Some progress

So while the parents were out of town, I stayed at the vet all week long.  They only let me go out to go to the bathroom.  Otherwise, I had to rest the whole week.  They gave me my anti-inflammatories, pain pill and nerve pain medication.  Once Mom and Dad got home, they picked me up and took me back home.  The week of rest really helped.  I did not yell out in pain one time and ate well.  I was really happy to be back home but I still had to rest.  Which means getting in the pet carrier every time I needed to go out or upstairs.  No getting on the couch, either.  I'm feeling better and really want to do more but they won't let me.  Guess they don't want me to have another relapse.  They called the neurologist yesterday who said I could stop my pain pill and just stay on the nerve pill.  But I have to rest for two more weeks!  No walks, no stairs, no couch.  How boring.  But at least I'm home and in less pain.  Hopefully I will get back on the couch soon.

So much for getting better.

I rested all weekend.  I took my medications.  I wasn't allowed to do anything.  I couldn't even go down the three stairs to the back yard.  I had to be carried out in a pet carrier to the yard.  I rested.  I got bored.  I wasn't allowed to play.  You would think I would be rewarded for my three days of rest.

Not quite.

I slept well last night.  Mommy woke me up at 2:30am to take my medicine.  I woke up at 7am and they took my in the pet carrier down the stairs and outside.  I did my business in the yard then they carried me back in.  Daddy fed me from his hand so I didn't have to put my head down in my bowl (putting my head down causes the pain).  Everything seemed to be going fine.  Then I stood up to walk into the living room and terrible pain came over me.  I cried out and my head fell down and hit the floor.  I stopped and laid down on the floor next to Mommy.  I was scared and didn't want to move in case it hurt again.  I was shaking.  What did I do wrong?  I was able to walk around all weekend.  Mommy and Daddy were going to leave me in my crate all day and ditched that idea quick.  They took me to the vet where I will be staying the rest of the week, under watchful eyes all day, getting my meds and resting.  I hope it works.

This sucks. 

Sigh.

I am not doing so well.  I was enjoying the new house so much.  Even though I have arthritis and have to use stairs to get on the couch, I can jump up there if I want to.  I'm just not supposed to.  I can do up and down the stairs, take walks outside and I love to play.  I never felt like anything slowed me down.

Until now.

Last year, I had some neck problems.  Not sure why, but it started hurting and I could move it around well.  My parents were going out of town and had to board me at the vet's where I was on strict rest and pain pills.  After a couple weeks, I was better and my old self again.  I just had to avoid neck injuries.  I got over it and it seemed like a distant memory.  Then, last weekend, for some reason, it flared up again.  All of a sudden, I was afraid to move around.  Mommy and Daddy were scared because I was acting weird.  They took me to the vet on Monday morning and they figured out that it was my neck, not my old hip injury.  They put me on anti-inflammatories and I was feeling much better.  I did my usual activities for the next two days.  Maybe that was the wrong thing to do, I don't know.  What I DO know is that by day three, I cried out in pain whenever I bent my head down.  It was hard to eat and walk.  They took me back to the vet where they did Xrays and gave me a shot of narcotics, but I got no better.  I had a miserable night, sleeping on the living room floor, because I would not let Daddy carry me up the stairs to bed.  The next morning, we went straight to the ortho doctor I saw last year.  He took a look at me and had the neurologist come in.  Luckily, I didn't seem to have any neurological damage but he needed to get more information.  They put me under and did an MRI and a spinal tap.  They were ruling out tumors, slipped discs and inflammation.  It looked like slipped discs so medication was recommended.  I was so miserable when I came home.  In more pain, disoriented, tired and unhappy.  Trying to get me home was tough because I cried out in pain when the doctor brought me out, when I was moved from the chair and when I was put in the car.  Mommy and Daddy stopped at the pet store to get me a pet carrier to get me in and out of the house and up and down the stairs, as even 2 or 3 stairs would make me cry in pain.  Then they went to the drugstore to get my new medicines.  I'm taking a pill for nerve pain, a pain pill and the anti-inflammatory.  I can't do any stairs and spend most of the day lying around.  I go in the pet carrier when I want to go out.  They feed me from their hands so I don't bend my head down too much.  I still have an appetite, though!  I may feel like I'm at Death's door, but I ain't dead yet.

Yum yummy yum!

Happy National Peanut Butter Day! As many of you know, I am quite the sucker for peanut butter. It is the best invention ever. I could eat it all day long. It is good on a spoon, bread, a finger, the floor.....Enjoy some peanut butter today!

Back in business

Yes, I am still here. But I have been really lazy. I have lots to tell you about.

Since I last blogged, we moved! It was very traumatic for me. One day, Mom and Dad sent me on a weekend sleepover. I had a great time and figured I'd be home soon. Then, they come and get me and take me back to this new, unfamiliar place. It had all these new smells and was a lot bigger. I walked around and around the place, trying to figure out why we were there and when we were going home. But my new bed was upstairs and we didn't seem to be going anywhere. Then, three days later, Mommy left. She was gone for three weeks! I didn't think she was coming back. It was all too much change for me and I was so confused. I just wandered around and couldn't relax. I think I made Daddy mad because I was acting weird and probably peed on the rug. But then Mommy came home! We have finally settled in and have been here a whole year.

I really like my new 'hood. We have been on many walks and I have been able to explore some new smells. There are a million squirrels around here! I like to chase them up trees then they stare down at me and chatter menacingly. I met a lot of new people and doggies at the neighborhood block party this summer. Of course, everyone loved me especially when Daddy had me do my special singing trick. So I guess you could say I have finally gotten comfortable here. I love the landing on the second floor where our bedroom is. I like to spread my toys out on the rug there and play. Every morning when I get up, I go out onto the rug and roll around in a frenzy to wake myself up and get ready for the day. The back yard is also nice and big and I have spent many happy hours walking around the fence line sniffing for other animals and cornering possums.

So all in all, life has been good this past year. I hope to catch all of you up over the next few weeks. I promise I will try to be around more!

And...

I would also like to say thank you to Mommy and Daddy for my birthday treats in August and my new toy. It has been lots of fun and I love playing with it. I might be old, but I'm not dead!

I'm Still Alive!

Wow, I can't believe it's been 10 months since I blogged! I guess I figured I didn't have anything interesting to say. But boy, has life been crazy the past few months. I enjoyed most of the summer, even though it was really hot and I didn't get as many walks as I would have liked. In the end, though I got one really nice SOLO walk that almost gave Mommy and Daddy heart attacks. Here's what happened:

So, this nice guy Chris was over putting in some tile at our house. He was pretty friendly and I liked him coming over to visit. I think the tile was just an excuse to see me. Can you blame him? I was out in the side yard sunning myself when he says he has to run to the hardware store. Lucky for me, he left the service door from the side yard to the garage open along with the garage door. Daddy was busy upstairs so I decided I'd take the opportunity to go for a little walk. Daddy says he came downstairs to let me in and I was no where to be found. He then saw the now-closed garage door and had a moment of sheer panic. He ran all around the house yelling my name but as I said, I was long gone. He jumped in the car and started slowly going down our street. Lucky thing he went the right way, because he was coming toward the stop sign when I just casually cross the intersection right in front of him. I had taken the alley way down and came out on the street, since it had lots of interesting things to sniff. Daddy stops the car, opens the door and yells my name. I figure he came to get me to give me a nice treat or something, just for being me, so I jumped in the car. Drat, though, because he didn't have anything for me except a ride home back to my prison! I was a little depressed the rest of the night and my tummy was a little upset. Must have been something I picked up in the alley. I recovered, though.

Well, life was pretty boring after my big escape. I spent most of my time moping around but eventually was back in good spirits, especially whenever I ate or got some extended cuddling. One morning, I was out in the yard, just minding my own business, when I suddenly had the most horrible, excruciating pain in my back leg. I yelled out really loud and was really scared. Daddy ran outside in a panic and brought me in. Mommy tried to ask me what was wrong, but all I could do was huddle against her and whimper. It hurt so bad and I didn't know what was going on. As luck would have it, the vet opened in 5 minutes so Daddy took me there right away. They really didn't find anything wrong so they gave me some pain medication and sent me home with instructions not to jump up on things or climb. I felt better and tried to be my usual self, although Mommy and Daddy kept watching me like hawks. They got me some stairs to get up and down from the couch and I didn't dare attempt to get on the high bed anymore. A week later, it was my dental appointment so the doctor took an Xray of the leg while I was under anesthesia. Turns out it wasn't broken and I must have just pulled something or strained a muscle. How, I ask? I was taking a dump! Guess this means I am getting old. And to top it off, they had to extract some of my front lower teeth which were loose. I guess you can call me Jethro now.

Santa Paws Says Merry Christmas!

I had a great Christmas! How about you? I can't believe it's been almost three months since I last posted. I guess I just haven't had a lot to report. I haven't been doing much lately. It's been cold and Mommy and Daddy aren't taking me for many walks. So I lay around a lot. But at least I have a lot of toys to keep me occupied. I got a new duck for Christmas and have been playing with it a lot. My Grandma Betty also got me some treats from the dog bakery which I have been enjoying bit by bit. Mommy has been stingy and has only let me have one a day. I have had a pupcake and some peanut "mutter" cookies. They are so good! Yesterday, she was cleaning out the peanut butter jar and put the rest in my bowl. I had the best time licking it over and over! Christmas Day, Grandma was here along with my friend Lori. She didn't bring her lab, my friend Zoe, but we had a lot of fun anyway. It was great to have so many people here petting me. I'm sure that's the real reason they came over. This weekend, we are going to see my other grandparents up north to celebrate Christmas II. That means more spoiling for me and running around with my new cousin Cooper. Bring on the fun!