Month: September 2013

G’mornin!  This is the 12th anniversary of 9/11, a very tragic day in our country’s history.  Please remember to take a moment or two to recall all those who lost their lives, and pray for them and the loved ones they left behind.  And of course pray for our great nation to be healed.

Now for a bit of brighter news: Katy is doing amazing!  When am I going to learn never to doubt this dog of mine?  🙂  She’s getting around great, finding the food and water bowls with minimal issue, even getting better at going up and down the front steps.  She seems to be doing well with the insulin dose she’s on, once the glucometer gets here I’m going to do a blood glucose curve on her and make sure, because I HATE not knowing what’s going on inside her.  On the outside she’s just peachy, but we’re talking about a dog who showed no signs of being diabetic even when her blood glucose was in the 500s.  So I definitely need to know what her bloodwork shows.  Just trying to be a good mama and avoid any further complications.  🙂  Oh, and the wee brag?  My husband gave Katy her insulin injection this morning!  Yay!  I know it may not seem like much, but it’s actually a pretty huge thing.  I joined a local archery club that practices 2 evenings a week right when Katy’s supposed to get her insulin, and I was afraid I’d have to quit because hubby did not seem to be willing to help me out.  But last night he asked me to show him how to give the injection, and this morning I watched him do it (like a pro!).  So that means tonight I can go to practice!  Woohoo!  Turned a corner, that’s for sure.

I took some video of Katy this morning so you can see how she’s doing.  Squee and cheer to your heart’s content.  🙂

Something tells me I’m not going to get a good night’s sleep for a while.  😛  Katy however is passed out on the floor, snoring, blissfully unaware that her life (and consequently Mama’s life) has changed dramatically.  She just knows she’s loved and cared for, and that’s enough for her.

For me, well, it’s a whole nother story.  The journey for us from 4 legged to tripawd was really something.  It was a trying time, emotional and yet educational, and through it all it was Katy that kept me strong, not the other way around.  She kept saying, We can do this Mama, we got this.  I won’t give up if you won’t.  I don’t think anyone who doesn’t have the honor of a tripawd in their life would understand.  There’s really something special about these dogs (and cats!).  And I may be biased, but I’m not the only one who thinks so; anyone who meets Katy, even for a minute, walks away with a smile and a lighter heart.  I love taking her places because I love to see people’s faces light up when they see her hopping around with her yellow “tripawds rule” bandanna on.  And she smiles, loving life on 3 legs.  And I smile, loving her.

And now there’s this diabetes thing.  Katy’s not only 3 legged, she’s blind.  She’s going to be on insulin for the rest of her life.  My days from here on out will revolve around her eating and getting her injections at precise times.  Once I get a glucometer I’ll be doing at least monthly blood glucose curves to make sure her insulin dose is adequate.  When we leave the house I’m her seeing-eye human, guiding her and keeping her safe.  The rest of our pack don’t understand yet that she can’t see so there’s the occasional bump-and-growl/snap, and I have to play referee and run a bit of interference.  My husband is not being nearly as supportive as I’d hoped; since I’m the vet tech he leaves it all up to me and doesn’t even try to help.  This is just the way things are and will probably continue to be.  And people who are not lucky enough to have the love of a tripawd think I’m crazy.  “Why would you turn your life upside down for a dog?  It’s just a dog!”

No, SHE is not JUST a dog.  She is Katy, and this smile makes it all worth it.

A bit of upsetting news:  Katy has been diagnosed with diabetes, and is blind due to rapid cataract formation (we’re talking overnight).  She’s actually in the hospital as I write this, she’s been there over 24 hours now and I am as anxious as a mama can get.  They’re doing a blood glucose curve, where they draw her blood every couple hours and see what her blood sugar level is.  I of course have been in contact with the vets several times (it’s a big hospital, at least 3 vets have seen her so far) and they just can’t seem to get her regulated, they’re now doubling her insulin dose to see if that works.  Best estimate, she’ll be home this evening.  Worst case, tomorrow morning.

I’m really just in shock.  I feel like a terrible vet tech and an awful mama.  How on earth did I not see this?  Her blood glucose right now is crazy high, like 400s-500s; how is it I didn’t notice any symptoms?  I took her in about a month ago because she had blood in her urine; they did a urinalysis and found glucose and ketones, neither of which is good and both of which can indicate diabetes.  So they did bloodwork and her blood glucose was very high, in the 400s as I recall.  But the vet we saw was not convinced it was diabetes.  He knew I was a tech, so he sent us home with antibiotics for the UTI and subq fluids to give for a few days to see if that would bring her glucose down.  He said he would call to check on her in a couple days, never did.  I should have called him, I know, should have brought her back in for repeat bloodwork.  If I had things would probably be under control now and she wouldn’t be blind.  (The vet did see some cloudiness in her eyes at that time, but he said it was just from aging.  He gave no indication it was cataracts.)  But I suppose I shouldn’t second-guess myself, what’s done is done and now we need to deal with it.

One of the hard things is how expensive this is getting so fast.  Between the vet visit and hospitalization, all the meds, the insulin, it sure ain’t cheap.  And unless I get my own glucometer and do curves at home, Katy will be going back like once a week.  Sheesh!  My husband is not real pleased, he knows Katy means the world to me, but he’s the only one working right now and we do have bills to pay.  She’s turning out to be a very pricy pup, for certain.  The vets know we’re not made of money, that we want to get Katy home as soon as we can, we just can’t help feeling like they’re milking us for as much as they can get.  It’s just exhausting and emotionally chaotic.

It sounds odd, I know, but the easy part for me will be taking care of her once she’s home.  It just comes naturally to me, I was very hands-on caring for her before, during, and after her amputation.  I don’t like leaving her in the care of other people, I like doing as much as I can for her myself (and being a vet tech, that’s a fair bit).  Not to mention it’s cheaper 🙂  Planning my schedule around her, when she needs to eat and have her insulin, pfft, it’s nothing.  She’s my girl, y’know?  I used to take this dog to school with me just so I could keep an eye on her while she was healing, so she wouldn’t be home alone and run the risk of hurting herself.  I’m her mama, it’s my job to take care of her, simple as that.

Prayers and advice and support would be much appreciated, for Katy and myself.  It’s a new chapter in the exciting “tail” of her life, one I’ve certainly never read before, and we’re both hoping for a happy ending.  🙂