Marley's recovery!

Marley is still recovering from the dog bites in May. She's been doing well but had an allergic reaction to the sutures. She's limping a bit but that's normal for her. She's never really walked completely straight.

She's now developing some new little seroma's in the main incision from the first surgery. The incision is all lumpy. My vet said they may open up on the skin level and we may have to cut them out. Poor little girl has already been through so much.

We are hot packing the incision for now to see if the lumps go down. I forgot to do it until today but she was a good girl to lay on the warm rice bag for me. I took this pic to show what a patient girl she is. Of course I was right there with her to give her some cheese for saying cheese!! She still has her therapy bandana on but our visit tonight was cancelled (even though we got dressed and showed up - the rec therapist apparently did not).

She's had vitamin b12 shots in her incision to break up the scar tissue. As well as another chiropractic treatment and acupuncture session last week.

I'm just so grateful this little girl survived this whole mess. I can't imagine life without her! Her darling little face lights up my life in ways I never knew possible. We'll continue to do whatever necessary to help her heal from these terrible injuries. She's just too precious of a princess not too.

Did I mention before I never understood how some people NEVER go to the vet? I am not keeping an exact count and I have been in a vets office at least 18 times this year (that I can count). I only have two dogs now!! That doesn't include the stops in to buy all her dietary supplements either!

Dog's or no dogs?

I have a rental house on my property here. I share a yard with the tenants and their dog. Their dog is the one that attacked my baby girl just two months ago.

My tenants are moving in about a month and it is quickly becoming time for me to start showing the place. I have always allowed dogs in the past but have been picky about the kinds of dog owners that I would rent to. I want someone responsible who keeps their dog inside. I also need someone who is going to be understanding of Dylan and his "issues" and make sure that they don't just let their dog bolt out the door until the dogs are all properly introduced. Dylan takes a bit of time to accept a new dog into the yard so I need someone patient enough to wait a few weeks before the dogs can openly socialize.

I've been contemplating not allowing dogs in the future. Only because of the recent situation with Marley. I would love to be the awesome animal friendly landlord but I just don't know if it's a good idea. Marley's injuries were extensive and the owner of the dog actually has shown little sympathy (let alone offer to help pay the bills). His roommate, however, has been awesome checking up on Marley and how she is doing. I never would have expected this to happen with Marley and I am fearful of allowing other dogs on the property. I know Dylan isn't the nicest boy and I would have expected him to be involved if there was ever an issue.

I'm not sure if I should allow dogs on a case by case basis? I really like dog owners who are responsible and I think they value their rentals a bit more than people without pets. They are more likely to stay long term too since it's difficult to find a rental where pets are allowed?

Since Marley got injured we have been coordinating time in the yard so that the two females don't ever get to be together. It hasn't been too difficult so maybe I will just have to make sure that the tenants I rent to have the same willingness to coordinate?

Marley is making progress!

We've been back to the vet for a follow up today. It's been almost 2 months since the dog fight where she got injured. She's making progress and healing well. The strained muscle in her leg is lots better and her lower back is healing well. There are still some tight and tense muscles in her mid back and neck. Time will help them heal and I think the accupucture and chiropractice help.

She's had some sort of reaction to the sutures. Her insicision from the first surgery is now lumpy. Our wonderful vet said it was probably the die that caused the reaction so I've called to have them add notes to her files at her other vet's offices (she now has 3 vets!) not to use those same kind of sutures if she needs stitches in the future. She got some Vitamin B12 shots in the scar tissue that will help break it up so we don't have problems in the future with her stomach being too tight.

Marley is still nervous about being in the vets office but she did a lot better today than last time. I think this whole thing has been a bit traumatizing. The moment we walk into Willow Creek she has her tail tucked and acts terrified. Luckily our holistic vet is wonderful to work with her and reward her for being a good girl while she is working on her.

Marley has been approved to go back to work as a therapy dog! I have called to try to get a date and time set up. She's still not allowed to do any agility or flyball but I'm not working her there anyway so it really doesn't matter. Mostly the vet wants me to try to limit her jumping as much as possible while her back continues to heal.

We will go in again next month for some more chiropratic and accupuncture. She'll also have a thermal scan and maybe some more B12 shots in the scar tissue. With time, she will heal and keep feeling better and better. I'm just so grateful my baby girl has made it through all this. Her injuries were potentially life threatening but she's a trooper and has done well throughout the many vet visits and having people poke and prod her all the time.

Her hair still isn't grown back all the way but it's coming back. It's funny that she still seems to have a ring around one leg where she had the IV. Soon you won't be able to tell though that there was ever an IV there!!

Miss Marley the Therapy Dog

Marley is a wonderful Therapy dog. I realized today that I haven't written much on this blog about that. I think it may be due to the fact that she's been on a break due to her recent injuries. I think it will be soon time for her to get back out there though. I tried to call our facility this week to make some plans but wasn't able to reach them. Hopefully we will be going back within the next few weeks.

We visit at an Alzheimer's center regularly. Last summer we had the privilege to visit a few friends in the hospital. The first visit Marley went on after we passed our certification was to a friend who was dying of Liver Cancer and complications related to Lupus. It was such an amazing visit with my co-worker and his wife. Unfortunately, my friend passed away before I was able to arrange another visit. We needed to be supervised at the hospital and because we were inexperienced. A wonderful woman from Utah Animal Assisted Therapy Association (www.uuata.org) took time out of her day so that Marley and I could bring some joy to a friend. He was a dog lover and used to regularly stop by my desk and update me on the latest funny thing that his dog did. He especially loved his little shih tzu and his border collie who he has now joined in death. It was an incredibly moving experience and one that I will hold close to my heart for many years to come. It's amazing how much impact an animal visit can have on someone. His eyes lit up when we arrived and I think he never stopped smiling the whole time that Marley lay in his bed with him. Marley was a wonderful girl and seemed to enjoy herself for quite a while. This was so impressive with a green therapy dog. Marley was a natural.

A few weeks later, the founder of my rescue group had a very severe stroke. She was hospitalized and in ICU for several days. I was able to arrange another supervised visit to a completely different hospital within just a few hours. The other volunteers with this organization are all so wonderful and giving. They understand how valuable animals are in so many people's lives and only want to do what they can to help people in need. The above picture was taken on the visit where my very green dog did another excellent job as a working therapy dog. Emily had hardly moved in the two or three days since the stoke. But she did a good job of petting Miss Marley.

To be able to provide this service for a woman who is responsible for saving the lives of literally thousands of animals over the past 20 years is an incredible privilege. I feel so lucky to have had this opportunity. Since she was obviously an animal lover, having a dog visit at the hospital was the ultimate experience. She is a big cat person in her later years of life. We were lucky that another woman in our organization has a blind (and also rescued) cat that is a therapy animal too. So over the days that she was in the hospital, "Dare Devil" and his handler/owner were able to visit several times as well.

Marley seems to understand the needs of the people she visits. She snuggles closer to the ones that need it most and backs of the ones who enjoy seeing her at a distance. She performs tricks like a circus performer and does so with extreme joy. She is ecstatic when I get out the backpack and put on her therapy garb. She's not super stoked about the grooming but she tolerates it well with a few rewards for good behavior. She walks into our regular facility now with excitement. This is her time to shine and she knows it. There's no big brother Dylan to overshadow her and take the limelite. She is the center of attention from the time we walk in the door til the time we leave. She gets all the love and attention and brings joy to other's in the process. No wonders she seems to enjoy her job as a Therapy Dog. She's found her niche in life.

I can't wait to get her back out there and working. I know she's probably wondering why we haven't been to this special place where she gets lots of treats and lots of people love her. The place where some of the people seem different but Marley knows better than to judge them on their appearance. Because all in all, they are people and they deserve to have dogs love them too.

No News is good news...

I haven't had much to post the last few days. I figure no news is good news. My mom is home and doing well. She's gonna be on a new diet and all that.

Marley is on her way to getting better. She is still limping but it getting out and walking and doing well.

My tenants gave notice and my rental will be going vacant in 2 months. I'm glad they gave me so much notice and I am sad to see them leave. It's part of having a rental property though. I dread having to find a new tenant. I want to repaint though and am reconsidering whether or not I can allow dogs there. Fargo was the perfect tenant but having her there resulted in Marley getting seriously injured. Maybe my dogs just aren't well suited for sharing property with another? I have a few months to decide for sure. If I allow dogs, though, I will be very picky about which dog to accept. It's tough having to guess right away how a dog might react to my own.

My knee is still messed up and I am anxious to see the doctor next week. I get the stabbing pains randomly but at least they aren't as often or as intense as they were a few weeks ago.

The limp...

Miss Marley often has a slight limp in her back right leg. She's got a shallow hip joint in that back leg. The last month she has been limping more and more often and when she runs she kicks that right leg out. This is one of the ways I keep track of her pain level.

Tonight she has a very definite limp in her bad leg. I feel awful that she is in that much pain. She's got a strained muscle back there and I wonder if the treatment yesterday has made her sore today. That's happened in the past where she will be sore for a day or two and then I see a lot of improvement after a couple of days.

They say that most dogs innately hide their pain. I know this to be true of Dylan. He only shows he is in pain when it's really bad!! I'm not sure if Marley has come to accept her structural issues as a part of life and so therefore she displays signs of being in pain easier. Or if she's in A LOT of pain and needs to be taking pain medication. I wonder if I could just notice smaller variances of normal behavior with her because I know she has issues. So I see her signs of pain when they are more mild than other dogs because I pay very close attention to her regular movements. On the other hand, she could be hiding her pain so by the time I am able to see it, it could be severe.

I know that if it were me, I'd want pain meds at some point. I was taking them over the weekend because of my damned knee. In my opinion, once pain passes a certain level, some pain medication is totally appropriate. I just don't know where that line is for Marley. It's times like these that I wish she were human, at least just for a moment. Just long enough to tell me exactly how she feels and what she wants me to do about it.

All I really know is that the road to healing is going to be longer than I wished it would be. I was hoping that things were getting back to normal. I forgot that a major trauma can cause damage to your entire body. Up until now, I'd mostly worried about the injuries to her abdomen. I now know I need to focus on doing what I can to help heal her body as a whole.

I spend my life at the vet!

Marley went in for a visit with our holistic vet today. Her body has been really out of alignment since even before the dog fight.

We went over her x rays and the vet says she has some arthritis developing on one of the vertebrae that already causes her problems. She's gonna have problems for life but we are doing everything we can to prevent further issues and manage the issues she already has.

She had some major chiropractic adjustments. Her neck was all out of alignment. Her hips were out of place. She also has a pulled muscle in her leg. The vet says it's probably from being spread out and tied down on an operating table. Tied down under anesthetic, she wasn't able to let the vet techs know that she was being pulled too far. That's already her bad leg with a bad hip on that right side. Now with a strained muscle, she is standing with her leg out turned. A bit of massage and mild stretching should hopefully help over the next several weeks.

She's got some scar tissue building up. This could be problematic if we don't take care of it early. I am going to start massaging the area daily and then in a few weeks we will do some acupuncture in the area and vitamin b12 injections.

She got some acupuncture today and I am starting her on some homeopathic's to help her abdomen healing. Arnica and Silicea should hopefully be helpful in this healing process.

I didn't realize she needed to stay on probiotics for so long after the antibiotics. I guess we will be doing that for another month or so. She also wants her to have some limited activity for another 10 days. We just want to prevent potential issues in her abdomen where she has had so much trauma in that area the last month.

I also got some aconitum for Dylan. It's supposed to help calm him during this horrible firework season. I am not sure why everyone insists on lighting of shooting flames in a desert in the middle of summer. Dylan doesn't think it's the best idea either. It's an extremely scary month for Dylan in July but hopeful the aconitum will be helpful.

Stitches Out!!

Marley's stitches are out! I am so happy that we can now hope things are behind us.

She does have some lumps on her belly now that I am unsure about. I will be watching them and hoping they go away on their own. If they are still there in another day or two, we will be making yet another trip to the vet to have them looked at.

She also needs to get in for a chiropractic treatment. I think her body is out of sync this last few weeks. She needs some treatment to get her back in alignment. They are supposed to call me for an appointment when they figure out what the vet's schedule will be the next couple of weeks. The vet we see can be hard to get into so sometimes it takes a week or two (new clients have to wait months).

On our way!

The stitches come out tomorrow! Then hopefully Marley will be able to go back to normal activities.

I want to try to get her in for a chiropractic treatment. She seems to be having some pain in her back or hips. She's not sitting straight on her hips most of the time. She has been kicking her leg back when she runs. She was due to go in the beginning of June but they said to wait until after she was healed from the injuries.

Finally Getting Better!!!

I think Miss Marley is finally on her way to getting better. She had the drain pulled out last night because I accidentally pulled it partially out when I was cleaning it. It's looking better today than it was even yesterday. That's probably partially due to the fact that she has had opportunity to do some grooming and clean things up a bit. She's not licking the wounds excessively but I let her do some cleaning last night and this morning.


The bruises are starting to fade and she has two wholes where the drain once was. She bled all over my sheets last night because I didn't expect that she would be bleeding still.

The incision that is still stitched has some bubbling areas. I am not sure what that's all about but I think it will be okay. I am sure the vet's office is getting tired of hearing from me all the time so I will just watch it for a few days.

She's acting much like nothing ever happened so I think she is feeling well. I think today may be the last day of pain meds if she keeps acting like she feels okay.

Go Thunder Paws!!!

My Flyball Club is headed south this weekend for a U-FLI tournament. Dylan and I will be staying home and taking care of Miss Marley.

I just joined this team a few months ago but I am glad I finally made the decision. It was a tough one but after a few months of practicing I am positive it was the right one. I am back to enjoying practices and no one yells at me (or at anyone else for that matter)! Plus no one throws anything at the dogs!! There's no one making snide comments about (or to) the other member's of the team!! Now I just wish I could get my friends to make the move too but I know that's never gonna happen!!

I really hope TP does great this weekend but most of all, I hope they have lots of fun! I wish so much that I could go with them but I am glad that I am not committed to going since Marley has been in such bad shape!!

Go Thunder Paws!!!!!

The drain on day #2

Two days in and this drain is looking pretty disgusting. Her fur is all crusty and gross and I have yet to find a good way to clean it. I thought I had some waterless pet shampoo but I can't find it in my messy house. A warm wash cloth is not helping much. Two more days and Marley will be able to do some cleaning herself. At least that will get us by until she can have a real bath.

I'm concerned about the new bruises. The vet's office said just to put warm compresses on the area a couple times a day. When I do this, the drain drips more frequently so I guess it should be working. I keep cleaning her skin but some of it is looking a bit irritated.

The good news is you can barely see the scar from the original surgery in the picture. It's looking so good! One down and three more to go! I can't believe that incision is only 12 days old.

I wonder how long it will be until her hair grows back. She's had her belly shaved twice in the past 2 weeks and also one of her legs has a ring where it's been shaved twice for the IV. It looks a bit funny for sure!!

I'm still just so grateful that my baby girl has lived through all of this. She's been a pretty good sport and is getting very used to showing people her belly on demand. She already knew this as a trick but she often rolled all the way over instead of stopping on her back. Now she is stopping on her back every time because I keep making her do it 10 times a day.

More about Marley.

The dripping is getting better. She's still dripping fluids but not at the frequency she was on Sunday evening. She's learned to drink and eat with the cone on and is hanging out on her dog bed in the x pen. I did have her out and about in the house most the night last night and over at Paul's house as well.

She seems to not really care that she has this drain hanging out of her belly. She was trying to run after Dylan in the yard. We went out and walked last night and she was ecstatic to get out of the house. I learned though that it's too much to take her and Dylan out together right now if there are going to be other dogs off leash. So we will be doing separate walks or just walking the neighborhood until the stitches come out.

She does have some new bruising next to her new incision. It's swollen and yucky and I hope it doesn't get any worse because I don't want to have to go into the vet earlier than planned. We will see what it looks like tonight though. I'm glad this vet's office is open later!!!

I can't wait to give her a bath. Her fur around the belly is crusty and gross from all the draining. It won't wash out with a washcloth. I think I have some of that waterless pet shampoo though so maybe I will try that tonight.

Sad Girl in a cone!

This poor girl is starting to wake up. She's been so groggy since I picked her up but finally perked up a bit late tonight. She's confined to an X-Pen for the most part because of the dripping. I made a comfy bed in there for her with her regular dog bed, covered with some blankets so I can clean them when all is said and done!

She's been laying on this dog bed all night and barely moved. She looks so sad and pathetic. The doc says she has to wear the E collar 24 hours a day for the next 4 days until the drain comes out. It's too risky that she could rip it right out since it's easy to grab on to. She can't walk very well with the cone on because it keeps dragging on the ground. I feel bad for her since she's constantly banging into things and dragging her cone along everywhere.

I think it would be a lot worse for Dylan. He's my cuddle buddy and always sleeps on the bed. Marley generally chooses to sleep on her dog bed or on the couch so at least she's not being forced to stay off the bed. I'll miss her coming up for morning cuddles but maybe I can put some towels down and bring her up there with me early in the morning.

The Drain!

Marley is home and she has a drain in her belly. It's pretty gross and dripping bloody fluid constantly. Because of the location, there isn't a way to bandage it. The vet says it's best with no bandage anyway but sometimes they allow people to put a loose bandage on them if they change it a couple times a day. Marley's won't be bandaged at all but I have her contained to an x pen in the front room for now. She'll likely stay there most the time for the first few days since they are likely to be the worst.

She gets the drain out Thursday and then she will get the stitches out later.

They didn't find a fifth hole which is good. They also cut my bill down quite a bit from the original amount. This vet's office has really been great to work with that way! Plus the vet has been absolutely wonderful! We still have at least 2-3 more visits before this is all over and done with but hopefully I have paid the final bill for this whole thing.

The good news is, the vet said she can start going on easy walks on leash. I'm really excited to take her out tomorrow. She's been going a bit stir crazy being cooped up in the house all week.

A second surgery!

Marley is in surgery again! The vet said the seroma got so bad that she really thinks a drain was necessary. Since they had to put her under anesthesia they thought it best to go in and check her body wall for a fifth hole.

So she will come home with a drain and hopefully the mystery of the fifth hole will be solved. Hopefully she won't require an overnight stay and I can pick her up in a few hours! In the mean time, I get to hang with Dylan. He's looking pretty relaxed.

Is it ever gonna end?

Marley's had a pocket of fluid trapped on her belly the last week as she's been healing from all this. The seroma is getting worse. The fluid is spread over a bigger area and there seems to be more of it.

I called in to the vet today. She's been so wonderful to take my phone calls and put in so much time with Marley and I. She said she would like to treat the seroma before she goes out of town. Plus do another check for the potential fifth hold in her body wall. So back to the vet we get to go. They don't want to put a drain in for the seroma though. It requires anesthesia and another incision. So instead, they will use a K laser. I don't have a clue what that means but I guess I will find out tomorrow. I didn't want to take up so much of her time on the phone asking a zillion questions.

I'm so glad this vet's office is open on weekends. The office visit is usually more expensive on Sunday but she said she would do free follow ups with no office visit charge. I still have to pay for any treatment though. She's been so wonderful that I got her a thank you card from Miss Marley to take in with us tomorrow.

This event feels like it is going on forever. I really hope that Marley can get healed up one of these days so we can go out walking and play again. Until then, we will just have lots of cuddle time.

I'm very thankful that she lived through this whole mess. It never really sunk in at the time, how serious all this was. She could have died or had much more serious complications. Can you imagine what it would have been like if 4 holes turned into 4 hernias? Or if the punctures had gone through and hit her organs? I can't imagine life without my baby girl and am so glad that the injuries she had were ones that were easier to repair.

Another Marley Update

We went in for another follow up last night. The vet we have been working with has been so wonderful and given me a lot of time and energy. I really have been so happy that I made the decision to go to willow creek on the night this all happened.

She said Marley's incision looks great! It's looking better than she expected. The sagging from the fluid is a bit better than it was Monday as well. She did feel what she believed to be a hole in her body wall. She thought it was likely a different one than the holes they fixed last week. After feeling around, she had some vet techs feel as well. They did an x ray that looked good so she got a second opinion from another vet. All in all, they aren't really sure what's going on in there. But the consensus is that there's not enough evidence to warrant a second surgery at this time. They are hoping it's just fluid that will be absorbed into her body as she heals. If things get worse and not better I will need to take her back in for another check.

I am supposed to keep her down at least another week or two. No walks or running or jumping. Poor girl wants to play but she doesn't understand I can't play with her now. I'm just hoping she will heal up fast. I wonder if it is okay, at this point, to do some free shaping or something to work her brain a bit since we can't work her body.

More bruising for Marley

Marley girl has even more bruising. It's spreading all down the one side. I'm anxious to go into the vet this evening and see what they say.

The good news is, her flank is sagging less than it was before. That probably means some of the fluid has been absorbed into her body. Hopefully that means there won't be a need for a drain.

Marley also hasn't been pottying like she normally does. I have been having a hard time getting her to go out and go potty. Usually I send her out with Dylan and leave them out there for a few minutes. I've been letting her out alone since the surgery so she is not inclined to play with Dylan or fight at the fence with the new neighbor dog. Instead of going out to go potty she just stands on the porch waiting to be let in. If I go out there with her, she stands there looking at me.

I think she may not be drinking enough water. I will talk to the vet tonight but I may start her on some pedialite and low sodium chicken broth to make sure she is staying hydrated. I am also going to ask the vet to express her anal glands since she keeps rubbing her little bum on the carpet.

Taking a break from AAT.

We haven't been to our regularly scheduled Animal Assisted Therapy visit for over a month now. I missed the last visit because it was the day after Puck died. We were scheduled to go again today but Marley is not in any condition to be working right now. I finally got in touch with the Activities director at the place that we visit. We are planning on taking at least the next month off.

Marley needs to have ample time to heal. I also want to make sure she wasn't so traumatized by this whole thing that she will react so negatively towards other dogs if we meet them there. She went to flyball practice with me on Sunday and seemed a bit grumpy. I never really want her to interact with other dogs when on the job but it seems we always run into them. I may have to make it more clear that I need to know if other dogs are in the building before we go in to visit.

Marley is generally pretty vocal when she first meets new dogs. I figure it's her way of telling them that she has pain in her back and hips and so she's not able to roughhouse with them. Other than that, she does really well with other dogs. I really hope that will still be the case after she heals from all this!!