Bailey's In Trouble

[Guest shelbygirl07]

ok, just wanted to make sure.

 

I'm really sorry you are going through this and am sending you strength to make the hardest decision of your life...

 

Please keep us posted with what ever happens... My thoughts are with you and Bailey.

[3DogNite]

I'm sorry to hear about all of Bailey's issues, and am impressed with your dedication to Bailey!

 

I am dealing with some of the same issues with my 14yr, Peppy. He has not been to a vet for diagnosis, however, I am reading so much about Vestibular Disease. there are a couple different types, where it starts from, in the ear or brain.

So many of the symptoms are similar to what Bailey is going thru.

 

I don't think it has been brought up yet, so thought I'd throw it out there. I'm sure more people will have a better in-site into this than I do.

 

Good luck to you and your family in this tough time!!!

[Guest EmilyAnne]

For the poupy butt, our Henry regularly has grand mal and gets poo all over his rear. I use baby wipes made for sensnitive skin. gets it off the fur too. I use plain damp paper towels if I am out of wipes.

[Guest argolola]

Sending many hugs.

[Aerosmom]

You sound like you are really have a tough time -- Bailey too. Cricket, who had spinal cord inflammation (lower area), was incontinent and at the end we ended up using puppy pads and baby wipes.

 

Your vet should help give you and your husband a better picture of her prognosis. Tell your vet you are having trouble deciding what to do. It seems like you need to have some type of discussion and get all those unresolved questions answered to the best of your vet's ability. A good question is what would they do if Bailey were their dog?

 

[Guest Cris_M]

Positions similar to the one you are in now are always difficult. I have found that practical things can make life a lot easier which in turn makes it a lot easier to make the big decisions. Here are some suggestions. Just take the ones that might work and drop the rest.

 

1. Buy several plastic table cloths at the $1 store. They are big and thin. Drape one over Bailey's bed and cover that with a large piece of cheap fabric. For the fabric, I went to Wal-Mart and looked on the $1 table, got a knit 60" wide and cut 2 yard sections. This way it is easy to scoop up the fabric, dump it in the washer, sponge down the tablecloth and be on your way. When the tablecloth gets icky, you can toss it and use a new one.

2. Like Emily Anne said, use baby wipes.

3. Consider limiting the space Bailey has available when she is alone. If you don't have a crate or she doesn't like one, consider baby gating off a room or getting an Xpen or one of those wooden, expandable play pens (made for humans). You might be able to borrow one of the latter.

4. Since she has trouble standing to eat, how about fashioning a harness that will help her stay stable? Something like a towel under her belly and some straps around that going up to a door or door frame could work.

 

She can take both the doxy and the pred so that's okay if you need both. And, like Aerosmom said, asking your vet what he/she would do if Bailey belonged to them is a great question. Whenever I ask that, I get information I could never get from them otherwise. It is also a question that allows them to personalize you and Bailey, and brings them into the relationship more strongly.

 

Lots of cyber hugs to you from me. Having been in a similar place more than once, I feel for you. Emotions can get testy and it is easy to second guess every decision. Rest in the fact that you love Bailey, she knows it, and whatever decision you make will be because of the love you have for her.

[3greys2cats]

After going through this w/my Sara, I am saddened to see that Bailey is still suffering, the drugs that were given pushed her into remission because she was diagnosed right away, there are not enough doctors(Vets) who understand GME that know it well enough to say that a year remission is all the result will be. The immunosuppressant drugs, chemo , cytarabine, don't think I spelled it right, are the key in most critical cases, the article written by Dr Sisson explains it perfectly. When this happened to us last year, I was alone w/3 greys, my husband travels 2 weeks out of every month, I was so full of fear that I could not handle what she needed but I owed it to her. After carrying her up and down stairs and watching her struggle, my husband and I discussed that if she did not regain complete mobility, that we would put her down, she was peeing on pads at the Intensive Care unit in the Hospital and being hand fed, after a week there on the chemo drug cytarabine, she stood up on her own and was released, she pulled through. I have a lot of compassion for you but anger will not help Bailey, she needs to not feel like it is her fault that she is sick, animals are intuitive to our emotions. I truely believe that she is asking for you to let her go, she has no quality of life and it is being prolonged. Don't wait for the vet to give you the answer, you have it already and Bailey is counting on you to be strong. God makes the decision for us, I am praying that you will let her go to the Bridge peacefully.