Ran across this picture from April, 2013;;;; Look at Audrey's EARS!!!
Gotta Love a Redbone!!
Tuesday, January 21, 2014
Monday, January 20, 2014
Audrey is Feeling GREAT Today
Monday, January 20, 2014
Audrey is feeling great today. She actually wanted to walk up our street today and she did so with her regular vim and vigor.
She did something new and different last night. When she's ready to go to bed, she stands in front of me and just looks at me. Usually, if I'm not ready, I can stave her off. NOT last night!! When I tried to tell her "in a little bit", she just stood in front of me and BARKED, BARKED AND BARKED until I gave up!! When I got in bed, she was a happy camper.
Training your human is a wonderful thing.
Saturday, January 18, 2014
Audrey's 5th Birthday!
Ready For A Party!
What's Up There
Lick, Lick, Lick
mmmmmm..... What An Anxious Look
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Jack Joins the Party Thursday, January 16, 2014 Audrey's 5th Birthday Ice Cream Cones on your birthday!! My family started this tradition with a dog I had in Junior High School, Chip. Chip was a Dachshund. He was a good boy and lived to be about 17. Audrey LOVES her ice cream cone - who doesn't?? |
Tuesday, January 14, 2014
Audrey Gets A New Pillow
January 14, 2013
Lucky Audrey!! Look at this cool new pillow!! My friend wanted to do something for Audrey
so she made her this pillow. She chose the rabbits in hopes Audrey
would dream of chasing rabbits!! What a positively sweet thing to do for Audrey.
GOOD FRIENDS ARE THE BEST!
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| I think she IS Dreaming of Chasing Rabbits!! |
Thursday, January 9, 2014
An Early Morning
Thursday, January 9, 2014
One complete set of treatment is now over - three more sets to go - four treatments in each set.
Audrey tolerated today's treatment well. The drug she was given --- ADRIAMYCIN.
This drug was administered via IV in her right leg. This is the drug that is most apt to have side effects. The drug can cause gastrointestinal signs like anorexia and diarrhea. The Vet's notes say this can happen a few days after the treatment. We need to watch for decreased appetite, lethargy, and watch the IV site for swelling, redness, lack of use, excessive licking or limping and as always, blood in the urine and/or stool.
ADRIAMYCIN - it even looks scary!
In humans this drug can cause Tingling Fingers and Toes, Muscle Aches, Fatigue, Chemo Brain (completely forgetting things), Loss of Taste, Joint Stiffness and Heart Palpitations. I have read that heart issues are a big problem with this drug and dogs.
Audrey's dose of Prednisone has now been decreased to 1/2 tablet every morning (down from two tablets in the beginning). H O O R A Y !!!! Prednisone is the drug that is causing the extreme thirst. Extreme thirst equals LOTS of potty trips during the day AND night.
The night that it was F I V E degrees, we went our four times....I slept in two pj tops, some pants I bought before I went to NYC - they are by Columbia and have a heat keeping thermal reflective lining!! In this unusually cold weather we are having, they are becoming my favorite pants!!
When Audrey needed to go out, I put on my biggest coat and my huge housecoat on top of that and my wool socks and fur lined boots....by the 4:30 a.m. request, I was most certainly in a fog...I didn't even care that I somehow put my boots on the wrong feet....they still worked! Audrey likes to go into the woods....in the leaves....at five degrees the leaves really crunch!!
Last night I had planned to spend the night with my daughter since she lives about 7 miles from the Vet.....the best laid plans.....about 3 in the afternoon, she called me. The water pipes in the apartment below her had burst and they had the water turned off to the entire building! SO, in our morning traffic, I drove the 35 ish miles --- my alarm rang at 4:30 a.m. and I dragged out of bed about 15 minutes later....took Audrey out, fed her and the cats, showered, ate and got on the road at 6:00 a.m. What a miracle, I got there in the fastest time I have EVER made it to that part of town - just under one hour...I was supposed to be there by 8 a.m. and I was there by 7 a.m.!!! If I had left 15 to 20 minutes later, the traffic would have prevented me from getting there on time. Luckily, I listened to the news as I was getting ready to go; my exit off the interstate was closed because a water main broke!! Knowing this in advance I was able to bypass that issue!
Even taking Audrey in a 7 a.m., they were not finished with her until about 12:30. The drug has to be administered slowly; not quite that slowly, but they have to monitor her afterward, plus they do blood work, etc. prior to the chemo and they have a HUGE patient load. They do not do regular Vet care - only specialist type work - some pretty sick animals.
There was an older man in the lobby when I came into the office to pick up Audrey. He had a Weimaraner; both front legs were bandaged where they had done blood work or other procedures; the dog did not look well and the owner looked worse...felt sorry for him. Audrey did make him laugh though....the HOUND that she is, it is her job to bark in the lobby just to let everyone know...."Audrey is in the building"! She does that when I check her in too! It's not a nervous bark...she does not even hesitate going in or going with the techs....she just likes to bark.
Yesterday I met a man that was telling me about his pet bird. They had a picture frame that had lead in it and the bird kept pecking at the frame and got a piece lodged in his throat --- $2500.00 later a Vet removed it and 8 years later they still have the bird. I'm surprised he didn't say something about lead poisoning. People DO love their animals.
I was gone most all day yesterday and my husband had "Audrey DUTY"....lol----when I drove back in the driveway, he was out on the side porch banging his tennis shoes together!! Yep, he had "Audrey DUTY" alright!!! lol
We get a two week break from Vet visits. Audrey doesn't have to be back until January 23, but I have to do another early morning drop off because the Vet wants to do another ultrasound to check the lymph nodes in her stomach.
My daughter asked me about Audrey today; if she could be the one that is cured. I read a blog the other day about a family's Basset Hound with lymphoma - I think the dog was about 8 years old; they clung to the hope for a cure...that he would be the exception. I am trying very hard to be realistic. I know what we are facing and acceptance is slowly creeping in. If I'm writing this blog this time next year, I will be very lucky. I'll do all I can until it is clear that enough is enough.....
My friends are being so kind, so supportive....Love to you all.
Cost of Today's Visit $280.07
Monday, January 6, 2014
A COLD night ahead....
...I am NOT looking forward to tonight!! Audrey was out four times last night...tonight our temps are going to be around F I V E degrees!! I've been sleeping in sweatpants so the trips outside aren't so bad, but tonight....I may have to sleep with my boots on too....or with a really L O N G extension cord attached to my electric blanket!!
Audrey didn't feel well yesterday - she did not seem to be in pain, just tired. Hounds have really sad eyes, but when you know something is wrong, those sad eyes just about break your spirit.
She has felt well today - it was so cold that I threw some old bread out in the back yard for the crows---OH MY GOSH, Audrey could not stand it....every time we went out, she tried to make her way to the bread. She has ME SO TRAINED. She would beg to go out...not needing to potty....just wanted to check if the bread was still there and if she could side track me down that way. Finally, I gave up...I went outside and threw it out in the woods so she could not see it from inside the house!!
I've tried a new method to deal with the unsettled time she has between 6 pm and 10 pm-----I read more about the types of food that are good for her to eat while receiving chemo. I steamed chicken liver and pureed it and froze serving size portions...also boiled a few eggs and chopped them (with the shell) and froze serving size portions...bought some Greek yogurt with blueberries and some cottage cheese; around 5:30 or 6:00 ish I have been serving her some of those items, plus throughout the day I have been giving her snacks of these items. The last three days it seems to have helped.
The U.S. is in a "deep freeze" coldest temps in decades; for those people that are in areas of extreme cold, I hope you stay safe and if you use a portable heater, be extra careful! I saw a funny joke today about snow.... a sign in the yard trying to sell "unassembled" snowmen!! lol
Saturday, January 4, 2014
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