Hi everyone.  We're coming up on my leastest favorite time of the year: fireworks month.
We have people who set off the big, loud, scary, illegal fireworks all year but it gets really bad in our area for almost a month around this time.  
I hope everyone stays safe!

My last 2 rehab vet appointments my people drugged me so I wouldn't get upset and need a steroid shot like I needed in the beginning of May because of my breathing.  My people gave me half of a pill like I get for fireworks.  I didn't get upset at either visit and it didn't make me really sleepy and unsteady.  The only bad thing is it makes me so relaxed that I pee while the vet is working on me.  The vet said she'd rather have me relaxed and comfortable and pee each visit than have me get stressed.

I also have a new thing that dispenses treats.  It's called an "AeroDawg."  My people say it's in case I have a breathing issue and need medicine that I breathe in.  I'm not sure I believe them though.  So far it just gives me chicken when I put my nose up to the thing and breathe in.  My woman picked up something she called a "rescue inhaler" at the pharmacy after I got my new treat dispenser.

My UTI cleared up with no more antibiotics needed so that made everyone happy.

I've been swimming, playing in my pool, going for walks, spending time on my shady front porch and my back deck, and hanging out with my people.  I'm very happy my man is home all the time now though I do decided he should be done working around 3:30!  Sometimes 2!!

It's really hot today, it was hot yesterday too, so my people don't leave the front and back door open for me to go in and out through my dog doors.  They say my breathing gets bad when I get too hot.  

Enjoy some pictures of me playing in my pool yesterday to cool off!

I turned 13 years old exactly 1 month ago!  I got toys and barkday cake made out of chicken liver and topped with cream cheese and bacon!!!  It was nummy.

Not much has been happening.  My man went back to work a couple of weeks ago... all the way up a half-flight of stairs.  I was kind of miffed that he was too busy to sit in the yard with me or go work on projects with me but I'm used to that now and I realize sometimes it's nice to get some sleep!  My people got my porch all set up with shades on the front and side and it has stuff on the top too so it doesn't get all sunny and hot anymore.  I also have a bunch of rugs out there for laying on.

I've been going on walks and I was going to the farmers market with my people but last Saturday my woman said she was walking through it instead of driving because there was going to be too many vendors and too many pedestrians and too many cars to drive through it.  My man and I stayed home.  She came home with Nilla Bean Cheesecake for me!!!!!!!
I've been getting acupuncture every 2 weeks too.

My people and I did my paw prints in clay my woman baked.  My people are going to make a sign with my name on it and hang my paw prints under it.
My woman also taught my man how to make my "Get Fat" meatballs.  They are actually little tiny burgers.  He made them out of chicken my people ground.  Best meatballs EVER!

I have a new friend.  A really big German Shepherd named Dillon.  He's from Italy.  He gets a little insistent with the but sniffing so I have to open a big ole can of "Back Off."  So he jumps away from me looking shocked and snarling as he goes to hide behind his woman.  The humans said it's the dog equivalent of "Your mom wears combat boots" with Dillon unable to think of a comeback so he says something like "Yeah, well you too!" 

I saw my rehab vet on Friday.  It wasn't a good visit.  My breathing got bad enough that the vet gave me a fast-acting steroid shot to help with inflammation in my airways.  My tongue and gums were getting too dark and my breathing would calm down then start having problems again.  My rehab vet was really upset about having to give me a shot even though I really didn't notice.

Sunday I woke up around 2:30 a.m. and had an accident.  I ended up having accidents on my people's bed and all my beds but 2.  Also on 1 of my porch laying rugs, and the floor, and the carpet in several locations, and a couple of my area rugs I have for laying on.
I had some blood in my pee on my morning walk and with 1 of my accidents in the house. 
I ended up going to the e-vet by us and getting some pills for a urinary tract infection.  It was weird because my people couldn't go in the building.  We all waited in my car for about 2 hours until it was my turn.  I had 1 accident in the car, mostly on waterproof sheet on my bed but some of it did get my bed where the sheet had pulled away from me moving.  I peed 3 more times after that.  Because I have problems breathing when I get upset, they had my people walk me to the door and brought me back as soon as they were done with me because my breathing was starting to get a little bad.  I peed on the way into the building too.  My people think they had me for maybe 5 minutes so the vet could examine me, they could see if they could do the needle thing to get a sample (they couldn't because I couldn't hold my pee), and get a sample of my pee in a cup (not a problem since I couldn't hold it). 
We waited in the car for about 30 minutes for the test to run on my sample then another 10 minutes to get my meds.
I go see my vet on Monday to have the needle thing done so my pee can be cultured and my people said something about them stealing my blood for more tests since it's time for that stuff and I already had an appointment for that at the end of next week.
I took my 1st pill as soon as we got home and made it through the night with no accidents.  I've only had 1 accident since then but my people said it was their fault for not waking me up to go pee in time.  I still have some blood that shows up when I run out of pee marking things on walks.
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Since my last post, a lot has happened here.  I promise I'll make it short!

I finally got to see my rehab vet on Valentine's Day.  I had to cancel my visit in December because I had the pneumonia caused by my megaesophagus and then she had to cancel my January visit because she was bitten by a dog.
She thinks I have something called a "bulging disc" in my lumbar spine that is pressing on the femoral nerve on the right.  She says I have muscle loss along my spine, especially on the right side and some other stuff that makes it likely.  
I went back earlier this month and when they did the thing where they pick up each paw and put it down on the ground so the top of the paw is on the floor, I left my right rear paw like that for a second or 2 before fixing it.  That means my nerves aren't working right.
I ended up having a bunch of acupuncture done on that visit.  I also got barked at by Chariot from Angels With Misplaced Wings while he was waiting to start his underwater treadmill session because he could see me waiting in my room!
My people picked up a second Assissi Loop and are using 1 loop 2-3 times a day on my lumbar spine and are using the other loop twice a day on my right shoulder.  I like the loop, it feels good even if my joints do crackle when I move afterwards.  My woman says that's a good thing.

My man had surgery a couple of weeks ago.  He had hernias that needed fixing and had to stay in the hospital.  He was gone for 2 nights and I had people stay with me so I stayed calm and didn't have breathing problems because of my collapsing trachea.
My friends Megan came to my house at 5 a.m. on the Friday my man had surgery and stayed with me while my woman was gone.  She was here until about 4:30 p.m. and she stopped me from having some breathing issues.
My neighbor Daniel came over on Saturday while my woman went to see my man at the hospital.  He also came back on Sunday and stayed with me and, when my woman came home, she had my man with her!!!!  He was supposed to be in the hospital for 3-5 nights but he was healing fast and they said he didn't need to stay there.
My neighbor Sharon came over when my people were gone for my man's 1st post-surgery appointment.
I get to have my man home for 5 more weeks too!

I have a new friend I like to play with.  His name is Cooper and he kind of looks like me but he's much smaller.  And he's crazy.  I like to get him running and then "chase" him when he runs by.  He likes to play with me like my BFF Jonny used to like to play with me.

Hi everybody.  I hope everybody had a great Barkmas.  Mine was really good.  I got a bunch of toys from the neighbors and from my people and Santa left me some treats in my stocking.  I got to eat prime rib and vanilla bean creme brulee.  I even took some risotto and Yorkshire pudding to the neighbors.

My woman made the guest room into a giant cave again for New Years Eve because of all the illegal fireworks but I didn't have to use it.  My people gave me a drug around 4:30 that night and it was rainy and windy so we didn't hear the fireworks that were being set off starting around 4:45.  They even made me a place to pee in the bathroom but I wouldn't use it because I don't pee in the house!  But I was able to go out to pee twice without hearing any booms so it was OK.  I got a little nervous around midnight when people by our house were setting the illegal ones off but the drug meant I didn't start to pant and have to go to the e-vet for my collapsing trachea.  It took me another 24 hours to completely get over the drug.

I didn't get to see my rehab vet this month because she was bitten by a dog.  I didn't see her in December because of my pneumonia.  So my woman contacted a veterinary chiropractor who has seen me in the past and he said he was going to be at the other rehab place that is close to our house and had an opening.  So I saw him on the same day and at the same time as my cancelled rehab vet appointment.  The whole thing (driving there, getting fixed up, and driving home) took the same amount of time as the drive to the rehab vet takes.  My woman said it's too bad my rehab vet isn't closer!

My man's birfday was last week.  We always bake a cake from scratch, make frosting, and decorate the cake.  But this year the oven made weird sounds and we were worried it wouldn't cook it right.  Our neighbor let us use their oven.  We made the usual dark chocolate Devil's Food cake and dark chocolate buttercream.  We usually make plain vanilla buttercream, color it, and decorate the cake.  But this year I had my woman ask my man if he'd like us to try to make huckleberry frosting with some of the Mt. Adams black huckleberries in our freezer.  It was the best cake ever!

I better go.  I am taking care of my woman today.  She was coming down the porch stairs this morning and fell.  The rain water on the bottom step wasn't frozen when my man went down but it was frozen when she stepped on it.
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Merry Barkmas everybody!

I am doing much better!  I went to my vet today again and had more x-rays taken.  I had them taken 2 weeks ago to.  The vet said the icky stuff is gone from my lungs and I just have to take my medicine until it's done.  I'm not sure what medicine she's talking about.  I get molasses mixed with a little maple syrup and topped with ground gingersnap cookies twice a day... but no medicine.  I gained 1/2 lb in 2 weeks which made everyone happy.

I got to go to my rehab vet last Friday to drop off a present for them.  The vet came out and had me pick out a toy.  I chose a special needs gingerbread man.

My people and I have been getting ready for Barkmas and I have been helping my man work on some projects for my woman.  We pick my prime rib up next week and I'm hoping the store makes a mistake like they did last year when they gave us one that was too big and I got to eat part of eat!  My people said they would grind the meat up for me if it happens again this year.  I get to play Santa Chance this weekend and take gifts to some friends.

My people said we're going to be grinding up some more food for me in the next week.

I'm writing this week's Tails because Chance is currently under the weather.  We took her to one of our e-vets last night and she was diagnosed with mild aspiration pneumonia.  We caught it quick enough that she came home with us and is only on one antibiotic instead of two.

She has had two doses of antibiotic now, a steam, work with a cheap back massager to help loosen secretions, I've been using a couple of massage techniques to help loosen secretions, is drinking water, and ate a mashed sardine.

Hi all.  My people and I took a break from the website to focus on my health issues.

A vet friend of my people, and my favorite vet of all time, suggested I try acupuncture for my collapsing trachea.  So I've had a vet come to my house 5 times now and do acupuncture.  My people think I have less breathing issues.  We got everything under control enough that my woman decided to start slowly introducing some aromatherapy for my issues.  She spent a week researching and deciding what would be best, and how to apply it, before she started.  Living with an animal aromatherapist has benefits!  I haven't needed any aromatherapy for 2 weeks now and that was because we had a lot of pollen coming out of the trees that always stay green.

I missed a rehab vet appointment in October because the vet was injured by an animal she was working on.  I didn't have anywhere near the number of issues I should have going 2 months between visits so we know the acupuncture is working for my joints.

My vet came out in October and stabbed me with a needle and stole stuff from me.  They said it was a "fine needle aspiration" and not theft, don't know if I believe them.  My woman said it was because a lump that had been checked had gotten bigger and felt different.  The vet said it was still a cyst.

We've been really, really dry this fall which makes picking up leaves really easy.  It's also not been very windy so the leaves aren't blowing to our yard like they usually do.  We've only made 2 trips to give the people our leaves this year.  And the guy who lives on the corner that my people call a bad name hasn't use his leaf blower to his leaves into the street so they come here.  I like raking leaves!

I've been swimming every other week. I had to swim once at my old pool and they still haven't fixed the ramp or the swim jets so I didn't like it much.  The jets don't turn off like they are supposed to so I have to work harder which is hard on my breathing.  The ramp is really steep still which is harder on my joints and they put a towel on it to try to make it non-slip so I wasn't too sure about walking on a wet towel.  

We got my new Jeep bed done and I got to go for a ride.  My man made new metal legs for it so it's about 5.5" lower than it used to be.  He also had to cut a new shorter board for the front so cargo stays under my bed.  My woman gave the entire inside a thorough cleaning to remove as much dust, dirt, and pollen from all the cracks and crevices that she could without taking the Jeep apart.  She also bought me a new orthopedic foam bed to go in my old bed cover which got washed and looks all new.  My Jeep bed only has 1 layer of foam so it's easier for me to stand on bouncy mountain roads so she pulled the 2 layers of foam apart.  She also bought me a twin allergy/bed bug mattress protector and put my foam in it so stuff that can aggravate my CT can't get into the foam.

My woman special ordered 14 vanilla bean cheesecakes from her friend who makes them for the farmers markets and I'm all set to see me through until next May!

I started having some weird breathing issues when I got super excited, not just Chance excited, and had my head level or down so my people took me to the vet yesterday.

I got x-rays and it looks like I have Collapsing Trachea.  Both my vet and rehab vet say it's a weird spot for it and that big dogs don't usually get it.  My trachea also doesn't run where it should.

We're waiting for the radiologist to look at the x-rays and my rehab vet gave my people some ideas when we saw her yesterday for my monthly appointment.

My people thought that was going to be the diagnosis.  My woman says the big dogs don't usually get this explains why all the really nice harnesses for this condition are sized for small dogs!

I had a good rehab vet appointment.  My muscle tone was good, I had very few issues, both knees were in good shape, and I'd put on muscle mass.  The vet said I was a 3-4 out of 4 on muscle mass now.

My Man:  Had a mole removed from his head last month and is still wearing a bandaid on his head.  The hole in his tummy is all healed up and his surgeon said he doesn't need to see him any more.

Me:  Doing pretty good but won't have internet for I don't know how long.

My Man: He is getting better but will be home longer than the humans thought - he was going to leave me on Friday but not anymore.  He had another thing of old blood come out last week but it was by the one my woman has been putting stuff in so the surgeon cut it open so it made 1 big hole. 
The one where old blood came out where the surgical drain was now has a bandaid over it. 
He has 2 appointments this week - 1 with his people vet and 1 with his surgeon.

Me: I've been keeping my man exercised so he stays healthy.
I saw my vet eye doctor and she says I have something called Corneal Endothelial Degeneration which means the pump cells that keep fluid from building up in my corneas are having problems.  I have NSAID eye drops I take twice a day for that and may need a salt ointment to get rid of the extra fluid if it gets worse.  The rest of my eye diseases were doing good.  I have to take my steroidal eye drop once a day for my Pannus.  The corneal disease can't use steroids because it can cause water blisters to form and my Pannus needs steroids!
I had the rest of my annual.  My vet came out to draw blood and recheck the lump on my gum and the one behind my shoulder.  Neither lump had grown so we're watching them.  I got put on Zyrtec because I have started having some issues that appear to be due to the pollen this year.  I sound like I'm breathing underwater if my head is down or turned a certain way and have been bringing up lots of mucus and hocking something up that I chew.  It goes away when the pollen count is low.  So we all think my megaesophagus pocket is collecting my post-nasal drip and causing the raspy sounds when my head is a certain way.  My people have started giving me 1 Zyrtec in the morning and 2 in the afternoon since my vet said I could take 2-3.  That way, if I have the mucus stuff, I have a better chance of getting at least some of my Zyrtec in my system before it wears off from the day before.
I saw my rehab vet and got so worked up I had the breathing stuff.  She did a bunch of acupuncture and had them do cold laser on my whole spine.  The person after me forgot to bring the dog so the rehab vet came back while we were waiting for the laser to get set up and fed me some cheese from their fridge!
The pollen count is pretty high today but I'm doing pretty good so far.
I  get to go swimming on Saturday!

My Woman: Still alive.