Today, three weeks after Maya was struck by a car in front of the house and spent the following week in doggie intensive care, she went for a 15-minute walk in the woods—on leash—and was incredible! With her right rear leg tightly bandaged in bright green, she enthusiastically headed out on the trail. I kept an eye on the time, since the hospital vet had said we could start taking her for short walks but not too much.
The Ridge isn't my favorite place to take her because last year when she was still a pup I took her there and she came back covered in ticks—not literally, but far more than I could stomach. The Ridge is off the road that leads to the girls' dance school and since I knew Maya couldn't go for long and had to be leashed I figured not much harm. And there wasn't. Our walks are always discoveries and today I found that leaving her seat belt harness on wasn't a bad idea. She was pulling at her collar, even though I use a training collar with plastic ridges to keep her from hurting herself, and so I clipped her leash to the back loop of her harness. Wonders! She stopped pulling and ambled alongside me rather contentedly. I don't know why, but I'll experiment more with this.
At one point I had to pick her up and carry her across the rocks over a small stream. She might have crossed on the rocks but I certainly didn't want her bandage wet. That would have been a major problem. The plastic bag I had on it to begin with didn't hold up.
The best thing, though, is she was walking on her bandaged rear leg! At first she held it up and only occasionally dropped it. Then when the trail turned uphill, she needed the extra footing and, lo and behold, she started using it with vigor. From then on I was counting two, three and four steps with the bandaged foot to one lifted. Clearly, it has to be hurting her some, but that she's starting to use it is supremely encouraging. Maya is rapidly moving into her physical therapy phase. The vets have recommended working her injured leg by extending and bending it and massaging it when we're sitting around at night. Doing that plus her own willingness to use it is all the right stuff.
By the way, the Ridge has some phenomenal stonework, including an old stone dam some 20 or 30 feet in height, with a small pond behind it and a stone tower or some sort of building alongside the pond. I've looked on the web but haven't found much info on it. I'll check into it more at some time. On an earlier trip, Maya and I explored the dam, so I know it has iron pipes and remnants of barbed wire on top, but I'm not sure that ages it because those could be later additions. It's an awfully high dam for one of stone in a narrow steam channel so I'm thinking it had to have had some commercial use maybe 60 or so years ago. Just guessing though.
After a quarter-hour walk Maya was panting and hanging her tongue out. She was happy to be back in the car. It's like having her as a pup again, though, if truth be told, I pushed her pretty hard when she was but a little bitty thing. She ate ravenously when she got home, which is also a great improvement as her appetite has been a half or three-quarters her usual.
Thinking of her as a pup is a good way to approach this convalescence. She needs babying—and maybe Kevlar booties. A friend and coworker was telling me he uses those on his dog because his pet is always cutting up its paws. When Maya's ready, that might be a good option, maybe sooner.
Thursday, April 19, 2012
Sunday, April 15, 2012
Breakfast in bed
I can't believe I fed Maya breakfast in bed today.
It certainly wasn't part of the plan, but after Fionna rudely awoke me at 8:20 to tell me she had to be at soccer at 8:30, and then rushing her to her game (sorry but I couldn't stay on such short notice), I set about getting breakfast for her mother and sister. Molly had a game herself at 10:30. Maya got up long enough to do her duty and returned to her crate. What could I do?
I made eggs, ham and cheese on English muffins (except no ham for Molly who doesn't eat pig—her sister says that's because it would be cannibalism). When I couldn't entice Maya out of her crate with bits of ham I started bringing it to her. Like who's top dog in this pack?
That ham was meant for Elsie's Canadian bean soup, which I was making as part of my post-Easter tradition, but there was enough left over to spare for a convalescing canine. Besides, Elsie would have done the same if she were still with us.
Actually, Maya is doing extremely well, and both our local vet and the hospital vets rave about how well-behaved and docile she is. But she doesn't have much energy and after getting up for a bit will usually return to bed—unless one of the cats is in sight, in which case Maya can't help but over-exert herself hobbling after it. The hospital vet who changed Maya's bandage on Saturday said we could stop the pain medication unless we noticed Maya was uncomfortable. I did skip it once but she seemed agitated and bothered by her leg so I continued giving it to her. This afternoon, though, I gave her only one of the two and she seems fine. Poor pooch, no point in pushing her cold turkey.
The vet also said they did not use sedation to change her bandage, which is great progress, and she said Maya behaved wonderfully. She said they saw no need to continue using the special dressing because the wound has closed and they're very happy with the progress and will see her again in two weeks. I asked if it was certain that Maya would need her ankle fused and the vet said they were not completely sure. She said as scar tissue forms it may improve the stability of the ankle but they have to wait and see. Also, she recommended not allowing Maya too much exercise so as to help scar tissue form but said the splint was holding it fairly immobile now. She said we could take Maya for 10 minute walks if we wanted. But I notice even now if Maya's out for even a few minutes she wants to come back in and lie down (exception noted above relevant to small furry distractions).
Now, about breakfast. Of course, I considered that Maya might just have been playing me. After all, she saw me serving the other women in the house and she's nothing if not one smart ... eh, dog.
It certainly wasn't part of the plan, but after Fionna rudely awoke me at 8:20 to tell me she had to be at soccer at 8:30, and then rushing her to her game (sorry but I couldn't stay on such short notice), I set about getting breakfast for her mother and sister. Molly had a game herself at 10:30. Maya got up long enough to do her duty and returned to her crate. What could I do?
I made eggs, ham and cheese on English muffins (except no ham for Molly who doesn't eat pig—her sister says that's because it would be cannibalism). When I couldn't entice Maya out of her crate with bits of ham I started bringing it to her. Like who's top dog in this pack?
That ham was meant for Elsie's Canadian bean soup, which I was making as part of my post-Easter tradition, but there was enough left over to spare for a convalescing canine. Besides, Elsie would have done the same if she were still with us.
Actually, Maya is doing extremely well, and both our local vet and the hospital vets rave about how well-behaved and docile she is. But she doesn't have much energy and after getting up for a bit will usually return to bed—unless one of the cats is in sight, in which case Maya can't help but over-exert herself hobbling after it. The hospital vet who changed Maya's bandage on Saturday said we could stop the pain medication unless we noticed Maya was uncomfortable. I did skip it once but she seemed agitated and bothered by her leg so I continued giving it to her. This afternoon, though, I gave her only one of the two and she seems fine. Poor pooch, no point in pushing her cold turkey.
The vet also said they did not use sedation to change her bandage, which is great progress, and she said Maya behaved wonderfully. She said they saw no need to continue using the special dressing because the wound has closed and they're very happy with the progress and will see her again in two weeks. I asked if it was certain that Maya would need her ankle fused and the vet said they were not completely sure. She said as scar tissue forms it may improve the stability of the ankle but they have to wait and see. Also, she recommended not allowing Maya too much exercise so as to help scar tissue form but said the splint was holding it fairly immobile now. She said we could take Maya for 10 minute walks if we wanted. But I notice even now if Maya's out for even a few minutes she wants to come back in and lie down (exception noted above relevant to small furry distractions).
Now, about breakfast. Of course, I considered that Maya might just have been playing me. After all, she saw me serving the other women in the house and she's nothing if not one smart ... eh, dog.
Monday, April 9, 2012
Slow road back
Maya is home and on a slow road to recovery.
She got out of doggie hospital the end of last week, with one toe amputated. For now, she's going to the vet every other day to have her bandaged changed. Fortunately, our local vet can do that now so we're spared the longer trip. She has to be sedated for them to do the change but as she heals better that shouldn't be necessary.
The vet at the hospital says she'll need surgery to fuse her ankle bone to keep it stable because she lost ligaments attaching it. I don't have any reason to doubt what he says, and they're top-notch surgeons there, but still I am getting a second, and maybe a third, opinion before we do that. But her wound needs to heal more before they can do any more on her so we have some time.
Since I don't have Maya with me I don't go traipsing around the Wilderness or the Mountain anymore. Almost everyone who goes to the Wilderness is walking their dog or dogs, and the Mountain has mountain bikers and a few other hikers, but most of the few people I meet there are likewise walking a pooch. It just wouldn't be the same without my buddy and would seem a bit maudlin. I don't want to get sappy about my dog, but, in truth, I feel bummed when I'm running these days and see others running or walking their dogs. I ran six miles today and it seemed like I met three or four other runners with their dogs. I felt like saying, "She'll be back." Just don't know when.
So, I run more, trek less and am still finding interesting stuff in the woods. The other say I saw a small sign off a little used trail that I was walking just to cool down after an hour run. The sign said "Glacial Erratic." I know what they are—odd, out-of-place boulders left by the last ice age 10,000 years ago. So a detoured to see it. It was cool. Maya doesn't appreciate these things, so I'm not feeling guilty about finding it without her. She just tags along and humors me. She has other interests, and probably feels likewise: that I'm good company but just don't fully appreciate some of the best parts of our adventures. Another day ...
She got out of doggie hospital the end of last week, with one toe amputated. For now, she's going to the vet every other day to have her bandaged changed. Fortunately, our local vet can do that now so we're spared the longer trip. She has to be sedated for them to do the change but as she heals better that shouldn't be necessary.
.JPG) |
| Maya at home with Easter basket art painted on her dressing painted by one of the vet techs after her bandaged was changed on Saturday. Today the local vet transferred the art to new wrap! |
Since I don't have Maya with me I don't go traipsing around the Wilderness or the Mountain anymore. Almost everyone who goes to the Wilderness is walking their dog or dogs, and the Mountain has mountain bikers and a few other hikers, but most of the few people I meet there are likewise walking a pooch. It just wouldn't be the same without my buddy and would seem a bit maudlin. I don't want to get sappy about my dog, but, in truth, I feel bummed when I'm running these days and see others running or walking their dogs. I ran six miles today and it seemed like I met three or four other runners with their dogs. I felt like saying, "She'll be back." Just don't know when.
 |
| Glacial erratic |
Tuesday, April 3, 2012
'Maya, heal'
At training before Maya's accident we were working on teaching her to "heel" and obey that command to stay behind our left heel while out walking. She was doing pretty well—as long as she was getting treats and felt like it. Now, it's "heal" that she has to obey.
She remains in hospital—doggie intensive care—but the prognosis is greatly improved from what it seemed a couple of days ago.
The vet is convinced she will keep her leg but has lost one of her toes. What remains of it will have to be removed. We're hoping to get her home or at least to our local vet soon, but with exposed, sheered bone and flesh that still needs some debriding, the vets says it's too much risk she'll get an infection. She still has be to be anesthetized in order for them to change her bandage and treat the wound. They're talking about us being able to take her home but having to bring her back for daily bandage changes and then eventually surgery to fuse a bone because the ankle is unstable.
I'm hoping if we can get her home and allow the wound to heal that maybe she can avoid the surgery, but I won't know that until she's farther along in treatment and, of course, get some other opinions. The great thing is I'm not thinking about having a three-legged dog anymore! But I am thinking I'll be driving my good old Buick from the last century for a lot longer now than I'd planned a week ago. That's cool. It has a Maya seat belt too.
She remains in hospital—doggie intensive care—but the prognosis is greatly improved from what it seemed a couple of days ago.
.JPG) |
| Maya up and about for a patient visit. She tries to put her foot down but I don't think she's got any weight on it. |
I'm hoping if we can get her home and allow the wound to heal that maybe she can avoid the surgery, but I won't know that until she's farther along in treatment and, of course, get some other opinions. The great thing is I'm not thinking about having a three-legged dog anymore! But I am thinking I'll be driving my good old Buick from the last century for a lot longer now than I'd planned a week ago. That's cool. It has a Maya seat belt too.
Monday, April 2, 2012
The higher consciousness of dogs
Maya remains in hospital but appears to be making good progress. The vet said this morning that she greeted him standing and walking even on the bad leg! But we were warned to be cautious because things can go well and then not so well. They are still debriding the wound of dead flesh. I won't share the photo of her leg the vet sent me on Saturday. It's ghastly.
What I will share is what a friend, mentor and former teacher of mine wrote to me upon hearing of Maya's accident:
Very sorry to hear of the suffering of your dog. My friend in Nebraska had a dog who lost her hind leg in a similar accident and she still had a happy, joyous life. The great character trait of a good dog is they have no self pity or entitlement issues. They tend be be very "Buddhist" in their outlook. In fact, David R. Hawkins says that dogs when they are wagging their tales with enthusiasm generally register at a consciousness level over 500—that is at unconditional love. This why good dogs are inherently therapeutic.
You guys can look forward to many, pleasant, refreshing, joyous times together on your zen walks together, sharing one of the great gifts that you can give each other. Remember, there is redemptive value in all suffering. What matters, is the level of consciousness we bring to it.
My friend knows and admires Hawkins http://www.veritaspub.com/index.php?page=about. As an aside, I've been promising him for three or four years now that I'd read some of Hawkins' work, and this so intrigued me I ordered one of his books yesterday. I'm not sure what that says about me. Am I aspiring to the consciousness level of my dog? I'm sure Meche would tell me that's a good idea as it beats my usual level: that of Snow White's little friend Grumpy!
The entitlement my friend talks about above, by the way, isn't the same as the feeling of entitled mentioned a few blogs back. I think my friend means that dogs don't feel they're owed something from life, the way many people do. The term used in training refers to the pack structure, where the higher-ranking dog is entitled to unclaimed food, things or resting places over lower ranking dogs, but even the higher ranking dog knows his or her place if there's other dogs above it in the pack.
I was very aware of missing Maya on my run today, my first time out since her accident. I went on the carriage roads on the old estate, where I took Maya running a few weeks ago after setting my Lenten goal of losing weight and getting back into running. We ran three or four miles that day, if I remember correctly, and various similar runs since then. Last week we did a five-mile run up on the mountain. Today I did six, which puts me back at my normal run when I'm into it. Last time I did that was a year and a half ago, before going to China. It's tough pushing this fattening old butt out to run again, but all the walking with Maya over the past year made it a lot easier. If she can keep her leg it's going to be months before we're doing this again. If we have to adapt to some limitations, then that too.
What I will share is what a friend, mentor and former teacher of mine wrote to me upon hearing of Maya's accident:
Very sorry to hear of the suffering of your dog. My friend in Nebraska had a dog who lost her hind leg in a similar accident and she still had a happy, joyous life. The great character trait of a good dog is they have no self pity or entitlement issues. They tend be be very "Buddhist" in their outlook. In fact, David R. Hawkins says that dogs when they are wagging their tales with enthusiasm generally register at a consciousness level over 500—that is at unconditional love. This why good dogs are inherently therapeutic.
You guys can look forward to many, pleasant, refreshing, joyous times together on your zen walks together, sharing one of the great gifts that you can give each other. Remember, there is redemptive value in all suffering. What matters, is the level of consciousness we bring to it.
My friend knows and admires Hawkins http://www.veritaspub.com/index.php?page=about. As an aside, I've been promising him for three or four years now that I'd read some of Hawkins' work, and this so intrigued me I ordered one of his books yesterday. I'm not sure what that says about me. Am I aspiring to the consciousness level of my dog? I'm sure Meche would tell me that's a good idea as it beats my usual level: that of Snow White's little friend Grumpy!
The entitlement my friend talks about above, by the way, isn't the same as the feeling of entitled mentioned a few blogs back. I think my friend means that dogs don't feel they're owed something from life, the way many people do. The term used in training refers to the pack structure, where the higher-ranking dog is entitled to unclaimed food, things or resting places over lower ranking dogs, but even the higher ranking dog knows his or her place if there's other dogs above it in the pack.
I was very aware of missing Maya on my run today, my first time out since her accident. I went on the carriage roads on the old estate, where I took Maya running a few weeks ago after setting my Lenten goal of losing weight and getting back into running. We ran three or four miles that day, if I remember correctly, and various similar runs since then. Last week we did a five-mile run up on the mountain. Today I did six, which puts me back at my normal run when I'm into it. Last time I did that was a year and a half ago, before going to China. It's tough pushing this fattening old butt out to run again, but all the walking with Maya over the past year made it a lot easier. If she can keep her leg it's going to be months before we're doing this again. If we have to adapt to some limitations, then that too.
Sunday, April 1, 2012
Poor Mayaboo
Friday Maya was hit by a car.
She got out when someone (I won't get into who or why, etc...) opened the gate. By the time Meche grabbed the leash and got outside she had been hit.
Her right rear leg is badly damaged, with sheering of a lot of skin and part of the bone. She may lose a toe and could even lose the leg. We'll know more tomorrow, though the latest we have from the vets is she is doing well.
I saw her only briefly on Friday and then saw her on Saturday morning. When I got home it sort of hit me and I missed not being able to grab her and head out for a walk. The thought that she might have to get on with only three legs is upsetting, though they say she can do fine if it comes to that. I hope to know more tomorrow. I'm sad and angry but she's alive and I'm keeping optimistic.
She got out when someone (I won't get into who or why, etc...) opened the gate. By the time Meche grabbed the leash and got outside she had been hit.
Her right rear leg is badly damaged, with sheering of a lot of skin and part of the bone. She may lose a toe and could even lose the leg. We'll know more tomorrow, though the latest we have from the vets is she is doing well.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)