8.......... rehab update

Time doesn’t always fly. Actually, when u is aware of it – it goes by very slowly!

Check-up confirmed, with a “snapshot” – (an expensive word for a slightly less expensive x-ray - one without anaesthetic), - that all the nuts and bolts (3) were still in place, but a very high temp meant an infection somewhere. Back onto antibiotics. One stitch open and a shaving nick also means the scary collar stays on for a while longer.


A speedy visit to Sylvia to try on Chilly’s Back on Track mesh coat. Just choosing the correct size is too much for me. Borrowing a slightly too small one from Kath (Gugs’), so need one size up or maybe go even bigger? Decision, decisions, decisions; something I’m not good at when presented with too many options. It’s a huge amount of money; do I need to spend it? Does it really work?

Which reminds me about another decision I need to make? MediPet or PetSure. Talk about shutting the stable door once the horse has bolted! Anyone?

Dawn Jones, his rehab therapist, visits again and is very happy with his back – yay! Back on Track maybe? OK – I’m buying. www.backontrack-uk.co.uk has already been so patient with my queries and has even offered me a “no postage deal”.

Good massage session, with Mac enjoying it so much he’s almost standing on just 2 legs (if that’s possible). Just his wound is still yucky. Popped him into my local vet to have it checked but all seems OK. He (Dr Paul Burger) was so sweet; word must be out that I’m broke, he never charged me for the visit. We all know Cape Town is small and Hout Bay even smaller, but jeeps!!!

Although only 2 weeks since surgery;  it’s been a total of 4 weeks since “house arrest”;  I haven’t yet had to crate him. He is such a chilled BC and was already in the habit of lying under my desk while I worked. He’s just accepted that maybe I’m working more than usual but doesn’t grasp that it’s because I’ve put myself under house arrest too. I had started crate training him but still concerned that “force-crating” him could be detrimental to his state of mind which, has so far been brilliant as, depending on the circumstance (issue), he does still occasionally “shut down” and it always reminds me ………………….

Mac and Me

C’est la vie

7.......... remembering Amie

        

         25/11/2005 - 10/03/2008

                                                   

I will never forget the sight of you suckling Teddy when you were anxious or shy ….

I will never forget the sound of your tail hitting the floor every time you saw me walk by......

I will never forget the markings on your sweet face that made it look like you were always smiling......

I will never forget the way you used to irritate Emma when you kissed her each morning......

I will never forget you being so quiet I had to teach you to "talk”......

I will never forget your nudge just before 10 each night for your bedtime walk ...... or the nudge just before dawn when you couldn't hold it in any longer......

I will never forget the way you propped your legs up against the wall so that you would remain on your back while you slept......

I will never forget the way you bounced onto Tori in the mornings to wake her up …

I will never forget how you and Kit-Kat played together......

I will never forget how you wished weave poles would go on for ever and ever......

I will never forget you lying so close to my office chair that I would often remove some of your tail......

I will never forget the way you tested your tugging strength by trying to pull me off the couch......

I will never forget the way you ran straight to the tap after the beach hoping for a bit of water fun......

I will never forget the way you ignored Ascii's attention because it was with the Aussies you preferred to run......

I will never forget the way you used to play "chicken" with me wherever you found the space..... 

I will never forget the picture of you lying on the marble in front of the fireplace, the coolest place in the house.....

I will never forget Nikki teaching you "Emma's turn" for when you played and trained at the same time......

I will never forget how you tried to get every friendly dog to chase you......

I will never forget qualifying into Grade 3 within 8 months, an amazing race......

I will never forget the way you would to sit in the back of my car on the off chance that we might go someplace......

I will never forget the way you remembered and played with your sister Skye each time you met......

I will never forget how "tummy, tummy, tummy" calmed you down ….. I will never forget the dance we learned together, but unfortunately were not given the time to perform, the tune remains with me still......

I will never forget the absolute adoration you had for your Dad (he will always have the scars to remind us)......

I will never forget the fun we experienced on the course, how you jumped into my arms after each round......

I will never forget your enthusiasm and your gift for making me laugh......

I will never forget ...... the list is endless............ I will always remember............ 

Just Me

C’est la vie

6.......... Amie

.......... and then there was Amie (female friend) ..........
A dear little girl who loved and lived every minute of her short life to the fullest.

I introduced her parents to each other and was present at her birth - 25.11.2005. Second pick of the litter, the perfect choice for a dog that desperately wanted to work. A lively Border Collie with tiny black beady eyes (didn’t make for good photos). Emma managed to ignore this bundle of happiness but Amie didn’t care - nothing bothered her spirit. Her dad, Jazz held the 60-weave pole challenge at one time and it didn’t take her long to show the world that she was going to challenge his record!

By the time Amie was 18 months old - competing age- she was ready to impress. Being a tad short she started her KUSA career knocking as many bars as there were on a single course. She still managed to be overall Grade 1 winner at a KUSA championship show weekend in Port Elizabeth and qualify into Grade 2. Able to compete at a slightly lower height category in SADAA disciplines, she excelled. She was the fastest dog overall at SADAA Boland Regional Trials 2007, 3^rd overall Grade 2 dog and qualified into Jumping 3 over the same weekend - a week before she turned 2!

Not my usual pessimistic self, I saw us competing overseas one day.

2 months after her 2^nd birthday I noticed that her left eye was "bothering" her and the local vet referred her immediately to the eye specialist who pronounced that she was totally blind in that eye and it had to come out. A sad and costly wedding anniversary!

A week later the test results were back and I was given the devastating news:  the damage done was not due to trauma but “an opportunistic fungus” and in the tissue surrounding the eye; meaning it could re-occur elsewhere in the body - in time. She persevered with vet visits and more blood work for the next 10 days. With no definition/treatment for the actual fungus and knowing how much this bundle of energy wanted to work, I turned down trial treatment.

It was also around this time that Lindsay, Chantal and myself started Agility Academy.

3 weeks after losing her left eye Amie earned her first Jumping QC at SADAA WP Regionals!

I celebrated with tears knowing that no one knew how long she would still be around!

Exactly 2 weeks later I woke up before Amie - unusual enough for me to realise she wasn’t herself. The vet confirmed that the “bug” was in her bladder. They gave her something to perk her up to give us just 24 hours together.

It was the toughest day to get thru. Charlie came home to say goodbye to her;  Nicolette kept in touch from the UK and Victoria and Lindsay came to spend the day with us. She enjoyed a leisurely groom, did as many weave poles as she wanted, ate all the treats available in the house and then went to her to her second favourite place in this world - (an agility course being her ultimate favourite) - the beach.  And then I took her to the vet. It was the 10^th March, 2008.

Just me

C’est la vie

I think she would have rocked the agility world had she been given the time. She certainly made an impact in the time she was given.  Unfortunately a long life was not in the cards for her and she's gone to join her dad in weave pole heaven.

5.......... back to Mac, rehab

It's been a long week, a  v e r y  long week. Was easier to put myself under “house arrest” with Mac and catch up on financial year ends for clients. The weather certainly hasn't played along and there were some beautiful training days. The only “person” who really minded was Emma - does she not know what retirement means? Oh yes, that’s right: “long leisurely walks with Mom - what the heck happened to them”. I am now so ensconced in my daily routine; I even put on training pants today, after all who’s going to see me when I pop down to Shoprite? I certainly don’t do tea parties!

It took Mac 5 days before he put weight on his bionic leg and today was his first rehab session. Dawn Jones was in Hout Bay to treat horses, so bonus - she came to the house. Mac liked her immediately and loved the hour long session. I was reminded that we need to take rehab  s l o w l y. Still 3 more weeks of house arrest, a further 4 weeks of being on lead and then gradually build up stamina and strength going with his own comfort zone. 6 months before taking up agility was the number?

And so the routine will continue: up at 6am - snow gear on - alarm off - unlock and open door wide (so I don’t jam a leg of his when I carry him out) - take collar off - carry him outside - watch him wee - carry him back upstairs and into our room - collar back on - back into bed for that precious extra 10 mins. Once up and in the kitchen I put him onto the EMT mat. Once I’m at the computer he lies at my feet, collarless. Out for another wee mid-morning - collar back on – close him in study - dash to shop for bread and milk (not on water yet) - collar off - back to computer.

Bonus having an “accepting” Border Collie and one that only weighs 15 kg.

My back tells me the days might get longer. Thank goodness this isn’t a double storey house, a 2-step split level is enough. It took only 2 days for me to figure out that carrying him up the driveway to the cul-de-sac was not a good idea and that the 6 steps to my own lawn was a better option.

He has been so tolerant with this cumbersome collar. I downsized it so he could at least lift his head up and lie comfortably. When he’s in eyesight, I leave it off. A grunt from me stops any licking of the stitches. He has taken to lying at Charlie’s feet;  very out of character, him being a man, but then if he lies at my feet, I might put the dreaded noose back around his neck! Having Chantal and her “girls” to visit  when I had to go out on Mother’s Day outing was the hi-light of his week - both of them:  Mac having visitors and Charlie having a wife able to go out on a Sunday. I don’t think it would sit well if I had replaced competing time with injury time.

Best he makes the most of my downtime - I'll be back on the course some day!

Mac and Me

C’est la vie

4.......... Emma

To begin Mac’s story I have to start at the VERY beginning and introduce Emma. This is a dog who will happily nudge ahead of you while you’re greeting new guests and introduce herself (vocally). “You can play with me … throw the ball, throw the ball.”

An “Empty nest syndrome dog”, all of R250 from nowhere really. Date of birth 20/01/1997. Being a “bit’ (just a bit) of a control freak I decided on a Border Collie because I wanted to train obedience. Cape Province Dog Club became our training ground for many years. Emma competed in obedience with ease and grace, did well at Field Trials and Fly Ball and then concentrated on agility and jumping. (This is also where I met Lindsay, my agility partner and also trained to be an agility trainer). Training was very different at that time and Emma was known as a “Velcro dog”. She never took an obstacle without being told; “Not the dog’s fault” was never more obvious. Emma does not consider herself to be a “canine-dog” but rather a “people-dog”. Preferring adult or children company, she is aloof and does not even acknowledge other dogs. Ascii, Lindsay’s GSD adored her but she didn’t give the poor boy the slightest recognition. Because of her “people skills”, Animal Tails gave her various modelling opportunities and she featured as the hero dog in The Story of an African Farm. Her agility career was steady and consistent. She won overalls and placed in the top 3 a few times at SADAA Regionals. She earned her KUSA Western Province Agility colours when she was 10. My highlight of her career was most likely her final run when I had decided it was to be her last competition and she won it to make her a dual KUSA Champion.

(Yesterday Emma managed her 3^rd CC in non-contact agility to make her the first NC Agility Champion in WP. Well done to Debbie, who manages to keep up with Emma sometimes. Emma has been trying to get Debbie to championship status, before retiring. But some humans are just more difficult to train than others - notice local website).

She was 11 years old!

Miss Priss has always behaved herself and is and has been an extremely easy Border Collie to have around. Emma is now 15 and a half years old. Hand signals learned while making the movie are now a bonus because she is stone deaf. Her eyesight is fading but her sense of smell is still totally intact and she retains her reputation to ferret out any unattended treats. The bane of her life is laminated flooring and her ultimate embarrassment because she has to wear sticky paws. She still doesn’t give any dog the time of day – not

even Mac!

Just Me

C’est la vie

3.......... post-op

During his pre-surgery house arrest, I started seriously crate training Mac – not just busking it!   With his fear of “metal”; we surmise from being caged for the first 7 months of his life ……… and maybe having the door slammed on him ……….. and ruining his teeth from chewing on the metal, this was always one of his “issues”.

On the other hand, having a “biddable” nature, i.e. doing what he was told to do whether he wanted to or not, he would always go in on command but immediately leave it if the door was left open. This continued during this 2 weeks session even with the best rewards, sometimes even refusing when he felt pressurised.

On his return home from surgery I put him on a TMT mat (leant to me by Lorna) next to his crate (with the door open). Within 10 minutes, I watched him hobble and fall into the crate where he slept for the next 2 hours. He had conquered the crate and accepted it as a safe place. Yay Mac-a-Doodle!

During the day he slowly started being more alert which meant collar time. Someone needs to invent something more comfortable and less scary than this thing. Victorian Collar, means exactly that, Victorian Ages! Needless to say, Mac was terrified by the noise while I put it on and being doff about how to go about it didn’t help. He very quickly “shut down” and couldn’t even wee when I took him out as he kept his head so low it dug into the ground. To add to his discomfort, this particular one has pink paw prints on it and he keeps trying to “get away from them”.

Marinette to the rescue; leave it off while weeing and while he was in my eye sight. Now if he turns to lick his wound, he gets an Oi! and stops immediately – so biddable!

It’s now bedtime and I am going to have to put it on him for the night as he sleeps in the closed study, (why? that’s yet another blog) and I can’t watch him in the dark.

Mac and Me
C’est-La-Vie

2.......... pre-op

For 4 weeks Mac was lame on his right hind leg after resting. Never after competing but rather following an exuberant forest romp or ball chase. Looked like a cramp which was “cured” with a warm up stretch and a rub.

After one particular hectic forest romp, I was uneasy with the "cramping" and took him to our local vet. Suspecting hip dysplasia, x-rays were the only alternative.

20th April. D-Day (definitely felt like doom day). Mac's x-rays revealed a "partial cranial cruciate (r) stifle. Treatment plan: 4 - 6 weeks rest, hydro rehab and on lead! Being the ultimate drama queen, I went to pieces and crying was my favourite past time for the next 2 weeks.

How was I going to cope without being able to compete? My life was never going to be the same again! Now I knew what my husband was going thru, trying to retire, but with nothing to do when he did (another blog maybe?)

The hydro therapist advised a 10 min walk/day for the first week and then a 15 min/day walk the next week. On lead, (which meant no herding cars - a separate blog)? It was also suggested that I bulk him up a bit and add protein to his diet.  Being so skinny, (yet another blog), this was a good idea.

The next 2 weeks were so boring they were exhausting. Lindsay must have felt it too as she never stopped telling me "to buck up; remember how he was when u got him; look what you’ve accomplished already; don’t give up"; and so on, and so on.

I did "buck up" and started questioning other professionals which prompted a 2^nd opinion from Dr Michael Grey at Panorama Clinic. This was a very different opinion to that of my local vet, (one that was more than expensive than resting!)

4^th May. This “news” was a birthday shocker which was compounded with my car packing up. I braved a birthday dinner that my family had organised and close “doggy” friends helped me through some soul searching and realising Mac’s current quality of life, knew I was making a decision. Monday prompted a 3^rd professional opinion and lengthy conversations with a professional canine physiotherapist, Marinette Teeling and a handler whose dog had had the same surgery and picked up competing many months later.

My gut feeling was confirmed. Surgery was the best solution and asap.

Mac and Me
C’est-La-Vie

1.......... surgery

After 2 weeks of tears, re-searching, 2^nd and 3^rd opinions and many, many telephone calls; Mac had cruciate surgery yesterday. (Tuesday 8th May 2012). (TPLO).

I have had tremendous support from family and close friends;  Lorna, Chantal, Marlize, Annaret, Jean and Marinette who has been amazing with professional advice. Thank u also to fellow handlers and acquaintances who knew what was happening and kept in touch along the way.

Lindsay, especially, has been relentless in keeping me positive since the day I got Mac and is again tirelessly keeping my spirits up by reminding me again and again how far we have come. Thank u for friend!

I don’t know if we will ever compete again, but hey ………… I was told to consider putting him down soon after I got him.

That was almost 4 years ago, and one day, who knows …………………….

Thank u for listening

Mac and Me
C’est-La-Vie

House arrest will continue for the next 4 weeks and if anyone is interested in his progress, please keep in touch.