Luckily neither of the dogs have ever caught one! With my luck, Max would come down with a rare squirrel disease

Max says he is very jealous of Faith!

I hope Max feels better later today. It is Tuesday so another round of "C" infusion and a chiro adjustment, correct???

I swear the best thing I taught Lakota was to use the "Pet Ramp", yea the thing is heavy but it saved on my back and splats out of the Suburban.

I don't have enough trees near the house to be worried about squirrels some times this time of year we see a stray that must have gotten lost. But rabbits, it is getting cooler now and they are moving out of the fields looking for shelter for the winter. I like to see them as that means that my feral cats are leaving them alone. So now at night I have to be on bunny watch.

Maybe something like this would help Max when he jumps from the car.

http://www.samsclub.com/sams/shop/product.jsp?productId=107930&navAction=

That's a shame that "talking" was trained out of him. Aodhán's attempts to say hello when I got home from work were very endearing.

There were times when it would get a bit excessive and I did work to get it under control - especially when she was excited to go for a walk or go play ball . I got it to be a little quieter, but eventually I figured it was her way of telling me how much she wanted to whatever it was we were doing and why should I stop her from doing that.

Hope Max feels better after his adjustment. Careful getting out of the car - boy.

Val, I used to use a ramp with Max, which worked about 90% of the time. The remaining 10% of the time he tried to jump over the darn thing and ended up doing more damage With my next pup, from day one, I am going to work on using ramps and stairs early!

Last Thursday was infusion day, and I'm spacing them out every 2 to 2 1/2 weeks now. It's a tough balance - he did great with them weekly, but very tough on the bank account. The protocol is that soon he would go to every 3 weeks, then once a month, but I honestly think that it is making a huge difference for him, so I'm not sure what we will do.

Bunnies....Indy loved bunnies, she used to chase them in the field. Max hasn't had that pleasure - I can imagine how your dogs love watching (chasing!) them!

I use those in the kitchen where he lays while I prep dinner, and in his crate. I could definitely try them where he unloads. I'm not sure it will make a big difference, but it might. He has that bum shoulder....I need an elevator to take him out of the car I guess this is where a minivan would be good, but I just don't see myself in a minivan!

Aodhán

We were VERY careful getting out of the car today, completely uneventful

Just about everything that sometimes goes out on him, was out, and his upper neck, C1, C2, was particularly jammed up. He was so happy afterwards, he was prancing. Then he went and smelled under each of the three other treatment doors to smell who was in each room, as we were leaving. Very weird!

I hope in a few days to get a better idea on what is really going on with him, maybe by the weekend. I've been so wrapped up with the nose, that I need to switch gears a bit.

So glad to hear the great news about his nose. Sorry to hear about his bad fall, though. Poor Max.

I his squirrel pictures, though. Those are pretty brave squirrels. They must be like most of the ones we encounter: used to seeing dogs on a leash and thinking they're safe. Risa gets to chase them (on leash) to the trees sometimes. I think that's why she's a bit better about not losing her mind and trying to chase them on leash without permission.

Give Max some pets for me.

Gosh - I am way behind on Max. Sorry he fell, but I am glad that in general he is doing well.

Even when I am not on and posting much, I think of him.

Hugs, Max.

Jamie, I think that might be true for Max too - he is only allowed to stalk squirrels in a controlled manner. Will definitely pass along the pets

Bonnie, no worries! I just posted an update! We so appreciate you thinking of us! Max loves hugs

Love the pics of him!

Thanks Natalie

Just a bit of an update on the boy....

His nose continues to heal. I've found that it makes great healing spurts shortly after we have dosed with his homeopathic remedy, and I can use his nose as a bit of a sign when to re-dose. When the nose starts going backwards in healing, then it's time. We just upped his potency to a 200C potency, and, again, I can see progress. Sure wish it weren't so slow though.

I have him weaned down to a very low dose of pred, maybe 2.5 mg every 2nd or 3rd day, still trying to figure out what works best for him. Under the action of his homeopathic remedy, I am able to wean. Then all of a sudden, he starts backsliding and my instinct is that I've taken the pred too low. However, if I re-dose the remedy then, he continues to be okay on the low dose. I guess that's some kind of progress

He's still on his multiple abx protocol, doing much better since he was increased to the aggressive dose of doxy. I think he's having some problems with the longterm cipro - will have to make an appt with the internal medicine guy next month to touch bases and see where we go from here.

I'm still working on his digestive tract, and getting the right mix of supplements, so he doesn't have to take so many, now that he appears to be past the acute stage. Now, just trying to fight the infection and also to find a way to stop further damage to his internal organs from lack of blood flow and/or infection. This "slow motion" sepsis is really really tough, probably a losing battle, but we're still trying over here. As long as he is able to still stalk the squirrels, then that's a great sign

That's a great report on Max!!! So glad Max is doing better and that you're able to spot the telltale signs of when he needs something done!!!

That is really good to hear!

Glad to hear that Max is doing better.

Keep it up, Max! We all celebrate your good days!

So glad to hear a good report about Max! Rafi wishes him very happy squirrel hunting.

It's great to hear a good report about Herr Handsome.

Also, Lisa, the tone of your post is positive, so I really hope that means you feel a little relief.

thanks very much, you two,

Mary Jane

Thanks everyone, wo both appreciate all the support!

Mary Jane, I'm not sure if it's positive, or a slow adjustment to the "new normal". The nose not spurting blood at every movement is a HUGE relief though.

The nose still bleeds, but not spontaneously, and the healing is getting more robust - he's done some serious biting at his sore back (still from the fall ) and the nose has only bled a bit. Significant progress!


Does anyone know anything about "metabolic acidosis"? His bloodwork is heading towards this - increasing anion gap, decreasing bicarb. I remember Plechner mentioning this in our brief conversations, and this was before it became so obvious in the bloodwork.

His condition can cause MA, and MA can make his symptoms worse, so it's a bit circular.

I've tried a bunch of stuff for his stomach, but I think I'm going to try some baking soda therapy, though it can give him loose stools.

I was reading about a young girl that had RMSF, she died of respiratory problems and metabolic acidosis, per the abstract, so I was thinking now would be the right time to try this!

How's Max doing?

I hate to keep asking my ignorant questions, but I'm confused. What's the difference between bicarb and baking soda ... I always thought they were one and the same???