Bailey's Story - The Naked Truth About IVDD

Every so often I allow one of my pets to take over my blog. For today, I’m handing the reins to Rigby, our wise and happy Lab who you might remember from last April’s A to Z Challenge.  Rigby—you’re on!

Hi! I’m Rigby, a yellow Lab mix and member of the Claro family pack. This means I’m loved and spoiled which really rocks, especially at snack time . . . although lately Mom’s handing out carrots instead of Beggin’ Strips. What’s up with that? Anyway, I was rescued a few years ago, and as it turns out, in addition to being a great squirrel chaser, I’m also a pretty good blogger.

Last Wednesday Mom promised you an inside look at the life of Bailey. He’s a sweet Dachshund who suffers from IVDD (inter-vertebral disc disease), and Mom met him at the Howl-O-Weenie festival. If you missed that post, click HERE.  I’ll let Bailey tell his own story (shhh, don’t tell Mom . . . she didn’t okay an amateur writing on her blog), but first, here’s a little general information.

Hansen I (ruptured disc) IVDD is most often found in the little guys with short legs, like Dachshunds, Beagles, and Pekingese. Hansen II (bulging disc) is more often associated with big guys like me---Labs, Golden Retrievers, and Rottweilers. Hansen II sets in over time and can usually be treated conservatively with rest and anti-inflammatory medications.  But the onset of Hansen I can be scary. It comes on suddenly, can be quite severe, and commonly causes wobbly gait or paraplegia.  Surgery is often required to relieve the spinal cord pressure.

What causes IVDD? Well, when the cushioning discs between the vertebrae of the spine rupture, material from the disc breaks through, causing compression or damage to the spinal cord. This leads to swelling of the spinal cord which inhibits the operation of normal neurological signals. The result is pain and possible damage to nerve function; paralysis may also occur, leading to incontinence of bowel and bladder.

What do you do if you suspect your dog is suffering from IVDD? If you share your life with a big guy like me, you’ve probably noted development of the condition, so a treatment plan has evolved accordingly. I’m only four, so I don’t have any problems right now. But if you live with a furry old guy and suspect a spine problem, take him to the vet. (Um . . . your dog, not your husband. I'm guessing your husband will need a different kind of doctor.)

Now, if your furry kid is afflicted with sudden onset, the first thing you should do is crate him so he’ll be safe and quiet, and contact your vet immediately. In severe cases where he is unable to move, take him without delay to a veterinary surgeon, especially one with the ability to do a myelogram (an x-ray that allows the disc material to be visualized).  

All of this sounds really scary, but it doesn’t have to be. Mom says learning about stuff is a good way stop being afraid, so I visited these websites. You should too:

Dodgers List

DREAM (Dachshund Rescue, Education, Awareness and Mentoring)

Clark's Fast Facts: IVDD (inter-vertebral disc disease)

 Pet Wave

Dachshund Club of America, Inc.

Go Pets America

One of the most important things I learned is that dogs with IVDD can live happy, healthy lives. Even “down dogs” (paralyzed) can have wonderful lives. This requires a willingness on the part of you, the human, to make special allowances. What kind, you wonder? Well, I’ll let Bailey tell you all about it.  He’s an expert.

Thanks for visiting with me. Now, here’s Bailey!

Hi there! My name is Bailey, and I’m a 9-year-old Dachshund who got really lucky back in July of 2007. Well, first I got really unlucky. Here’s what happened.

I was only 5 back then, but IVDD left me immediately paralyzed. It was like, one minute I was fine and romping around, and then—boom!—an acute disc extrusion paralyzed me. I was hurt so bad that I couldn’t move my rear legs or even feel them. That was really scary. The lady who loved me was disabled and couldn’t care for me with my injury, so she brought me to the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine in Blacksburg, VA. The neurologist at VMRCVM performed emergency surgery, but my initial spinal cord injury was so severe that my rear legs never got better. I was left paralyzed.

Now here’s the lucky part! My rescue Mom, Renee Barber, was a 4th year vet student there! She fell in love with my sweet disposition and handsome furry self.  She brought me home and worked with me, doing physical therapy with me in the hope that my legs would get better.  It didn’t work. I’m still paralyzed, but I get around just fine and—hey! Do you want to see my wheels? I love these things! You should see me go---zoom, zoom! Like the wind, baby!

I use the wheelcair mostly when we go for walks and to play outdoors. I don’t use it much in the house. It's kind of bulky and gets caught on furniture sometimes, so it’s easier for me to ditch the cart and pull myself around without it when we’re inside. It’s all cool. My chest and front legs are very strong, and I’m able to get around just fine. I have developed calluses on my legs and feet that keep my skin protected when I pull myself around the house.Yeah, I know. I'm a macho kind of guy.

 
My life is awesome! I’m part of a loving pack. Here I am with my furry brothers and sisters.

The first month or so that I was home with my new pack was tough on all of us. See, being paralyzed doesn’t bother me, but I need special care and it took time and patience to establish a routine, especially since I can’t control my bladder or bowels.

This problem is true for a lot of us with IVDD, and our humans must learn to manually express our bladder. That sounds icky, but it only takes a couple minutes a few times a day, and once learned, it’s no big deal at all! I do get urinary tract infections sometimes, because I can't potty by myself. That means Mom has to check my urine for infection periodically to keep me healthy. She’s great at it, and I’m a very happy, healthy boy!

Because I’m so happy, I get excited sometimes. That means I have to wear a couple diapers so I don’t accidentally mess up the place. I wear a baby onesie to keep the diapers in place, and baby wipes, baby powder and baths all keep my skin healthy and my fur sweet-smelling. In fact, sometimes I wish I didn't smell quite so nice. It cuts into my macho image, you know?

The diapers get changed whenever Mom and Dad empty my bladder. Dad loves me so much that he built me a special stand out of PVC to help with the process and keep me comfy. Look at this crazy contraption! Isn’t it cool?

All of this sounds like it would take a long time, right? But it doesn’t! It only takes a couple extra minutes a few times a day to keep me healthy.    

And just look at me! Aren’t I adorable?

I hope my story has shown you that you don’t have to be afraid to keep and care for a dog like me with IVDD.  You'll only spend a few extra minutes each day, but your IVDD pet will give you love and devotion and licky-kisses and snuggly-cuddles all the time.  It’s true. Just ask my Mom!

My rear legs may be paralyzed, but my heart? It beats perfectly, and it's overflowing with love.

Thanks for visiting Writing in the Buff. And special thanks to Bailey and his rescue Mom, the amazing Renee Barber, for being so generous with photos, information and inspiration. Bailey is proof that IVDD does not mean a death sentence for your pooch. There are choices and options. Learn and love.

See you next for Book Blurb Friday -
Lisa

Please note:  Photos courtesy of Anne Yarborough Photography are so noted on the photos.

Book Blurb Friday and Pawsitive Pondering: M is for Meow!

Can you believe it? Today is the letter M and that means we're halfway through the A to Z Challenge.  Bailey complained that she had yet to participate, so here she is with her feline insight.

PAWSITIVE PONDERING

M is for Meow:

Meow.  

The perfect four letter word. 

It means, "Hey, I'm hungry!" 

and 

"Feel my soft fur!" 

and 

"I want to curl up on your lap!"

and 

"Where are you? I love you and want to be with you!" 

all at the same time. 

Human four letter words are often taboo,

as opposed to the delightful sounding

"Meow!"

which is universally acceptable.

Meow!

Bailey isn't usually this verbose, but when she is passionate about something she isn't shy.  This ranks up there with her dissertation on the heartbreak of lactose intolerance. (Dairy makes her hock up fur balls. Really.)

Tomorrow is the letter N!

I invite you to please scroll down for Book Blurb Friday!

So how do you like this experiment that is Book Blurb Friday? I'm having a great deal of fun with it, especially reading all of your blurbs.  I especially like that I'm building a cache of story starters from the blurbs I've written. Have your book blurbs given you any writing ideas? Have you written anything based on one of your blurbs? I'd love to hear about it if you have.

Here is the photo for this week, courtesy of Lynn Obermoeller. My 150 word (or less) blurb is below.

Shady Daisy

Pearl Gerlish is tired of being treated like an old woman. The staff at Shady Daisy Rest Home wants to attach bells to her shoes—so she won’t wander off, they say. But Pearl knows better.  Something is afoot on the Shady Daisy grounds come nightfall, and she aims to learn what it is. 

Pearl enlists the aid of her teenage granddaughter, Chloe, a Goth wannabe who quotes Sylvia Plath; and Milton Studbruster, former gumshoe and Shady Daisy’s resident octogenarian Lothario.

Pearl, Chloe and Milton begin tailing Shady Daisy’s perky manager, Charlotte Chimera. But when she leads them through the woods to Slippery Rock at midnight, the hapless trio realizes they’re in trouble. For Slippery Rock is not just a simple water flume. . .Charlotte is not your average female. . .and dentures, sensible shoes and a waterlogged iPod are unreliable weapons against things that go bump in the night. (150 words)

If you are participating in Book Blurb Friday, please add your link below so other blurbers can find you, and then scroll down to see the "book cover" for next week.




Here is the "book cover" for next week's Book Blurb Friday, courtesy of Sioux Roslawski.

See you tomorrow for more Pawsitive Pondering!

Lisa

Lanfear and Aginor: Kitties Extraordinaire!

Greetings!  We are Aginor and Lanfear, and we reside in Florida with our human pet, who happens to be the son of the lady who writes this blog.  We asked for our moment in the spotlight, and our human grandma agreed.  She's pretty cool for someone without a tail. . .or fur. . .or pointy ears. . .or fish breath. Hmmm....maybe we need to downgrade her from cool to pleasant. Yeah. That works.  She's, um, pleasant.

Anyway, as you can see, we love each other very much.  We are brother and sister and were thrilled to be adopted together.  It is so much more fun to claw up furniture with a friend than alone!  We also enjoy playing kitty ninja, tearing up paper products, and sitting on our pet's head.  He calls us "cat hat" when we do that.  We have names for him, too, but Grandma said we couldn't put them on her blog. 

We actually love our pet very much, and follow him everywhere when he is home.  He's awfully cute for a, you know, human.  He loves us, too, and takes lots of pictures to send to Grandma because she gets so excited. Well, really, who wouldn't?  I mean, look at us---we're freaking adorable!

 

We love to lay in the sunshine that beams through the windows into our apartment. It would be nice to go outside and chase crickets and birds and lizards and stuff, but our pet won't let us out.  The veterinarian said the average life expectancy for an indoor cat is 12+ years; for an outdoor cat it is much less, like 5-6 years.  Our pet wants to keep us around for a really long time, so he keeps us inside and gives us interesting things to do so we don't get bored; and, of course, we have each other to wrestle and cuddle with, and our pet is quite a diversion when he is home.

Grandma's cat, Bailey, became trapped outdoors last week.  Bailey will write a blog post about her adventure in the great outdoors very soon.  In the meantime, we just wanted to say "meow!" and let you share in our awesome wonderfulness!

Love from sunny Florida!

Lanfear and Aginor (Kitties Extraordinaire. . .really!)

Furry Friendships

I sat down to post about yesterday's trip to the ER with my youngest daughter (appendicitis scare) and decided I'm still too emotionally spent to turn it into anything besides AARRGGGHHH! So the appendicitis-that-wasn't story will have to wait a few days.

Instead, I'm writing about a topic that never fails to cheer me:  my furry buddies! If you know me or read my blog, you've seen pictures of the animals that share my space.  To make it easy for you, I posted photos of my furry beloveds. Aren't they the coolest hairy kids ever?

Sitting here in my office with my gray kitty, Bailey, in my lap and my black Lab mix, Penny, stretched out at my feet, I considered how lucky I am to have been born with an "I-adore-animals" gene.  I know people who don't care for animals ("Too much hair!" "Eww, slobber!") and I can't understand it.  So dogs and cats shed. . .big hairy deal.  Pull out your vacuum cleaner a little more often.  Slobber? Nothing a little soap and water can't take care of.  Those things are a small price to pay for tail wags and purrs and unconditional love that reduces stress and eases heartache.

How do our dogs know when we need a wet nose pressed against our hand?  How do our cats know when we need a purring body curled up in our lap?  Pets know their humans.  These wonderful creatures read our moods and decipher our emotional needs like furry barometers.  Don't believe me? Ask anyone who has an animal companion and they will tell you the same thing.

What do the furry friendships in your life mean to you? Do you have an animal companion who senses your moods? Who is your furry beloved?


Til next time -
Lisa

Ear Worms! Curious Cat Wants to Know. . .

Good day.

I am Bailey, Tabitha's sister.  I am not a member of SCRATCH (Smart Cats Rebel Against Totally Crazy Humans) and I do not covet world domination. I am a house cat, and an exceptional specimen of feline intelligence.  It is not lack of ability that causes me to eschew aspirations of world domination.  Rather, it seems to me that world domination requires much work and diabolical thinking.  This would interfere with my naps, and we can't have that.

Since Tabby is otherwise occupied, having claimed a spot in front of the kitchen pantry--the prime location for scoring kitty treats--I thought I'd give this curious cat thing a try.  I am a cat, I am curious, and as it happens there is something I've been itching to know:

My pet complains of ear worms which are not, as you might suppose, either playthings or snacks.  An ear worm is a song  or jingle that plays in one's head without respite, often a tune of an aggravating nature. My pet once complained of the Meow Mix song keeping her up all night. I find it rather soothing, myself, but she deemed it an assault on her sanity.  What is the worst ear worm with which you have suffered?

Thank you very much for your attention. It has been lovely.  Really.

Meow,

Bailey