Kadie

To be completely honest, I am not for sure about anything as far as her bloodlines, except that she will not be having any more pups, and my couch doesnt care whether she is golden or setter, it still gets warm. LOL And I couldnt care less, as long as she continues to improve. I went with what the vet said, but it really makes no difference to me. either way, she is loved Kadie

Current pictures of Lexus. Keep in mind that her dense coat hides a lot, and she has already packed on a couple pounds since she came home

This post is an update on my visit to the vet with the sick Irish Setter I rescued. I have named her Lexus, and the vet says she is about 6-7 years old. The main concern that the vet had is that she appears to have piometria (sp?), but it is open and she is not toxic. Also, since she had one puppy 6 weeks ago, he is concerned that she was stingy and kept some inside. Her uterus feels very full, he said, even though she is so thin. Since she is not toxic, he put her in antibiotics and she will be spayed Friday morning. But he wanted her to start antibiotics and build up a little more strenghth before he opened her up. On the other side, her eyes and ears are good and clean. But when i took her to the humane society for a body condition assessment, we found two ribs (one on either side) that have been obviosly broken, and one broken tooth. As she has patches of hair in various stages of regrowth, he said that there were indications of long-term hotspots and skin issues. She has no signs right now though. And her energy and spirits continue to improve. After the spay she sould pick up faster. Thank you for your prayers, and I will post pics soon. We took 56 of them for the report. Kadie

Good morning, everyone. I have to tell you, this girl is amazing. She came out of her crate this morning jumping around, wagging her tail, and playing with Mila. She ate well, and was so happy. It just makes my heart soar, even though her physical condition will take longer to heal. To know her spirit is strong, and her heart is healing makes me feel like she will make it. She has that will. I am so pleased. Thanks for all you guys have written. I am adding cooked chicken to her diet tonight, and hope that will go over as well as the other stuff. Wish us luck. Kadie

Those measurements are from the top, BTW.

I am going to try to get pics taken of her very soon, and had planned to post them, but I tell you, they are going to break your heart. when she was wet, her waist was the width of my hand (about 4.5 inches, and her neck was about 3 inches wide. And the loose skin made me cry. Her muscles are weak, and after a little bit of walking, she starts to kinda sink. I think it is just weakness from her conditon and not a nerve disorder, but she spends a lot of time lying down resting. Or trying to scratch her back on the cupboards in the kitchen. She makes a little howling sound when she does it; its very sweet LOL She does seem a lot stronger today though than yesterday. But I can see every rib and vertabrae and both hip bones. . .So sad Kadie

Yes, I was planning to wait until we had a normal stool to start working her into kibble, as the last thing she needs is a relapse. But Oh, such a sweet baby! Mila (the BC) is a nice dog, but only really likes pets in the early am, then just play later. This girl can just sit with her head under your hand for hours! This actually works out well, as the girls can both be in my bedroom with me, and not get in each others way. Mila gets tired of my cuddles, and acts now like "thank goodness, let her bug the new dog" LOL And Kacey (still haven't settled on a new name for sure and this is the one she came with) is more than happy to be loved. I spent several hours with her last night, and she never leaves my side when I am at home. What gets me, is that even after all she has been through, she is still a sassy, sweet, unafraid, playful dog. It is remarkable. I know people who get down and out for almost nothing. We all have a lot to learn, and I think for those of us that are listening, a good part of that come from our dogs. Kadie

Update! Well, I mixed a batch of my "superfood". I took 1.5 cups Plain yogurt, 1.5 cups pureed pumpkin, 3 cups overcooked rice (and rice milk), 3 eggs, and .5 cups of Colostrum (from formula, for nutrients). She ate it, half cup at a time, all night, and she is doing quite well. No vomiting since in the truck, so i think she was only carsick, and her diarhea has firmed up now into a semi-soft state. Maybe tomorow I will start her on a bit of kibble, but very slowly. Her general atitude has improved, and she loves her ball. She seems to get along with my other two, and ignores the cat, so I am happy. After her bath, her gereral health is as follows: about 20% hair missing on her back and butt from former hotspots (no current sores, some regrowth), probably about 20 lbs underweight, teeth are good and pretty clean, ears are clean, eyes look good, and attitude is good. She appears to be housebroken, crate-trained, quiet, and nondestructive. A great dog, all around! My final question is this: She had a puppy, we weaned it yesterday, and she appears to have a lot of milk. Will this make her uncomfortable? How long will she carry this milk? What can I do to help her? Will she reabsorb the nutrients in the milk she has already made? This is the first lactating bitch i have had, and will spay her as soon as she is stronger, but I dont know how to help her through this bit. Thanks! Kadie

Oh, BTW she doesnt seem to be in distress. I think the problem is dietary, rather than an obstruction or the like, as it began with the food they gave her. (Beneful , I think) Also, she is hungry and thirsty, yet she got car sick, so I did wonder. . .But she didnt know me, and I dont know if she was ever in a car before.

Unfortunately, Tuesday is the soonest we can go in I think. There is one vet that I heard was open on Sunday, but I know very well I cant afford to take her to an emergency vet. I do what I can, but I can only do so much. I had planned to give her a rotating diet of pumpkin, rice, yogurt, a couple eggs every so often, oatmeal and sweet potatoe. Until she gets a firm stool. then work her back into kibble. I hope she does okay. Also, carrob firms them up, like the yogurt. (My BC is extremely sensitive to any meat, and if she gets any, I give her yogurt to firm her up, it works wonders.) Thanks! Kadie

Hello, everyone. I picked up a new rescue this morning, and she is very sick. She is not BC, she is an Irish Setter, but she is sick. She has had horrible hot-spots on her back (mostly healed now though) and she had a pup about 6 weeks ago. The pup is at a different home, because it is strong, but she just took everything her mom had. The one I have is just emacitaed, and now has diarhea. I think she got it from being starved then all the food she could have at her last home, and i am going to feed her rice and yigurt until she firms up, but I am still worried. She is very weak. I have never had one quite this bad off. She has a vet appointment on Tuesday, but I was wondering if anyone had any pointers as to how to deal with the diarhea and suggestions on what to feed her. How could people do this? She is so sweet, such a sweet older girl. I am calling her Adelaide. Hope she makes it. *Sigh* Kadie

In my experience, a dog with mange usually gets it first on the feet, chest, armpits, ears, butt, etc. But I could be wrong. the good news is that barring heartoprm infection, revolution cures mange. Good luck! Kadie

My rescue pup was attacked by her mother. She was one of 13, and four were born tiny and weak, and the others were normal. The mom attacked the tiny ones, and killed three. Lulus throat was torn open, and her esophagus exposed. She barely made it. As it was, she didnt even open her eyes until she was 4 weeks old, and she didnt walk until she was well over six weeks. Now she is seven months, and very mobile, friendly, and sweet. Good luck with this guy, but do know one thing: Mother dog teaches the puppy no. Without her teaching him this concept, you may have a struggle on your hands. I had to teach Lulu no; Good luck! Kadie

I have had several Jolly balls in the past, and they all died slow deaths at the jaws of my pooches. LOL They did last a long time though. For some reason, the dark blue ones seem stronger than the other type. LOL They are awesome pool toys and beach toys. I use an old basketball for Mila. It is slightly deflated, so she cant put pressure on it against its internal ressure. I find they last a lot longer that way. But Then, she has four broken canines, so she isnt very sharp anyway. LOL Kadie

My dog Mila gets the hiccups sometimes. I dont usually worry about them. LOL In fact she usually looks so funny, with a funny little look on her face that I just laugh at her. Kadie