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mychip1

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Posts posted by mychip1

    Storms Scaring Hound

    in Training and Behavior discussion

    Posted

    A lot of studies have been done about "wrapping" a dog in a cape. My boy Jack who just passed used to wear one at night - it helped with a sleep disorder....but there has been some work done by Dr. Nicholas Dodman about capes and storms. They studied capes with an anti-static lining and regular ones - and what they found was the anti-static lining didn't matter as much as simply the presence of the cape.....An oversize coat - i.e. snug in the shoulders but big enough to come low on the sides or even a human t-shirt where the shoulders are snug so there are some pressure points. Just a theory....good luck.

    Lost My Jack After Anesthesia

    in Health and Medical discussion

    Posted

    Hi Meri,

     

    I would love for you to post the photo. I don't think I have enough posts to do that stuff yet. I appreciate the offer - and may take you up at some point if the house gets too empty.....I finally slept in my bed this past Sunday night for the first time - Jack always slept with me - even when my husband came back into town....he ended up on the couch with his boy by his side and Jack was in bed with me.

    Lost My Jack After Anesthesia

    in Health and Medical discussion

    Posted · Edited by mychip1

    I'm so sorry you've lost your boy.

     

    I lost Oreo following orthopedic surgery to put a pin in a broken leg. The surgeon believed it was a clot in her lungs, preventing her from getting the oxygen she needed even though she was on O2. They did CPR but could not save her.

     

    You feel guilty because you "chose" surgery to help your dog, you feel cheated of the chance to see your dog grow old and to tell your dog good-bye (and I didn't get to spend time with Oreo before surgery because they wanted her to stay calm), and you feel pole-axed: it was a simple, "routine" procedure, and surgical complications are things that happen to other people's dogs. (When the phone rang, I thought the vet was calling to tell me she was out of surgery and I could pick her up the next day.)

     

    I didn't choose a necropsy. It was bad enough, realizing that if I'd seen her after she died, she would have been sporting an incision and stitches from the surgery; I really wanted to remember her as she had been (and not even remember her as she was in the ER, wrapped shoulder-to-toes in lime green vet wrap). The thought of her being cut further was more than I could tolerate. A necropsy wouldn't have brought her back, and I don't think it would have produced any useful information (say, for research purposes). Doctors often want to know "why". I didn't care about that; I just wanted her back.

     

    Four years, two months, twenty-two days. I'm still missing her.

     

    132673157_a745304b4e.jpg

     

    I'll be thinking of you.

     

    Your Oreo was beautiful. Thanks for the support. I was fortunate to say good-bye as he appeared to have some recognition in his eyes - but it was a long and painful 18 hours for him while we tried to save him. I did consider a necropsy....not just for the immediate situation, but because he was battling a horrible sleep disorder and I had been working with Tufts University's behavioral clinic to help him. I really wanted to donate his body to them - but as it ran through my head all I could see was him convulsing in my arms just minutes before - and now laying peacefully on a table. I just had to let him rest. When I let the people at Tufts know, I apologized for not sending his body so that they could better diagnose the sleep disorder for other dogs....and even they - as much as they are scientists - fully understood. I do think I might have had closure had I had it done regarding the cause of his passing - but I wasn't strong enough - particularly on the heels of him fighting so hard to stay with me.

     

    I just want to thank everyone on GT for all of the support. This is my first time posting on the site....though I have had greys for several years. You all have been wonderful and it has provided me great comfort to know how many people wished for Jack's spirit to be free......and I thank all those who provided me insight as to what might have happened. Our other grey just headed back to NY with my husband (who is stationed there in the military). He's Daddy's boy - but...wow...does the house feel horribly empty again. Even the cat is looking for Jack.

    Lost My Jack After Anesthesia

    in Health and Medical discussion

    Posted

    What a horrible thing to have gone through. I'm so, so sorry for the premature loss of your sweet boy. My friend had a beautiful springer spaniel who died after what seemed to be an uneventful, simple surgery. He was only five years old. It sounded so much like what happened to your Jack.

     

    Again, my thoughts are with you. This is such a terrible thing to live through. It will take a while before you start to feel better. Until then, be gentle with yourself. There was nothing you could have done differently.

     

     

    I keep asking over and over what I could have done - and I am beating myself up for worrying so much about the corn. I had been working on it for several months - but it wasn't going away - yet....he could have lived with it. My problem was that he LOVED to walk - and it certainly compromised that. And then I tell myself that eventually those teeth were going to need to be done - and I would have faced the problem then....still, the "what-if's" loom large.

    Lost My Jack After Anesthesia

    in Health and Medical discussion

    Posted

    I did not read all the responses, but I have to ask...was he given prophylactic antibiotics before the dental? This sounds like a similar reaction that Naples had a few years ago, when she went into septic shock following a dental. IV antibiotics and supportive care pulled her through, but it was VERY touchy.

     

    I am SO SORRY for your loss! sad.gif

     

    Thanks....No....he did not have pre-op antibiotics. Something else to consider. Thank you so much for your support.

    Hind Legs Causing Sad Boy

    in Health and Medical discussion

    Posted

    Before my Greys, I had a sweet Beagle - who was a ball of energy. She would leap off the stairs onto the wood floors and splay......One day I came home and she was all hunched and howling in pain. I couldn't even touch her belly - thought she had something internal going on. Turns our it was a disc - and steroids and anti-inflamatories did the trick....

     

    Very happy for you that it appears to be something like this!! Best of luck for continued recovery.

    Allergic Rxn To Rabies Shot

    in Health and Medical discussion

    Posted

    Best of luck for a full recovery. What a scary event. I have made a concsious effort with all of my older animals, i.e. dogs, cats, horses, to limit the number of vaccines - but it is such a tough call - particularly with the legal implications of rabies - God forbid they should end up in quarantine - but when you hear about something like this, I can't help but re-think.

    Lost My Jack After Anesthesia

    in Health and Medical discussion

    Posted

    What a horrible tragedy! I lost a cat just over a month ago to a blood clot most likely. He was fine and then suddenly falling over and not able to get up. He had a little blood in one eye that I noticed and his back legs were completely cold which is what led our vet to believe it was a blood clot and a few "second" opinions confirmed this was most likely the cause of death. The cat was just shy of a year old and seemed healthy otherwise. We had him put to sleep before it got any worse than the falling over.

     

     

    I'm sorry for your loss. He, too, had blood in his eyes - and we all commented on how cold his feet were.

     

    Oh my goodness, that sounds exactly like my Fred! The cold feet were what gave the blood clot idea away to the two other vets who I spoke to about my cat. I'm so sorry for your loss, there is really nothing that could have been done to prevent it or help it once it happened.

     

    Thank you so much for the insight. Given that he woke up seemingly fine and with no fever, I am inclined to think that this is what might have happened.

    Lost My Jack After Anesthesia

    in Health and Medical discussion

    Posted

    What a horrible tragedy! I lost a cat just over a month ago to a blood clot most likely. He was fine and then suddenly falling over and not able to get up. He had a little blood in one eye that I noticed and his back legs were completely cold which is what led our vet to believe it was a blood clot and a few "second" opinions confirmed this was most likely the cause of death. The cat was just shy of a year old and seemed healthy otherwise. We had him put to sleep before it got any worse than the falling over.

     

     

    I'm sorry for your loss. He, too, had blood in his eyes - and we all commented on how cold his feet were.

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