Looking Up

Nothing lasts forever, including the long months of health problems we had starting with the deadly case of Crypto. Lately our luck seems to have changed. Last Wednesday Fudge, Lola and Norma Jean went to visit Dr B for their annual checkups. These are always nerve wracking visits for me, but the dogs actually seem to enjoy them.

Fudge was the first one up. He's having a problem eating and we couldn't figure out exactly what the problem is, but we have him on a pain killer for ten days to see if it helps. Yesterday he seemed better for the first time in a couple weeks, so maybe we're onto something. The thought is that he has either a touch of arthritis in his jaw or a little nerve damage on the right side. We'll keep an eye on it and try to help him feel more comfortable.

Lola went next. She has a little cyst on her muzzle just above the nose, nothing to worry about. She's also carrying a few extra pounds. The next day when the blood results came back, it showed that her thyroid was too low to register, so she's on Soloxin now and her weight should come back into line soon.

Norma Jean went last. Everything looked good on her but her blood showed that her thyroid is borderline. We'll retest her in about three months.

So far, so good.

This afternoon we took Noah, Bailey, Tess and Morgan in for their turns.

Noah had his  problem eye tested for dryness. He's been on his Restasis ointment for about six weeks. The number we're looking for is 12 or above. Last time he was at 7 but today he registered 17. Everyone in the room was jumping around in excitement. Now he only has to use the ointment once a day and that makes us all happy. The rest of his checkup was good and blood report will be back tomorrow.

Bailey was next. She has a little soreness in her left elbow but everything else checked out great including her weight and her teeth. Yeah Bailey!

Tess has a couple of fatty tumors that should come off later in the year when she gets her teeth cleaned. Her front legs don't seem at all painful even with the deformities.

Finally it was Miss Morgan's turn. She had a rough weekend , running a little fever and having messy stools. I treated her with some of Fudge's tummy meds after speaking with Dr B. Friday night her temperature was back to normal, on Sunday she regained her appetite and today her stool was normal. Because of her age, she seems to pick up these little bugs more easily. Also there is a killer dog flu in the Chicago area. There have been no cases in Missouri but we decided that it might be a good idea for her to get a flu shot anyway, so today she had that and an Adequan injection for her arthritic legs.

Dr  and I were both relieved that everyone had such good checkups and he said the girls seem younger than their actual age. After the issues of the last few years, I'm glad to see my kids happy and healthy again.