Jackpot was dry last night and ate a good breakfast.
It seems like forever, but I’ve only had him since last Saturday afternoon. That is seven full days counting today. With very few exceptions, JP has not been out of my sight for these seven days: quiet time in his crate after lunch most days and night-time (when I didn’t sleep next to him on a palette next to his kitchen crate).
This dedicated time has produced amazing results. He has bonded to me and is my shadow, he knows his name, he comes when called (most of the time) and recognizes my open-palm hand signal to come, he pees outside on command unless he truly does not need to go, he asks to get into my lap for a cuddle and belly rub, he is sometimes asking to go outside if he needs to potty (I take him out frequently and asking to go out means I have to recognize the request when it comes), he can go up and down all the stairs, and he can jump on the downstairs couch but not my bed yet. I’d say that’s a lot of great achievements.
I am now trying to extend our bedtime to at least 9 pm and eventually our rising to later than 5:30 am. So last night I took him downstairs after dinner for the first time since last Saturday when he came and showed he was not ready for a room with a rug and a dog bed (which he attacked with biting puppy behavior—I’ve put it away until he gets older).
He had SUCH a good time playing with his toys downstairs last night. And all over the house, he sees his reflection in a glass door or window and thinks there is another dog just…there. He will stand for a long time just staring at the reflection and trying to figure it out. He has stopped barking and growling at the reflection. (Those symmetrical white slashes on the backs of his ears fascinate me.)
Eventually, he crashed next to my feet.
We had a really nice walk this morning on my neighbor’s property. We always walk around the edges of this small pond.
There are HUGE bull frogs sunning themselves on that bank you see to the left. JP made his way down there this morning and went nuts over those frogs, who make a big “plop” as they jump into the water. And this was one of those times when he did NOT want to come when called. That’s a training process though, and he is only barely 5 months old.
The humming birds are gone. I’ve taken down the feeders, washed them, and stored them in the garage. This is one of the first fall tasks, signaling the ending of a summer.
The filet bush beans in the cold frame are blooming. Soon I’ll have delicious little filet beans. These plants will make beans until a frost kills them. (The blue flowers are borage, which has just leaned over into the beans. I leave borage if I can as the bees love it.)
So, that’s it for today I think. I’m waiting for a poop to see if JP is improving.
And I’m looking forward to tonight with Jackpot downstairs. Maybe there will be some tv?
I did sleep next to him, with added floor padding. It was fine.
Thinking to return to my bed tonight—depending on how things go today.
I gave him the dewormer the vet told me to use last night, and it made him totally crazy.
I went against my best instincts in doing it too. Pancur is for ADULT hook worms, and he was clear last Thursday of everything in his fecal sample, including any eggs. Pancur is also very strong, and he would NOT need 6 or 7 days of it. Parasites are NOT the problem here—it’s a novel virus where best treatment is not yet clear. I’ll take him in to retest the fecal on the 16th and to have his blood checked again—and hopefully won’t need more help from them until then. But I am profoundly grateful that the vets were there to help me last Thursday.
Basically, Glenna is/was dealing with 5 puppies who came down with this horrible novel virus. She says no one is exactly sure how to treat it yet. But she knows what she has done that is making a difference. And she knows the adult dogs have not gotten it.
This morning Jackpot didn’t want to eat, and I had to force him to swallow the anti-nausea and the antibiotic. Violent and stressful. He DID eat his breakfast after a bit. And he did poop finally a bit later. It still had some blood in it, and some mucus, but was trying to form up in places. And it had a nice brown color except for where the blood was.
So, the rice/chicken, antihistamine, and probiotics are working.
Oh to have this kind of flexibility again!
We just came in from a lovely walk up at my neighbor’s property which he really enjoyed. (Me, too.) He was bouncing around pretty good by the time we left, and he was not letting me get too far ahead when he stopped to smell things. I cut the walk short as I didn’t want to overtire him. He would have happily gone for much longer.
I am including these videos so you can see he is doing much better.
Today he explored a drainage/wetland area filled with plants. It was a favorite spot of AC Slater’s. He always thought there were critters in there.
Below he played “critter in the bushes” in the middle of the lowest part.
He’s starting carrying sticks for long distances. Maybe there is some retriever in him?
We came in downstairs, and I went to move the dehumidifier from the bedroom to the quilt room, and he took himself off upstairs. I stopped to round him up, and get him back downstairs, and while I plugged in the dehumidifier, he peed the rug!!!
Some loss of communication there—he may think he has to go out upstairs to pee. And maybe that’s why he took himself off upstairs. It’s the first accident in many days now, if we don’t count the poop/pee in his bed Thursday morning when he was sick.
He’s my shadow. If I move, for the most part, he’s right on my heels. Except for getting loose in the house outside the kitchen—territory forbidden to him for the moment. He is especially fascinated with my bed upstairs, which we visit for me to shower or change clothes.
And in the kitchen, he asks to be picked up for belly rubs and cuddles.
After his post lunch quiet time, he asked to go outside by scratching at the door—unfortunately the screen—but REAL progress. And, he peed when he got outside.
Yesterday morning when I came downstairs, I saw that JP had pooped and peed his crate. The irony is that the poop was nicely formed. BUT, I could hear his stomach rumbling all over the kitchen, and he refused to eat, which was alarming. He loves to eat and loved his food.
After a bit, he threw up a lot of liquid—no particles in it. It was a dark red color in places that I thought was from his beef food—but now I don’t know. And then he was lethargic and not himself at all. I started worrying about dehydration, so gave him a little syringe of water, and before long, he threw that up as well.
Time to call the vet hospital.
And time to whirl around with what could be wrong. No blood in poop, so maybe not the virus. I caught him trying to chew on an old dead stalk at the base of one of the Annabelle hydrangeas when he went back into their deep shade to explore. Oh my heavens! All parts of hydrangeas are poisonous and can cause vomiting and diarrhea, but are not deadly toxic—just enough so that maybe the poisoned dog will need vet help with dehydration and nausea. And then, there are the local horrific stories about the blue/green algae that is present in some Maine ponds due to the drought and low water levels. That stuff will flat out kill a dog in a few days—and not much can stop it that I could see. He went swimming the day before with Boo doggie.
AND, we’re heading into a long weekend where my local vet hospital will be closed.
I still wasn’t thinking of a return of the viral colitis as there hadn’t been any problems that I could see in that morning poop. But around noon, the vet found fresh blood in his rectum and low red blood cells, but no Parvo. And by late afternoon when we got home with an antibiotic, anti-nausea pills, probiotics, and a decision and supplies to feed bland food (boiled rice with bits of white meat-no fat chicken) for at least 4 days before trying to add tiny bits of his real food, he had a horrible squirty, fresh blood, smelly diarrhea. I almost fainted at the force of it coming out of him.
It’s the viral colitis. It’s come back.
I messaged Glenna at Sweet Pups, and one of her previously sick pups had just passed some blood too. Not much, she said, but she was “on alert” with the puppies. She was as distraught as I was. It is a really nasty virus. It hits hard and fast—and, obviously, can come back. Glenna thinks it might be a mutation from something else, and she is thinking/investigating on that now. Viral mutations don’t always become more benign; they can and do get worse. Her vets are saying this virus is new, and they are not 100% sure how to best treat it.
Last night I did not want to leave JP all alone in his kitchen crate with the possibility of that bad diarrhea returning in the night. So I made a quick palette and slept beside him, and he could touch my hand with his nose through breaks in the crate. It comforted us both.
I woke at dawn, a little after 5. He was dry and clean, and he went right out to pee. And he’s been peeing on a regular basis all morning. He’s eaten two rice/chicken meals and taken all the morning meds—and he is clearly feeling much better. He’s been bouncing around the yard and clearly sees running to me when called is a fun game as he’s bouncing to me while grinning. But he’s also resting between being taken outside.
I think I got on this pretty fast, and I’m grateful for that.
He’s going back to the hospital at noon for a “run back” check to make sure he’s doing ok—before the long weekend arrives. The hospital will be closed for the long weekend. But the emergency clinic in Warren is open this weekend.
But, I think he’s doing better. And I’m hoping that with really careful handling, over time, he can be fully well. I will do my best for this adorable, precious puppy who is now snuggling and cuddling and sitting on my lap off and on to have a belly rub.
No poop yet today—and that’s probably a good thing. The state of the poop will be a good indicator of how he is doing. And, will determine if I sleep on the palette again tonight. If so, I’ll find another blanket for the under layer!!! But, mostly, sleeping next to him was a good decision. It comforted us both.
This morning, he tried jumping on the bed when I took him upstairs so I could shower and change clothes. He did master jumping from a chair I have up there to the bed, and back off. But until the diarrhea is under control, he’s better off in the crate. That stuff…. I’ve never seen or smelled anything like it. One thing “we” did this morning was to drag out the hose and wash down that part of the yard thoroughly.
Going forward, we’ll still have outings—he loves those. But I’ll keep them short and we’ll just stroll. He gets bored with the yard now. It just isn’t enough to keep him interested as I keep him near me and don’t let him off the grass. He is longing to run through the woods. But, he’s too young to handle the rocks and too young to learn the boundaries dictated by his radio collar. The latter would traumatize him this early in his life here.
And this morning, while sitting in my lap where he can see out the back windows, he spotted and alerted me to TWO huge deers just looking down at us sitting in the kitchen. One had little antlers, about 8 inches tall. We went right out (with me holding him so he didn’t try to chase them) and scared them off with a lot of yelling at them to “go away.”I hope the smelly deer spray is working.
PS: the vet visit went well. His blood counts are still low but have risen. They added 6 or 7 days of a wormer to make sure there is nothing parasitic in his gut. He had these tests before he left Texas, but Glenna says, too, that some parasites take time to develop and show up. Thus Glenna gave us all some worming tablets to give the dogs in a few days after arriving to make sure. I hadn’t given JP these tablets yet as his poop at the time was soft, and I wanted them to become more normal first, which they did…until…BAM!
It’s almost 4, and I was going to take him for a little stroll, but he’s been asleep now for about an hour. So, when he wakes up, we’ll stroll the yard, and then he’ll have a little dinner around 5.
Maybe I should start looking for that other blanket.
Jackpot met my beloved friend Linda early yesterday morning. She came in quietly, and he didn’t hear her until she was at the inside kitchen door. Oh my goodness! There is no question that he’s going to set up an alarm when someone comes. And he braced and barked in front of the kitchen door, all set to protect himself, me, the kitchen, and the house.
Of course he warmed up to her in no time at all. She is a darling, how could he not?
Our morning walk after the rain was at a neighbor’s property on the road above me. There are horses and trails, and the neighbor has always been so generous to share the trails with neighbors and friends.
Jackpot went off leash this visit right out of the car.
I let him go at his own pace most of the time, so he has plenty of time to smell everything. The walks are about us both having fun and are not meant to be about me exercising, though I am getting exercised I can tell you. There are many places where we both pick up the pace.
He found his first stick and proudly carried it around. I threw it ahead for him a few times. (There is now a paved drive to a newly built house that curves away from the trails.) I had wondered if he would chase a thrown stick. AC loved that game. Jackpot will learn to follow a thrown stick’s flight as the days pass. Right now I just threw down the road.
And guess what! He does all the stairs now. He went up earlier this morning, but I got this video later in the day.
After lunch, Jackpot had a quiet time in his crate while I paid some bills. Eventually, we went to pick up some fresh raw cream that I get each week, and on the way home, I think he graduated from his front seat hook-up. Here’s my new co-pilot. (There is a chain rigged to the back seat so he can’t get thrown forward.) And I desperately need a haircut—it got postponed until Jackpot came and had dedicated time with me.
Maybe the best part of the day happened on our second walk. We went over to the Snow Bowl again, and he met “Boo,” a favorite dog friend last seen last winter. Boo and Pete/Paul (I have to get that name sorted) thought he was seeing me with AC Slater, and Boo ran to greet us. She took Jackpot right down to the pond’s swimming hole and right into the water. She doesn’t go deep, but Jackpot followed her on the ramp and wherever she went. I wasn’t quick enough to get a better video. They were moving too fast. I’m sure we’ll see Boo (a rescue from Arkansas) and there will be more swimming along the way.
Here’s a picture I took of a stand of cat tails blowing in the wind. There is always a breeze in this “bowl” that is surrounded by hills/mountains. You can see the pond on the other side of the road. It’s a beautiful spot.
I had a VERY tired dog after he ate his dinner!
There were NO potty accidents all day. That’s a first.
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