x10: Renewal » Dogs Don't Look Both Ways

timeline for rehabilitation, swimming and running again

7: Recuperation, 8: Rehabilitation, x10: Renewal, _Stuff about dogs in General 3 Responses »

Nov 092009

After your dog is injured, when should you expect your dog to start walking?
How far and how fast should he walk? How about swimming and dog hydrotherapy?
What’s the best way to get your dog’s muscles back in shape and to get his stamina back?
If your dog is a runner, when and how should you introduce him to running again?

Good communication with your dog’s veterinarian can give you some guidelines. But as always, observe your dog carefully and notice and pay attention to everything, and use that as a guide.

***

Here is my time line for my rehabilitation from my injury. In general, my parents and my doctors made these decisions, not I. If my parents took me swimming, I went swimming. If they took me running, we went running. They decided how far, how fast, and how long I was to be out and walking, running, or swimming. I guess in the end they made the right decisions, because I’m doing really well now. I’m not even limping!

Day 1: I was hit by the car and brought to the emergency room of the animal medical center. When I went home six days later, I had a full-splint on my leg.

During this time, I may only go outside to pee and poop and then must go back home. I must walk slowly.

Week 5, Day 3: I have surgery on my broken ankle, though I’m asleep and don’t know what’s going on. When I go home, I have a half-splint on my leg.

During this time, I may only go outside to pee and poop. I walk slowly.

Week 12, Day 3: I go back to the animal medical center for a bandage change. It has been 7 weeks since my surgery. Although he was going to only take x-rays at this time, my doctor removes my splint!

Since I’m allowed to go upstairs and downstairs, my parents let me go up and down a lot so that my muscles begin to strengthen. Of course, since I’m on my lead, I can’t go up and down too much, but I do it as often as they will allow me, and as many times as they will allow me. When I am home alone, my parents keep me in the living room and close the little door gate. They don’t want me jumping up on anything.

Week 13: Day 3: I go back to the animal medical center for x-rays on my broken ankle. It has been 8 weeks since my surgery. My doctor removes my bandages!

During this time, my leg muscles continue to start working again.I’m still walking with a limp. When I am outside and I start to hop on three legs, my parents slow me down so that I use all four legs.

My walks start out short. Then they get longer. Then they get longer and longer. Then they get longer and longer and faster and faster. My mom is walking longer and longer and faster and faster, too. This is good for me.

Week 16: It has been 11 weeks since my surgery. I’m running and playing in the back yard. My parents are throwing the ball and I’m chasing it and bringing it back. However, we don’t play this game for too long.

Week 17: It has been 12 weeks since my surgery. I’m walking well enough and I’m strong enough to take a walk around the block with my sister and littermate, Rosie. I am still walking with a limp.

My parents take me to the lake for the first time! My mom walks me around the edge of the lake but I do some swimming, too. I go to the lake a few times this week and I am swimming, usually in place, with my mom holding me up by my harness. My legs are getting stronger and stronger and I’m feeling better and better.

Week 19: It has been 14 weeks since my surgery. Dad takes me running with him. We run for one block!

Week 20: It has been 15 weeks since my surgery. Dad takes me running with him. We run for five minutes! Then we walk. The next day we don’t run and the next day we run again for 5 minutes again. I’m feeling stronger. Jane takes me on long walks and she doesn’t’ let me stop and rest until we get to our destination, or until we get home.

Week 22: It has been 17 weeks since my surgery. Dad and I run for ten minutes! The next day we don’t run and the next day we run again for 10 minutes again. Then the next day we don’t and the next day we do. I’m feeling stronger and my parents say that they don’t see me limp when I run. They say “Other than the bald spot on his back, you wouldn’t know he was hit by a car.”

Week 25: It has been 20 weeks (5 months) since my surgery. Dad and I run for twenty minutes! This is our “short” run. I’m feeling good. I’m not limping. We do this run now a few times a week, one day yes one day no one day yes one day no. During the afternoons, Jane takes me on long walks and she even tries to run for a block or two with me, but I’m much faster than she is and I’m always ahead of her looking back at her. They still say say “Other than the bald spot on his back, you wouldn’t know he was hit by a car.”

Week 25: It has been 20 weeks (5 months) since my surgery.

My dad says “Twenty minutes may be it for him.” I’m going to do my best to run longer and longer and further and further.

My doctor says that I’m “a healthy dog”. I love my doctor!

Week 26: It has been 21 weeks (5 months, 1 week) since my surgery.

I love my life! I go to new places and see new things. I meet new people and new dogs. I make many new friends, both people and dogs. Everybody is surprised at how well I do. When I’m off-lead, I obey my mom when she says “come”. At night I don’t limp.

But I do sleep well!

this too was injured when I was hit by the car

9: Complications, x10: Renewal No Responses »

Sep 242009

This story is not for children. We’re all adults, right? I’m 10 years old in dog years but I’m 57 years old in human years so that qualifies me.

Some of you have been waiting to hear about my prostate thing, waiting to read the answer to my parents’ question on their page, to neuter or not to neuter. You’ve been waiting to hear about all the activity that took place when I was being boarded two months ago from my post, what’s a prostate? what’s enlarged? and what was the big deal between the doctor there and my parents. You’ve asked if any of this has to do with my being hit by a car. You’ve been waiting to hear about whether I’m going to remain the wonderful whole male that I am and have always been, or whether this state of glorious and holy wholeness is going to end.

My parents know me better than anybody else in the whole world and they think it’s time I told this story.

To be honest, I don’t understand anything about enlarged prostates, I don’t even know what a prostate gland is. Or a gland. I do know that different dogs have different odors, and that male dogs like me who are whole have a different scent from male dogs who are not, and that we dogs can detect the difference. And I know that this is a factor amongst some dogs who are deciding whom to make friends with, and whom to not make friends with.

5_8_27

So with that said, we go back five months, to when I was hit by the car.

I’ve already written about my broken ankle, my broken toes, and my broken teeth. But one place I did not mention that got really badly injured was my penis.

Dr. Kiko thinks that what happened was that I was pushed down to the ground under the car, and my belly was scraped, and the prepuce, the skin that covers the penis, was pulled back and my penis was badly lacerated. The cut went all the way around it, like a ring.

At the two animal hospitals where I was going, all of my wonderful doctors took really good care of me and my belly healed.

It took a lot longer for my penis to heal, however. Every time I got excited this area filled up with blood and sometimes I was bleeding pretty badly. Once, my parents even had to rush me to the emergency room. This need to keep me calm is why my parents didn’t allow visitors to our home for a long time. This is also one of the reasons why they kept the shades drawn and our curtains closed. If I remained calm, I wouldn’t bleed. Keeping me calm is not easy, as you know. I’m a very enthusiastic dog!

When my parents would walk me outside, we would see many children outside, playing, being strolled, roller skating, just being children enjoying life. But my parents would say “hello” and then keep me walking because I wasn’t allowed to get enthusiastic over anybody.

Soon enough, my penis healed well enough for my parents to allow visitors into our home and to allow me to play with children. The shades went up, the curtains were opened, and daylight entered our home once again! Light entered my life again, too, in a big way.

With that, I will end my story for this evening, and you will be ready to read part 2, in which I will describe my visit to my local animal hospital.

But first, make sure you read my mom’s page, to neuter or not to neuter, where she explains all the things I cannot.

to part 2

*********************

is your dog friendly?

x10: Renewal, x11: Discovery, _Other Dogs Who've Been Injured, _Stuff about dogs in General, _Travels around Boston and Newton 3 Responses »

Sep 222009

<– to part 1

“Is your dog friendly?” is what many dog owners who are out with their dog ask my parents when their dog sees me and wants to play with me.

is your dog friendly?

My mom thinks that this is a funny question. I mean, I am Mr. Friendly!

At the 1000 dogs walk, somebody asked my mom again, “Is your dog friendly?”

She also finds that question, Is your dog friendly?, interesting. She wonders if any dog owner is going to answer, “NO”.

But at any rate, when somebody asks her that question, she answers, “Yes! Very friendly!” and then she includes, “And he’s very strong.” Then she holds on tight to my lead.

I’m soooo friendly that my dad worries about me being left alone outside in the evening: He’s worried that I’m going to try to make friends with the raccoon and the skunk that clunks across our back yard from time to time when the sun has gone down. At these times, he says, “Joey, you’re going to get it some day.”

It’s easy to tell when I’m having a good time and easy to see that I was having a great time at the 1000 dogs Walk for Animals. For example, is my tail wagging? If so, I am having a good time. Is my head in one direction but my eyes looking out to another? This is one way you can tell that I am playing. I do this with my parents when we play ball and they are holding the ball in their hand. I want them to think that I am not looking at them with the ball so that I can gain the advantage.

i want her to think I'm not looking at her

At the walk, almost all of the dogs were friendly to each other. The little dogs, who often yap at me, didn’t yap at me. They wanted to play – with me!

The bigger-than-me dogs had good manners, too. Only one dog who I met – and he was a very large dog – was not friendly and did not play nicely with me. And when he got nasty to me, his owner just said to him “Let’s go” and pulled him away. If I acted nasty to another dog, which I don’t, I would hear my parents say “Bad” or “Joey, No!”. My parents want me to learn good manners, too.

This was a nice morning and afternoon because the dog owners let us dogs get to know each other and to decide if we wanted to play together and if we did, they would let us play, and if we didn’t, we would move on to other dogs and other possible friends! We dogs were on leads (and my dad had to hold on tight to mine!) but we were really having a good time.

I also like to play with dogs – dogs of all sizes and all breeds. With small dogs, I feel like a father to them. I like to put my paw on their back and lick their faces. This little dog, Fiona, let me do that. We became friends for a little while that afternoon.

i'm happy to play with dogs of all sizes

I am happy to play with retrievers, but any friendly dog is fine with me!

We dogs have our own system for deciding who we like. And we’re not going to give up our secret, even if you interview us and try to find out!

can you tell who is who?

Here I am with one of my own, another chocolate lab. See my ears? As tired as I was, there is always energy for making friends with one more dog!

This is one more wonderful activity that I’ve participated in since I was hit by the car (which I don’t remember at all) and since my broken ankle and broken toes have healed, and since I’ve bounded back to life. And now I have to have good manners and thank my parents for letting me have this wonderful day!

*****

1000 dogs

x10: Renewal, x11: Discovery, _Stuff about dogs in General, _Travels around Boston and Newton 2 Responses »

Sep 202009

What a day.

me and Rufus

I haven’t been this exhausted in a long time. There must have been 1000 dogs in this place. Every where I looked a dog. Every where I turned a dog. Every where I smelled a dog! There were more dogs than trees!

First, we were all together just having a grand old time.

Then after a while, everybody started walking.

My dad had already taken me for a walk in the morning, and here was another one! But not just me and my dad; it was me, my dad, my mom and 1000 other dogs!

We walked and walked.

Then we stopped walking.

IMG_0069_finishline

I was exhausted and my parents brought me to water bowls that were all over the place. Sometimes the other dogs and I were more interested in each other than we were in drinking water, but then my mom and dad would give me a moment to socialize and then would say “Joey, drink” or its variant, “Joey, drink water.”

We rested for a while. I found a spot under the shade and caught my breath. This other dog wanted to make friends with me but I was very tired.

My mom was pretty happy.

After a while, my parents and I walked back into the car.

My parents were pretty happy though my dad said he was “dogged out”. I don’t know what that means.

My mom feels this was a successful day. It was an opportunity for me to socialize and get together with other dogs. This is a big thing with her now. She is looking for opportunities for me to use my boundless labrador-retriever energy so that I will not dig my way out of our property again and so that I will not get hit by a car again. She also raised money for the MSPCA and the animal hospital where I had my surgery, to help other dogs.

Why can’t every day be like this day! Well, I’m not complaining. I’m happy with each and every day in my life.

go to part 2

*****

an early morning run, part 2

x10: Renewal, _Stuff about dogs in General No Responses »

Sep 132009

And off we were, running! Now you remember that I’m the one who got hit by the car. But my parents aren’t taking any more chances on me – or on anybody- getting hurt. My dad is all aglow too. That is not so that I can see him. I can see very well in the dark. That is so automobiles will see him when he runs in the dark.

See me, to the left

My eyes glow from what people call tapetum lucidum. Then I have my flashing lights.

My mom is running with us. This is a new thing with her running with us. I like it.

We run down the big hill. I stop at every bush I can, until I hear “Joey, come”, the sound of my dad. He wants me to stay along with him.

We run and run down the carriage lane. On this particular morning my dad sees one bunny but I don’t. Then we get to the bottom of the hill and turn and go down another smaller street. Along this street is a large pond. Jane, Dad and I run along the road along the pond. As the road turns, we turn. Soon we stop, when Jane says “I have to stop.”

Then she looks at me and sees my tongue hanging out. Dad said that I’m a little out of shape. (If my dad took me running more often, I’d be in shape, though.) Though I’m panting, I want to keep on going but I have to wait until my parents give the sign to begin again.

Dad gives the sign, and off we go again.

We run for another few minutes, and get to the carriage path again. There, Dad gives the lead to Jane, goes off running by himself, and Jane walks me to our home. She’s tired. She doesn’t run very often. She’s not in great running shape. Maybe if she runs with me more often, she’ll be more in shape. As we approach our street, we see another dog running with his owner.

She’s happy because she sees the whole time we’ve been running or walking, I’m using all four legs equally. At home, Jane takes off the lights, takes off my lead, and says, “Joey, drink water”. I do. Then she continues Dad’s early morning run ritual – and gives me two treats.

I go rest for a while, when we hear the sound of Dad’s feet running to the back of our home and we go to greet him. He gives me one more treat!

I like mornings like this.

******

an early morning run, part 1

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Sep 112009

Life can change quickly and cataclysmically – for worse. And life can change quickly again – for better. Sometimes healing occurs slowly and from day to day you cannot see a change or an improvement. And there are some days that are splendidly and noticeably different!

This morning did not start out like a typical morning. It started out even better.

First of all, my mom got out of bed shortly after my dad did. This is unusual. Sensing something out of the ordinary, I got up too.

a new day begins for my family

Besides, it seemed like something I wanted to be a part of. I stretched, yawned, and followed my mom downstairs and into the kitchen, where my dad was already fussing around.

My water bowl was full, as usual. I drank a lot of water. Jane asked, “Is this typical of him to drink so much water early in the morning?” If she were up early more often, she would know.

Soon, things got more interesting and I could feel myself getting excited….Something good was in the air. It was a warm morning. Dad opened up my little box that is in the front hallway and I know that when he or my mom open that little box that somebody is taking me outside! Dad got out his supplies: little poop bags, little lights that he clipped onto my collar, and a little flashlight. Those are his toys, not mine.

Jane, meanwhile, had disappeared. When Dad and I got to the front door, there was Jane, standing outside waiting for us. Dad and I came outside and – we all three started running! See me? I’m the one with my eyes glowing (from the light hitting my tapetum).

But first, I want to tell you that it was dark outside so I am going to write about the little blinking lights that my dad clipped onto my collar. Whenever it’s dark outside, my parents click these little lights, two of them, one on each side, onto my collar.

: I have my flashing lights on so I can be seen in the darkness.

These flashing lights don’t seem to help me in any way but they don’t bother me either, so I don’t mind. Without my lights, I’d still be able to see and smell my way around perfectly well. Dogs can see pretty well in the dark, and we can smell at any hour of the day! But humans wouldn’t be able to see me. This is important because my dad wants to know where I am at all times. He also wants cars to be able to see me.

img_MVI_0032

Here I am with my lights on, under the light on the carriage path by the pond. It’s still dark out – for humans.

Once I have my lights on, we’re ready to run! Off I scamper into the delightful world that awaits. There are no other dogs out at this hour but still – life doesn’t get any better than this!

Now you can continue to part 2.

*******

my double-layered coat of the finest dog hairs around

x10: Renewal, _Stuff about dogs in General 12 Responses »

Sep 092009

All dogs are shaved before surgery or for other procedures, such as the Fetanyl patch. But the dog’s hair doesn’t always grow back in. Why is that? *******

four months after surgery

It’s now been five months since I was hit by the car! And it’s been four months since Dr. Matt operated to repair my broken ankle.

I’m a happy dog again. No more plastic bags on my leg, no more leads just to go out to our back yard.

But everywhere I go, people still look at me and go “What happened there?” They ask, “What’s the square on my back?”

Of all the places where I was shaved, the one spot on my back where I was grounded is still not fully grown in. My leg is much more grown in, and the place where the Fetanyl patch was is still kind of noticeable. Noticeable by people, that is. I don’t care.

But be that as it may, this prompts my mom to learn about a dog’s hair. This prompts my mom to learn about the coat of a Labrador Retriever. This prompts my mom to learn about, in short, me.

My parents looked at my back very close up and they noticed that I have two layers of hair! One layer has already grown back. That is the under layer. It’s course and very short. This is the layer that keeps me warm in cold weather, so that I don’t have to wear that silly coat that my parents bought me that I kept kicking off. It also keeps me cool in the summer, by keeping the sun off of my skin.

The outer layer is the longer layer that has not grown back. That’s the layer, that Dr. Kiko would call my “guard hair”, that protects me from rain. And bugs. That’s the hair that people pet and say “It’s so soft.” That’s the layer that makes people call me a “Chocolate”.

So why hasn’t my outer layer of hair grown back? I don’t know and I don’t care. But my mom cares, and she learned that the they don’t grow back very easily in older dogs. But I act like a puppy. That should matter somewhat. Apparently, it doesn’t matter.

But there is another reason why the outer layer of hair on my back has not yet grown in. The hair follicles are very deep along the spine of a dog, so it takes them much longer to grow in. One vet said that it may take another cycle of shedding for them to grow in. Again, not that I car. In fact, I think my parents don’t really care either. They just like knowing and understanding about me.

But on the bright side, what this means is that I’m going to get a lot of attention for a long long time, as people stop and point to me and ask, “Why is that there?” ! And that’s okay with me!

Getting attention is one of my hobbies, remember?

getting creative about an energetic dog (like me)

x10: Renewal, _Stuff about dogs in General No Responses »

Sep 032009

It’s not always so easy to find places to exercise and socialize your dog. Many lakes do not allow dogs to swim off-leash, such as the lake in our town. Many dog parks have restrictions, such as not permitting uncastrated male dogs (such as the situation in our town), and other dog parks allow dogs who do not play well with other dogs to enter the dog park, which endangers the safety of the other dogs. Dog owners need to exercise and socialize their dogs but in a legal, safe and responsible manner. This can present challenges. It means the dog owners must be creative and often travel out of town to exercise and socialize their dog. ************

My mom has had to get very creative about getting me out of the home.

She wants to get me out of the home for a few reasons. First, I have so much energy it’s ridiculous. If she leaves me indoors for long periods of the day, she’s afraid I’ll do again what I did before. (See, please, my posts on digging my way under the fence and out of our property, and then getting hit by the car in Chapters 1 and 2.) Secondly, she wants my muscles to get back to how they were when I was running with my dad.

You may have noticed that you haven’t seen any nice new photos of me swimming. There’s a reason for that. There are no new photos because I haven’t been swimming. I don’t know how to tell my mom I want to go to the lake again. I can’t just go there by myself, and she hasn’t taken me for two weeks now.

The last time we were there at the lake, a very nice officer came by to the shoreline and told my mom that she had to get out of the water. At the time, my mom was holding me up by my harness so I could do my swimming. “Everybody out of the water,” he said. He didn’t say it to me; he just said it to her. He didn’t include me in “everybody”. And that was the last time we were there.

So my mom has had to get creative.

Here’s what we did yesterday: She took me with her and we ended up at a place where she plays some game called golf. This was a new place for me. She found a place for me where she could attach my lead; I know she chose a place for me that was out of the sun and also close enough to her that I could see her. I also think part of the idea was for her to keep an eye on me because every once in a while I saw her looking my way. This game involves little balls but since I can’t run after them, I’m not interested in this game.

For a while, being near so many people, I was pretty excited; but when nobody came over to pet me, I just lay down and rested. And cooled down.

Luckily, a lot of people like dogs, and big dogs like me, and after a while people stopped by to pet me and I jumped up again. They said “sit” and “stay”. They also said “paw”, which is something that my parents don’t like me doing because I get my dad’s nice clean shirts dirty when I do that. So I was happy because I got to do “paw” when my mom wasn’t looking. Or was she? At any rate, I got to do “paw” with some very nice children. Once I kind of jumped up and my mom saw that (how?) and said, “Joey, off.” At least I got to do “paw”.

So life continues to hold lots of surprises for me – and also for my mom. I like surprises, at least surprises like this.

********

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