If you read my previous post, I talked about Roxie and her pancreatitis. Well, Gypsy had her own problems this week.
The same day Roxie had her attack of pancreatitis, we noticed Gypsy had a swollen and extremely tender spot on her left side. It was so tender I could barely even run my hand over it without her flinching. Not knowing what to do, thinking it would just heal, and because Gypsy would not tolerate any sort of treatment, we left it alone for a couple of days. Since we saw no improvement, we started flushing it with 2.5 pH strong acidic water to disinfect it. After a couple of flushes, the wound spewed out blood and pus. It was nasty. Rick started to flush it, apply antibiotic ointment, and wrap it at least a couple of times per day. We actually had to muzzle Gypsy because she did not want us messing with her side at all, and let us know in no uncertain terms.
However, it just didn’t seem to be doing any better, so she had a visit to our vet, Dr. Maria Williams. She took one look at Gypsy and said, “that is an abscess”. She shaved Gypsy’s side, gave her a shot of penicillin, expelled whatever pus she could (I didn’t watch that part) and treated it with hydrogen peroxide and betadine. Gypsy, of course, was none too happy with any of this, but now her side looks a lot better. She actually had some bruising and three puncture marks. Dr. Maria said we should continue to flush it with water, leave it open, continue to apply the antibiotic ointment, and administer seven days of antibiotics. Rick fashioned a “collar” out of a paper plate for Gypsy so she can’t get to the injured area. As of today, her wound is still oozing some, but it looks so much better.
We can only speculate what caused the injury in the first place, whether it was a bite (scorpion, spider) or Gypsy ran into a sharp stick or whatever.
Other than pouting about her custom-made paper plate collar, Gypsy is none the worse for wear. On the first picture you can see where her wound is:
Our little family had a pretty intense week last week. This post will be about Roxie’s pancreatitis attack, but Gypsy also had a rough few days. I’ll cover that in another post.
Early morning last Wednesday Roxie woke us up multiple times to go outside, and when we finally got up, we figured out why. She had been throwing up. She went on a walk with us that morning as usual, but didn’t have her normal spunk, threw up during our walk, and her throwup looked slightly bloody. She drank some water when we got home, but refused to eat anything, even though Rick cooked her a scrambled egg. This is a dog that NEVER turns down food. She was also whining quietly. Rick said she threw up again a couple of more times and it was still slightly bloody. By that time I was freaking out, thinking maybe she had an obstruction.
We called our regular vet, but she was booked, so in desparation we called one right down the street. He was able to look at her that morning, so Rick took her in. This particular vet apparently has very traditional beliefs, because he spent considerable time berating Rick for having Roxie on a homemade diet. Plus Rick’s comment was it seemed like he was right out of vet school and wanted to pay off his student loans with Roxie’s visit. Anyway, they took blood and urine from Roxie, gave Rick a prescription for five days of Sucralfate to help heal her digestive system, and sent Rick and Roxie on their way.
We got the blood results the next day, and Roxie was diagnosed with pancreatitis. We were advised to give her nothing but white rice for about 24 hours, and then slowly transition her to a normal diet. By that time, Roxie was ready to scarf down anything, so she ate the rice with gusto, and looked at me like “is that all there is?” We also picked up some low fat cottage cheese, and started adding that in to the rice.
Rick and I both spend a lot of time researching canine pancreatitis, and found out that Schnauzers (Roxie is half-Schnauzer) have a predisposition to pancreatitis. Although we found a lot of conflicting information, especially regarding feeding raw food or eggs, a couple of things were clear: we needed to get her started on digestive enzymes, and modify her diet to be less fatty.
Of course, I was feeling horribly guilty since I am the one who did all the research on homemade diets for dogs. So, what we are going to change: boil any ground meat instead of sauteeing, cut way back on the amount of raw organ meat we give them, and hold off on feeding eggs, pork, beef, or anything raw for at least a couple of weeks. Plus add some digestive enzymes and probiotics. I also found several recommendations for a product called Standard Process Pancreatrophin, which is actually a supplement for humans, so I am on the hunt for that.
So far, other than acting like we are starving her to death, Roxie is recovering nicely:
If anyone has had a dog with pancreatitis, I would really like to hear about your experience.
Last week we had our third session with Val Heart, so here is an update.
If you have not seen my first two posts about working with Val, if you read them first, this post will make more sense. Here are the links: April 29th - Session 1, and May 17th - Session 2.
As with the previous session, we started by giving Val an update. Unfortunately, Roxie and Gypsy did get into a fight since our last session, so we had to work through that. An errant ball hit Gypsy on the side while Rick and Roxie were playing fetch, which caused Gypsy to attack Roxie. Gypsy thought Roxie was to blame, even though Rick is the one (obviously) who threw the ball.
We also talked through the flea problem we’ve been having. Rick and I subscribe to a natural method of handling fleas, but they have gotten the best of us this season. Roxie is terribly allergic, and scratches incessantly despite our best efforts. Val recommended some homeopathic remedies to help de-tox her blood, including silicea and arsinicum. We are newbies to homeopathy, so we are still doing research and looking for a place to purchase them. If anyone has had experience with these products, I would very much appreciate hearing from you.
In the mean time, Rick found Best Yet by Cedarcide, which is a topical spray of Texas red cedar oil. We ordered some, and Rick has been spraying the dogs, and their bedding. Other than they both smell like freshly cut cedar, we haven’t noticed any bad effects, and it does seem to keep the fleas away. Rick also sprays it on himself when he goes outside to keep mosquitos at bay. So far, the product is working as promised.
Anyway, back to Val. After we talked about the flea issue, we moved on to some healing work. Val has extensive experience and is heavily credentialed in the art and science of healing. She uses, among other modalities, The Body Talk Healing System. Rick and I have experienced energy medicine from another practitioner, but Val looks at balancing the entire family (Rick, myself, Roxie, and Gypsy) as a connected energy matrix. I don’t purport to understand much of how this works, but it is just one of those things I take on faith. I do believe the body has all it needs to heal itself, if you give it what it requires and remove the stresses and toxins that get in the way.
We are contemplating continuing our work with Val, to focus more on the healing aspect, not only for Roxie and Gypsy, but also for Rick and myself.
We had our second session with Val Heart recently, so I wanted to tell you all how that went.
But first, I really should give you an update of what we’ve noticed since our last session (see my last post for a summary). Roxie and Gypsy have not once gotten into a fight, and our whole household seems calmer and more at peace. We have made a concerted effort to be as firm with Roxie as we are with Gypsy, and we are more consistent when enforcing the rules. I was gone to the Seattle area for a week, so it was up to Rick to keep up the work with them while I was gone. He specifically worked on the “place” command, where we have Gypsy and then Roxie go to their blankets when someone comes to the door. We still have work to do, but progress is being made.
Another interesting thing we noticed is when we took them to our vet to get their periodic chiropractic adjustments. In the past, Roxie has been a real mess, just anxious and yippy and tense. Dr. Maria made a comment that Roxie was calmer than she had ever been for an adjustment, which of course makes the adjustment easier and more effective. I was also working on my own energy, to be mindful and remain calm, instead of being worried about Roxie and Gypsy’s behavior.
With our second session, we gave Val an update, and then Val focused in on some specific questions we had for Roxie and Gypsy. As I mentioned in my previous post, this part takes a bit of faith, but what Val told us made sense.
Gypsy has a broken tail and scars on her lips. We know she was homeless for a while before she was rescued, and we’ve always wondered what that was like, and whether her broken tail caused her any problems. According to Val, Gypsy does not have any concern about her broken tail, but being homeless was a scary thing. Val told us that Gypsy seems to have a lighter energy and is more at peace than the last time. Apparently, Gypsy is more than happy to relinquish the job of pack leader to Rick and myself. (We just had to laugh at this, but the good news is Gypsy thinks we are doing our job now!)
For Roxie, we were concerned her vision may be failing, because of some difficulties she has in jumping in our vehicle and going in and out of the doggie door at night. It seems she does have an issue with night blindness and she also has pain in her back and hips. Val suggested we get her a ramp or some stairs to help her get into the truck, and to provide more light for the doggie door.
Also for Roxie, we wanted to know why she feels the need to bark at anything and everything. Val’s answer: it is mostly anxiety, but it’s also fun and Gypsy has given Roxie the task of being the pack “alerter”. So, Val gave us some suggestions in dealing with the barking. For example, during meal times when they hear something and tear off, Val suggested we make a point of leaving the table to check out what they are hearing, acknowledge them doing their job in alerting us, and then ask them to go back to their “place” and settle down. She did say we should remain calm and assertive, and not “bark back” at them.
The last thing Val discussed with us was some nutritional suggestions. Roxie and Gypsy get quite the variety in their diet, and they both eat their food with gusto. The only things she felt were lacking were trace minerals for both Roxie and Gypsy, and blue-green algae for Roxie.
We will have a third session with Val in three weeks, so I’ll sign off until then. I appreciate hearing from you, so feel free to comment on this.
Rick and I took a leap of faith this week, and had a session with an animal communicator. We have had an issue in our household that has escalated over the last couple of months where Roxie and Gypsy were getting into fights every couple of days. They have had their infrequent spats over the years, but lately it had become a serious problem. I am sure that any of you with a multi-dog household can agree it is extremely distressing when they fight each other. Plus, Roxie was getting some bad wounds, and Rick was getting bites on his hands when he would break them up.
I have known about and been interested in animal communication for awhile, and because Rick and I really did not know what to do to resolve the fighting, this seemed like the right time to give it a try. We contacted Val Heart, who had been recommended by a friend.
We first had a 10 minute consultation with her, to come to a mutual understanding of the problem, her expectations of us, and our expectations of her.
The next step was the first of three hour-long sessions with her. She taught us several things, and I had quite a few light-bulb moments. She identified the reason Gypsy was attacking Roxie: Gypsy, our alpha dog, felt Roxie was weak, anxious, timid, and unstable, and therefore a threat to the pack. Of course, a big part of the problem was our behavior. We tended to treat Roxie more gently and more protectively, and give her more affection because we viewed her as needing our protection. Also, because we were so on edge about their fighting, that translated into weakness and unstable energy. So, Gypsy felt it was her job to correct Roxie to strengthen the pack.
Val gave us some homework, including a visualization/communication exercise to “tell the story” of what we want to happen, for example, when someone comes to the door, and to remain in a calm, centered, but assertive place. The calm, assertiveness is right out of Cesar Millan’s playbook, so I was familiar with the idea, but not very good at practicing it.
We were also taught to spend more time training them, both to improve Roxie’s confidence, and to give Gypsy a clear signal of who is actually in charge.
Something else I want to mention, is Rick and I decided to no longer allow them to sleep on the bed with us. We came to that conclusion on our own, after they woke us up about a week ago at 4:30 a.m. going at each other. We thought it would be more difficult than it was, but they both caught on quickly that their sleeping spots were on the floor and not on the bed. Val told us that would have been her first suggestion, so she was glad to hear we figured it out ourselves.
We have another session scheduled in two weeks, and it is up to us to implement the ideas she gave us. I’ll give you an update after our next session.
In the meantime, if anyone has had their own experience with an animal communicator, I’d love to hear about it.
It is a gorgeous day here in San Antonio, and the bluebonnets are spectacular!
I just finished a book that I thoroughly enjoyed: Amazing Gracie by Dan Dye and Mark Beckloff, who are the co-founders of Three Dog Bakery. The book is a quick and compelling read. It tells the story of Dan’s adoption of Gracie, a deaf, blue-eyed, albino, Great Dane puppy they named Grace Dane, or Gracie for short, and how she inspired them to start baking healthy dog treats. This need to get some nutrition into Gracie eventually parlayed into what is now an international business and a successful online presence. The story grabbed me with its intimacy and insight into Dan’s thought process, plus the illustrations are sweet and whimsical. It is a good idea to have a tissue at the ready when you near the end of Gracie’s story.
In full disclosure, if you choose to purchase Amazing Gracie through any of the links I have provided, I will receive an affiliate commission from Amazon.com.
Rick and I recently got a pocket video camera, and the first video is Gypsy and Roxie getting their nails filed with a dremel tool.
We were using the standard dog nail clipper but we could never get Roxie to cooperate, plus we didn’t like that afterwards their nails were razor sharp and ragged.
So, Rick trained them to accept the dremel. Gypsy was a breeze, as all she cares about is getting the snacks at the end. It cracks me up when she lifts up her paws, like she is about to get a manicure!
Roxie, not so much. She was terrified. But, over about six weeks, Rick conditioned her to the dremel. First, he would just hold up the dremel without turning it on and give her a snack. Next step was to turn it on, and give her a snack. Then, he would bring the turned on dremel close to her and give her a snack. Then, he tapped her nail and gave her a snack. I think you get the idea. Now she tolerates getting her nails trimmed but she is still all about the snacks.
Check out Gypsy and Roxie starring in their first video!
I am passing along this article from Discovery News written by Jennifer Viegas:
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Professionally trained “sniffer” search dogs from around the world have been recruited this week to aid rescue operations in earthquake-ravaged Haiti. The effort appears to be unprecedented in scale, matching the devastation already documented in the Caribbean country.
China dispatched a chartered plane containing multiple sniffer dogs and 10 tons of tents, food and medical equipment. A somber ceremony was held at the Beijing airport before the teams left, with handlers and their dogs lined up, equipment at the ready. The team from China arrived in Haiti today and is presently at work there.
An Itar Tass bulletin reports that a team from the Russian Ministry for Emergency Situations (EMERCOM) left Moscow today, also bound for Haiti. The IL-76 plane contained 22 rescuers in total. Among the team were eight doctors, two psychologists and six canine specialists with search and rescue dogs. Another news report mentioned that the dogs—3 Labradors, 2 golden retrievers and a German shepherd—helped to ease the tension of those on board the plane, which had a stop off in Iceland. The dogs are traveling freely, without cages, but onlookers are discouraged from having contact with the on-duty dogs. An EMERCOM spokesperson said, “The dogs are to work heavily in stress conditions and their state cannot be put in the slightest jeopardy.”
Peruvian firefighters Gustavo Villavisencio, with sniffer dog Duncan, and Vanessa Diaz, with her trained dog Rory were seen preparing to depart for Haiti, yesterday.
A large team from Taiwan filed into a local airport, once again bound for Haiti. At least one rescue dog was seen accompanying their contingent.
Britain’s international development minister, Douglas Alexander, reports that a 64-member team, including sniffer dogs, has left for Haiti from London’s Gatwick Airport, according to The Straits Times.
Dozens of other countries, including Spain, Iceland, Canada, Germany, Venezuela and more, have pledged to send rescue teams, doctors, cash and supplies. Most are already on the scene at the Caribbean island.
The U.S. was among the first to help, with President Barack Obama saying that Americans continue to “stand ready to assist the people of Haiti.” According to Rajiv Shah, and reported by Business Week, the United States has sent two 72-member search and rescue teams with dogs to help dig out survivors. Shah was designated by Obama to coordinate the U.S. relief effort.
American organizations that train search and rescue dogs have issued calls to action. For example, the National Disaster Search Dog Foundation posted a deployment at 10 PM last night. Six dog-and-handler teams have been sent to Haiti. (If you visit the NDSDF website using the aforementioned link, you can watch a video showing the early stages of the deployment.)
NDSDF executive director Debra Tosch said, “Our hearts go out to our neighbors in Haiti, and we’re honored to be able to help find survivors of this terrible tragedy as part of CA-TF2 (the code name for the task force). This is the day that our teams have trained for; when the unthinkable happens, SDF Teams stand ready to respond, bringing hope and comfort to victims and their loved ones.”
Images and additional videos showing the NDSDF dogs at work on other missions are at the foundation’s YouTube page.
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Haiti Earthquake: How You Can Help The Victims:
The American Red Cross is accepting donations by phone. You can text “HAITI” to 90999 to donate $10 to the Red Cross’s efforts, or call 1-800-Redcross or 1-800-257-7575. Visit their Web site to find out more.
Interaction, the largest coalition of U.S.-based NGOs focused on the world’s poor, has set up a Haiti relief donation page, listing several participating organizations where you can donate.
UNICEF is also accepting donations for the relief efforts in Haiti and the Caribbean region. Visit their Web site or call 1-800-4UNICEF to donate.
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