Briefly

Today's the 11th? What happened to the 10th?

Okay, Cotton is feeling MUCH better. She spent some time outside, lying in the sun yesterday afternoon (between the showers) and today. And this morning she actually ate a few bites of canned chicken, which must of teased her appetite a little, because later she ate some "dry" dogfood which had been soaking in the chicken broth. She is definitely NOT going to have puppies. Which is really sad because that means there won't ever be any more Brogue puppies. I guess tomorrow I should change things on the website.

And Crockett the Chinese dog has had no more seizures since 8 AM yesterday morning... although he's about to give me one! He's had 3 doses of phenobarbital and I'm not sure what it's supposed to do to dogs, but he has become so clingy he's driving me nuts! And whiny... if he's up on the bed or in the chair (sitting/lying ON me) he'll whine under his breath like he wants down. As soon as put him on the floor, he wants back up. Here's the thing... both vets (the ER one and Jane)m said it takes several days for the phenoetc to build up in his system and prevent more seizures but he hasn't had any and he's still on it. So my question is how do we ever find out if it was a passing thing if we don't ever take him off it and see what happens?

Think I'll try going to bed early... like right now... and see if things are better in the AM.

Once Again

In the "It Never Rains But It Pours" Department:
Had to make a trip to the emergency vet this morning (my dogs are getting too used to having to run outside and do their business in 10 minutes or less so I can make a trip to the animal doctor every morning.) This is an unrelated issue to my under the weather Cotton (who IS feeling better.) Haven't had to use the emergency clinic for several years and have head rumors that their prices had increased... dramatically. I'll say! The office visit was FOUR times what Jane charges... okay, I can live with that although it's double what it used be. BUT the CBC... the exact same one we've been running every day on Cotton, down to the exact same print out... was almost SEVEN times as much. Which I consider excessive. I spent as much on this one visit today as I did on ALL Cotton's visits, testing, medication, etc last week. And have no answer, no remedy for the immediate problem AND have to be at Jane's first thing Monday morning anyway. To be honest, the outcome is EXACTLY what I expected... even the cost... but I'm not a vet and needed reassurance. Which I sort of got.

On the up side, my son is thinking about buying a 3 years old Bulldog gal for breeding and I warned him about the cost of c-sections, especially an emergency clinic. (I do not believe in scheduled c-sections.) Got a quote, in writing, to give him. $1500. Hope it persuades him the dog will make a terrific PET.

Whoodle puppies WILL be available this Summer
My friend, Penny, called last night and she is expecting a litter of Whoodles in 3-4 weeks. This will be the first litter for her two new breeding dogs... Cisco, a standard Poodle who is related to much of my stuff, and Maggie, a Wheaten Terrier she got from a local breeder I know and recommend. Penny's had a couple previous Whoodle litters, with great success... after all, the Poodle guy she was using was also related to mine AND her Whoodle mom came from me... but those dogs have been retired. Cisco is apricot and Maggie is, of course, wheaten, so the pups will be all light colored. Since I am NOT going to have Whoodle babies, I may just feature Penny's on Mountain Summit. I always do her shipping for her as she's in VA, several hours from any airport. So, inquiries are welcome!

Back from the Vet --- Again

Another day, another trip to the vet. Can't tell you how much I appreciate the way they work me in. I know it is on Jane's instructions but the office staff never acts put out when I show up and disrupt their schedule. Cotton's temp is a normal 101 AND today's CBC show everything within normal range except for platelets which ARE rising. Her lameness is gone and she is able to walk normally and to climb in/jump out of the car without ending up on her nose. How that is possible since she has NOT eaten anything for days and is taking in only a few laps of water a day. Going to force feed her in a few minutes... got to get that appetite working again.
Now, the bad news is we all think there are going to be NO pups next month. Stranger things have happened, but all the signs are there for a slipped pregnancy and/or a uterine infection. So, even though things generally are looking much better, she's getting a second antibiotic along with the first, this one unfriendly to fetuses and young animals.
I planned on breeding Di and Emy in the Fall, so this means Cotton won't be bred again until Spring 2012.
Bummer.

Great Day!

First, another two hours at the vet this morning with Cotton BUT she is much improved from yesterday. She is able to stand and is even walking, very staggery at first but steadier as the day wore on. Still hasn't eaten and is drinking minimally. Temp is fluctuating between 102 and 103.5. Blood count is good except for platelets which are low... not dangerous as yet, but dropping by about 50,000 each day. This sample is also going to the veterinary lab for hand counting. Her attitude is much better... alert and even mildly interested in what is going on around her. However, she is still clearly not a healthy dog and this could be the calm before the storm... it IS coming up on the weekend. The vet is open half a day tomorrow, so if she's not doing okay in the morning, she can go back. There is a good emergency clinic in the area... a private practice that specializes in emergency treatment (open daily after regular veterinary hours, weekends and holidays.) The problem is, if I need to use it, they won't have access to any of the testing that's already been done. Jane is still thinking this could be tick related but MY feeling is it has to do with the pregnancy. Either way is not good. Fingers crossed, please!

On the other hand...
Keogh IS pregnant! The ultrasound showed puppies. Buddy (one of the other vets with Jane and Bill) said he doesn't try to count them but there were good beating hearts and one pup waved at him. Buddy did NOT tell me what sex it was or the color. I've tried for the last four years to get Ke bred, seriously (as in putting lots of money into it) for the last two and she's been on thyroid for just over a year. Ost is the daddy-to-be so I'm expecting there will be parti-colors (spotted.) Yea!

Clarification

I want to make something perfectly clear... I do NOT have a problem with the makers of Frontline OR the product. I've used it for years, mostly with good results. There isn't anything in the world that is going to work 100% of the time for 100% of the animals... or people... it is designed for (or against.) MY problem is I live IN the woods with a high tick count. Generally our winters in this area are not severe enough to do more than minimize their population. There are trees within 5-6 feet of the house on 3 sides... or at least there WERE. I had some taken down last week (not because of ticks, although I hope it helps, but because I don't want to wake up some morning with uncut firewood in the living room. I hear that can be dangerous.) As far as the number of ticks on Cotton, it is entirely possible that she didn't get the right dose of Frontline last month or she could have been missed altogether. None of the other dogs has a lot of ticks on them, most had none... they got treated anyway. The reason I'm back on this subject is the number of emails and phone calls I got yesterday from "concerned individuals" wanting to know if I wanted to join in a protest against Merial. The answer is a loud "NO." And I think people would be better off dealing with the company (ANY company) on a one-to-one basis rather than trying to stir up trouble. It's like the woman suing McDonalds because she spilled hot coffee in her own lap. Duh.

Cotton Update
She had a fairly positive day the rest of yesterday... temp was up and down, she drank a normal amount of water and peed a normal amount. I did not see her eat anything and she hasn't pooped. At midnight, her temp was back up close to 104 and she was very wobbly on her feet. I noticed she was limping in the front. This morning, as instructed, I took her temp... 102.4... and then called the vet to tell him I was bringing her in because she would stand for just a few seconds before plunking herself down and she was holding up her right rear leg. She WAS alert, just unenthusiastic and weak.

Bill was in surgery but had briefed Jane... AND she had the file... so I saw her within minutes of getting to the clinic. Temp was down to 102. Did another CBC with slightly mixed results... one thing up (good) while one thing was down but still low normal, nothing else changed. Long discussion to make sure we were all on the same page. Did an in house test for heartworm because it also covers a tick disease that is the most prevalent in the area... negative on both counts. Cotton is back home, now in a pen, by herself, in the computer room just so no one... like the energetic why don't you want to play with me Wombat... steps on or bothers her. Put some canned chicken in her food bowl which she sniffed and half heartedly licked while lying down. She's now asleep.

Outlook... we don't know what the problem is. It could still be the ticks. It is most likely NOT pyrometria. But something is really not right. We're going to continue the Clavamox and monitoring her temp and condition. She's going back to the vet in the AM for another CBC unless she does a real turn around today. They're open till 7 tonight, so if things go bad, I can get her in right away. (Too bad about me wanting to see the new Jake Gyllenhaal flick this afternoon.)

One other thing, if all goes well (ie: improves) we're going to do an ultrasound next week. TOMORROW I'm taking Keogh, the Goldendoodle, in for an ultrasound to see if SHE is pregnant. The procedure is not one they do on a normal basis, so we'll all get some practice! I like to keep things interesting for them and think I should get a huge discount for giving them the opportunity to learn something new. (That's a joke, so don't anyone email me about joining any protests or lawsuits.)

Since I have healthy dogs 99% of the time, I tend to obsess when one is under the weather. Generally, I spot things very early and, being a glass half empty type, have figured out a dozen really dire things it could be by the time I get to the vet. Having to pull myself together and act like a normal person when I'm out in public really tires me out and causes me a lot of frustration... which I relieve by posting on the blog and upsetting everyone else! I do appreciate all your words of sympathy and encouragement, thank you very much.

BIG Scare

And I mean BIG... for me, anyway. Very early this morning... like 1 AM... I went into the computer room to do some computing. The Whoodle gals (Em and Cotton) and Diamond live in there, along with this or that other dog who wants to... right now it's Wombat, the Goldendoodle puppy, although she's confined in there because she's just going out of her first heat and her friend, Ost the Labradoodle, would like to "talk" to her, up close and personal. Anyway, I noticed that Cotton was standing up, away from everyone else, her head drooping almost to the floor. She just looked unhappy. When I said her name, she didn't even bother to look up. Now Cotton is quiet, as in unboisterous, but she's usually pretty bouncy and wants attention. She seemed fine earlier in the day. She definitely was NOT fine at 1 AM. I felt her and it didn't seem like she had an elevated temp and her noise was cool and slightly moist. Couldn't see any owwies and her abdomen wasn't tender. I was in there for about an hour and Cotton stayed right where she was, standing up, which in itself is a "not good" sign. My first thought was pyrometria which is a VERY serious uterine infection dogs can develop shortly after being in heat. It is so serious it is the only reason I like to see nonbreeding females spayed. An "open" (draining) pyrometria is bad enough, but unfortunately, the mouth of the uterus often stays closed and there is no discharge of pus and mucous to warn you the dog is very, very ill. More often than not, the owner... even experienced breeders... don't know there is a problem until it is almost too late to save the dog much less save her uterus. This was not a wait and see how she feels on Thursday or Friday situation. Since I had to be at the airport to ship a puppy this morning, I couldn't go to the vet until around 10:30 and, as a walk in, that meant I could be sitting over there most of the day. It pays to have people in the office who are willing to work with you! Cotton and I got in to see Bill after waiting just a half hour or so. I felt her tummy again... still cool... and her nose was moist and cool while Bill was taking her temp. I almost fell over when it turned out her temperature was 104+! He took some vaginal and rectal samples, which showed nothing. Then we talked over possible diagnoses and treatments... of course, treatment is complicated by the fact she was bred exactly 3 weeks ago and could be (I'm hoping!) pregnant. (And, no, there aren't any reliable pregnancy tests for dogs.) We decided to take a blood sample to check for an elevated white count and Bill took her off to the back where civilians generally aren't allowed... in 10 years I've only been invited back there twice and I felt honored both times. A few minutes later, here came Bill without Cotton. He did bring me a gauze 4 x 4 with about 2 dozen ticks on it. Most were very tiny. One was slightly engorged. The adult dogs are getting Frontline on the 15th of every month, so they aren't due. The packaging says, and I quote:
Frontline Plus kills ticks for at least one month.
It should probably be changed to add: usually, maybe or some times.
Every animal in this house is getting a dose today. A few minutes later, Cotton came back to the room, sans a few more ticks one of the techs had been pulling off her, and Bill and I found several more while we talked. Eventually, the blood sample was ready. And it showed just a slightly elevated white count... which could mean there isn't anything going on OR it's very early and hasn't had time to raise the count as yet. We decided to put her on Clavamox, which is safe for the pregnancy, give her an 81 mg aspirin to help get the temp down and to continue to monitor the situation all day. If she starts feeling worse, she's to go back right away and I have to call Bill first thing in the AM with a temp update. About a half hour had passed since the tick removal. I noticed her head was up and she was watching people come and go down the doctor's corridor and raising her ears whenever there was a sound outside the other door. I pointed it out to Bill, and gloomy gus that he is, he said "Give her the antibiotic and the aspirin and take her temperature every few hours." And then he grinned and said "You know, there is a tick disease...." Which I did know having learned about it shortly after moving to the South. Some ticks... some FEMALE ticks... carry something that can cause paralysis in dogs. The animal only has to have ONE of these ticks biting it and you'd think the dog had polio. Remove that tick and in a VERY short time, the dog starts getting back to normal. One of the ticks Bill pulled off Cotton was engorged.... In MY head, we have found the problem and fixed it. Of course, when I got her back home I gave her a Frontline treatment, an aspirin and Clavamox AFTER taking her temp. Which was down to 103. She went into the pen, snapped at the pushy Goldendoodle puppy, got a big BIG drink of water and is stretched out asleep alongside her mom and grandma.
In the "all's well that ends well BUT" category, we have discussed what we're going to do IF that was not the problem or if the ticks have set up some kind of reaction in her that the Clavamox can't fix. My first priority is always my dogs no matter how much I want the puppies. In this case, the solution, heaven forbid, includes aborting the litter if she is pregnant because the treatment can adversely affect the pups, causing deformities and/or life long problems. We'll know in a couple days.

Some Updates

The ultimate backseat driver!


These Whoodles think they can do anything! Coco's mom writes:
Hi Sherry! Hope all is well with you. Wanted to give you an
update on coco. She is doing great and she is a very loved part
of the family!! She is so stinkin' cute and so smart. Anyone who
meets her can't believe how calm she is, and if someone holds her
they always say she hugs you like a human baby. It's true! I
think we're creating a whoodle buzz here and I hope it brings you
some future business. They go crazy for her at the vet and i know
she gets extra special attention. I talked my way into getting a
real fence and it went up Friday. Coco loves the running and the
freedom!! Needless to say, she slept very well last night and I
expect the same tonight. She's actually become a very good
nighttime sleeper and is back downstairs in the crate without a
peep at night. She whimpered the first few times in the car and
now enjoys going bye bye and hangs over the seat because she has
to be part of the action. She discovered her bark about 6 weeks ago
and loves to be the 20 pound watchdog!! I think she is very happy
here and she seems attached to us. She is simply the best dog and
we feel so lucky that she is so loving and so smart!!! Thank you!!!!

Coco is from Cotton and Brogue and lives in NC.

Pregnancies
First, in the Thoroughbred world... just hear that Queen Z (Zenyatta) has absorbed the foal, which is sad. I've thought about that baby quite a lot... was hoping for a filly (where everyone else probably wanted a colt.) Hope the second pregnancy goes better. And I still would like to see a gitl!

Cotton... 3 weeks tomorrow, if she took. A few little positive signs, but way too early for any certainty.

Same with Keogh, who may be 4 weeks along as of yesterday. She is REALLY lazy, but she's a pretty laidback gal anyway.

We'll just have to wait and see.