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30 Sept 2016

End of September 2016 Already

Well Just cant believe where this summer has gone.  Its been very warm, I think I heard talk of getting my hair cut to cool me down, but it hasn't happened and I hope it doesn't.

My leg is so much better, I am off the pain killers and only take glucosamine and I am walking well and sometimes run a bit.  So it was just lots of rest that sorted it out, along with losing some weight as well, I am quite slim now.  I eat carrots instead of chew sticks, too much fat in them, and my daily dinner has been changed as well.

We have moved to a new house near the beach, we have great walks along the sea front almost every day.  The views are outstanding.





Helen has taken on the 10,000 steps a day for Cancer Research she is doing well.  She walks from her house to our house, or we meet up in the village. Today is her last day she has done so well. She has raised a lot of money for cancer research as well.
Well done Helen.

https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Helen-Boyle2016


Off for my tea now, hope to get some more blogging done soon.  I will tell you about our new caravan and how we spend our spare time.

19 Jun 2016

18 June 2016 I am feeling much better

Its been a strange and challenging few weeks. Mum and Dad have decided to downsize to a bungalow. No stairs will certainly be much better for me. My leg is feeling much better, I have been walking up to 4 miles a day, normally slow and gentle walks but much better than a few weeks ago.

We are staying in our caravan up in Northumberland, its called Riverside Park, and its very pretty, there are lots of walks, and lots of rabbits. There is also a swan called Harry who wonders all over the park looking for food. Its lovely up here, however the army seems to be training this week, and we can hear loud bangs going off quite a lot of the time, I don't really like the bangs. We are staying here until our furniture gets moved into our new house next week. Mum thinks its going to be a challenging time as we have to get rid of a lot of things as the house is much smaller than the old one, but it has a lovely sunny garden for me.

17 May 2016

17th May 2016 Ben is doing ok and so is Connor, after breaking his arm

We have been for several long walks this week, and Ben is doing pretty good.

When I say long walks, I mean about 2 kilometres which is not bad going as only a few weeks ago he could hardly stand up.

We are taking things easy, no running and chasing balls.  We don't want him to twist too fast and pull his leg again.  Stairs are banned unless we absolutely have to go up them.

Ben has started playing with his toys again, and he is generally back to his normal happy self again.

He will be taking the nutraquinn and the rimadyl for ever I expect. The vet thinks he will need the pain killers long term so that's what he will have.


Two painful limbs

Connor spent some time with us when he was recovering from a broken arm. He did this playing dodge ball at school, he slipped on the ball and went down on the concrete. OUCH he was in plaster for a few weeks but never complained once.

I think Ben and Connor were sympathising with each other.


Connor April 2016 OUCH !!!





9 May 2016

9th May and the back leg is still improving.

Great news is that Ben is still improving.  He is showing a little stiffness around his back legs, but the limp seems to have gone.

Yesterday we walked 3 kilometres round Holywell Dene.  We still keep him on the lead, so he doesn't take off after a rabbit or something, as that would not help.

He managed all the ups and downs of the walk with no problem.

His tablets are now reduced to 1 painkiller in the morning and half at night, and he is still on the nutraquinn supplement.

30 Apr 2016

Leg problems update 30th April 2016

Today 30th April 2016 Ben managed a walk around Seaton Sluice harbour.  He managed a good 2 kilometres.  We kept a slow pace, but let him have a good sniff around.

He is doing ok just a little sign of stiffness.  Hopefully if we keep on with gentle exercise and his tablets he will soon be fine.







19 Apr 2016

Leg problems Week 7 18th April 2016

Well we are into week 7 and Ben is doing ok.
We notice the occasional stiffness when he gets up and occasional limp but so far he is doing
well.
We just cant seem to shift the weight though, despite reducing treats and using a new food
Royal Canin for neutered dogs, which we are told will help to reduce his weight.
He is having regular short walks, never off the lead as we don't want him to take off after something and undo all the repairs to his leg.
He is very happy, he is playing with his toys, enjoys seeing his friends and enjoys human visitors to the house.






17 Apr 2016

Leg problems end of week 6

Ben had one evening where he showed signs of limping.
It lasted about 4 hours and we thought it was going to start all over again.
The next day it was gone and hasn't returned up to now.
He is doing very well again.

Keep it up Ben.  x

12 Apr 2016

Leg Problems Week 6, 11th April 2016

Ben is managing 15 min walks now and he has not shown any signs of limping for a good few days.
Keeping him calm and stopping him jumping about is a main priority, and as he improves he gets more and more active.

We are monitoring his drinking habits to help us check for any side effects from the tablets, and so far all is well.

Its been a very worrying few weeks, and we are not out of the woods yet, but we are going the right way. So pleased we took the advice of the website

http://www.tiggerpoz.com/id13.html

before we went rushing in with surgery.


7 Apr 2016

Leg problems, Week 5 - 6th April appointment with veterinary nurse

Visit to the veterinary nurse today, for weight management.

Ben has not lost any weight despite the reduction in treats.
So we are changing his diet to Royal Cannin adult food for neutered dogs

http://www.royalcanin.co.uk/products/dog/canine-veterinary-care-nutrition/neutered-adult-large-dog/

We started him on it this evening and he seems to enjoy it.  So fingers crossed this will help in his challenge to  lose some weight.

The nurse also said to stop the treats and give him bits of the main food instead so we will also  try that. We are cutting his dental sticks in half so he get one stick over the day instead of two as they are just full of fat and no nutrition.

The nurse also said it was ok to have 15 min walks at a gentle pace so this will help the weight as well as keep his muscles strong. He must stay on the lead though as if he sees a rabbit he will take off after it and then we will be back to square one.

4 Apr 2016

April 4th 2016 HAPPY BIRTHDAY

HAPPY 10TH BIRTHDAY BEN. 
Your a super dog we all love you loads xx

Leg Problems Week 5 Sunday 3rd April 2016

Ben has had a bad day today, his leg is obviously troubling him despite the tablets being given to him every morning as prescribed.

He is still happy to see people, but limping very badly. Its not nice at all to see  him like this so we are just spending lots of time giving cuddles and good massages.

He has an appointment to see the Vet Nurse on Wednesday afternoon.

31 Mar 2016

Leg problems Week Four - 31st March 2016

Great news that Ben is doing well on the rest he is getting.

He was recovering so well we decided he could have ten minutes outside for a sniff around the grassed areas nearby.

We kept him on the lead, just in case of passing rabbits or cats, he wouldn't be able to stop himself chasing them.

The walk was less than ten minutes, it was slow and peaceful and he seemed to enjoy it, just a good sniff around and a change of scenery..

Unfortunately back home, about an hour later he was obviously stiff and there were signs of a limp again, but not as bad as previously.

Today we will rest him and see how he gets on.


He is still on a diet, with close watch on treats and nibbles, but he doesn't seem to be losing any weight, a trip to the vet for a weigh in will tell us.

27 Mar 2016

Leg Problem Week Four Sunday 27th March 2016

This morning I came downstairs to find a happy dog, he didn't seem to struggle to get to his feet this morning.

He had his normal stroll round the garden and scoffed a good breakfast. 
Breakfast now is his own royal cannin adult dog food which he has been having for some years now.
The amount has been cut down, and we have added some carrots and broccoli to help him to lose weight, but not get too hungry  

  http://www.royalcanin.co.uk/products/


We have stopped his joint chew sticks, and replaced them with small biscuit nibbles, and continued with his dental sticks, small ones, twice a day. All in the hope to reduce some weight from him and help his legs.

We haven't had x-rays yet, as after reading advice and talking to the vet we should try giving him 8 weeks rest. The vet has increased his painkillers, and he is now on. Nutraquin, Which is a painkiller and anti-inflammatory

http://www.nutraquin.co.uk/

nutraquin and nutraquin+ can help to:

  • Aid stiff joints
  • Support joint structure
  • Improve mobility and flexibility
  • Improve your pet's quality of life by maintaining optimum joint health
  • Support the animals' natural systems that control inflammation


Ben is still taking his  Rimadyl,  Which the vet says should work well with the nutraquin.

https://www.rimadyl.com/Home


He is looking a lot better today and seems to be walking a lot better.  He will be on a strong dose for six weeks, and then we can reduce the dose.

Keeping him in the house for 8 weeks is like keeping a teenager indoors without access to the internet.


24 Mar 2016

Leg Problems, March 22nd 2016 pains or ACL / CCL Ligament Injuries

IN A FEW WEEKS BEN WILL BE 10 YEARS OLD. 
He is still just a big fluffy soft dog to us, with a lovely temperament and a big heart.


We took Ben back to the vet today, he is still limping on and off and struggling to get up at times. He isn't crying or whimpering at all, other than a little squeak comes from him occasionally but he is still keen to go out and loves to see visitors.

We are considering having some x-rays taken. Depending on what they show depends on the next step.  But even X-Rays mean that he must be sedated.

First thing to do is he must lose some weight, to take some of the pressure off the joints.
So those big amber eyes must be ignored.






We are being very strict with his food.  The days treats which are dental sticks and a few biscuits are now placed in a dish, that way we know just what he is taking and we don't give him any extra by mistake.  We are looking at changing his food for something more suitable for his diet and we are going to work with the veterinary nurse at vets4pets to manage his weight.

/http://www.vets4pets.com/find-a-practice/vets4pets-vets-in-north-tyneside/

We have started him on another painkiller, so he is now on increased  Rimidyl and now Nutraquinn both for pain and anti-inflammatory.

We have been talking to other people and looking into all the research we can find on information about lameness in dogs, particularly one Bens size.




  http://www.tiggerpoz.com/id13.html

Both have some very good information to think about before going down the route of surgery.

We have decided to wait at least 8 weeks with total rest, only garden walks.

The kitchen floor is going to be carpeted so that he cant slip and risk doing more damage

He is not allowed upstairs, stairs can cause problems on the way up and the way down.

Ben has settled in ok with this new routine, he is happy to mooch around in the lounge and kitchen and garden.

We are making sure he has plenty of attention and lots of cuddles and massages which can only help.




We just feel guilty about going out for a walk without him.





12 Mar 2016

March 2016, I am nearly 10 years old now.



Last week I got a sudden pain in my back leg, it was so hard to get up and down and just walk around. I just cant understand what the problem is, but it hurts a bit.

I have been to see the vet and she thinks its a ligament.  I was already on some rimadyl for painful joints but now I have tramadol as well.  They seem to be working, but the vet says I must rest and lose a bit of weight.  Mind the tablets make me very dozy, even more dopey and dozy than I was before.  I think its just an age thing.

I know my dinners have been cut down, and there aren't many treats on the go, so I hope I have lost some weight when I go back next week.

We are on the move again as well, Mum and Dad have sold the house and we are going to move closer to the sea, and into a bungalow.  Dad says none of us are not getting any younger and we need to downsize, and no stairs will be just what we need. I haven't seen the house yet, but they tell me it has a lovely big back garden, sounds perfect.