Doggie Updates
Yara is neither hypo- nor hyperthyroid. Other test results are still pending. Photos are still on my camera, but I will say thanks to all the rain (and now snow!) she now bears the not so pleasant wet dog odor.
Dolly lost two pounds and has had her meds reduced. My father says her energy has mellowed a bit with the adjustment to her meds; she’s gone from being a holy terror to just annoyingly stubborn. Specifically he points out that she now listens to no one, including him . . . and she’s still eating poop.
Oh, and two of my puppy raiser friends have gotten their new puppies. Hopefully I’ll get to meet both little girls sometime soon!
The Goings On
I’m so very excited about my new laptop, even though I won’t be getting it for a long while still. Talked with Zach today and it seems I was smart to go with the lowest RAM option because even I should be able to upgrade it myself with little hassle. (And RAM is so much cheaper when not purchased from an OEM.) One of the big things I’m excited about with it is that I opted to include a TV tuner, so I’ll be able to watch HDTV in full 1080p on my spiffy new laptop and DVR stuff, too!
School stuff is keeping me busy, busy, busy. It’s all so interesting, though, so I can’t complain. More hours in a day or less faster time flying would be nice if anyone’s up for some miracle working.
No news from the vet regarding Yara’s tests. In this case no news is actually good news. Dr. Gunderson is supposed to call Monday and I’ve still got to bring Yara in for the GI panel. I found out that’ll be ~$200. A friend suggested asking the local Lion’s Club for help with the vet costs and for reasons I can’t explain I had the courage to do just that. I was really shocked to find out they are more than willing to help out once we all have a more firm idea of how much it’s all going to cost. I’m truly grateful. I did give Fidelco a call and talked to Robbie about the whole weight thing; she suggested mixing in some raw red meat into the kibble in hopes of the bacteria helping her to “absorb” the dry food better. I’m supposed to call her back in a few weeks to update her. So far that suggestion has mostly proved to make Yara a ravenous eater, but it’s too early to tell if it will have any effect on her weight.
Speaking of dogs, my dad gave me an update on Dolly. Seems the Synthroid is doing its thing . . . at least in part. She’s got much more energy now that she’s on the meds, but it hasn’t done a thing to curb her appetite. He did mention that her energy has peaked to the point where she is “literally a terror at work.” She wanders off and has been found all over the nursing home, so he’s going to have to tie her down in the employee lounge to keep her from misbehaving.
In other news, Sarah and Irie might be coming over tomorrow. So fun!
Vet Vist, Part Trois
I spent $305 today to hear that by most accounts, Yara is quite healthy. Aside from an ear infection whose origin I’m unclear on and the fact she’s lost another three pounds, that is. Yup, another three pounds.
The vet and I agree this is not a good sign, and coupled with the fact Yara’s a veritable poop factory, we decided to run some blood work. The flip side of this is that we’re both quite sure nothing is going to come of this blood work since Yara has no real symptoms other than loosing excessive weight.1 But I agreed to a full chem panel and a thyroid test anyway since one can never foresee what might come up that we might not expect. She’s also to have a GI panel done sometime soon when I can safely fast Yara for 12 hours.2
If all these tests come up negative, the next step is to biopsy Yara’s liver and intestine and colon which would require her to come in on a Thursday and be put under. That also means she won’t be able to work for a few days due to the anesthesia. You can imagine how thrilled this prospect is for me.
The best part about today is that I got paid, but between this vet visit and purchasing a new PC I have $0 until next payday. [:: sigh ::] Oh, and did I mention that Dolly went to the vet last week and she’s now on Synthroid because she’s got hypothyroid?
1. At this point she’s lost nearly twenty pounds in a year.
2. Read: “Have a day I’m not doing anything since I’ll be somewhat unable to work Yara.”
Working Girl . . . Again
My father started a new job yesterday at a nursing home and during orientation saw a Pekinese run past. This wasn’t too much of a jolt to him given the many nursing homes that regular take in rescues or have therapy animals paraded through their doors, but he inquired about the pooch and it turns out said pup accompanies his master daily to work at the home. Without really thinking, my dad blurted out that he is the happy owner of a retired guide dog, whom he is a bit concerned about leaving at home for such long periods as she’s getting on in years and may need to relieve more often and probably should be a bit less of a couch potato. No sooner had the words left his mouth than everyone from administration on down was expecting him to bring her along with him today.
He talked with me about it over the phone last night and in the end he decided it was worth trying out . . . and she’s an instant hit there. Dad reports that she schmoozed everyone for attention and food and that everybody has fallen in love with her. He’s still not 100% sure if he’ll bring her continuously; the floors there are very slippery for her and she’s certainly not going to loose weight with every staff person and patient feeding her treats all day long.
Either way I think it’s just brilliant. ;-)
Happy Birthday, Dolly!
Today my fat, black lab of a retired guide dog turns twelve! During our working years, I’d normally treat her to a bowl of vanilla ice cream. These days, Dad’s taken over that tradition, so instead I sent her this. :)