Samba

                                                    Boo's Legacy Samba Dancer

                                              March 16, 2002 - November 12, 2012

Piggy Powder

This little piggy went to market.

This little piggy stayed home.

This little piggy ate roast beef.

This little piggy had none.

And this little piggy sacrificed his pancreas to try and make Samba and Sky better.

Our piggy powder arrived and they've already had one meal mixed with it. I'll let you know if it works.

Voting Day

Hi Everybody, Fudge here with an important message.

Mom jumped out of bed this morning , OK she actually groaned and stumbled out of bed, and told us all that today is voting day here in the USA.

She says that not only is voting a right of all citizens, but it's a responsibility. She's big on this personal responsibility stuff.

She dressed in red, white and blue and told us that she and Dad are going to leave us here while they go to vote. She says everyone needs to take time today to vote. She's be really really happy if you all voted the same way she is, but even if you don't, you need to go vote.

My name isn't on the ballot in most places, or any places, but if you want to write me in, here's how to spell my name....Deerpark's Chocolate Legacy RN. It's probably Ok if you just write Fudge.

Remember, you don't have any right to whine about the results if you don't take part in the voting. SO JUST GO DO IT!

Your pal, Fudge

Some Updates

Last week I posted that we'd had a big change and appetites had improved along with better output. That lasted four days and just as suddenly they crashed again. They refused to eat, stools turned watery and they both seemed sicker. I worked overtime coaxing them to eat and was sure we'd see a weight gain on Friday. But I was wrong, both had lost more weight. Sky has dropped from 66 pounds to 48 and Samba has gone from 52 pounds to 28.

Dr B is very concerned. He said we may not be able to save Samba, and Sky is iffy. Standard medicine isn't working to kill the cryptosperidium bacteria and we have to start thinking outside the box. If we don't get some weight back on these dogs, we'll lose them both. Their bodies aren't absorbing nutrients from their food and what they eat just passes thru.

I won't be posting any new photos of either Samba or Sky at this point because they're both suffering severe hair loss from their malnutrition. It doesn't seem fair to them to show their thin hairless bodies to everyone.

Dr B had a new strange idea for us to try. He's not giving up. Pig pancreas! He says that feeding them pig pancreas may help give them enzymes to help them absorb their food. He made a number of calls to butchers, but no pig pancreas was to be found. Still there is a powdered form of the pancreatic enzyme available and it's been ordered. It should be here in the next couple days and they'll start getting it several times a day on their food.

In the meantime they're eating natto at mealtime and though the other eight dogs think it's yummy, Samba and Sky don't want to touch it. I have to get creative in disguising it with other tasty treats such as peanut butter. They're getting other supplements such as Boost and Fortiflora daily.

As bad as all this sounds, something good happened yesterday. Though Sky is unchanged and feeling very sick, Samba had a nearly normal stool for the first time in 4 months. I called Dr B this morning to report in and he's happy. He says now we start packing on the calories, five meals a day along with snacks and treats. This takes up most of my free time, as you can imagine, but it's the last option for them.

On another issue, we've been having no success in finding a replacement ball for Sky. Though Petco advertises the exact ball, they actually carry the smooth ones. Yesterday I emailed Sergeants, the company that makes the glow ball and explained Sky's situation.

This morning a very nice lady from Sergeant's called and asked for details about Sky and his ball. She is going to try to locate one for him. I guess there is still good customer service available afterall. I'll let you know if she succeeds.

We know your paws are probably getting tired from having them crossed so long, but if you can hold on a little longer, we're still trying hard to get Samba and Sky well again.

Blog For Peace

Today is Blog For Peace Day and we want to join in.

We can't think of anything more important to hope for. Please join us.

Can Somebody Help Sky?

Ever since Sky was a puppy he's had a favorite toy, his glow ball. He carries it everywhere with him and he brings it in to sleep with at night.

Lately he's been too sick to play with his ball, but last week he picked it up and has been carrying it around. He's even chased it a couple times when we went outside. He's too weak to play much, but he wants his ball with him anyway.

But, we have a problem. Sky's ball is cracked and I'm afraid that it won't last much longer. Last year I ordered some new ones to replace the aging glow balls, but they had changed them and he won't play with the new balls. Here's the problem.

Sky's ball has these raised stars in the plastic. He loves it because he can grip it easily. The new balls are smooth and he won't even pick them up.

I saw online that Petco has the balls with the raised stars, but we don't have a Petco near us and I'm afraid if I order them online, we'll get the smooth ones. If anyone reading this has a Petco near them and it isn't out of your way to go there, could you pick up a couple 3 1/4" glowballs for Sky? I will, of course, send you a check for the cost and for mailing them to us.

If this is something you can do, please email me and I'll give you all the info you need. Please, only consider this if it isn't an inconvenience. If you regularly shop at Petco and wouldn't mind picking up an extra item, contact me.

It would mean so much to Sky, when he recovers, to have a nice new ball to play with and it would mean so much to me to see my sick boy feeling happy again.

Tomorrow I'll post a new medical report. Thanks.

Once Upon A Time

Once in a while, right in the middle of an ordinary life... love brings you a fairy tale.

Once upon a time a baby boy was born.

About a year and a half later in a different city, a baby girl was born.

The little boy didn't know the little girl.

The little boy was interested in lots of things.

The little girl was, too.

The little boy wanted a bike for Christmas.

The little girl wanted a puppy for Christmas.

The little boy got his first car. It was an energy efficient model.

The little girl got more puppies.

The boy was growing up.

So was the girl.

They graduated from high school.

Then they went out to conquer the world.

 The both liked to travel.

They both filled their lives with new exciting experiences.

 Then one day the boy and the girl met in a far off land and something special happened.

Soon after they met, the boy asked the girl to marry him.

She said yes.

Twenty six years ago today they were married.

And they lived happily ever after.

With lots of puppies.