So, the last time I left you all with a real post, my Mom was here visiting. We took her to the opening weekend of the National Cherry Blossom Festival in D.C. and had a great time. The blooms were amazing this year. The entire basin was lined with them and they were gorgeous. My mom and I were both excited about the majesty of the blooms and all was right with the world.
We also took Mom to Guapo's for dinner (FAB food) where she had a sangria, I had a LARGE margarita and we both got the giggles. It's strange to think that I am actually old enough to get tipsy with my Mom and not worry about it. When did THAT happen? She was the one I always was most afraid of whenever I came home even after the slightest amount of alcohol. I never was, and still am not, a big drinker and I can count the number of times that I have been truly drunk on one hand but, something about Mami always made me nervous if I had ever had any amount of alcohol. Now, here we are getting tipsy together. Tee hee. Fun times.
Great weekend, great company, great time. . . . until we came home. We had left Sunny at our Vet's boarding for the weekend. When we went to pick her up on Monday morning something wasn't right. She came to me but she didn't run, spin in circles or prance as she usually does. She laid at my feet and waited patiently for me to pay the bill. Huh? The girls commented that she had been extremely quiet during her stay. Huh? MY socialite puppy? She turns those eyes on you and mesmerizes you into taking her out and carrying her along with you. What was up? I stood there worried a bit and one of the techs came around the counter. Then she licked her nose and we both noticed that her tongue was extremely pale. EXTREMELY PALE.
Fast forward, she has been diagnosed with Auto-immune hemolytic anemia. Her immune system has turned on her and is destroying her own red blood cells. We can't pinpoint what triggered it: she's negative for all parasitic and tick-borne diseases (but there are many diseases where no specific test is available for them so, who knows) and there aren't any signs of any tumors or other malignancies. Our vet says that sometimes one NEVER knows exactly what triggers this process. Looking back there were signs: she was less likely to bring a toy spontaneously than before; she was content to play fetch for much, much shorter periods of time; she would lay in her crate (usually just a night time thing) during the day rather than on one of her "daybeds" strewn around the house and she had been eating less than usual. Not any one of these things seemed like a red flag at the time and yet here we were. She was pretty sick and is still recovering but the doctor feels that she is no longer in imminent danger of dying (yeah, we were at that point) as she had responded extremely well to therapy.
She remains on steroids and antibiotics and we are monitoring her blood counts closely. We will always have to be aware of this process in her: she MUST be on tick/flea preventative programs; she MUST be on heartworm preventative programs (both year round regardless of weather conditions) AND she will always get minimal vaccinations from now on. We have to be careful to not stimulate her immune system into attack once again. She will have routine bloodwork done now on a regular basis and she will be on/off steroids depending on her blood counts. But, she is responding, she is peppy and she is 90% back to her normal self again.
OK, so that was trauma #1 (yes there was more) since I last spoke with you so, I will leave you with that and will be back with more PLUS pictures of the DC trip and of the FABULOUS yarn my hubby bought me while we were there (Yea, he's good to me - most of the time >wink< ) as well as of the jewelry that Mami and I made.
9 comments:
Glad you had fun with your Mom and sad you have a sick doggie! Those little critters find their way into our hearts, don't they?
I used to love it when the cherry blossoms bloomed in Virginia!
I love having cocktails with my mother as well. There is just something naughty about it that makes it that much more fun.
I hope your doggie will be OK.
Amy
Your poor puppy! Thank goodness it was all figured out in time.
And your husband bought you yarn? Wow. That doesn't even make sense to me.
Glad your dog is doing better.
I read your comment on Lolly's "recycling" post. Can you email me and give me ideas on how to clean with vinegar and baking soda? Thanks!
wow, i am so glad to here that she is ok. whenever i hear the word hemolytic is sends shills down my spine. i always find myself thinking i wish my dog could talk to me when he does not feel well, it would really make things easier! but glad to hear she will be ok. sounds like you and your mom had fun!
LeAnne,
I would love to give you the 411 but I don't have your email! (Darn you blogger for getting rid of that!).
Anywho, I just do the stuff that you always hear about: I use a baking soda paste to clean my counter tops and stove top. I also use it to clean my bathroom counters as well. I use a diluted vinegar and water solution in a spray bottle to do everything from cleaning windows and glass to wiping down the toilets and the outside of the fridge.
You can find all sorts of uses for these items online. Just google them and you will be amazed at what they can do.
I also like to use lemons to clean stains off the counter and the sinks. It's so amazing what you can do WITHOUT the use of chemicals!
I know what you mean about drinking with Mom, so true! Glad to hear your puppy is on the mend, too.
so sorry to hear about sunny's illness and i'm soooooo glad she responded to the therapy! hugs and kisses coming your way for both of you!
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