8/25/2010 A Serisously Spoiled Puppy

I'm the one who gets up with Jack every morning, Brian sleeps in. So I take Jack out to take care of business then I feed him. This particular morning, I made his food as usual; a cup of Diamond dry food and both Royal Canin and Innova Stew wet food and his anti-inflammatory pill at the very top. He waits so patiently for me to finish and stays sitting until I put his bowl down, then he normally goes to town on his food. Well, this morning he began to eat, stopped, sat down and looked at me.

"Finish eating Jack"


[blank stare]


"Jackson, it's so yummy look..."

I then proceed to pick up a little bit of food and show him. Well he had no problem eating it from my hand. So I showed him that the food was in fact the same as in the bowl. He again sat down, looked at the bowl and then nudged my hand!





Really?!?!?!





Fine. I hand fed him every last slimy morsel, and then he was totally satisfied. What a brat!

(This isn't from this morning, but from that first week we got him home. I didn't mind - I still don't really - feeding a malnutritioned and feeble puppy. Aside from his hip thing though, Jack's pretty healthy, just spoiled I guess!)

I had to work today, but before I went to work I wanted to spend some QT with my boys (but mainly Jack!)


He was being so sweet, so I asked Brian if he cold take a few pictures. Notice the progression of Jackson trying to eat my hand off.

He kinda looks like a mad shark!

Well I left a little early and went to PetCo to pick up some things for my baby ( so hopefully I can redirect his attention and keep my hand?) What did I get? Organic puppy treats, salmon oil to mix into his food (it's really great for their skin and coat - especially the Blue Pit Bulls since they're prone to having skin issues) a tug toy, a bouncy ball he (hopefully) can't destroy and a bully stick to chew on. By the way, do you know what a Bully Stick is?!?! Some of you are thinking, not sure what it even is. Well I normally just call it a raw hide stick, maybe now you know what I'm talking about? Yeah?

It's a dried COW PENIS!!!

What in the what?! Jack loves it too! What a hooker.

Yeah so that's what a spoil my puppy with; cow pizzle. Fantastic.

8/24/2010 A Walk at Royal Palms

So Dr. Leeds, Jack's surgeon, told us to walk Jackson for about 15 minutes a day. He said "I know he can only put partial weight but any weight and walking would do him good since he already has muscle atrophy in his right leg"

So we took him for a walk.

There is this adorable little park on the beach called Royal Palms. You can park on the street and walk down a huge hill, so that's what we did, although I carried Jack most of the way down (and all of the way back up!) Once we were down there it was so pretty! Being a New York girl I still can't get it through my thick head I live by the ocean. It's wild and I should probably take more advantage of it since I know I want to move back east some day. Well I took advantage of the beautiful morning and we went for a walk, or in Jackson's case a sideways stroll.

What a stud!



Mommy & Jack

"I don't wanna take any more pictures"

8/23/2010 A Day Off!

Finally! It's here! I got a day off! Well sorta. I had to drive and meet with my student teaching supervisor at Mt. St. Mary's in LA (which means I had to drop off Jack at doggy day care a.k.a. my in-laws house). Student teaching and my final semester is fast approaching and I feel like I'm suffocating! Freakin' stress. I get so crazed about school, work, Jack, Brian, and I never have any time for me!

Thank God I don't have (or want) any kids. I'd pull my friggin' hair out!

But, at the end of the day I get home and this is what makes me smile:

8/22/2010 My Puppy, My Neice, My Husband Oh My

Oy. It's been an exhausting week! Seriously, almost an entire week has gone by and I haven't had time to sit and write.

Well let me tell you about this crazy week.

My in-laws went on a mini vacay after the family vacay, so naturally, Brian and I watched the house and the dogs; and our niece. Here's what happened: hahahahahahahaha

Tuesday 8/17

I had to work today. We also had our niece today, my sister-in-law works Tuesday's, Wednesday's and Thursday's and normally my mother-in-law will take Avery Tuesday and Wednesday and I take her Thursday. Well since she's gone this week, Brian and I had her all three days.

Let me start by saying that I've been a nanny and taking care of kids for about 8 years now and my niece is probably the easiest kid I've ever watched. I'm not just saying that, for a nap, all you do is put her down with a pacifier and she goes to sleep. On her own. For 2+ hours!

That said, my husband has about as much experience with kids and toddlers as Sarah Palins' had with Kathy Griffin.

Brian picked her up at 7 AM and brought her back to the house. Me and Jack got up ate breakfast, fed the other dogs and fed Avery (don't worry, not the same things) We all hung out easy breezy and then I was off to work, leaving Brian with our niece and my puppy.

By the time I got home from work the living room looked like a tornado had run through it. Baby toys, dog toys a high chair with gold fish stuck together by yogurt and Brian laying on the couch as if he had been hit by a Mac Truck and Jack terrorizing the poor dying cat. I really really wish I had taken a picture.

I think we went to bed at 9:30 that night, getting ready to do it all again the next day.

Wednesday 8/18

Brian again went and picked up the munchkin, but this morning instead of staying up and being the babysitter, he got me up and he went back to sleep. Whoo hoo! Seriously, the best thing about my niece is that she totally understands me when I say "I'll color with you in 5 minutes. Titi needs her coffee"

Jack doesn't seem to understand me when I say those things. He also doesn't seem to understand me when I say "Leave Cloudy alone!" Just because the cat's on her way out, doesn't mean he needs to help her get there any faster!

Today went by painlessly, but Brian was no help today! Shocking.

Thursday 8/19

Big day. I got the baby at 7 AM, fed her breakfast and then headed to work. Yes, I said work, with my niece. I wasn't working at the store but I was subbing at Play School. Avery had a great time getting super dirty and painting and playing with all the kids. It was adorable to watch. While I like when I sub there and I love spending time with my niece, I miss my puppy!

I think Avery misses him too because she's always talking about him. She calls him "Jackie. Oh there he is. Silly Jackie" But imagine that she has a little French accent, (she's not French) but she totally calls his name as you would say Jacques. I love it.

Friday, Saturday, Sunday. Work, Work, Work.

I'm tired!

8/16/10 A Positive Follow-Up

Jack woke up this morning and for the first time did't yelp when he got up and has even been putting partial weight down on his right leg (yay!)

Today we had a follow-up visit with Jack's surgeon Dr. Leeds (who by the way, drives a bad-ass Jaguar with the license plate PET SRGN - awesome)
The visit was a positive one, and finally I'm beginning to feel happy and optomistic about Jackson's condition. When we walked in Dr. Leeds had 2 other vet's with him and they all reviewed Jack's file. Because my husband and I have such great communication skills, we didn't bring the x-ray's (which would have been beneficial) but they were able to work without them. Dr. Leeds said the Deramax (an anti-infalmmatory) that Jack has to take every morning appears to be working with him rather well.

Then Brian asked about surgery. Dr Leeds said that as long as the Deramax is working well for him we should try to put it off until he's at least 6 months (Jack's approx 4.5 months now) The reason being is because - get this - Pit Bull's are so amazingly resilient and regenerative that if we were to go ahead and do the surgery now, Jack could actually grow back the bone that's taken off! WTH?!?! The most important thing Dr Leeds pointed out was that Jackson doesn't seem to be in pain (at least much less so than when we first brought him in) and we can keep him on the anti-inflammitory until he gets a little bigger.

Oh talk about bigger. He's 18 pounds now, last week.... 15.75 pounds. What a fat boy!

So, the good news: Jack doesn't need surgery like, tomorrow. This gives us time to raise more money!
The not-so-good news: he already has some muscle atrophy in his right back leg and he'll need surgery eventually to ward off arthritis allowing him to live a happy healthy life!


I would like to personally thank all of those people who have donated to Jack's surgery so far. You are incredible and generous people and have literally brought tears to my eyes because of your kindness.

We're on our way to getting this surgery for my puppy! Please, pass this blog along to friends, family and fellow animal lovers, it's because of you guys Jack will be able to live a normal healthy life!

THANK YOU!

*Some Photos from our First Family Trip*

Even though Bass Lake was stressful (only when we found out Jackson had his hip problem) I loved being there. It was beautiful, serene, relaxing and best of all easy. I've been on 'go' mode for so long now that I almost didn't know how to just sit on a dock and take in the sun.



I was surrounded by the best in-laws (let's face it, they're my family, enough of this in-law crap) anyone could ask for; I love them all deeply as if they're all my own flesh and blood.



Here are some pictures of the amazing time we had...

He doesn't look too pleased

On the boat!

Jack at our first rest stop, so happy to have ice cold water from the nice people at Bravo Farms

I'm terrible, look at my poor puppy! Hahahahahaha

8/15/2010 A Full Night's Sleep

Last night was the first night Jackson slept the whole night, without getting up to use the bathroom once. Yay!



He did however wake up when he wriggled around because his hip hurt, and he yelped a little. My poor puppy.



On a positive note, Jack's looking so much healthier from when we first adopted him. His coat is silky soft and shiny, he's becoming muscular (albeit only up front because the use of his hind legs is demanding on his front ones) and I swear he's pretty much doubled in size. Seriously, he's getting so big!

8/13/2010 A Painful day

We're staying at my in-laws house for a few days, and Jack seems to be loving it. He enjoys the other dogs company. Tiger, the yellow lab, is a big love and always wants to play, so when Jack starts barking and getting all puppy on Tiger I thought Tiger would respond the same way. He didn't. He ran away! Looks like Tiger isn't ready for little Jack.

The attempted play lasted for about 5 minutes, before Jack looked at me with those big eyes, I knew he was hurting. I locked the other dogs out of the kitchen so Jack could eat.

Here's the video of poor Jack hobbling around.

We need this surgery. We need it now.

8/12/2010 Our Anniversary

Today is mine and Brian's one year wedding anniversary. Exactly 365 days ago we stood before flickering neon lights in fabulous Las Vegas and exchanged vows. The best part was, nobody knew, we eloped.

This past year has brought a lot of happiness and a lot of heartache, but all in all, I wouldn't trade it for anything, even my poor boys with their bad hips.

Jack seemed a little better today, I had to hand feed him this morning, because he was shaking from the pain. I gave him his anit-inflammatory medicine with his breakfast and after sleeping a long time he got up and hobbled around a bit. We're at my in-law's house while they enjoy the rest of the Bass Lake vacation, so Jack had some doggy company which he seemed to really enjoy. My poor puppy, you can tell he wants to play but he just can't move like the other dogs. It breaks my heart.

I just hope this second year of marriage is a little less eventful. Well, a lot less eventful.

8/11/2010 Vets and Surgeons and Impromptu Photo Shoots

This morning we took Jack to our Vet to show him the x-rays. Of course I cried for a brief minute before we got in the car. It breaks my heart watching him stumble around.

When we got to the office, the first thing out of the doc's mouth was "Are you sure you want to go through with this?" Now I had to take a deep breath and let Brian do the talking, it's something he's better at anyway.

He put the x-ray up and was astonished. "I've never seen a case this bad" I was kinda tuning out the conversation it just made me so sad. Brian asked for Jack's final vaccination and the doctor gave him a funny look. I know my husband and I know his asking that was sort of like saying, "I don't care what your opinion is, my puppy is going to survive so I'm preparing him for the great life I know he's going to have". I had to smile, I love my husband.

The doctor gave Jack is vaccine and referred us to a dog surgeon specialist close by. We called, made an appointment and headed over to the office.

When we got in the staff all said how adorable Jack was (I mean, c'mon, he's a really cute puppy)

One of the guys who worked there told us that his pit had the same type of hip problem Jack has, although not as severe, but she was too old to get surgery. We met his pit, Rose, and she was sweet as pie and even though she didn't have the surgery and was only on vitamins and supplements, she was doing great.

The doggy surgeon came out to meet us and asked to see Jack walk outside. He watched him limp around then took him to the exam room to see his x-rays and feel his leg. The first option he gave us was sound wave therapy (uh no thank you! We're not some weirdo hippies, nor do we have money to waste on some therapy that's just going to delay an inevitable surgery!)

Brian asked about the hip surgery (which we found out is called FHO ) and the cost. The surgeon said that if we went through with the surgery Jack would be able to lead a fully normal pain-free happy life. This was like music to my ears! Brian asked do you think we'd have to put him down? He answered, "it's not something I think you would have to do, we can treat him, but that decision can't be made for you"

I checked out with the front desk and was given a total breakdown of the cost of surgery. Ready?

$2,000

OMFG. If you've read this blog you know we've had a rough year and this includes a financially rough year. Brian can't work now because of his own hip surgery. I wasn't able to find a job until July (after I've been here a month) and as soon as September rolls around and I begin student teaching, our funds are going to become very, very tight.

How are we going to pay for this?!?!

Ah, facebook. Maybe people will donate to help save our pup! Maybe? Hopefully. I said to my husband (who thinks asking people to help you in times of need isn't right, he's full of pride but not prideful. We're different him and I) "When life hands you lemons, sometimes you gotta ask for some sugar to make 'em sweet"

So, we're asking you, and anyone you'll send this site to, to donate to help Jack's surgery. Any amount will help us.

After a very stressful day, we came home. the light was shining in through the window, and my husband being the director he is was inspired by the light to take a bunch of pictures. So here are some shots of our impromptu photo shoot:

8/10/2010 Something's Very Wrong

Last night Jack 'woke up' and was eating like a mad man and running around and playing, pretty much back to normal. By the time we went to bed he was exhausted and I felt better that he was himself again.



Then I woke up this morning. He was doing the thing with his back right leg again and this time his ribs on his right side didn't feel quite right. Brian wanted to drive home immediately and see our vet. I was at a loss, I had no idea what to do. So we went to talk with my in-law's.




They knew how he was doing the day before and they knew how concerned we were. My father-in-law was bummed out that we were probably leaving because the day's agenda included taking me to Sequoia National Forrest and Yosemite (I've never been and Brian couldn't go because he couldn't walk long distances or hike because of his hip surgery)


Brian's mom suggested taking him to the vet in Oakhurst because there was no point in wasting 6 or 7 hours in the car when there was a possibility of Jack getting worse. She was right. Brian told me to go enjoy the day and he'd take care of it.



I was hesitant, I knew I was going to have a hard time appreciating anything when I'd just be thinking about my puppy, but he insisted so I went.


Jacks appointment was at 10:20am and Brian called and text as soon as he talked to the vet there.

Jack had to have some x-rays taken and this showed he had severe hip dysplasia. The good news was he wouldn't have to be put down (WTF?!?! That hadn't even crossed my mind!) The bad news was he would need surgery. He had no hip socket on his right side and there was most likely bone on bone friction.






Let's take a minute and think about how ironic this is: 2 months ago Brian had his own hip surgery. He had tore his labrum and his bone was mis-shapen. His pain was also due to bone on bone friction and was caused by both genetics and 25 years of high intensity athletics.

Now can someone please tell me the odds of having a husband and a puppy who have the same hip problems?!?!


The pictures of the x-ray show exactly how bad his condition is. Brian decided to call our vet and tell him what the vet in Oakhurst said. Our vet wasn't' as optimistic, he said if it were bad we'd probably have to put him down.

Brian called my after I just finished lunch with my in-laws and brother-in-law and his girlfriend. So far I was still really worried about Jack, but was actually able to enjoy the beauty of Yosemite. We were waiting for a shuttle bus to take us to a 3 mile hiking spot when I saw I missed a call from Brian, so I called him back. He told me what our vet said and then hung up. My mother-in-law looked at me and asked if he was ok and I just started crying.

Seriously?!?! Putting him down? Not an option! Now I'm not sure if many people could relate, but let me try to briefly explain:

Brian and I got married August 12 2009. I went back to NY to finish school and he stayed here. we didn't even have a honeymoon. Our first year of marriage has included, so far, a living separation for 9 months, a pregnancy, a miscarriage, a move across the country, a hip surgery, unemployment, a probable second hip surgery, a puppy, and now a puppy facing being put down.

That's a very emotional first year!

Ok, back to Yosemite: My in-laws are so wonderful and understanding, we went and saw a little more of the park (no 3 mile hike) and then we left. As soon as we got back to the house we packed up our car and me, Brian, and Jack headed back to LA. Tomorrow we'd go see our vet.

8/9/2010 Something's Wrong

So Jack woke up today and was limping. He wouldn't walk on his back right leg and didn't want to eat anything this morning. He was also sleeping more than usual.



Of course, we got super nervous. My mind was going crazy, thinking he got bit by a mosquito and got some weird foreign disease. Brian called our vet in LA and he told us to get a thermometer and take his temperature, if it was around 102 F (the normal body temp for dogs) he's probably fine. He thought he may have just over exerted himself the day before with all the excitement of being with the whole family and playing, going up and down the stairs, and laying in the sun.


We drove into Oakhurst to CVS and for a thermometer. I was the luck one who got to put it you-know-where, but Jackson didn't even flinch. His temp was 101.7 F. Fine.

We'd just have to wait and see...

8/8/2010 Our First Full Day at the Lake

Jack love the lake! He soaks up the sun, he rides in the boat and he plays with my brother-in-laws.

To have a dog's life...

8/7/2010 Road Trip!!

Today we left for Bass Lake California! A 6 hour drive north from Los Angeles and we'd be there.

Jack did so well in the car, he let us know if we needed to stop for him, but mostly he slept on his back in his kennel.

8/6/2010 Jack and Rusty

Brian bought Rusty, an English Stafforshire Terrier (England's Pit Bull) when he was in college. Like the dog he got before Rusty, he passed him off to live at his parents. I adore Rusty, he is so sweet and he talks! Well he makes these funny demon noises when he's happy and you rub his butt.

Before Jack, Brian and I would take Rusty home with us once a week to have his company. He loved going in the car and sleeping on our couch and getting more treats than he should. Brian was actually worried that Rusty would feel sad when he realized that we got a dog, but I wasn't really concerned.

When we first introduced them we looked on nervously. Pit Bulls are possibly the sweetest breed I've ever encountered, but they do protect their territory and their masters, so we hoped for the best. Rusty has a history of being dog aggressive if he feels any of us are threatened. But, we put Jack down on the ground and Rusty ran over wagging his tail. They loved each other! Jack followed him around like Rusty was his dad, it was the cutest thing, so the night before we were leaving for vacation to Bass Lake, we decided to take Rusty home to spend the night.

This is how the night went:

8/4/2010 Disaster in the Car

So Brian went to a Pit Bull show in South Gate and came home with a ton of free samples, toys, and information. There was this one pet supply store in Long Beach that had a great deal on Innova, a supposedly great dog food for pit bulls. Since I've been working so much, Brian's been taking great care of my pup, all day.

Today, I forgot my lunch at home, and Brian was going to Long Beach to buy the dog food so I asked if he could bring me my food before he went. He said yes (a little to my surprise) and when he got to my job he had little Jack in the truck for the ride. I enjoyed seeing my boys for a minute then went to the back to eat lunch.

I closed the store that night and after I locked the door I went to the back and checked my phone. There was a barrage of texts, I didn't even read them all, just saw they were from Brian and the tone was fairly angry. So I called.

"Hi, what's up?"

"You don't even know, I left the car for 2 minutes to run in the store and the dog shit and pissed all over my car! The only place he didn't tag was my seat."

Attempting to muffle my laughter "Oh no...."

"It's alright, I cleaned it all up but it was a huge pain in the ass and now my car smells like

bleach. This poor dog has abandonment issues"

"Oh my poor puppy"

"Oh your poor husband"

sorry

8/3/2010 A Better Vet

Since our first experience with the Vet for Jack seemed to be at the very least, frustrating, we decided to find a different one. Jack was starting to form this weird skin rash on his chest and I was getting nervous. I did a ton of research online and thought it may be demodex, a small parasite not transferable to humans but lives in the dogs hair follicles eating away their fur. Of course, i had to go to work but Brian found a vet close to us.

He was awesome. He know exactly what Jack had (a skin fungus) and told us how to feed him to put some weight on his poor little frame. He gave us Royal Canin dog food, which is supposed to be the absolute best. He also prescribed us an anti-fungal shampoo and heart worm medication since we were about to embark on our very first family vacation up to Bass Lake (a 6 hour drive north of Los Angeles.)



So far, Jack has been literally, heaven sent. I have never experienced a dog with more love to give. His favorite thing to do is snuggle up and sleep on his back. Seriously, have you ever seen a puppy sleep on his back for hours?



He's playful, full of life and energy and has made our house a home.