Today was the day

Today was a sad day. This morning Patch was pretty weak and his gums were white, more internal bleeding last night. I went to work late and then came home at lunch time for the day. Michele met me at home and we decided today would be his day.

At 3:20pm February 1, 2006 Patch passed away with the help of Dr. Jon Spelke DVM. It was so hard to do that but it was for the best.

Rest in Peace Patch
We Love You!
4/3/1993-2/1/2006

It's been a while

I am mentally exhausted. This is quite a roller coaster ride we are on.

Patch got his staples out last Thursday and all went well. He was acting pretty good until Sunday, then started to get lethargic. We had an appointment this morning to check his heart after 5 days without the sotolal and all sounded good, that was the good news. When the vet checked his gums they still were not pinking up and looking pale. We drew a tube of blood and the PCV has dropped back to 26%. This had us concerned so they did a quick ultrasound look at his belly and there is blood in his abdomen. Not a good sign, most likely caused from the liver but not 100% sure. He felt that there was more blood than at the original ultrasound so he sent off a CBC to check everything and I will get that call in the morning. Hopefully he has an iron deficiency and that is the cause of the lethargy, if so then maybe a shot of iron will help perk him up some.

He did get a shot of Vitamin K1 and B6 today and tonight while dreading the worst on the way home from work I was greeted with a wagging stump of a tail at the door. He went out and barked a little and romped in the snow. Maybe the vitamins helped. Dinner was roasted chicken so he was thrilled to eat that with us then to just cuddle on the bed with the kids for a while. After they went to bed I took Patch around the block and he loved the walk. I will do that every night as long as he is strong enough for it. I have Friday off this week and might take him to the beach one more time. Starting in March dogs are not allowed on the beach again until November.

Out for a walk

Today is a good day. Patch and I went for a couple of short walks this afternoon. Only about a block but it's a start to see how he does tonight.

Last night he was in doggie heaven. Dori, Jon and Nancy were over to play cards and Dori spoiled him rotten. She brought a bag of soft treats and pretty much fed him all night. He was loving it big time. She gave him dog food, treats and some chicken. I don't think he refused much.

This morning he didn't eat as well but did eat some and again this afternoon he ate a little bit. We'll see what dinner brings tonight. I poached a few chicken breasts for him but need to start mixing in his food again so he gets the rest of the nutrition from that. I have more canned food as well and Michele had good luck with that so we'll try that again.

He looks like he feels stronger, he is coming up the stairs again to the deck and keep jumping on the couch. I'm getting soft on that one, he's not supposed to be up there. We head back to work tomorrow so hopefully he doesn't get depressed alone during the day.

A Monster

I've created a monster. Patch only wants good food now. Chicken, steak, potroast, hot dogs, and the like. He turns his nose up at dog food now. At least he is eating. Today he barked at the mailman for the first time in a while that I know about and this was after walking up the deck stairs. He must be getting some of that energy back. Yea!

Friday 1/20/06

This morning Patch got up without needing any coaxing and asked to go out. He ate a few pieces of chicken and hot dog and took just two meds, Pepcid and Sotalol, we dropped the Metoclopramide last night and maybe that was knocking him down. He came to the door when the kids and I left and even barked a few times at me saying don't go. I think he feels better today, we'll see what tonight brings.