Month: May 2010

Almost a month later

It is still hurting ME when I see her limp!  It seems like she gets tired much easier.  We went to one of our old places – she looked at one of the hills she used to bound up and didn’t go.  When she slips or can’t get up, those are the times that it just grips my heart.  Now I’m worried that it will be more strain on her other leg and she’ll develop arthritis rather than making it stronger.  It’s very uneven ground here so she’s learned to make tight turns, etc (no need to use exercise pads).

We just ordered a Waring MG-800 grinder so soon the freezer full of beef parts will come out.  So far, we’ve just been doing ground turkey and hamburger with the other ingredients.  Found a place about a mile away that has fresh eggs.

Her hair is taking a long time to grow back.  Is she still in shock?  When I scratch her stomach, her little stump wiggles.  If they folded the muscles over at the base of the incision, do those muscles till work? Do I need to try to exercise her stump somehow so it won’t shrivel up?  Her leg has turned almost black.  The vet said it’s pigment from being hairless and I wouldn’t have thought that was true until the spot where they put the i.v. in her front leg turned dark too.  i purchased the harness for her and it has helped a few times helping her get into the car.  She has no problem getting out – she just can’t jump up as good unless she sort of gets a running start.

Some days I just feel like this is all too much.  First my other little dog disappears, then this happens to Niki.  She would be so happy if Waltz would just come home….

Photos we forgot

I left these out of the last post – the one of Niki walking and one of ‘the trap’

niki on a walk a few days after the accident
..aqnd this is only half of it in the photo!

Niki RAN TODAY!!!! We took a short little ride on the atv and she ran like the wind!!  We kept it short since her staples are still in but she loved it and did really great! I can’t believe it!!  All the nice  tripawds who wrote to us were right!!  She will run again!!  This is really exciting.  Plus her raw diet is going great.  Her bowl of dog food is still sitting there and she hasn’t touched it.  I cooked a bone for her tonight and she didn’t want that either.  She’s eating oatmeal, flax seed oil, a spoonful of yogurt, ” ” raw honey, garlic clove, some liver, muscle meat and beef bones with meat on them.  We’re looking for a meat grinder to grind up the box of beef hearts and tongues we found at the meat market.  It’s more work but she is worth it!

One week later – Niki

Niki two days laterThis is Niki two days after the accident. She's still swollen up pretty badly but able to go for walks and get through the doggie door. She's such a trooper - didn't even have to have a bonnet to keep her from chewing at the staples! Every time I look at her (I can't help it) - it just makes my stomach go into my throat!niki going for a walk instead of a run
We made another visit to the vet to make sure the discoloration wasn’t an infection and everyone gave her the thumbs up.  They think she is doing great!  My sister drove 900 miles to be here for support.  I told her about this website and how much all the kind advice has helped me understand this too.  
Teresa with niki
Niki is improving daily and has the staples taken out in a couple of days.  Thank God I still have her and that it wasn’t worse than it was.  She is such a strong girl, I can’t wait until she gets better so I can breathe again. 
Yesterday, we went to a vacant rental house to check on it and I stumbled on a trap someone had set for a raccoon !!!  I thought it was a can under the leaves and when I reached to pick it up, it went off!!  I was furious!!  That would have been a tragedy if Niki had stepped on it (or I had lost my fingers!)  The police said that it is definitely illegal to set traps – especially in a neighborhood – stupid stupid people!!!  My sister is wondering if living in the country isn’t fraught with dangers..
7 days later and so much improvement!!
I looked at the blog of the pup exercising and Niki can already make tight turns (slowly) and balances on uneven surfaces.  Only a couple of times has she needed help.