Osteo Thread Part 9

[NeylasMom]

 

Zuri's belly has gotten dark and spotty and is now totally covered with fur when it used to be totally bare. Maybe that's why he runs so hot?

[Guest Roux]

For Crouton:

 

Sweet to the core. Joyful. Brave.

 

-----------

Thank goodness you have air conditioning, Jen. Sorry you are in such a fix with the long weekend, getting lab values, and Zuri's next treatment. I really hope deciding what to do doesn't have to be a struggle with your oncologist. Sounds like Zuri is doing remarkably well, even with the added stress of the heat.

 

Carol, what a wonderful result that after the meds kicked-in your Macy is back to being her "demanding, bratty, talky" self. I bet she is great fun to be around. And I, too, am glad you fired your vet. There has not be one time in 29 years (!) with our vet that he did not return a phone call the same day. Sometimes it was in the evening, but he always called me back. We were frequently talking several days in a row about Crouton, and I was so glad to have his council and support. I really hope the in-home vet will be exactly the person you need.

 

Lori, Jet sounds like a sweet, sweet boy. Crouton was undemanding in a similar way. She would just go with the flow and let me tell her when it was time to do the next thing. We always depend on Niels to let us know when breakfast is a few minutes late, or when it is time for the daily "big treat" (I give a dental chew at mid-day, after I let them out during my dash home from work for lunch). Niels is so routine-driven that he will even stand and look at me and give his low "woof" to tell me if I am staying up after his bedtime! He likes to have everyone in their places when he is ready to sleep. So, yes, we do have a furry alarm clock to make certain we know what we should be doing!

 

Well, I am way past "noon treat" time. Gotta go!

[NeylasMom]

Love both of your 6 words.

 

The no AC thing really took it out of Zuri yesterday. I think all of the panting dehydrated him so he just slept a lot yesterday. Definitely a low bounce day though he did play once. Thankfully I am on my "give it 2 days" plan and recognized that that was probably what was going on so I was able to just tell myself to see how today is and this morning I have my normal bouncy dog back. However, I am at this point fairly confident the news on the kidney values won't be good. But I always knew another Zoledronate treatment was a total long shot. Day by day, day by day.

[greysandmollie]

Hot makes me tired and cranky! Hope that is all it is with Zuri....

[Annette]

For Pogo: Pogo stick. Love bug. Happy clown.

[NeylasMom]

For Pogo: Pogo stick. Love bug. Happy clown.

Pogo

 

Thanks for popping back in Annette. How are you doing?

[Annette]

Pogo

 

Thanks for popping back in Annette. How are you doing?

 

Doing okay. Finally have at least a temp job which started on the 23rd. So far Miriam is doing okay home alone without a brother for company during the day.

 

Miriam is trying to scare us. Miriam does not run. She is the picture of lazy. On Sunday, the 21st she decided to "channel" her brother and run, and I swear she ran just like him. Of course she starts limping a lot on a non-corn infested foot soon as she is done running. I started the job on the Tuesday after she does this. Called Monday morning and they were booked solid (unfortunately a couple severe emergencies came in). Since we live in the middle of nowhere, the vets office is not open every Saturday, so the 27th was out. Miriam is due for her shots and physical, and other diagnostics (she had slightly elevated liver values a few months ago when she had a vulvaplasty and they want to check the values again). We still had 8 days worth of Rimadyl from Pogo and from Miriam's surgery. Asked if it was okay to try until we get into see them. Her last rimadyl dose was on Monday and she is no longer limping on the leg we were worried about. We are hoping it will stay like that. Unfortunately, she is now limping on one of her corn dog feet. We will have the vet give her leg a good "once over" when we are there this Saturday.

 

Took Miriam to a get together for GPA-WI in Madison and she enjoyed being with her own kind. RainysMom (Kim Jones) was there with her husband, Bruce and the pups Zeke and Larry. Victor (Victor Barger), his wife and pups Joy and Gilgun were also there. Miriam's next doggy get together will be in a few weeks and we head north to Door County where they have their annual harvest festival in Sturgeon Bay. The local greyhound adoption group will be set up there. There will be something for all of us: greyhounds, crafts, old cars, food, and music.

[Guest Roux]

 

Anyone want to share their 6 words for their dog, gone or still with us? Here are mine for Zuri:

 

Silly boy. Handsome man. My rock.

 

Loved everyone's six words, too, and am thinking about Jen's Zuri words today. Hoping those kidney values look better than you fear, and that your handsome man is still your bouncy boy. Hang in there over the long weekend!

 

And, Annette, I just love that your hound Miriam and I share a first name! I hardly ever meet humans with my name, let alone hear about greyhounds – I am highly honored to share it!

 

Carol, have you had a chance to meet the other vet? If so, I certainly hope you found a connection there that will give you some peace-of-mind.

 

Lori, hoping you and your family find something fun to do together over this long weekend, too. Maybe Jet can help you think of something!

[NeylasMom]

For the love of! I came home and the knuckle of the toe above where the sore was is swollen and hard and it's clearly bothering him when he walks. I've wondered all along if he didn't get grass seed or something like that in the toe when this all started and now I'm very suspicious. Or he has cancer in that toe now and the sore was just an odd coincidence. Either way, this isn't good.

 

So I changed our blood draw appt tomorrow to a vet appt so she can take a look. In the meantime I will try not to jump the gun like I did with the butt licking, and I'm going to soak the toe, but :(

 

 

How's Macy doing? Hoping you have a better report.

[Guest MnMDogs]

Thanks for asking guys

 

I'm so sorry Zuri is having a problem with that toe again! You really can't catch a break for that poor sweet boy. Here's hoping it's nothing, and a good soak will at least help.

 

Macy's doing well. We had a good visit with the vet yesterday, but it just made me realize we really have no idea if it's cancer or not... I mean, we're basically just treating pain regardless of whether it's bone cancer or age related spinal issues. She definitely does have issues with her spine and when I watch her I see Mork and his very very weak back end. Her right back leg will just shake as she's standing. But she was able to put good weight on it when the vet checked out her back left.

 

So we're just going to keep going with the pain meds, and this vet was totally on board with the dosing and scheduling. We know all we can do is manage pain even if we never know the actual source of it. She's happy, and can get around well, and eats with gusto- we're still in a day by day mode of course, and since this seems to have progressed really quickly, we'll continue to watch her like a hawk.

 

I'm trying to remind myself how lucky we are to have a 12 and a half year old grey, and how lucky we are to have Macy May for 7+ years. She's a good good girl.

[NeylasMom]

Glad you have a vet on board who is on board and that she's feeling good right now.

 

 

I am trying to drown my sorrows, but I can't seem to drink fast enough.

[Guest MnMDogs]

Thinking of you and Zuri today, Jen.

Edited September 2, 2016 by MnMDogs

[turbotaina]

Hope things are looking up today, Jen

[Guest Roux]

Geez, Jen, poor Zuri's toe! Am sending positive thoughts that it will be just one of those darn things that has no scary meaning. Please keep us informed as you learn more.

 

So glad you and Macy May had a good experience with the vet, Carol. That must be a huge relief for all!

 

Hugs to anyone struggling with illness or fearful for your furry family members.

[NeylasMom]

Vet thinks toe is just some inflammation in the joint capsule, not an issue with the bone so that's good. No idea what it's from, doesn't think there's something in there so I'll just resume Epsom salt soaks. I did one last night and it seemed somewhat improved this morning. So basically that's a mystery, but not overly concerning so long as I can keep him comfortable.

 

The bloodwork not surprisingly means no Zoledronate. Creatinine is up to 2.8 and BUN is 62. She also thinks he's slightly anemic, but I have to look back at old values when I get home because I think his platelets were low before and then bounced up, but I remember asking the oncologist and her being unconcerned. I can revisit that with her on Tuesday if we get there.

 

My vet suggested trying the Amantadine again when I'm home to supervise. I asked about a liquid to try a lower dose, but she said in some cases that can cause the side effects so she seemed to think I should just go for it. I will probably try it tonight. I had to increase his Gabapentin again last night so we're close to running out of options.

[Guest MnMDogs]

I'm sorry to read that his kidney values are up .

 

I think the amantadine did help Macy after we restarted. She's been on it about 6 straight days now, and she does seem to be able to settle better. She's having some trouble now though, but it's been so up and down, and up and down I'm not going to dwell too much on it unless this continues.

 

Hopefully that toe won't give him any more trouble, and the amantadine can help with his other pain.

Edited September 2, 2016 by MnMDogs

[NeylasMom]

We cannot catch a freaking break. Get home after a really long vet visit and some panting in the car on the way home and there's an AC cycling event going on. I didn't know it was happening or I would have cranked the AC this morning and now I can't override it. Its not that hot, not like when it broke, but warm enough that he's been panting non stop since we got home. Which potentially interferes with me trying the Amantadine again because of he ends up super tired I won't know why. I'm beyond frustrated.

[Guest MnMDogs]

You must be completely overwhelmed, and of course this happens right before a long weekend. Hope that you and especially Zuri are able to stay comfortable.

Edited September 2, 2016 by MnMDogs

[NeylasMom]

Thanks.Totally exhausted, mentally and physically. But with the addition of an extra fan, Z is resting comfortably now. And the cycling event ends in 10 minutes so we will be okay.

 

I just really need to get work done.

[Guest Roux]

to Zuri, Macy, and all their humans.

[Guest LazyBlaze]

to Zuri, Macy, and all their humans.

 

x 2. Pulling for you all.

[NeylasMom]

Well the Amantadine is on board. I gave it with his other dinner meds again. I would have liked to go to my friend's this evening before she heads out for vacation, but I wanted to supervise. I am anxious as hell and watching him like a hawk, but everything seems fine so far.

 

Carol, how soon did you notice improvement from it, do you know?

 

I'm really hoping for a good night's sleep tonight. I am feeling particularly drained today, but I know lack of sleep does this to me. Really hoping tomorrow is a better day for both of us.

 

Though I will say we did have an enjoyable trip to the vet, as weird as that may sound. It was a gorgeous cooler day and they called after we were already in the car to say the vet was running late. So instead of getting on the highway we took the back roads so we could drive the whole way with the windows down. Zuri thoroughly enjoyed smelling the smells and feeling the breeze:

 

 

And I stopped at the Starbucks drive thru to get me a giant coffee and Zuri got a puppacino:

 

 

I'm honestly not sure if he's ever had whipped cream before, certainly not in that quantity so he was really happy. I always know he loves something when his eyes bug out of his head.

 

I saved some of the puppacino for his blood draw so that was totally stress free and otherwise we waited a while for blood work results chilling on a bed in the acupuncture room together. Plus he got to pee on all the things outside the office, which he loves.

 

Anywho, going to try to focus on some TV before we head to bed. Catol, hope Macy has a good night and a better day tomorrow as well.

[Guest Roux]

Awww...Those are the sweetest photos of Zuri. I especially love his getting to absorb all those wonderful travel smells. Hope you are both in the process of a much better night, along with Macy & family.

[Guest MnMDogs]

I love Zuri ❤️❤️ It's not a good night here unfortunately. I'm going to try to get a few hours sleep, Ryan is staying downstairs with Macy. Our hearts are breaking, she's telling us it's time.

[llm51807]

I'm so sorry Carol. I'm checking in on you and Macy and Jen and Zuri here, but it's still hard for me. So much second-guessing even a week and half out. If Macy says it's time, well, then it's the time. Thinking of you and Macy May and your family now and this weekend.