Dogs with Nutty Mothers

Jezebel started limping off and on last November. Sapphire died right before Christmas and I felt sufficiently freaked out to take Jezebel to the vet in January to get her checked out. They tested for Lyme disease, which came up negative. We brought her home and have just been keeping an eye on her to see if it gets worse. Husband switched their dog food after Sapphire died. He kept expecting the girls to put on weight but has been convinced that Jezebel’s weight has remained stable notwithstanding that she is taking in more calories. He has been concerned.

Anyway, Jezebel has been favoring her left leg more and more. Last night, she did not want to put weight on her RIGHT leg when she went upstairs to bed (shades of Sapphire!). She has also been licking her leg for the past few nights. Husband was out of town and I wasn’t sure if the licking was stress-related.

So today, I took Jezebel back to the vet. I took Evelyn with me, too, because when I took Jezebel by herself last January, it was an unmitigated nightmare. I thought we’d have to put her in the nervous hospital for canines. I was also afraid she’d cause me to have a wreck going to and from the vet, trying to crawl into my lap.

This time, Jezebel was much better. Again, no lyme, no heartworm from the standard tests. According to the vet, she has gained FIVE pounds since January, so I don't think she has any wasting disease, which should put husband’s mind at ease.

They had a bit of trouble seeing if she was limping because she was acting like one of those maniac sled dogs from the frozen north. She hauled the poor little 98 pound tech up and down the hall with one shoulder, then the other, hunched to the floor trying to get a purchase and work up some speed. Half the time the far side leg was doing a Fred Flintstone. She wasn’t really favoring either leg. I hoped the staff would think it was the excitement of being at the hospital and not her usual routine. Sadly, it IS her usual routine.

She had a temperature of 103.

She was very good for the vet while he checked out her legs. She had a little crackle in her front left leg but neither seemed sore. I asked them to x-ray her front legs because I am worried about bone cancer. The vet was happy to do it but he wasn't the one pressing it (makes my job easier, as he put it). I assume he was also making private notations about me and my irrational fears in some file not meant for public consumption. She wouldn't cooperate on the right leg so they had to sedate her, which made me nervous. I told him that when they sedated Sapphire, in 2000, she came down with an auto immune problem shortly thereafter so it made me nervous. "I understand," he said (more scribbling in the file). Happily, her bones look terrific - not much degeneration, at all and both front legs look good. Their x-ray machine was much cooler than the ones I’ve seen at the human hospital. When the vet heard how active Jezebel is, jumping, running, etc., he definitely did not want to prescribe pain medication. I want to check with Husband to see exactly what he is giving her for her joints.

The vet prescribed a round of antibiotics (2 doxycycline twice a day) for a month to stamp out any tick borne illnesses that don't show up in the regular tests (he said the testing for the rarer forms is quite expensive and the antibiotics are cheap). They clipped her nails.

While I was there, I asked him to look at Evelyn to make sure she doesn’t have cataracts and promised I would pay for the favor. He was in the middle of examining Jezebel’s leg when I brought it up. “She doesn’t have cataracts,” he muttered as he continued to examine Jezebel’s leg. “No, EVELYN!” I clarified. The vet gave Evelyn a glance over his shoulder from across the room and said, “She doesn’t either.” I think at this point he was more than half convinced that I am a loon. I am sure there are even more things being written in "my file."

Jezebel seems fine and really was a very good girl notwithstanding the strength demonstration up and down the hallway. She let the vet draw blood and gave him a big smooch for his pains. Occasionally, she barked in her high-pitched sneaker on the gym floor voice but at least it wasn't non-stop. Evelyn nearly drowned all of us with drooling but wasn't any trouble other than that. Jezebel was prancing when she came out of radiology.

My goodness, she is a fatty. I picked both girls up to get them out of the car and she was an anvil to Evelyn's cute little butterfly-like body.

Obviously, I am relieved.

photo - Jezebel and Evelyn (as a pup)