NOT ALL BONES ARE SAFE FOR YOUR DOG...
DAY 7.
TUESDAY 28TH FEBRUARY 2017.
It's a beautiful morning. Luna is enjoying resting on her favorite spot on our sofa enjoying the warm sunshine. Her stitches are healing beautifully and no longer she needs to wear one of my tee-shirts to protect them. This morning I was pleased she no longer has a runny tummy. Her appetite has opened up and she is now eating some of her favorite soft treats. Still I need to have her on a lead when we go into the garden in case she decides to jump onto the concrete wall, if she sees a cat. I'm scared she might scratch her stitches.
DAY 6
MONDAY 27TH FEBRUARY.
Luna is looking all girly in her pink strapped tee-shirt. She loves our comfy sofa and my company off course. Front bottom room is her favorite because it's warm specially when the sun is out. I am pleased her appetite is picking up. She is eating little amounts and frequent. She is off cooked chicken and plain rice only because I don't want her to get addicted to it. Still it's good to cook her special chicken meal with rice over the weekend as a special treat. Unfortunately she's gone of her usual Wainwrights dog food, however she is eating a fish based organic tin food for dogs my older son brought her. Still she has a slight runny tummy and the good news she had one hard big stool today. Fantastic because this means her stomach is settling and I no longer have the painful job of picking up her runny mess in the garden. I could now think of giving her a few soft treats.
DAY FIVE.
SUNDAY 26TH FEBRUARY.
Luna is sitting straight. She is no longer slumped on her bed. As you can see she's lost a lot of weight. She is off her sickness tablet today. See how she does. Today I encouraged her out of bed and go to her bowl and eat her food independently. She managed it with a little prompting and I was happy about it. I didn't wanted to get her in a bad habit of hand feeding her while she was in bed. It's tiring and time consuming specially when I have other important responsibilities as a Mummy. I was pleased she wasn't sick since leaving hospital. Touch wood each day she will continue to build her strength. My biggest concern is her eating. I need to get her back to her normal eating habits. Still drinking more than eating and since she came home I haven't had a chance to pick up her runny muck from the garden. I emerged into the freezing garden and slowly picked about 8 big slobbery patches of poo and cleaned my teenage son's plastic sandals covered in soft muck. It wasn't a great experience however it had to be done as it was becoming a health issue.
DAY FOUR.
SATURDAY 25TH FEBRUARY.
Our main concern was Luna. She had an appointment today with the vets this morning just in case she wasn't eating, however she managed a few pieces of soft cooked chicken. So this meant she didn't needed to see the vets. I hoped it was the beginning of Luna eating again. Today I felt I was looking after a baby. I cooked her soft chicken three times a day and her rice in the evening and every time I sat down with her, I slowly put it in front of her mouth. Every time she took the little piece of chicken I was so pleased. I praised her and gave her a little soft pat on her head. Still she continued to have the runs, this of course was because she was drinking more than eating and of course it was the medication. Today as instructed by the vet she needed to be off her Tramadol for pain relief and her antibiotic Cephacare only because it was affecting her appetite and mood. With all the constant love and attention from Luna's family we were all positive she would pull through.
DAY THREE.
FRIDAY 24TH OF FEBRUARY.
Luna just about managed to stand outside our front door. She was weak and wobbly and completely disorientated. She was a sick dog who just had an operation. Today she had an appointment later with the vet. I was glad about it because she wasn't eating, just drinking and her continuous diarrhea was a concern. Her face was gaunt with her tail forever in between her legs a sign she wasn't herself. I asked the children to be gentle with her and give her space. I was pleased the children helped me nurse her. They were eager to take her into the garden to do her business and breath a little fresh air. It was more difficult to persuade Luna to go out in the night. It was dark, cold and more difficult to see where you were treading. Unfortunately my 15 year old boy had a bit of a nasty shock. He accidentally trod on a patch of soft poo. He wasn't at all happy about it and decided he didn't wanted to take out poor little Luna out side anymore however much he loved her.
Early evening we took Luna in a taxi to the vets. We explained she wasn't eating and definitely wasn't a happy girl. He had a good feel of her tummy. She wasn't squealing with pain, her temperature and blood pressure was normal. The vet was adamant there was nothing obstructing her tummy and intestines. He explained that while Luna was on the operating table, an x-ray was taken just to make sure he got rid of any remaining little chip bones. He asked whether she had vomited. I said no since coming home last Wednesday. He decided to keep her on her anti-sickness tablet and see how she gets on, at least one more day and stop her pain relief and antibiotic. It could be both tablets were making her feel rotten and not eating. The vet told me to make an appointment for the following day just in case she wasn't eating. I continued to pray for my dog she would begin to eat because it wasn't nice to see her sad, skinny and weak. I just wanted my bouncy cuddly happy dog back again playing with her favorite soft toy.
DAY TWO.
THURSDAY 23RD FEBRUARY.
I had a sleepless night. I was so tired the following day. I was woken up by a fowl smell and noise at the bottom of my bed at 2 am. Immediately I jumped out of my bed. My baby couldn't contain herself. She had the runs in my bedroom. Great! I tried not to swear to the horrendous sight I saw. I didn't know how to begin to pick up her mess. Thank goodness they are floorboards. Luna slowly went back to her bed and I immediately put the kettle on for a hot strong coffee. I knew I was going to be up for a long time. I searched round the house for old newspapers. Couldn't find any. I remember I threw some in the recycling bin the night before. Great! I put my coat on and went out to the front garden and fished a few from the recycling bin. It was so quiet and freezing. It was just me plodding around, lights on and making a noise. I tried not to swear at the horrible sight she left behind after all she was my baby I loved her so much. I didn't wanted anything to hurt her. She was too precious. I soaked her soft muck with lots of news papers before eventually cleaning the floor. I sleepily sat down in the kitchen while I slowly drank my coffee and stroked my baby's head reassuring her I still loved her. I didn't wanted to go into my room anymore. It stunk and I thought of ways how to get rid of the smell. I sprayed loads of deodorants in the air. It just didn't work. I then thought of lighting all my scented candles and it slowly worked. The smell was more bearable and eventually after 2 hours I fell asleep till the next day. It was a full time job nursing my sick dog and being a busy Mama to all my growing children. Hard work. Our full attention was obviously Luna who just didn't wanted to eat however much I patiently encouraged her. All she wanted to do was to be in her comfy bed resting. It wasn't easy giving her medication. First I tried to give her tablets with her food, however it didn't work because she just didn't wanted to eat. In the end I had to open her mouth and put it at the back of throat. It wasn't nice. I knew it was the only way Luna was going to get better.
 |
| Our dog Luna resting comfortably on her snooze orthopedic extra large dog bed. We brought her new bed from Argos. I wasn't disappointing for the price I paid for it. I rate it five stars. |
 |
| It was great to see our favorite vet nurse Shakira again. We were all so happy to see our dog Luna being discharged from the Beaumont Sainsbury Animal Hospital in London last Wednesday 22nd February 2017. Nurse Shakira explained to the children because Luna was so fragile, they needed to be gentle with her. She gave us a leaflet explaining how to care for her. We were all so happy to take her back home again to be with us in her own environment. I was also waiting for her new bed from Argos to arrive later. The children couldn't wait to see Luna in it. We took her back home in a taxi because she was weak, disorientated and heavily medicated. She looked very sad, however I thought she was a little happy to be with us again. |
 |
| Luna had just arrived home. She is definitely not herself. She is shaking and leaning weakly against the radiator. Still we are waiting for new bed. Hope it isn't long before it arrives. It wasn't nice to see her like that. I asked the children to just leave her there and not make to much of a fuss of her. Later in the evening her bed arrived. The minute I put her new bed next to her old small one she slowly got herself out of that awkward position and slowly walked into her new one and comfortably laid there. This brought a smile to all our faces. We were all happy she was more comfortable. She didn't wanted any food. Her drinking bowl had to be brought to her bed to encourage her to drink. Thankfully she was drinking a bit and she had her medication for the night. I had to carry her to the garden for her to stand there just in case she needed to use the toilet. I wasn't easy because it was drizzly and cold. I couldn't sleep that night because I was worried for her however Luna had a comfortable night. |
 |
| My nine year old boy was eager to test Luna's new bed. He said he rated it five star and even said he wanted to sleep that night with her. That evening Luna was visited by the whole family. She received a lot of attention and loads of gentle pats on her head and cuddles under her neck. My big Muneca didn't wanted to come home after work. She was too upset to see her. I text her reassuring her, Luna was fine and I'm sure she was happy to see her even though she wasn't well. When Muneca came through the door she burst into tears and cuddled her so much. She even said she wanted to look after her all night in case anything bad happened to Luna. At least she wasn't |
This is Luna before she fell ill comfortably laying down on the arms of the arms of my nine year old boy.
SO WHAT REALLY HAPPENED TO LUNA.
It's been hard work nursing Luna back to her normal self. We are all happy to see her wagging her tail every time someone comes through the door, eating well again and no longer she has diareah. Still I need to take her into the garden with her lead in case she sees a cat because she usually loves to jumps on the concrete wall. Only because stitches are still healing. At least she has the energy to go to the top floor of the house not easy when the steps are steep. Next I would like to see her running up them like she use too.
When you are brought up not knowing how to look after a dog properly this can create different problems. Thank fully I was brought up with many dogs all my life, not just one but many specially when we lived in South America. My Mother who is English taught us how to look after them correctly and loved them. One thing she did say never give dogs cooked bones specially chicken and lamb bones. They can prove deadly on a dog. While we lived in the Andes mountains I remember seeing a lot of sick dogs in the streets. I often wondered whether it was because they eat something dangerous like bones. People in South America think giving bones to cats or dogs is normal. I guarantee it isn't normal.
While we were out for the day with Aunties my teenage boy didn't wanted to come because he a football match with his friends. The children's Daddy kindly offered to cook for him that night. I saw he had brought a big tub of chicken wings. I quickly mentioned to him the night before. Please no chicken bones for Luna. He said he already knew and reassured me he wouldn't. It wasn't the first time I kept reminding him, only because a while ago I caught him in the act. He was about to give a chicken bone to Luna and our other dog Romeo. He knew it was dangerous.
Came back late Friday evening found a pile of chipped chicken bones on the side low cabinet. Immediately I thought, I hope he didn't give Luna the Chicken bones. The following morning around 11ish Luna began vomiting first in the house. At first I thought she must of eat something which didn't agree with her, however an hour before she was jumping crazily on the wall at least three minutes non stop because she had seen a cat at the bottom of the garden. Throughout the day she continued to cough and then off course I quickly took her out again into the garden to vomit. I thought maybe she had come down with a bug as we had all previously been unwell in the last few weeks. In regards to me I ended up going to the doctor with swollen glands. It took a few days to get better. I then thought maybe Luna hit her head hard as she crazily jumped up and down the wall. I searched for both possibilities on the internet. Nothing made sense. I then remembered it could be the chipped bones I found, left the night before. Funnily enough I always forgot to question about the bones to the children's Dad. I could see she was getting worse. On the Sunday afternoon I rang the RSPCA. They said they would only admit her if it was an emergency. They gave me a number in case she got worse in the night, however they specified I needed to make an appointment the following day with the vet at another animal hospital because they were sorry they were overbooked for routine appointments. I rang our usual vet at the Beaumont Sainsbury Animal Hospital. They made an appointment around lunch time. Luna first came to this hospital when she was only 8 weeks old to have her first injections with her brother Romeo and then her bee sting while she was in the garden. So far she was a healthy happy dog until Monday 20th February she didn't look at all well. The vet decided to keep her in for further examinations. This meant she was going to have an x-ray, because I mentioned to the vet about a pile of chipped bones I found on the bottom side cabinet. It was sad to leave Luna at the hospital, however 2 hours had passed when the vet rang me. He confirmed an x-ray was necessary because it showed a quantity of bone pieces in her gut. They were stuck there and this is why he said she needed to have them removed asap before further damage was done and because she had them since Friday. Unfortunately our dog wasn't insured and her whole treatment had gone into the thousands, however we didn't want her to die. We gave the vet to go ahead and to do the operation. Our whole family found it difficult to come to terms to what had happened to Luna. Children's Daddy had eventually confessed his mistake and learnt the hard way. He paid for her costly treatment, however we all helped.
Comments