Frost “T” actually has had a few hours of straight rest(on his side which is his favourite) since we increased his dig .25 of a pill twice a day. He is still pretty much non existent in the eating and tonight I tried tuna, his old favourite of french baguette(do not want to give him overly much for fear of expansion in his belly) and roast turkey along with some beef stew. HE ate most of that but refused to eat any of his dry dog food. AT least he ate something. I made an appointment for 1:30 PM today and should he not eat well at breakfast tomorrow; I will bring him in. I have been so appreciative of the many emails and calls from wonderful people who are really pulling for Frost ‘T’. AT the very least I want to bring him in to have him re-evaluated as it has been a week plus to get a new weight on him. Sean was almost reduced to tears when he saw him after a week of being away…………..I ended up getting to bed at 4:00 AM yesterday waiting for Sean and the wee one’s to come home and when I went to lie down as Sean was still about 4 hours away due to two accidents he was caught behind; Frost ‘T’ was up every hour either having to pee, could not breathe or had diarrhoa. I will gladly forgo any rest for Frost ‘T’ as long as he is healing and bouncing back yet I am not at this time sure he is really progressing and try to remain as objective in my medical training as possible to continue to make the right decision. Today marks one year since Frost ‘T’ began a whole new journey and may we find the strength to do the ‘right’ thing for him moving forward. WE took more pictures of him tonight to continue with our precious memory making. All I want for XMAS is for him to be ‘ok’ and for whatever that means; I will support. I simply adore this boy. There is no other way to put it and right now he is giving me ‘fish’ breath kisses telling me it is time to cuddle! 🙂 Today marks his one year ‘miracle survival’ mark and it so filled with emotion.
Month: December 2006
Thor is thriving and is heading to his foster mom’s in-laws for the holidays. Here is a posting his Foster Mom did on LNS and some comments from myself. HE is going to make someone a GREAT dog!!!!! Thor is beginning to learn that he does not have a ‘get out of jail for free’ card which puppies tend to have up to the age of about 7 months or so and he is adjusting well. Thor just did not understand that he is no longer a puppy but an almost 2.5 year old Dane and that the behavour accepted of a puppy is not the same behavour accepted from one of his age; even though he is not mentally mature at this point. I am proud of him and how intelligent and willing he is and I am thrilled with his foster home, especially DozeR! 🙂
http://leansnslobbers.proboards92.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=pictures&thread=1166554713&page=1#1166564214
My Vet called me today and we had very hard talk about Frost ‘T’. The Vet also et me know that Frost ‘T’s Electrolyte levels have came back normal. He has suggested upping one of his meds as a possible ‘last’ resort any way (even though he is pretty much maxed out) as Frost “T” is clearly not doing well (so what is there to really lose) and will be contacting the UOG tomorrow (University of Guelph) to see if they have any other things we could possibly try at this point. The Vet believes that while he is not in Congestive Heart failure at this time; his heart is beginning to give out on him. Frost ‘T’ is eating some wet canned food only and it is not enough to even keep a bird alive. He cannot eat as he cannot eat as he cannot breathe. I told the Vet that unless he does a miraculous 360 turn in the next two days; when Sean comes home on Thursday; I shall let Frost ‘T’ go. I adore this dog too much to let him just merely ‘exist’. And what I have been doing is creating more amazing memories plus taking Frost ‘T’ on some possible ‘last time’ adventures. We have been driving places and though it is chilly, I have opened up the sunroof and blasted the heat as he loves to stick his head out and let him just ‘do his thing’. Frost ‘T’ used to love the drive-through at McDonald’s and while he won’t eat the fries or nuggets anymore; he loves having his head out the window for the employees there to reach out and pet him. The same goes for the local Timmie’s. We have been taking small strolls here and there(I wish we had snow, Frost “T” has always loved the snow); visiting friends and spending a lot of time just being together with me touching plus holding him. His tail wags let me know that he is very appreciative of our outings and I think it distracts him a bit from feeling ‘icky’. I try to not to ‘mourn’ him as if he is already gone yet I do spend a lot of time on the verge of tears if not actually weeping for this boy is a huge part of me and I feel like he is ‘fading’ literally before my eyes and I am helpless, frustrated, upset and even a little angry that the world is losing another precious creature who does not deserve this. Do we have hope still, I guess it is always there but unless we can get him to eat and rest and get ‘back up on his feet’; I cannot see how he can carry on much longer. I do not want to be the person who ‘failed’ him by keeping him alive when it was time to let him go and nor do I want to be known as the person who ‘failed’ him by giving up on him either. At this point in time, for those that have been following his story; hug your loved one’s close and please continue to spare Frost ‘T’ a thought of positive energy for I know he could use it right now.
I JUST had to post that Liquorice actually TROTTED and was very pleased with herself at that…her little butt could not have wiggled more…..AND what made me ecstatic was that she was doing this BECAUSE she saw ME! I had just come home from running some errands and doing some XMAS shopping and I opened up the door and she made a very quick beeline straight for me! This has been the longest (a few hours) that she has been left alone for Sean is still in NB with the wee one’s and I needed to step out of the house. She just melts your heart this one and this has been confirmed by all those that have met her to date……
Was at the Vet’s last night with Frost ‘T’ as he did not eat on Tuesday and has eaten very little since, he is lethargic and just weak. We are running electrolyte and digoxin levels and his lungs are clear WHICH is awesome news……but he has lost 4.6 KG (almost 11 pounds) of weight in 10 days. He is now 57 KGS. He is drinking and still only 5% dehydrated so that is good. His temperature is very low normal 38.3 and the normal range is 38 – 38.9……We got him to eat some wet p/d and liver treats while we were at the Hospital. So, I brought 4 cans home and of course watch him just eat the wet and leave the dry….. According to the Vet he is not yet in congestive heart failure and while he is clearly in a slide and said that I would be doing no wrong either way I went with him and also said that perhaps we should give him the weekend at least to see if he can recover more. We might also get another ultrasound to see about damage to the heart and especially to some of his cords and valves. I asked the Vet very plainly if Frost ‘T’ was suffering and he said no but that is clearly not in great shape and that he is ‘max’ out in the levels of the 5 heart meds he can be given…there is no more that he can be given without everything just shutting down on him….He will be going back in on Monday for the day for monitoring and more testing….AT least the pneumonia is now gone!!!! With Sean and the wee one’s in NB, I did not wish to be bringing my baby Frost ‘T’ home to bury and not have my support system at home to just ‘be there’.
I just want to clarify for those that read Thor’s updates that JUST because he needs to be in a home at this time with a ‘Leader’ does not mean that Thor is aggressive. Thor is at 2+ years what other puppies would be around 3-6 months in his level of social, play and pack behavour & the testing. He has not been taught the correct or proper ways to behave and now he needs to learn it at his current age so that he is not a ‘failure’ in society. Being ‘checked’ in his behavour does not mean that another dog needs to ‘pin’ him to the ground etc., they just need to ‘tell him’ that what Thor is doing is not acceptable. Dogs can be very subtly about their communication and a good ‘leader’ will be very honest, upfront and clean with their ‘checking’. What Thor does is not out of aggression, malice or meanness; he truly just does not know any better and while this is being said; in the wrong home that does not understand what needs to happen here; he would be ‘set up for failure’ and possible disaster. He will need a firm, experienced and understanding hand as Thor does not like to always do what Thor does not want to do. In my home; I have Leaders and I have Followers and Thor was being ‘encouraged’ by the followers by not checking his behavour by the very nature of their own behavour and it was making it quite hard in the training of him. In his current foster home; their one Dane is teaching him this and the current dog they are dogsitting has also ‘checked’ his behavour. Thor is also showing how absolutely curious he is in his new foster home and he is coming along really nicely with their cats at this time and I just read that two of them have found a nice comfort spot around his leg! The first two days were a little questionable as he went from being scared at times to wanting to play with them at others. Like any introductions, proper integration is key to success. I am still very much leaning towards a home that has a ‘leader'(THIS does not mean an alpha dog) and that the leader is preferably a male. I would consider a home with a female yet only if the female has a fairly strong personality one(& this does not mean aggressive or alpha). I am not open at this time in considering a home for Thor that does not currently have one other dog who will have the proper animal dynamics for him. GOSH! HE is ever a ‘goob’ and affectionate to people! HE loves the loving and spoiling attention! BTW, for the home that he does go to; please know that this BOY DROOLS! 🙂 He can put to shame my own English Mastiff on that one! LOL
When I was at work on Wednesday; I had another long talk with my Vet about Liquorice & that she is now making a bit of a strangled wheeze sound and has even more of a ‘noisy’, ‘wet’ breathing. His honest thoughts at this point were that he is very worried that being on the Pred would surely kill her in her current condition and if my goal is to give her that ‘true’ quality; it is best to no longer think about the Pred and continue only with the NSAIDS as it has only been 8 days since the decision was made to use the Pred. So, I have purchased another 60 Deramaxx 100 mg tablets for her and she will get 1 – 2 tablets a day for her pain/discomfort. Her current vet bill is just over $900.00 and a HUGE thank you is sent to Karen for making a $500 contribution to KAH for her Vet Bills. The other Rescue indicated last Saturday that their gala was the Sunday and I have not yet heard word on what $ amount might have been raised to assist Liquorice. Liquorice is still eating & drinking well at as high of a level as I feel is comfortable for her Wobbler’s and to date still has not vomited!
ADOPTION PENDING!!!! If all goes well Mazda will go to her new home in the New Year!
I thought for sure that Frost “T” was going to die on me last night. Around 11 PM he started to froth at the mouth, his pupils became very dilated, he was not ‘aware’ of his surroundings and was very weak. I pumped even more lasix into him around 11:30 PM and he had his antibiotics and I monitored his TPR and his gums were pale and his ears purple in trying to get the air flowing in his body. He could not lie down and his nose began to ‘run’ with clear fluid. I was just on the verge of rushing him into emerg. when he finally was able to lie down on his belly and get some rest and while it was not very peaceful; he could at least get off his feet. Around 3 AM he was up for another long pee, some more lasix was given around 3:30 AM and this became the pattern throughout the rest of the night. He also had one pee accident in my bed and one on the floor near the door as he could not quite get outside in time. Around 7:30 AM today; he finally was able to stop coughing, puffing enough to actually lie on his side(his favourite resting/sleeping position) and had a really nice couple hours of deep sleep. He even ate some food for Breakfast today and also some more food for lunch and a little for dinner. By the time, he got up for good around noon; he was wagging his tail more, his pupils were back to normal and he had a little energy to trot outside as he went to go pee. He did not stop his normal level of drinking throughout this whole episode and it has now completely vanished. I will be calling his Vet tomorrow for Frost ‘T’ has never ‘frothed’ up like that with his pupils so dilated. I truly thought he was dying on me and gave him lots of hugs and told him that it was ‘ok to go to be with WinterGirl’ if that is what he needed to do. I told him to not worry about us and that we would be reunited later. Sean stayed with us until about 2:30 AM and then I sent him off to bed for some rest so that we could tag team later if need be. The lasix is just sucking the weight off him though…sigh. He is now lying on a doggie bed near me chewing a chewie and is pretty content though still a bit ‘weak’ in his walking. I will definitely be bringing him in for electrolyte, bw and digoxin level testing just to name a few things to see what answers we might find.
Thor is in his foster home and so far it is a good match for him and the foster homes other Dane. They will continue to work on the things we feel is important for Thor and it also reinforces that if Thor goes to a home with another dog, especially male; that the male must be a ‘leader’ and a good leader at that. I do not wish to have Thor in a home as the ‘leader’ at this time. He has much to learn about what that role entails and about how proper play plus that social dog behavour needs to be. His foster mom will be keeping me posted on a regular basis.
I believe when I got up on the morning of the 8th, that I already knew what I had to do with Liquorice. She and I have begun a very special journey together since November 5th and I think that as we have come so far together as is, that we have to at least try the Pred. and see where it takes us. If it gives her even that X amount of quality time, then that is worth it and I have to look at what ‘quality of life’ is for Liquorice right now compared to what she had in the past and take that into consideration over thinking about the fact that she cannot run and/or play like other ‘normal’ dogs. AS Liquorice is not normal and I have no idea the last time, if ever, that she was a ‘normal’ dog and I truly should know better than to not compare her that way. I need to compare her to what I believe she has experienced in the past and when I do that THERE is no doubt that she is having a HUGE quality of life here with us. If quality of life for X amount of time is to enjoy our very short little strolls and to share a wee bit of ice cream here and there or to lie close to each other on my bed or to give her some major soft scratches and rubs and just to offer up every comfort possible for her and amuse her little whims of wanting to stockpile the toys and give the other dogs the daring ‘eye’ only to laugh at them as they sit in confusion not quite sure what to do about it; then that is SOOOO much more quality of life that she has had in the past. There will be no litters, there will be no abuse, no starving, no pain and only warmth, treats, love, comfy beds and a full belly etc. and so yup, I just have to go the Pred route with her and be very vigilant about the pneumonia concern. I live it every day with Frost ‘T’ as is and having two dogs to worry about and having to get them outside to pee every 1-1.5 hours is not hardship for me! So, we are planning on spending the extra monies for the meds etc. and to monitor from there. We have already spent just under $700.00 so what is X amount more in money to give her something I feel she not only deserves but has earned through being given such a life of misery. I also know from the emails that we have received that Liquorice has touched the hearts of quite a few people and so she has many people in her corner rooting her on!!!! She has had others ‘fail her’ and I am not going to do the same. Yes, I am aware that she will die and yet, we all die and I will ensure that she has her dignity when it is her time to go as I do this for her plus I will stay in close loop with the Vets and be vigilant as to when the quality of life that she is currently experiences diminishes. The NSAIDS will help with her discomfort and the Pred will help with some of the other medical issues; so we will try our best and see how long that it will be ‘enough’ for her. I was also contacted by the other Rescue last night that had her and they wanted to know if perhaps some of what Liquorice has now is a result of her not getting the proper care from her previous owner. I have directed them and their DA (the Rescue felt that more charges might be laid & I am clearly no expert as to why this is so as the case had already been closed & could only hope that this could be the case if so) if need be to talk to my Vet(s)( and they will advise if all of this needs to go through lawyers) as this is not part of my league. I also imparted to them that at this time, I have no idea if my Vet(s) have even contacted their Rescue’s Vet to discuss what testing that Rescue may have done on her during the length of time that they have had her as the Vet records handed over to BHRR were very limited. At this time, my priority is Liquorice and I must forge forward as to what is in Liqourice’s best interest. I also asked the Rescue when they are hosting their Gala for we wanted to post any new $ amount for her care on one of her updates. Betty, bless your kind soul and heart has also offered to help sponsor her if need be and if there ever was a dog that needed to know that there are kind people in the world; it is Liquroice! So, Liquorice will have her own Santa Stocking this year and it will be put up with care in the knowledge that this is one girl that has been GOOD this year & had the right to be spoiled! 🙂
The best fit for the foster home was Thor as Mazda played ‘really hard to get’ and was very ‘queen’ like aloof. especially in the beginning with her interaction with their Dane. It was a hoot to witness yet what I wanted to their Dane this time around was a Foster that their Dane could really interact with and Thor plus their Dane hit it off from the get go……Mazda would have been fine in their home yet we also looked at the factor of Fancy losing another best friend who has been living with us since March whereas Thor has only been here for a month+. So, Mazda is still stuck with us right now!
I thought I was going to have to let Frost “T” go last Saturday for he was just not improving very much. I then agreed to try a different med and I found out yesterday that the one med that he was put on for the last 2 weeks was one that could cause a reaction with his some of his other regular meds of which he is on 5 for his heart and one for chronic diarrhoea! To put it mildly, I was positively not happy. I almost LET him go on Saturday as he was doing so poorly and to think that being given something for him that was making him that much worse and not better and would have cost him his life; is really upsetting to say the least. Frost “T” will have to undergo some tests on his heart etc. to see what/if any damage has been caused. He is eating a bit more now but is almost 15 pounds down from what he was. We can only hope that he WILL bounce back after this mess up. It will be one year on December 23rd since he began this incredible journey of survival and I am wishing that he has the fight/will to be here with us.
I am beyond ecstatic to say that Fancy is coming along wonderfully! Tonight we did a manicure and pedicure on her and she just stood there with Sean holding her collar with an almost ‘bored’ look on her face! 🙂 She is still somewhat shy in new situations and people but is willing to trust when we say it is ‘ok’ and to continue to move forward. I would say that Fancy’s best friend right now is Mazda and the two of them together can get up to some mischief!!!! They like to grab the throws from the chairs and couches and race away wanting us to play chase….Fancy continues to prefer me over Sean and it appears to be woman in general that she tends to feel more comfortable and trusting around than men at this time. Her favorite position is STILL sitting in my lap! She is going to make a home very happy one day and it is most unfortunate that she has not found her forever loving home as of yet. She continues to be a sweet as can be with us and while happy to let most of the other dogs be leaders; she is not afraid to make her own presence known for bed space and affection. She has really improved in the confidence and has now begun to ‘assert’ herself with any ‘dom’ dogs without the ‘head’ on challenge position so that she is no longer being ‘defensive’ with her body language and feels that she has to be that way. TRULY a huge break through!!!! I am so proud of her!!!!! She is understanding a lot more that she is not being threatened by these stronger personality dogs and that she is going to be ‘ok’. She takes reassurance much more trustingly now and she is picking up so much on correct dog body language and their social pack behavours. We have really rounded a bend here with Fancy and I could not be more delighted. She is so much more willing to be the first to greet people and to lean into them EVEN and will take treat bribes from others more openly now as well. Her comfort and confidence levels are being brought up in just the right measure such as to create a good balance so that both her ‘flight’ and slightly ‘defensive’ are not the only ‘outs’ she knows she now has. We also put a new collar on Lady tonight…she has put on enough weight to have outgrown her old one. THANKS again Mary for the awesome collar donation…We will definitely have to post new pictures of her. SHE is one special girl and I still feel that she would do well in a home without other dogs or with at least one other dog and if she went into a home without any other dogs; they just have to ensure that she is getting enough ‘play dates’ and interaction with other dogs for her own social growth and sheer pleasure of playing with them. She is still a puppy and really enjoys her friends. If Mazda is the dog that will go to the foster home tomorrow night; it will be hard on Fancy for she just lost Gracie back in November when she went to her forever loving home. While one less dog will enable me to spend just that much more time with Fancy; if it is Mazda to leave; it is going to be hard on the gal.
I wanted to also post that Thor’s nose has healed up beautifully and the two pressure sore spots he had on his hips are almost gone too. He has also not marked in my house since those first two times when he originally arrived here. Thor is now having limited and very supervised times(what I call ‘doggie boot camp’ training) with the 11 other Danes he had been interacting with for he is really ‘testing’ and I will continue to monitor and assess his behavour as he continues to leave the ‘honeymoon’ period. Today, he decided that of all dogs to try and dominate over, it was my Frost ‘T’. He has not yet been integrated with the other 5 dogs we have here for when we discovered that Liquorice had Giardia, we kept separate those that they had not yet been intergrated with. We want to be sure that the Giardia is all gone(so far all first post treatment fecals have come back negative for Maggi etc.) as we do not want to end up having these other 5 Dogs exposed. It is quite the ‘juggling’ act but we are managing. However; when Thor does see them; he becomes quite excited. Just like some people, some dogs are going to not like other dogs and for Thor he has never really liked Boba for some reason and they have a civil relationship. Boba on the other hand, ‘just does not get’ why everybody just does not love him! I am not sure if it is because of Boba’s colour or just a personality thing as Thor would never attempt to try any of his antics on Liquorice, who is also black. She just ‘shuts him down’ whenever he gets the idea of trying to dom over her. Liquorice has a look that just sets him straight and he is quickly ‘checked’ in his behavour. Soul, Boba and Lady do not have that same ‘leader’ type personality and Thor just tries to ‘rule’ over them at time and can become quite rough. Tomorrow night, it will be either him or Mazda that will be going to a Foster home that has come back on board from being off since May. The home can continue to work with his lack of correct dog play and social behavour and I will leave it up to their current Dane to decide whom he bonds with more. With humans, this boy could not be more sucky, affectionate and wonderful. We will have to be very careful about his placement as he will need this training to be continued in his new home so that he continues to learn ‘right’ from ‘wrong’. He continues to be extremely gentle about taking treats from us and you can handle his food and water without any issues. We have also been watching his growing ‘possessiveness’ over his crate when he is lying in it (door open) and other dogs approach but if Kona or another one of the more stronger personality dogs continues to just walk right in, Thor just moves over to give them some room! 🙂 So, he has a lot of ‘bluff’ about him and we want to foster the proper communication he should be having with the other dogs etc. I really want to get a current weight on him as well for he is looking STUNNING! I will try and take some new pictures of him to post.
I spent over an hour last night talking to my Vet about Liquorice and where to go from here plus that she also has spondylosis (spinal osteoarthritis). We are in a bit of a hard place with her right now for if we put her on Pred; should she get aspiration pneumonia which is believed to be inevitable with the Megaesophagus(& which at this time is believed she now has so we cannot put her on the Pred at this time anyway); we would on an urgent ASAP timeline to get her into the Hospital for the Pred would surely kill her if she did not get the pneumonia treated at the Hospital due to the Pred making the situation much worse. If we do not put her on Pred; she has no other medicine treatments available for her conditions. We will be putting her on some NSAIDS to help with her discomfort. The other thing is that to fed a Megaesophagus dog; you need to feed them as upright as possible yet in her case this is not possible as she has the Wobbler’s and cannot even lift her head to be parallel to her spine level which puts her at a higher risk of aspiration pnemonia. So, as her Megaesophagus worsens (whether idiopathic or auto-immune or cancer causing) she will not be able to eat and when she does will regurgitate irritating her esophagus and throat even more and also not be able to get the proper level of nutrition she requires. We talked in length about quality of life and that the Vet had the opportunity to discuss more of the UOG results and that she could also have Cushings or Addisons. I am just positively reeling over it all. For another $80.00 we could then determine if she has any of those conditions and I told the Vet that at this point, I just need to go home and ‘soak’ all of this up. Quality of life is always a must for me and for Liquorice, she cannot run or even remotely play normally(she does not even show any interest in even wanting to do these things BUT sure does love to nibble her Knucklebone treaties!), is obviously in some form of discomfort with back and throat and I need to see hard plus objectively just how much of a quality of life this girl really has. At her age she should be experiencing so much more life than she currently is and I have to either find a way to ensure that she does/can have an extended quality of life left or we need to end what is clearly a life of suffering at this time. The money at this time is nothing compared to the investment of my heart and emotions with this girl. To date, none of the other dogs have shown signs of Giardia and let’s hope it stops there. At least that was one thing that we could successfully treat Liquorice for and the added cost of treating the other dogs she infected has added hundreds more dollars to our current Vet Bills. I still am so floored that one wonderful sweet creature could be riddled with so much but all of the results and the second opinion is not something that I can just turn a blind eye to. My Vet told me before I left that I would truly not be ‘in the wrong’ or a ‘bad person’ in considering to let her go. What an utterly tragic situation.
We did Mazda’s manicure and pedicure tonight and WOW! She did awesome! Sean held her collar and I was able to do them no problemo. SHE is very gentle in taking her reward treaties too! Her quicks have been trained back really well and whomever adopts her can continue to work on them. She looks really good and her pressure sores are all healed up now! With all the extra bedding, she has no choice but to lie on something soft! 🙂 She really adores Sean and I love how her tail is almost always wagging! Tomorrow night, it will be either Thor or Mazda that will head off to one of our Foster homes that is just coming back online from having had a break since May. We will have to take some more pictures of her to post!
ADOPTION PENDING!!!! If all goes well Lady will go to her new home in the New Year!
You can clearly see that Thor is coming out more from that ‘honeymoon’ period and his tendency towards occasional dominance is very apparent. He has taken to having a domination episode with Soul, Lady and now Boba in the past week. He is going to require a firm understanding and patient hand in continuing to learn what correct ‘play’ and ‘social’ behavour is in respect to other dogs. At this time, I am leaning towards a home that does not have any other dogs or if they do; they have to be an experienced home with Danes of this particular personality for Thor is going to continue to need our work continued in that new home. I do not wish to see him ‘set up’ for failure. HE is the most loving of dogs and very playful and deserves the best yet I want his new home to be completely aware of what he has done and what we are working on. He is also being a bit of a ‘goob’ when it is time to come in from outside and he just does not want to come in. I just ignore him and bring all of the other dogs in and he quickly realizes that all the ‘fun’ has left and comes running in.
We now have one more dog on Flagyl and Panacur (Dyce) and I will be bringing in more stool samples to work tomorrow for testing. Liquorice is not faring the best in this really cold weather and is finding it quite hard to breathe. Therefore, I do not let her stay outside for very long. She has yet to take to the pink beanbag chairs and much prefers the blue beanbag chairs or my bed these days! 🙂