changing it up

If you're one of the unlucky souls who have managed to endure me over the past (almost) three years, maybe you remember this? Well, I lied to you. Sort of.

You can now find my witty and awesome opinions on life, love and Indy over here. That's http://sierralifeandtimes.blogspot.com for those of you Internet inept folks. Just a slight change to my URL, but everything else remains the same. So, if you would be so kind, update those Google Readers and Feed Burners and Bookmarks and whatever else the kids are into these days. I figure this will really weed out the non-believers.

And, I absolutely promise that I will be posting pictures and stories and the like about the new house. Remember? The new house that I think of with every waking moment and then dream about all night? Yeah, that new house!

Indy's Halfway Point

Indy is doing really, really well. So well, in fact, that it's easy to forget that she's still only four weeks out from surgery. Yes, four weeks, which means that we've reached the halfway point of the eight week lockdown recovery period. We are all counting down the days until we can run around and play like we did last year. It's going to be great.

Also this week, Indy started her physical therapy sessions. We initially planned on doing a session once a week for the next six weeks or so. However, the therapist, Amy, thinks she's already doing really well and that we may not need the full six and could probably do with four sessions. We'll just play it by ear and see how she does.

In these sessions, Amy puts Indy on a treadmill in a tank of water. And then it's mush, puppy! The water is warm and provides excellent resistance for building up strength in Indy's leg. Matt was able to capture a short video of the session before Indy completely lost it and decided that this was NOT for her and Matt volunteered to leave. We are hoping future sessions go a little better and that Indy learns to enjoy doing this.

May I Have Your Attention, Please?

Oh, hi there. You may or may not have seen some rumors floating around the interwebs. Well, I am here to tell you that the rumors are true.

After the 21st, we'll be calling this place home. We are over-the-moon excited!

indy: postop week three underway

It's hard to believe that it's already been two weeks since Indy's surgery, but it has. She was pretty miserable the first few days (as were we). We struggled that first weekend with her whimpering, not knowing if she was in pain or having a reaction to her pain meds (which, ironically enough, make her react the same way she would if she were in pain). After a few calls to the vet for reassurance, we relaxed a little and felt like acceptable doggy parents for giving her pain meds twice a day. We didn't want to drug her out, but we also figured that we'd rather she sleep than suffer through pain. After all, she HAD just had the bone in her leg sawed in half, so chances were it really was pain she was experiencing.

We just kept telling her that every day would be better than the day before and while she probably didn't understand what we were saying, we said it for our own benefit too. As I mentioned, we're camping out on the floor with her and it's been really tough on us. The entire couch has slowly been deconstructed as the cushions are being moved to the floor and we have a very interesting fort of pillows and blankets set up in the living room. It's every small child's dream, I suppose.

Indy never grew to like her cone and actually escaped from it the first day that we had to leave her. Again, this surprises no one but did lead to a frantic call to the vet to find out if she could have done much damage infection-wise. Since her leg was still bandaged and the bandage was just as we'd left it, they assured us that she was probably fine.

Today, two weeks out from her surgery, she had her staples removed. Her incision looks really good, if I do say so myself. Now that she's staple free, she also gets to drop the e collar like it's hot. Two weeks also means that she gets to start in on some light activity. This mainly means that she gets to take a five minute walk twice a day. But, compared to what she's gotten the past two weeks, I'm guessing she'll take it. And, in keeping with our "mantra", each day will get better than the day before. In two weeks, we'll get to slowly start increasing her activity time. And increase it again in another two weeks. And then again and again and again.

Now that we are two weeks out we are also starting Indy in a physical rehabilitation program.This was recommended by our surgeon as something that will help her heal. At this point, we have two main goals: 1. to make sure that Indy recovers fully from her surgery so that we do not have to go through this again and 2. to make sure that Indy does not rely so much on her other leg that she injures that leg and needs surgery. So, if the rehab program helps with one of these two goals, we are all for it. Plus, when people have a knee replacement, they go through physical therapy, right? Why should our dog be any different?

So, that's where we're at. I won't say these two weeks have been easy, but they've been easier than I anticipated. Indy really bounced back very quickly from the surgery and I'm really impressed at how well she's doing. She is already putting more weight on her leg than she was before we had the surgery, so that must mean she's feeling better. While she seemed like she was in pain at times, she never seemed like it was overwhelming. Now, I know she was in pain, but I was expecting it to be really, really bad. Maybe she has a really high pain threshold like her mama? Or, maybe the drugs were the right "balance"? Either way, we have been pleasantly surprised at how well things have gone thus far. And, since every day will be better than the day before, it's only getting better from here on out.

oh my word!

So, I was just browsing around craigslist because that's what I like to do. And, I just cannot get over how many people take pictures of their stuff in a house that is such a disaster. Sure, I understand not everyone's home is as neat as a pin (mine certainly is NOT). But, come on. You're taking pictures of your stuff to sell. How am I to determine whether I want your white painted dresser when I can't get past the pair of underwear laying on the carpet in front of it?

I always catch myself studying people's photos (on blogs, on craigslist, in the news...you give me a picture and I'm studying it) to see what is going on in the background. And, time and time again, I just cannot get over it. Like I've said, I'm a messy not as neat of a person as others. But, since I study others' photos, I am so self conscious of taking my own. I make super sure that I don't have anything too revealing (you won't ever see my underoos on the floor in front of my dresser!) peeking out in some of the pictures.

But, seriously. Some of these CL pictures are just too much (and that isn't even speaking to the stuff some people try to sell--that's a different post for a different day). I don't kid. Pictures with pets, pictures with clothes, pictures of unmade beds, kids making faces in a mirror.... Unreal. But, always good for a laugh.

indy: postop days 1 and 2

After getting past the emotional roller coaster involved in Indy's surgery, we got to pick her up Thursday night. She could not WAIT to get out of there and practically dragged us out of the building and to the car, barely stopping to potty along the way. So, really, Indy? Guess you didn't like your stay then?

We have had her home for just about two days now and we are all doing just fine. We spend our time in one of two "camp out" locations in the house: the living room floor or the bedroom floor. Matt had the genius idea of attaching her leash to the entertainment center in the living room to keep her from jumping up on the couch (her favorite spot). In the bedroom, we took our bed down and we are sleeping on the mattress on the floor. Either way, we've got a rockin' floor party going on in either location. I know you're jealous. Shoot.

Baby girl does a lot of sleeping, because, well, what else is she supposed to do when we don't let her move and force her to lay down twenty four seven? She came home with strict instruction that she is not to use her leg. She can go outside just to do her business and then must come right back inside (sorry baby, no sniffs!).We have a "thing" (technical term, of course) to help get her outside and while she is definitely frustrated that she can't run around, she really doesn't mind taking it slow and coming right back in. We will have to restrict her like this for the next two weeks. After that, she will get her staples out and she will get to start going on some VERY short walks. She'll also begin some physical rehab, which, hopefully, will help her get her strength back. We'll really do everything that we can at this point to prevent us having to end up back in surgery for this leg OR the other leg.

She is on some pretty wicked pain meds. One is a patch on her butt that will come off in a few days and the other is basically morphine which she gets "as needed" and comes with some pretty wild side effects. Basically, she'll be tripping mad balls. So far, she hasn't seemed to be in much pain though, which is good. The fun part is guessing whether she is experiencing pain or a side effect from the patch, as they carry the same symptoms. Either way, she seems to be okay. Between the patch and our icing her leg a few times a day, everything seems to be pretty hunky dory for baby girl.

She also gets to wear a cone! She LOATHES this thing and us for making her wear it. But, since she's a licker and it will keep us home and not back in surgery or on more drugs, she'll be wearing it. We're to the point now where she only wears it at night and when we can't be right next to her. Otherwise, we're right here, watching her like a hawk closely monitoring her activity (which, who are we fooling? it's sleep) to keep her from licking.

A few noteworthy points:

* When we picked Indy up, they informed us she was wearing a cone. They also mentioned she was VERY good at getting out of said cone and that they had to develop and implement an elaborate tie system to keep it on her. This surprises no one in our family. Indy? Can wriggle out of and/or escape from something? Shocking.

* I expected that she would be shaved, but not like this. Not only is her butt completely bare (to accommodate her above mentioned patch), but so is her rear leg and her front legs. She looks like she's wearing socks on the front and like a blind person shaved her rear. Such a hackjob. I can tell she's self conscious about being all "exposed" though, so I try not to draw attention to it.

* And, speaking of her patch. We are not to let any small children lick it, apparently. Whew, that was close!

* We have a baby gate set up at the top of our stairs to keep her up there, which I am fondly referring to as my nemesis. It's supposed to be a really simple, one-handed release. I beg to differ. Who knew something so simple in theory could be such a brain buster? After a few tutorials from Matt, I still don't understand how to operate it and have taken to simply stepping over it. Good riddance!

* Yesterday, Indy decided she only wanted to hang out in our bedroom, on our bed. I was bringing a few necessities (iPhones, computers, snacks and water) upstairs. Since my hands were full and the baby gate takes ten hands to operate, I was going to drop everything in the room and go back to set it up. At this very moment, Indy decided that she had had enough already, looked at us both and said "screw you guys! Peace out!" and made a break for the stairs. This promptly sent both Matt and me into cardiac arrest.

* I've mentioned we're hanging out on the floor. Did I mention that our floors are all hardwood? News flash: hanging out on hardwood floors for two days straight will do a number on your back. I promise. We have some camp chairs set up in the living room, but those can only help so much. And, wait. Indy is taking up an entire half of the bed. This, in turn, means that Matt has taken to sleeping on the floor. The hardwood floor. He is using a camping pad, but, again, that is only doing so much. I never thought I'd want to sit in my uncomfortable work chair so badly, but I'm kinda sorta looking forward to being back at work on Monday just so that I can sit in a normal chair.

So, anyway. We are all doing just fine and taking it slow. It's actually really nice to have all three of us home with nothing to do. Matt even got a chance to organize his sock drawer yesterday! I snuck out of the house for a little while to go for a run today. It certainly felt good to stretch my legs. Since the weather was so nice here, we also decided to move our floor party out into the grass for a little while and laid down some towels for Indy to lay on. I think she really enjoyed being outside, but was likely frustrated that that was the extent of what she was allowed to do out there. But, I think she's getting used to not being able to do much right now.

We just keep telling her that every day will be better than the day before and eventually she'll be all better. She just stares at me when I tell her that. I imagine she's thinking "YEAH RIGHT, MOM! I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU DID THIS TO ME! YOU ARE SUCH A JERK!" Sigh. Teenagers.

indy: the surgery

We spent the days leading up to Indy's surgery prepping our house and trying to think of everything we might need to do to make this entire process easier on everyone involved. We had no idea what to expect, but we both felt much better about everything this time around than we did back in January. This time, we really felt like we were doing the right thing, whereas a few months ago, we were seriously second guessing our decision to have the surgery and were very hesitant to follow through. Now, we knew that we had given her leg a fair chance to heal itself and it hadn't. There was no longer that doubt of whether or not the surgery was necessary.

All week, we showered Indy with love and cuddles. Since her last meal needed to be 12 hours before her surgery, we made her an extra special dinner on Tuesday night. She got her regular Canidae with some soft food, beef sticks and bisteca (a.k.a. steak for those of you that aren't hip with our own freaky language).

Our appointment was scheduled for 9:00AM, so we tried to keep our routine as "normal" as possible. We didn't want to stress Indy out any more than necessary. When she realized that we were leaving and that she got to come with us, she was super excited. She trusts us implicitly and loves us unconditionally and she never ever, not in a million years, would have thought we were going to do anything bad to her. Poor baby.

We got to the clinic and started checking in. Up until this point, I had been able to hold myself together and I was surprisingly okay. Part of the check-in process is letting the facility and doctors know how you would like them to proceed, should something happen during the procedure. There were three options: do anything necessary to revive the animal, including administering CPR, use only medical intervention, but nothing invasive, or do not resuscitate. This was when I lost it. Of everything I had thought I'd considered, this one had never crossed my mind. Of course, I realize that there are risks associated with any surgery and that things do happen, but this totally took me by surprise.

After waiting for a little while, Indy was weighed (our little porker weighed in at 50 lbs! That's 10 pounds higher than she was before she was injured and adopted a sedentary lifestyle.) we were taken into an exam room and met with the nurse and our surgeon. This is probably where I should mention that our surgeon is pregnant. Like, so pregnant that if we didn't schedule Indy's surgery for this day, we would not be able to have the surgery with this doctor because she was going on maternity leave. So, anyway. They examined Indy, walked us through the surgery and answered any questions we had.

This was also when we found out that they would not be doing Indy's surgery right away that morning. While our appointment was for 9:00, that, apparently, did not mean that she would be having her surgery at 9:00. They told us that their schedule was determined based on how many animals they had in that day. I was a little disappointed at this news, as I didn't want to have to think of Indy sitting there, without us, waiting for something and stressing herself out. They assured us that she would be fine and offered to call us when they started the surgery. After they started, it would be about four hours until everything was finished and she was awake. She has a stuffed squirrel toy that she is absolutely in love with and we brought it with us for her to have throughout her stay. When it was time to say goodbye, Indy was in such good spirits. She was all smiles and I really lost it. Our sweet girl was so trusting and would never have suspected that we were doing anything to hurt her.

We both went off to work, expecting a call to let us know that they were going to start. I wish I could say that they called right away, but, unfortunately, they did not. If I'm being totally honest, I was really bothered by the fact that they weren't doing her surgery right away. When 4:00 rolled around and we still hadn't heard anything, Matt decided to call and check in. They told him that they were just about to call us and get started on Indy. I was slightly annoyed that they hadn't gotten to her yet, but happy that they were finally starting. We met some friends for dinner Wednesday night and while I NEVER keep my phone out at dinner, I left my phone on the table, expecting a call letting us know that they were through surgery. Dinner ended and we still had not received a call. I wasn't ready to start worrying quite yet and figured Indy was just taking a while to wake up from the anesthesia.

At 9:00, after not hearing anything, I started to worry. After debating for a split second whether or not I should call to check in, I picked up the phone. I spoke with the on-call doctor who told me that they had not started Indy's surgery yet! Our surgeon had a complication with the patient before Indy and that surgery took much longer than anticipated. This was when I completely lost it. My poor girl had been sitting there all day long for nothing (and was likely annoyed, as likely demonstrated by her pulling out her catheter). We could have kept her at home, fed her breakfast and taken her in later had we known she wouldn't be having her surgery until after 9:00 at night. Also, considering that our surgeon and her team had already been on their feet for 12 hours, we were slightly concerned over whether or not they'd be fresh enough to do the surgery. (AND, take into account how pregnant our surgeon was, I cannot imagine she was very comfortable at this point.) But, at least she had her squirrel--every time we called, we made sure to ask if she still had it. Since I was too much of an emotional mess at this point, Matt called back and spoke with our nurse. She assured him that this was a standard surgery day for the team and that they would be more than able to do Indy's surgery.

At around 11:30, our surgeon called to let us know that they were finished and that Indy was awake. She did just fine and there were no complications. She did have a full tear, not a partial like we had previously thought, and there was no way she would have been able to recover fully on her own. This definitely reassured us in our decision to have the surgery. And, our surgeon is a total champ--based out of Madison, after that horribly long day, she drove back home! While I was (and am) still really upset over how things played out the day of surgery, I was glad to hear that it was past us and that Indy did just fine.

Already on Thursday morning, we got a call saying that Indy was doing really well and that, barring any setbacks, we would be able to pick her up Thursday night!

Quick Pupdate

We didn't find out until late last night (and there is more to the
story that I will tell you) about Indy. The surgery went fine and when they called at 11:30, she was awake. She did have a full tear (not partial like we had thought) and she never would have been able to recover from that on her own.

They have to keep her at least 24 hours after the surgery and they didn't finish until around 11, so we probably won't go to get her until tomorrow morning.

It's so weird not having her here! :(

Thank you to everyone for thinking of us. It's been a rough 24 hours. 

- Posted from my iPhone

today is the day

Last night, we showered our girl, Indy, with love. She got a special dinner AND dessert and we even let her watch an extra hour of TV (just kidding on that last part). We spoiled her rotten because this morning, instead of following our normal routine, she'll be leaving the house with us. But, she won't be coming back home until tomorrow night at the earliest. Today, Indy is undergoing the TPLO surgery that we've put off for far too long.

Wish us luck!

change of plans (again)

Remember my dog, Indy? My dog, Indy, who injured herself last fall? My dog, Indy, who was scheduled for surgery in January? The same dog, Indy, who wowed the vet with her improvement and caused us to postpone her surgery? And, the same dog, Indy, who continued to improve causing us to think that we could completely take the surgery option off the table? Yes, that dog, Indy.

My dog, Indy, will be going in for surgery on Wednesday. Yes, Wednesday. Ok, hold up, right. Back up the bus (beep, beep, beep). We took the surgery option off the table because of her improvement, right? That's true. We did think we could eliminate surgery all together. She seemed to be improving and it was great. But, in the past two months, she has not improved at all.

She has not gotten worse, which is a good thing. But, we've been limiting her activity all of this time in the hopes that it would help her improve. After discussing it with our vet, we all agree that if she hasn't improved by now with the restricted activity that she's as good as she's going to get without surgery. It is not fair for her to stay in pain and continue to limp around if we can do something about it.

Over the past few weeks, we began discussing the need for surgery. Following a lengthy conversation with our vet, we feel better about our decisions and feel we are doing the right thing. We, of course, feel horribly about this. But, we also feel like we owed it to ourselves and to Indy to at least see if she could improve on her own. And, since she seemed to be doing great, we were really optimistic. Our surgeon assures us that she will be back to the level of activity (basically non-existent) that she is at currently within a few weeks. She is optimistic that Indy will have the ability to run and play at the lake, per her usual, this summer.

So, if you don't mind, keep baby girl in your thoughts on Wednesday. We won't get to pick her up until Thursday night, but I'll try to post an update on how she's doing when we know more.