Jake and Jarie

Jake

I guess it is time I update my blog on how Jake and Jarie are doing. I have debated with myself over and over if I should even write about either one of them. I know I cause a few of you that have been following my blog to cry when you come here to read. I do apologize for that. I try to write about the good happenings in my life too, but sometimes a few sad happenings occur also, and since I started this blog with all of my dogs stories, it is only right that I continue with how they are doing. So here is our update.

Jake is doing as well as can be expected considering his age and health. He will be 11 years old this June. We notice subtle changes ever day with him. He slows down a little more each day. He can not stand for long without falling on all fours. His hind legs just can not hold him up for long. When he is walking, his hind legs cross over quite a bit. Most times he stands on the top of one of his back feet. It is important that I am next to him to help him step over the threshold of the back door.

He still has his sight and hearing, but we have noticed him becoming a little "confused", (for lack of a better word). He sits at my desk waiting for a treat from his treat jar. The confused part is his treat jar has not been on my desk for 6 months or so. It is in the kitchen. When he goes to the back door to go outside, he stands by the wrong door, and gets a little confused on which door opens. This is new behavior for him, so we are being cautious in observing any new behaviors that may need more attention from us.

Jake's cancer has returned. Where it is located, all we can do is give supportive care. Despite his mobility issues and the cancer, he has a great appetite, which is always good, when it comes to cancer.

We know our time is limited with Jake, but we remain positive and are making each day count.
For anyone who has read this far, I hope you are not crying. For now, Jake has many more good days then bad. He is still thriving and happy. He enjoys playing with his toys and chomping on his tennis balls, and waiting each evening for the hugs and greetings he gets when hubby comes home.

Jarie

Oh Jarie, where do I even begin? My baby girl. She just turned 3 years old last month. She will always be my baby girl. I wrote a few months ago that she was having problems again with her allergies. Back in October she started chewing her side. She created a circle of hair loss about 3 inches round. She also chewed a patch of hair off the base of her tail. She was put on many meds, some helped, and some she had bad reactions too.

Finally after a couple months, no more itching, and her hair is growing back, although quite slow. We can still see the circle she created, but no more redness, and the hair is coming back.

Those of you that may be reading this and don't know, Jarie has a compromised immune system, IBD, von Willebrands Disease, (bleeding disorder), and many, many allergies. Her allergies are not just food, and environmental, but she is also allergic to many medications.

I switched one of her supplements, and after just 2 days, she started chewing her side again, and scratching everywhere. I was a bad mama, I did not realize the supplement had soy in it. She can NOT have soy. I immediately assumed this was the cause. She vomited a couple days. I thought to myself, ok, she is back on the other supplements, and the soy is out of her system, she will be ok. No, not the case with Jarie.

I have tried many treatments, and nothing has helped the scratching, and itching. Finally last week, that has calmed down some, and we are thinking, we may get back to normal. No, not yet.
This week on three different occasions, Jarie has refused to eat. She is not lethargic, and she is still the happy, wild silly girl she always is. With our experience with Jarie and all of her medical issues, she must eat. I can not give her supplements on an empty stomach or she ends up very sick. But, she needs her supplements to thrive. When she has gone through bouts before without eating, she has gone as long as 4-5 days. When that happens, it compromises her immune system even more, and adds more complications with her IBD. When she refuses to eat, she refuses everything. No human foods or treats, she won't touch anything. On the times she didn't eat this week, she did eat eventually at the end of the day.

I finally realize our weather has been a major cause with her allergies and immune system. We have had a lot of rain the past 2 months. We don't normally get that much, and we know it is just one more thing wreaking havoc on her immune system.

We were battling these issues for her first two years, and we were so hoping we were past it. I am trying to remain positive, and am hoping the non eating will become a thing of the past, before it causes more concern. This is why I always refer to her as my bubble girl. It seems anything outside her little bubble affects her health.

Despite all of this, she is a very happy loving little girl. You would never guess she was sick and not feeling well, with all her running around, destroying her toys, chasing the dogs, and of course her zoomies. Oh yes, at three years old, she still gets the puppy zoomies!