It's a Tripawds Life

Mom here,

I got a letter from the Rainbow Bridge today. It was from Chuy

In it he said:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dear Mom & Dad,

Remember Jennifer?
The lady that rescued me from the streets of Mexico.
She met me at the Rainbow Bridge today.
Dusty, my doggy girlfriend was with her.
Boy, it was good to see them again!

I am Happy,
I am Whole again,
I got my leg back first thing,
My hip joint is back too.
I can run,
I can play, sit, sit up pretty and
I can do all the things a dog with 4 legs can do now.

I don’t hurt anymore,
There is no more arthritis,
Degenerative Myleopathy, or phantom pain from my amputation or FHO surgery.
I am free!
I have wings!

I don’t want you to cry for me because I am gone, I am not.
I am in your heart and will always be there. Remember that.
You may miss me, but I will always be with you.
Thank you Mom & Dad, for giving me the best life a street dog could have asked for.

Licks, Wags and Husker Woos,
Your Chuy
p.s. Let Gretchen & Anka know that I will always be watching over them and waiting here at the Rainbow Bridge for them to play with me.

It’s been 9 months already? Wow, time flies when you are a lazy dog and the summer is too hot to go outside. I have been sleeping for at least 6 of the 9 months and starting to lose some weight.

The weight loss is due to both the DM and Mom! She says I’m fat, I say I’m pleasingly plump.
My front leg is hurting more each day, but it has been carrying most of my weight for 9 long years now and probably getting like an old Buick. Arthritis in the joints, glucosamine supplements for that. Adequan shots for the DM, it’s too bad they can’t make my regular dog food out of the stuff! Oh, and I’m on a Senior food now too. UGH! This getting old stuff is for the birds.

Speaking of birds, I sit (lay) on the porch in the mornings while mom has her coffee and we watch the doves, sparrows and whatever else happens to fly in, eat their breakfast in our backyard. Loving the cool weather now.
My back legs shake bad now. I can only stand up for a few minutes, unless I’m hopping around, then I’m o.k. (unless my front leg gives out). It only happens if I’m standing still. Mom says I’m twerking. She’s silly, but that’s o.k.

I’m still happy and not in a lot of pain, just that old Uncle Arthur stuff. Rimadyl helps, some days, Tramadol others and nothing on others.
I will be back again. Dad & Mom know that my time with them may be coming to a close. We shall see about that. I have proven them wrong before, maybe I can do it again!
Keep hopping my furriends!

Mom took me to the vetman again! Boy, she must think I really like this guy, cuz she sure takes me there a lot lately. They stole some of my blood, stuck me with a needle and said they were replacing it with something called Adequan. I don’t believe them though. Then they gave me another shot that made me really, really sleepy. The next thing I knew I was waking up and Mom was back to get me.

We found out that the Legg Calve Perthes disease is gone! Yay!!!! That is the good news. I always like good news……

The bad news is that every joint in all 3 of my legs is riddled with Arthur Itis. I don’t know who this guy is, but I want him to leave and leave now! I also have what they called bone spurs. I’m not a horse, I’m a dog! Why do I need spurs? Then they said I have hip dysplasia in my right hip, that’s the one with the joint.

Now I’ve been on Duralactin, Rimadyl and now had 2 Adequan shots. I don’t even feel like walking lately. Today (Wed.) I feel like a dog…….

Is this what the hoomans call the downhill slide? Dr. Sam (I really lick this dude!), tells me that my one and only front elbow is starting to give out. Hooman mom told him I am having trouble getting up on my own and when I do get up, sometimes, my front leg gives out and I fall on my face. I think I’m just drunk with LUV!!!

Harumph!!!! My elbow is hot, swollen and stiff. My right rear leg is stiff and the knee is bone on bone. The left rear leg is in better shape and that one doesn’t have a hip joint! Wut’s goin’ on?

Now I understand I have had Legg Calve Perthes disease since I was knee high to a grasshopper, then something terrible happened when I was a taco stealing pup in Mexico and I lost my left front leg. Bad enough all that happened but then at the ripe old age of 1 1/2, I fractured my femur on my left rear leg and had FHO surgery. Mom had fun with me then, you know, a 2 legged dog! Bwahahaha! I leaned on her for everything. Then last year Dr. Sam said I have Degenerative Myleopathy to top everything else off. Well, I say ENOUGH!!!!

Today is ENOUGH!!!! We started Adequan injections, have Duralaction chewables on autoship from Chewy.com and started Rimadyl. I get to visit my BFF Dr. Sam every week for 6 weeks and then every other month for my Adequan. It will be fun, I get to go for a ride!! Stick my head out the window, make nose art, bark at the motorcycles. The girls at Dr. Sam’s give me lots of pets & hugs. Mom puts me in my Help-’em-up harness and, my sis-furs Gretchen & Anka get all jealous cuz they have to stay home.

So that’s the update. Stay cool pups & peeps! I’ll keep ya posted.

Chuy went to the vet on Tuesday 6/29/16 for his annual check up. Other than his missing left front leg, the missing left rear hip joint, the Legg Calve Perthes Diseases, he is fairly healthy. Only one new thing for our dear boy. It is official that he has been diagnosed with DM, (Canine degenerative myelopathy). The vet did a few neurological tests on him after I told him how Chuy tends to fall down alot and how he crosses his back legs when he is laying down, (the bottom one over the top one). Chuy has been doing this for about a year now and I had a feeling it was DM but figured we would just wait as there is no treatment or cure for it. Last year we thought this may be what it was, but things have gotten worse. I can’t believe this, he has been such a trooper throughout his life. I am grateful he has been a part of ours as he truly has been a gift to us. We can only hope to have a few more years with our sweet 8 yr. old boy.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hey everyone! I got to go see my favorite vet Dr. Sam on Tues. He’s an awesome guy and I just Love, Love, Love him! I did really good while I was there. He checked me from head to toe and top to bottom. Gave me all of my vaccines and told mom that I’m doing pretty good for an old dude.

There were a couple of things that weren’t so good though.

First: I gained 20 pounds in the last year. Mom says it’s because I have become really lazy and don’t want to walk or play anymore. Dr. Sam did some bloodwork to check me out and see if maybe my thyroid was messing with me. It’s not. So, I’m on a diet to lose some weight.

Second: The vet thinks I have Canine degenerative myelopathy. My back legs are getting weaker, I am losing motion in them and the muscle mass is disappearing. I also cross my legs when I lay down. There is no cure for it, but vitamin supplements and exercise may slow it down. So, Mom says I have to be a good boy and go out in the mornings when it is still cool outside and walk with her. Most of what the vet told her and what she has read about this says I should be o.k. for another 2-3 years. I’m o.k. with that, I’ve had a good life here. As a matter of fact, I have had a grrrrreat life!

Mom & Dad also told me that they won’t do anything to make me uncomfortable when my time comes. But they will do everything to keep me comfortable for as long as possible. I sure do Love them.

Well, I’m off to walk around the yard for a bit.

Bark at you all later!!!
Chuy

Summertime in Arizona sure is hot! 114 degrees today, so I stay inside most of the time, unless I have to potty. Mom and I sit on the porch in the mornings. We watch the birds while mom drinks her coffee. My sisfurs Gretchen & Anka play in the yard or just lay around and enjoy the cool sunshine.

Today, momma gave us all a bath. She thought it would help get some of the fur of us. Boy was she wrong! Now we are really shedding!!! My sisfur Gretchen has big puffs of fur coming out even though mom has brushed her several times. Anka is shedding, but not as bad and I just love to be brushed but if momma brings out the vacuum…..Look out!!! I am all over that thing. I just want to be vacuumed and get the fur sucked off me. Daddy thinks I’m crazy, but it gets more fur than any brush ever did.

We don’t go for walks very often right now for a few reasons. 1. Mom has a bad knee and can’t walk very far any more. 2. She has to make 2 trips, 1 with me and 1 with my sisfurs. 3. The sidewalks get so hot here right now, you can cook an egg on them. So instead of walks, we play in the house where it is cool. We roll a ball around or play tug of war with toys.

Well, that’s about it for now. I’m still hoppin’ around and staying healthy. I do trip once in a while which makes mom nervous cuz I fall on my face, but hey, I’m a clumsy guy. What does she expect? Heehee!

Hey all!  It’s been a few years and we’ve been very busy here.  Mom was volunteering for a local no-kill shelter up until this past spring when she hurt her shoulder.  She had to quit when that happened.  Don’t worry, mom is o.k., the doctor did some minor surgery on it in September and she is almost back to normal now.  (whatever normal is!)

Things here are good.  I still sit pretty for mom when she asks me to even though I don’t have that hip joint in my left hip anymore.  I chase my sisters around the yard alot too!  They like to play with me, but I do get tired easily now.

I also fall down more often now.  My front leg seems to give out on me more often the older I get.  The vetman says I have arthritis real bad in it now.  I take glucosamine for it, but it only helps a little bit.  My leg bothers me more if it is cold or rainy here.  Mom got me a new bed with memory gel foam in it which I really like alot!  My favorite thing to do is nap!  My kitty brothers & sisters like to nap with me on the sofa too.

Here I am in my new vest mom had made for me.  My sister Anka is wearing a harness dress.

Still smiling as always.

Chuy

I know, I know, we haven’t been around in a long time.  This year has been one hectic, busy year for us.  So far we’ve fostered 12 kittens and 1 cat for the local shelter.  We would foster dogs, but my sisfur Gretchen is pretty picky about other dogs coming into the house.  So far 9 of the kittens have found forever homes.  One of the foster kittens is a Tripawd, her name is Maya.  She is so adorable and independent and playful too.  She was born with the lower part of her right rear leg missing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Unfortunately 1 went to the Rainbow Bridge.  The vetman said it had “Fading Kitten Syndrome”.  So we are still taking care of 2 kittens and the CAT!!!  Mom volunteers 2 days a week at the shelter now too.

It’s hot here, so hot you can fry eggs on the sidewalk.  That means no walkies for the 3 dogs in the house.  Mom got us a small pool to cool off in when we go out in the yard.  She donated my big pool to the shelter for all the dogs there because we wouldn’t go in it anymore. We really like splashing around in the little pool and it makes a great water bowl too.  I had to get a haircut too, they shaved me down to 1/2 inch just to keep me cool.  We’re looking forward to the cool winter weather though, that’s when we get to go to the park and walk around again.  It should only be another month or so…..Come on October!!!  It can’t get here soon enough for me.

As a Tripawd, I’m doing fine.  Had to go to see the orthopedic vet again because I was limping.  He says I have arthritis in my front leg already.  Geez…I’m only gonna be 4 yrs. old.  One of the hazards of carrying 60% of your weight on your front legs I guess.  I have to take glucosamine now and Rimadyl if I need it.  Mom only gives me the Rimadyl once in a while.  I think I’ve had it 2 or3 times since my visit to the vet last May.  Not bad for a stiff old guy huh?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Well, that’s about all for now.  Just keeping busy with the kitties and the shelter work, trying to stay cool.  Hope you all are staying cool too!

Licks & Wags!

My sister Gretchen does not, I said NOT have the nasty C word!!! That was cause for a small celebration here, so mom got out the chicken jerky and we each got 2 pieces. Unfortunately we had already drank all the Bowser Beer, so we didn’t have anything to wash down the jerky with except water.

The vet is still trying to figure out what is going on with Gretchens blood work though. The next step is to wait 3 months and do another round of testing and see what happens. 3 months?! Oh my!! In the meantime, we just keep an eye on her, (guess we’ll have to use one of Anka’s, cuz i’m not giving up mine) and make sure she’s doing o.k.

I on the other hand am doing Grrrrreat! My friend RaRa the Husky from Laramie, WY put me on his website! I’m getting famous all over the internet. RaRa met Calpurnia at a sled dog race last year. He thought she was as awesome as she was beautiful. He even has pictures of her on his MySpace page.

Well, just wanted to update you all on my sister mostly. Mom is still worried about her, but not as much as she was before.

Husky hugs, Newfie nuzzles and Chow Chow licks to all!