Tommy hiding from thunderstorms in the van.

Stephanie and her sock

We bought some of these dog stocking to helpd protect her bad foot. Nothing seems to help much though.

Sphinx in the Grass

Bullet laying in the grass looking link the Sphinx.

Sunny day for the hounds

Stephanie and Bullet enjoy a nice warm June day.

Finally, Stephanie got some herbal cream on her foot. It was wrapped in gauze and I bought some Power Paw socks to cover her foot.

After the cold laser treatment, Stephanie got one acupuncture needle to help with the pain. She didn't even react to the procedure. She was very good about it.

Stephanie went to the vet today for a cold laser treatment on her foot. She had some corns removed on her toes and it became infected. She is on antibiotic and getting this treatment to help with the healing and pain.

Tommy still is having a problem with the IVD, but he is eating and taking care of his other business. We are waiting for it to resolve itself. His first evening with it was rough. He was very confused and restless. The next day he slept a lot and was more relaxed.

On May 21, 2012 Tommy started showing signs of Idiopathic Vestibular Disease (IVD). His sister Glow had this in 2008 and recovered after a few days. I noticed it when I took him for a walk with Bliss and Bullet. It started in the house as I hooked up the leashes, but I didn't realize it at first. As we walked, he would start to turn to the left and make a complete circle. The only time he walked straight is if an obstruction was on his left. When I meets a corner open to the left, he turns. If it is a hallway that deadends, he does a 180 deg turn to the left and follows the wall back. If the wall turns to the right, he does a 270 deg turn to the left.

Stephanie's x-rays

This is an x-ray of Stephanies hind legs showing the plate that gives her so much trouble.

Tommy gets some raw chicken legs for his birthday dinner.

Tommy had his 12th birthday on April 26. He is still healthy and goes on short walks with Bliss and Bullet. He is still getting his Anipryl, which seems to be doing a great job for him. The last time we weighed him he was a little over 61 lbs.

Tommy's weight

Last night we took Tommy to check his weight and discovered that he has remained at 62.2 lbs since his last check in December. He looks so thin we were afraid he was losing more weight. We continue to feed him whatever he will eat and he is still getting his Anipryl and low dose aspirin everyday.

Tommy circles before lying down

For the past few months Tommy has increased the numbers of times he circles before lying down. He starts to  lie down but acts as though his hind legs hurt or are too weak to let him go down then he stands back up.

Bullet still likes to run

Bullet still likes to run laps in the back yard. Bliss and Bullet will be 10 years old in January 2012. They both still have plenty of energy and are in good health. I was trying to catch him to clean off his feet, but he takes off running everytime I get close to him.

Christmas Day 2011

The weather was great on Chistmas day so we went for a walk. Tommy still manages a short walk. I drop him and Stephanie off at home and then take Bliss and Bullet out for a two mile walk around the park.

Tommy is losing weight

Tommy weighed 75 lbs when we got him in August 2005. We recently weighed him and he weighs 62.2 lbs. He gets anything he wants to eat, but he just doesn't eat very much.

Squirrel hunting

Bliss has been watching a squirrel from the front bedroom window and then ran into my office, which is adjacent, to keep tracking the squirrel as it ran down the side yard. I was surprised that she realized the spacial connection between what she saw in the front window and the window in my office. Bullet didn't seem to care.

Tommy is so thin

Tommy has lost a lot of weight and muscle in his hind legs. We give him anything he wants and he eats, but he doesn't seem to fill himself up and gain any weight. He weighs less than all of the other hounds at 63 lbs and he is the tallest. The Anipryl seems to be helping his CCD and he is acting more or less normal. Sometimes he seems to be a little confused, but it is not as serious as it was.

Skunk problem

A few days ago Tommy woke me up in the middle of the night to go outside. I let all of the hounds out as usual. I suddenly realized Bliss and Stephanie were chasing something and then I saw the skunk. I quickly called them inside after closing the gates to keep them in the family room. Bliss actually had the skunk in her mouth and got most of the spray. Stephanie got a slight amount. So I had to mix up the cleaning formula of baking soda, hydrogen peroxide and soap to clean up Bliss. For the next few days we were checking for skunks after dark to make sure it didn't happen again.