff at Sunrise Animal Hospital for their mentoring, assistance, guidance, and unending patience as I watched, participated, fumbled, and learned my way through my externship.

 Revisiting The Ducky Diary

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The times that I have to make an entry in The Ducky Diary are dwindling down to about once a month. Sometimes twice, but the last entry was only a single page. And it was mostly about how proud I am of Ducky these days.

Yes, she still has her moments. Sometimes she reminds me of a small child who wants all of Mommy’s attention to herself and has a hissy fit when a sibling tries to butt in. Yet, unlike the days before I started keeping track of her snarky moments, I’m highly tuned into the energy …

I can literally see her start to tense up. And I can cup her little chin in the palm of my one hand (while holding her collar with the other hand), look into her eyes, and calmly tell her “No. There’s no need for that. Settle down.” And she does. I can see the hairs on her scruff soften, her gaze soften, and the rest of her body relax …

Then I can let go of her collar without worrying if she’ll go after Shadow.  She won’t. She either walks right past Shadow without acknowledging her presence; or, she’ll stop and give her older sister a few puppy kisses on top of her snout or forehead. So sweet! Tension defused.

Serene Saturday

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It has been such a beautiful weekend so far … sunshine, blue skies, puffy white clouds … 

In between games with the ball or Bounzer, the girls have been like this …


Or wanting to run the fence line with the neighbors’ bulldog, Jupiter. A quick hello is all they need, in my opinion.

There’s a nice breeze out here right now. Ducky is looking around her – nose twitching and ears moving to catch every sound. Shadow just changes position a little to get comfortable.


TGIF 

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It has been a busy week around here and I’m glad it’s about over.

As I started writing the draft of this post on Tuesday morning, my sweet, loving Golden Shadow was in a kennel at the vet’s office. 

She was awaiting her turn with Dr. Steve, and for me to return for her.

Last Friday, we did a re-check of her liver enzyme levels after 30 days on the Denosyl.

The Denosyl did not work. Those enzyme levels which were elevated 36 days ago were even more elevated this time. And other levels were also elevated that had been in the normal range. 

So, on Tuesday afternoon – at the vet’s recommendation – we did an ultrasound on her liver and abdominal region.  

Turns out she has some old-age abscesses in her liver which we will be treating with Ampicillin and Denamarin for a month. She also has a small nodule in her spleen that does NOT appear to have any worrisome characteristics. But just to be on the safe side we will do another ultrasound in a month to check on it.

Meanwhile, Ducky had the first of two CIV (Canine Influenza Virus) vaccinations on Tuesday morning as well. It doesn’t reach its full efficacy until two weeks after the second “shot”. So, our little girl will not be going back to daycare until some time in July. I’m not taking any unnecessary chances of her being infected and passing it on to Shadow. Especially now. She seems happy enough to stay home…

So today – as always – I am thankful that we have a great relationship with a wonderful vet. And, by the way, his hospital/practice is now accredited by the #AAHA.

I’m also thankful for – among so many other blessings – our wonderful pet-loving community. I honestly don’t know what I’d do without y’all!  (I meant to join the Thankful Thursday blog hop but didn’t have time.)

The Ducky Diary

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My long-term readers might remember that I’ve been keeping track of Ducky’s snarkiness toward Shadow for quite some time. First in my head  – for several months – and more recently in a journal.

This journal has been a life saver! Well, maybe not a life saver, but it has certainly been a HUGE memory booster.

The last two weeks had been “heavenly.” Ducky had been calm and happy and fine with Shadow. She gave me a wonderful – the best ever – Mother’s Day gift of getting along and playing with Shadow.  (Along with these beautiful roses from her daddy, her sister, and her.)

Last night – thanks to my notes in The Ducky Diary – I knew she wasn’t feeling quite right. Even hubby – who’s usually as observant as a fence post – noticed “his little girl” wasn’t feeling well.

This morning she was still giving off some negative energy, so I called the vet. They were able to work us into his schedule. And I was able to tell him exactly what has been going on. He “fixed her up”, gave me some meds for her, and sent us on our way. She’s already feeling better than she was this morning. 

So. The moral of the story? If you’re having an issue with your pet(s), start keeping a journal of it. Even if you think you’ll remember later, just jot it down quick and date it. Life has a way of distracting us and making us forget little details. And it’s usually those little things that matter most.

Creatures of Habit, Part 2

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Well, I’ve given up on changing the girls’ breakfast time. Temporarily.

Last week Shadow had to get a re-check of her liver enzyme levels. 

Back in January when she had her annual exam, they were slightly elevated, but the vet wasn’t all that concerned. “We’ll re-check them in three months and take it from there.”

Well, they were still a little elevated last week, so the vet decided to try Denosyl – a nutritional supplement, not a prescription drug – to help “clean out” her “system”. That’s when her appetite really went south.

I started her on the Denosyl on Wednesday morning – on an empty stomach – and about two hours later put her food bowl down for her. (Instructions call for waiting at least an hour before feeding meals.) 

Shadow sniffed at the food and walked away. Would not even take a small bite. “Oh ****!” I said to hubby. “Between my routine change and now this, all that hard work of getting her weight and daily calories back up is going to be for naught.”

I spent the day worrying about her food intake. Stupid me. I should have just called the vet. But she was otherwise fine. She and Ducky played well together in the yard.
Well, to be honest, they played separately – Shadow with her ball, Ducky with her Bounzer – but there was no arguing between them. I worked with Ducky on her “place” and loose-leash walking and threw in some sit-stay-come work. And I threw Shadow’s ball back and forth across the yard. 

Thursday morning? Same scenario. Denosyl at 7 am, food bowl down at 9:30, a brief sniff and then refusal to eat. So, when I got to the vet’s office to do my externship hours, I mentioned the food issue to the vet tech who’s mentoring me. She immediately put my mind at ease.

“It’s a temporary thing. The Denosyl has a habit of making their stomachs feel weird the first two or three days until they’re used to it. If she’s still refusing to eat over the weekend, we’ll figure something else out on Monday. But my guess is she’ll be back to normal tomorrow.” So, I stopped worrying and sure enough, Shadow ate her regular breakfast and then some yesterday. 

Maybe, at some point, I’ll go back to changing the girls’ meal times. But for now at least, all’s well. And the teensy bit of extra attention that I’m giving Ducky each day is keeping her jealousy under control. Even yesterday when the guys were here putting the new roof on the house she was good. (Of course, being at daycare all day and taking her “chill pill” before we left to come home probably helped. Along with the 3/4-mile walk around the ball field.)​​

Here’s hoping that you’re all having a good weekend!

Creatures of Habit

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Never has it been more obvious to me than the last few days….

Shadow needs to eat more food than what she had been eating. Things were going great until the other day.

I started my externship for my Vet Assistant course on Tuesday so my routine changed.

Shadow definitely does not like change. Ducky? She couldn’t care less. As long as she gets fed, loved, and played with, she’s happy.  

Back to Shadow. Tuesday, while I brought Ducky to daycare, I had hubby put Shadow’s breakfast bowl down for her. She ate some – well, most – of it but not all. Later, she barely touched her lunch. She did eat her dinner but only because she was hungry. And even then she picked and poked at it first. Wednesday she was even less willing to eat. And Thursday morning she left part of her breakfast again. 

I’m trying to change their meal times to make it easier on all of us. Ducky’s being very cooperative. Shadow is not. She is a creature of habit – like her mama – and doesn’t like having her applecart upset. 

Routine change is hard on me, too. Normally, I hate it. So, I feel for Shadow. And like with Ducky’s attitude changes last week, I had an “ah-ha!” moment with Shadow Thursday morning. I’ll just keep feeding her at the new times – picking up the bowl if she doesn’t eat within 15 minutes – until she gets used to the new routine. 

The changes due to my externship will only last nine or ten, maybe twelve, weeks. Hubby will give Shadow her chest and neck rubs in the afternoons, and let both girls play out in the yard, while I’m working at the vet’s office the three afternoons a week. 

All that said, I’m thankful that Shadow is healthy and that her body can tolerate the upheaval of her routine. 

Dog Mom Shames Self

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You would think that after watching and writing about Ducky’s interactions – good, bad, or neutral – with Shadow since Callie got her angel wings that I would realize when something is amiss.

But noooooo. DUHHH! After nearly 16 months it finally sunk in on Wednesday morning. 

I made an appointment with the vet on Monday thinking Ducky had somehow ended up with another UTI, despite the surgery in late February. She had been licking back there – almost constantly – all day Sunday. 

Ducky had been increasingly bratty toward Shadow (again!) since the previous Thursday night. She was snarky almost every waking moment; and hubby was getting snarky with her and me. Talk about stress overload! But we all survived.

Wednesday morning while Ducky and I waited in the exam room, it hit me like a smack upside the head. 🙄

Since Callie 😇 went to Heaven/the Rainbow Bridge/ in late August 2015, Ducky had been acting sweeter, more considerate/respectful of Shadow. EXCEPT when she wasn’t feeling well. 

Every. Single. Time. Ducky isn’t feeling well, she takes it out on poor Shadow. Because Shadow won’t “tell her off” like Callie used to, or like hubby and I do. Shadow just isn’t built that way.  

Anyway, Ducky’s medical issue this time was a slightly impacted, somewhat inflamed right anal gland. How she ended up with that is beyond me. But the vet cleaned her out, gave her some loving, and sent some Carprofen and antibiotics home with us. She started feeling better almost immediately afterward. And having a spa treatment at daycare a few hours later? Well, she was just in doggie heaven that night! ☺️

During the exam, I mentioned to the vet how hubby and I were seriously considering consulting a veterinary behaviorist about Ducky’s bratitude. 

And how it had finally dawned on me that it’s only really problematic when she isn’t feeling well. So, since we really can’t afford a behaviorist anyway, the vet suggested I start keeping track of Ducky’s worst days/nights and obsessive behaviors.  He feels I’ve hit the proverbial nail on the head, but the only way to be sure is to keep a written record of it. So, that’s what I’m going to do from this point forward. 

Anyway, things are pretty much back to normal. We spent most of the day Thursday in the yard without a peep out of Ducky. Even when Shadow sniffed at “her” toy for a moment. (I was so stunned by Ducky’s lack of reaction that I couldn’t even say “good girl!” in time for her to know why I’d said it.)