Help Dolemite!

Today was going to be the EPIC multi-family yard sale on our street. Except the one day we hoped it wouldn’t rain, it rained. It’s let up now. Of course after I packed in everything! I had a little tent and was trying to stick it out, but the tent was leaking and everything was getting more and  more soaked. So tomorrow will be part deaux of the sale. Wish us luck!

With that said I wanted to shift your attention to a friend of mine who is battling her own vet bills. I felt I need to highlight this because I KNOW EXACTLY HOW SHE FEELS! When we got the diagnosis, though not a matter of life and death, it was still crushing to hear.

With my friend’s vet bills continuing to pile up and with no real diagnosis given- they are feeling the pressure that only the kindness and generosity of others can relieve.

It is humbling and embarrassing enough to have to bite the bullet and shove your pride aside to ask for help. Couple that with the stresses of not knowing what is wrong with their cat, and you’ve got some really worn out kitty parents! But I know, like myself, they are willing to do anything and everything they can to help their fur children.

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE consider helping out. Even just a little bit goes a long way!

Their story is here: Dolemite

Besides making a donation, passing this information is the least I can do. She helped with Klaus’ hip fund by purchasing some jewelry- so please help her out in return!

Seriously slacking!

Maybe it’s the ridiculous heat wave and drought we have been plagued with, but I just can’t get myself motivated to attend to anything other than the basic day to day crap! So the blog, among other things has been ignored.

Add to the fact my friend from Alaska is in town- well my days and nights have been filled with fun things.

The other day we stopped at an antique festival and I found this little gem of a jewel…… It’s a GSD pin! I’m considering making a mold of it so I can make more!

Last year at another festival I stumbled upon this bad boy……..It’s from the 1950’s! The woman who sold it to me was so happy I had a shepherd. It was her mother’s.

And my mother recently gave me this statue that she found in the barn……….The face is more squatty than the other one, a little less shepherd but still cool nevertheless! It’s funny to think all the time we spent as kids rummaging through the barn, I never saw this!

I tend to think of myself as only mildly crazy about my dog. I do find myself needing to filter my contributions to conversations when all I have is a Klaus anecdote! Klaus this. Klaus that. But when you are a SAHPM (stay at home puppy mom), I don’t have much to offer. Unless you want to talk about graphic design!

The above items are really the only dog items I own. I don’t have socks with shepherd faces on them. Or a fleece with Klaus’ face embroidered on it. I don’t have tote bags, or mugs. Scratch that- Jesse has a mug at his cafe. Our vehicle isn’t plastered in GSD themed stickers- even though I have designed some cool ones 🙂 I think that has more to do with how crappy our car is, and not wanting to waste a sticker on it.

I never actively seek out items. I just stumble upon them. Only then do I actually purchase them. Fingers crossed I can keep the “collection” under wraps 🙂

I did want to mention that Klaus’ crates came yesterday so we will be setting everything up very soon. We are gearing up for a kick ass yard sale this weekend to rid ourselves of crap, and raise money for Klaus’ hip! I think things will get back on track after, especially considering we will be clutter and mess free.

I AM LENNOX

I have been loosely following the story of Lennox for some time now and I guess I was filled with so much hope and ultimately naivete that he would in fact be saved- that a beacon of light would shine through the nonsense and of all the countless hundreds of offers from others to adopt him, after being evaluated by a number of animal behaviorists deeming him adoptable, and the WORLD WIDE support of total strangers, he would be able to live the rest of his days out. However he was killed at the hands of the Belfast Council, who had deemed him ‘a dangerous “pit bull-type dog”‘. Pit bulls are a breed banned in the United Kingdom as per their BSL (Breed Specific Laws).

As I sit here contemplating how to express my feelings in a coherent manner, I look over at my own dog- happily chewing on his favorite toy, a nice walkie and a full bowl of food to look forward to later, along with some snuggles and belly rubs- and I feel total sadness for the family of Lennox. They weren’t even given the chance to properly say good bye to him and were told they should get his ashes in the mail.

Is it really that difficult to figure out it’s not the dog it’s the human? Are humans that ignorant to their own actions, they can’t see what is just so blatantly obvious- at least to me?! I was feeling so inspired and rant filled I wanted to write a post about this, but I am just feeling so terribly sad.

Consider reading up about BSL because it could be your area, your dog’s breed being targeted next.

 

He is your dog for a reason

Awhile back when I was feeling rather defeated by our hip situation, my friend offered me this little tidbit…….

“There is a reason Klaus is yours. He is your dog because you will do anything and everything in your power to make his life better.”

It’s the truth. We will and always will do everything we can to make sure he has the fullest most rewarding life a dog can have. When we got Klaus we never took the situation of dog ownership lightly. I was aware of the differences in dogs and cats as I had always grown up with them. But this was different. Klaus was OURS. We were very much the “first time parents”- trying to do everything right. Worrying about silly things now in retrospect.

Even when we were told we could give him back after he was diagnosed with his hip troubles- we thought HELL NO! That thought was never even on the table for us. We had already bonded. It was very hard for us to comprehend just how in fact puppy parents can make that decision- whether it be a few months, or years of their company, to just get rid of them for whatever reason.

That’s not to say there are days when I don’t feel so worn down from it all that I wonder if we should have waited a year or two longer to get him- to get our shit together with our finances, to install a fence, etc. There would always be something though and that’s just me being honest in my darkest hour. Klaus is our fur child. Through thick and thin. And let me tell you these next couple of months will be rough.

Everything leading up to the surgery has been a cake walk. Keep him tethered on a leash and under control so his hip doesn’t luxate- check. Keep the extra pounds off to alleviate the stress on his hip- check. Exercise him and stretch him within his limits- check. Put a halt to the excitable puppy play dates- check.

Love him even though he has been and can be a little shit- check, check, check.

This time next year I hope we will be running around with all our other puppy friends, just like we used to before this all happened! Knowing he has soooooo many more years ahead of him with a good hip will make everything worth it.

I was hoping to have his pen delivered today but it’s on backorder until 8/02!

Ring around the living room…..

So this past weekend one of my best friends got married. It was a hectic few days as I was part of the bridal party. With the hoopla happening out of town it would have been impossible to tend to Klaus so we boarded him at Camille’s. We decided to extend his stay by one day so we could tend to the living room. His “jail” has been ordered. We have rearranged the living room pushing the bulk of the furniture towards the fire place and freeing up space closer to the door. We have to buy some carpets to put down, especially a runner for the space in between his pen and the outside door so he isn’t slipping walking to go out. Shit is getting real!

Also, as a surprise to Klaus (so SHHHH!) we picked him up some new toys to hopefully keep him a little more occupied, though we shall see. I don’t know about you but a 75 lb whiny ass dog, penned up in a 6’x6′ (give or take) pen for 6 weeks sounds like a really good time! I just know he is going to whine and bark if we’re around and he’s in there. He has always felt the need to BE RIGHT WHERE WE ARE, wherever that may be- bathroom included.

Looking forward to hearing from Cornell as what they recommend we do. I have read to feed him his meals in some sort of interactive mind encouraging toy. Maybe. I just don’t want a lot of rolling about and chasing happening.

Stay tuned for pics of when everything is set up properly!

Doomsday set

So after a game of phone tag we have scheduled Klaus’ big day. His preliminary appointment is scheduled for August 22, 2012. He will have x-rays taken and we will be sat down again and go over everything. Essentially like a counseling session. We will need to put down 50% of the higher estimate which will be closer to 3k.

*side note- I am unsure of the actual estimate at this time. We were told 6-8k originally then 4-6k at Cornell but a woman I spoke with from Cornell yesterday mentioned it being more around 6k! At this point in time we are shooting high rather than low.

On August 13, 2012 he is scheduled with our own vet to have some blood work and urinalysis done. This needs to be done a week prior to the preliminary.

He needs the following:

CBC

Serum Chemistry Panel

Urinalysis

Urine Culture

Should everything come up alright he will be in surgery August 23 or August 24. I cried for a good 20 minutes after I got off the phone.

So there it is folks. The big day! Whether I am ready or not- there it is.

Raven, our kindred spirit

Awhile ago I was contacted by Mark who’s dog Raven was in the EXACT same predicament as Klaus. Looking at her x-rays even gave me the chills because I really thought I was looking at Klaus’ x-rays- except it was her left leg and his right! Tomorrow will be Raven’s 12 week mark with her new hip and boy has it been  a journey!

The surgery was in its own right a success but the surgeons were met with some complications concerning the implant seating correctly. It was explained to Mark that her muscles had atrophied (something I am definitely scared with Klaus) and they had to be stretched to make everything fit. However this ended up being a good scenario for preventing dislocation following the surgery. The other night I was looking at Klaus’ hip and it is so misshapen and smaller so I wonder if this will pose a problem?

Mark touched on just about everything I have concerns for. Raven is a high energy dog (like Klaus) but after the surgery, and realistically so, she just didn’t want to move around so much. For 6 weeks the dog has to be confined except to be taken out for bathroom breaks. It’s recommended the dog is fed within the confinement.

He had some scares with her after incorporating range of motion exercises and some lameness she was exhibiting and she was rushed off to his vet for x-rays but thankfully nothing had dislocated.

Raven had cement less implants and after the 6 week mark, x-rays showed some bone growth around them. At 8 weeks walks could be incorporated- short ones. Again with the lameness and again x-rays were clear. This is what I have concern for. By nature I am a worry wart. I feel as if we will be back at our vets on a weekly basis with such and such concern. I AM SCARED TO DEATH OF DISLOCATION. Even now it is a constant concern for me.

Mark was comforting in the fact if he had to do it all over again he would. Since the surgery, her right hip has not had a single problem, which was a concern as it was not perfect either. Our surgeon mentioned that Klaus could very easily not need his left hip fixed once the right one was! Fingers crossed he is part of the 80% category of dog with just one THR!

Mark has also allowed me to share some pics of Raven and her “jail”. His most helpful advice has been to start thinking about Klaus’ “confinement” now and get it all situated and set up. Six weeks is a very long time for a dog to be confined. We want to make this as comfortable and void of stress- for Klaus and everyone involved.

Look at her! Do you think a vet would write me a RX for some vallium? Not for Klaus, for me! This is going to be so rough. He started out with a smaller enclosure but extended the pen out for some more room. I need to get a pen and some carpets. We have hardwood floors. Definitely need a runner from the crate to the door outside. We will be rearranging our living room very soon to put his jail cell closer to the door and away from windows- he gets really stressed with noises outside. Radio will probably be on at all times- or something to distract him. Can I just say though- Jesse and I were joking the other night that we created a whiny little emo dog because anytime we’d leave we’d turn the iPod to Elliot Smith 🙂

The lattice on top is to prevent Raven from jumping out. Something I have concerns for with Klaus. I began looking at 4′ tall pens but Mark made a point that might encourage jumping. This is going to be an interesting time for everyone. I am considering perhaps getting only one pen and hooking it up to his crate. His crate is giant sized- like Great Dane sized. And he does love it. There might be some trial and error involved with creating the best set up possible!

I’m looking forward to hearing from Mark about what the doctor has to say in the next few weeks for Raven’s recovery. He is the closest thing to my own situation and it has been so helpful and encouraging to hear from him!

Good luck Raven!

GiveForward was NOT a success…

And that is more to do with me not promoting it as much. It was started a few months after I began the blog as a way to visually track donations.

We had a very generous donation of $25 immediately made but unfortunately we did not meet the minimum donation required of $50 to move forward and therefore be reimbursed.

So that donation will be refunded to whoever anonymously donated. But I want to take this moment and thank you nevertheless for keeping Klaus in your thoughts!

Still fundraising- any way I can!

So as a last ditch effort to raise some more money for Klaus’s surgery, I am running a sale in my ETSY store– $2.00 off all my prints, with all proceeds going straight to the little monster’s hip!

Please also check out the store section of the blog as I do have items still available. I am calling Cornell tomorrow to schedule his appointments He needs an introductory one where they run various tests and xrays to see what size implant he needs and god forbids- is cancer and disease free. Then a week later is the mother of all appointments.

I worry I have not truly faced reality just yet. Financially, we will never be ready and although we have raised about 1/3 the cost I need to look more closely at our CareCredit options. I have a feeling that the 6 months interest free comes with penalties if we can’t make the minimum- which would be hundreds of dollars, depending on what the final cost is. I’m not sure if I want to risk it! Our other option is our credit union which we both have really good credit despite the debt we carry. Maybe they could help us all around with our financial dire straits concerning our credit cards?

But what I don’t think I have come to terms with yet is the rehabilitation. The real risk we face of Klaus really hurting himself after the surgery, let alone the actual risk that is the surgery! This is a big effing deal! It is coming up sooner rather than later and I have to really get everything sorted out. We will be practically living downstairs with him. Bringing him out to go to the bathroom will be an interesting feat as we have stairs at both doors. Not to mention the risk of taking him out the front door which has less steps but gets him psyched because he thinks he’s going for a ride.

I am home with the dog 99% of the time so it will fall on me to provide the utmost care for him. Am I physically capable of using the sling by myself to bring him down the steps?

I feel really bummed right now. All around. This will be THE most difficult thing I have gone through. I fear I am only now realizing a small percentage of the gravity of the situation.