Evan's Syndrome and other issues?
My dog Dock has a myriad of health issues. I adopted him from a rescue knowing that he is recently heart worm positive and that there was a probability of an Evan's syndrome diagnosis. We had about a month of normal life (except for the weekly blood work), and then everything went crazy. We have been to the vet 11 days out of the last 14. First, Dock's elbow was bleeding---he had surgery on it several months ago, and the wound from the surgery (which had been completely healed, we thought) had opened up. It got infected and got worse, which means daily bandage changes. One day I came home at lunchtime, to find that he had vomited repeatedly, and there was blood in the vomit. We spent most of that weekend at the veterinary hospital. We think that the vomiting was caused by the antibiotic he was taking, since we've changed the medication and he is no longer throwing up. We are doing bandage changes every day until we are sure the antibiotic is doing what it should do. Meanwhile, Dock is his usually happy and wonderful self. Meanwhile, Dock's owner is not. I am stressed, tired, and sad for Dock. To give him his medications before I go to work in the mornings, I have to wake up at 3:45, give him the first dose (which has to be given an hour before he eats), go back to bed, wake up at 4:45 to feed him and give him some other meds, then give him his last meds (which have to be taken 2 hours after all other meds) at 6:45 before I go to work in the mornings. I was willing to do this for the rest of his life. But now we're heading to the hospital every evening after work and sometimes not getting home until 9:00 in the evening, and I am not getting much sleep. I was so exhausted that I had a fender bender bringing him home last night. Didn't get home until almost midnight by the time the police came, the report was filed, and I had called the insurance company. I am also starting to worry about the expense. I have been missing some work to take care of his needs (therefore, not getting paid), and his vet bills are mounting. The rescue has paid for many of his expenses in the past, but they have other dogs to take care of. What do I do when my money runs out? I welcome your advice, although this is mostly just a vent, and helps me verbalize what I've been feeling. I love Dock. |
|
|
| Could you possibly give Dock his meds in the afternoon/evening before meals etc? When I have had sick ones, I just gave the meds when it fit my schedule the best and vet said that was ok as long as it was around same time everyday. I dont know if you only feed him in the am, or both am and pm, but if you could change to evening that might help things. I also feel your stress and exhaustion and know the expense of having a sick one. I was able to get some meds that were generic through a local pharmacy a lot cheaper than at the vets. Maybe check into that. And if any meds are going to be ongoing it may be cheaper to buy a large quantity online pet meds or drs foster smith? I am sending hugs to you both and will say prayers that things settle down for you both. Take comfort that Dock knows you are trying to help him and you love him.  I am sure others have traveled this road as well. If I can do anything please let me know.  |
| Thanks, mabel4ever. I feel better, just having written all that down. I know you've been there. I feed Dock twice a day because he has medications that he needs twice a day with food. Some of the meds are 3 times a day. If we can get his infection healed, we will lose some of the medications. If we can get his blood regenerated a few of the other meds will go away and/or be reduced. Afternoon meds and meals are easy because I have more time at home. The morning ones are the tough ones. |
| Oops! The post above is mine. I forgot to log in first. |
| Does it have to be a full meal? Can it be a snack? Thinking maybe something you can put on your nightstand or in your drawer in a nightstand near your bed before you go to sleep so you don't have to wake alllll the way up. If you have it all set up before you go to sleep the night before so you know there are no errors in dosage and it is something like cheese or bread something that will coat his tummy will that work or does it need to be breakfast? |
| Sleep will make EVERYTHING seem better! The ramps, the fender bender, the costs. You can do this! One thing at a time, start with a deep breath. This may sound ridiculous but when my life starts to "snowball" out of control I laugh. Hard. I kiss my kids and dogs a ton and pick one disaster a day and kill it dead. Make a ramp/bench day, a car insurance day, a Dock med day, elbow day. Most importantly sleep as much as humanly possible. Once you get things all the way accomplished and out of the way and completed you will feel so much better! If you have no choice but to leave some things open ended then vent - I /we are here. |
| Sonny, Skye, & Steel, You are right. I took a half day off work Wednesday to sleep, and that made all the difference in my attitude. I like your idea about keeping the meds on the nightstand for that early morning dosage. That's brilliant. I usually give him his first meds in a marshmallow. |
Good morning! I'm glad you got some rest! I checked Etsy and I also checked some local furniture stores. I was thinking if nothing else maybe I could find something and maybe just adjust it a smidge. Haha. I didn't come up with much. I saw a lot that was close. They are all too tall and without the brace on the bottom. What that amounts to is paying for a piece of furniture that is heavy and then asking someone to "work" on it for you hopefully for free because Dock is suck a sweetheart. I think the smarter way to go if it is available to you would be to just ask someone to start from scratch and make it for you. It wont be so heavy and it will fit for your vehicle and Dock perfectly and be wayyyy less expensive. I'm going to try to attach a pic of one. This will show what I will get next time as you can shove your foot anywhere to brace it not just the left or right. Again, this bench is way too big and was $329. My brother is a handy kind of guy and I don't need the frilly stuff, guessing you don't either. The top is a snap with some fabric, foam and a staple gun. I'd prefer square legs instead of those pointy pretty looking things anyway - more sturdy. I sure hope this helped in some way, I wish I could have just found one already done and ready to ship! |
| Thanks, the picture is very helpful. |
| Hi, I sent you a private message. I didn't know if you saw it or not. |
Didn't find exactly what you're looking for? Search again here:
Custom Search
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|