Yeah, my vet stopped by today to check on the old man. I was kind of puffed up about his vital signs from last night and this morning, so I was happy that she was going to view his "turnaround!"
(sigh) It was not to be.
She says that although he seemed cheerful and was happy to have food, he was at 60/60. DAMMIT! Thank God it is not hot and sunny out too, because I am 30 minutes away, chained to my desk!!
I asked her to go ahead and give him 6-7 cc's of Lasix and I would follow up when I got home from work.
So much for turning my frown upside down.
=-(
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
And Then, Something Weird Happens...
Like, you run out to feed, almost fearing what you will find, and then your jaw drops because the metabolics are...
LOW??
48/22
What?? And the sun is down and EVERYTHING.
This is day 4 of the Doxycycline. I have not given any Lasix today (except what is residual in the bucket from the last 3 combined feedings)
I am so stunned--- I am speechless.
So, I am going to say nothing else for now, except to utter, "Thank you, God!"
=-)
LOW??
48/22
What?? And the sun is down and EVERYTHING.
This is day 4 of the Doxycycline. I have not given any Lasix today (except what is residual in the bucket from the last 3 combined feedings)
I am so stunned--- I am speechless.
So, I am going to say nothing else for now, except to utter, "Thank you, God!"
=-)
It's ALWAYS Worse At Night!
Why is it?
Why, after a long day of being a Mom and a Full Time Employee, along with the weight of worrying about EVERYTHING, do I have to deal with the worst symptoms that Parlay has to offer at NIGHT??
On top of everything else going on, I am now seriously sleep deprived. Why? Because when I have gone out to feed the boys for the past 3 nights, Parlay has been in distress. Pulse 60, Respiration ranging from 25-38+. And the coughing. And the bloody noses. And the ANXIETY--it is written all over his face and body.
I guess I would be anxious too. Imagine what it must feel like if you were desperately trying to breathe-- yet you were limited to breathing in and out through a straw-- all the while your heart pounding away to get your blood oxygenated...ARGH!!
I have determined that the Paste Lasix is just not working at all. I think that trying it may have put Parlay in a down spiral.
I think that the dosage is wrong. Although it is written on the tube that the amount of lasix per dose is higher than the injectable, it comes out of the tube wrong--it's not thick enough to stay put which leads to overdosing at one instance and then, not giving enough at the next. Either that, or the stuff just does not preform when orally given. Maybe it's a combination of both of these facts. In any event, I am giving up on the paste. As much as I hate to do it, the injectable formulation seems to be the way to go.
Of course, with Parlay's stress comes anorexia. No, not mine (God knows that I have GAINED weight trying to put weight back ON him!!) Parlay is pretty much back to not eating. Not really even eating the grass. What a sin too, because I was just getting the weight back on. So? Is it the Lasix, or lack thereof? Is it his belly bothering him? The antibiotics? Is it the supplement addition to the grain feedings? Is it a Parlay thing?
It has been a tough couple of nights. =-(
Today, Parlay seems pretty calm. He hasn't eaten much, but his eye is soft and although he is breathing quickly, it is not with enormous effort. His heart beat is also a bit rapid, but rhythmic and not pounding.
What has changed? Well, the sun is still out...
Why, after a long day of being a Mom and a Full Time Employee, along with the weight of worrying about EVERYTHING, do I have to deal with the worst symptoms that Parlay has to offer at NIGHT??
On top of everything else going on, I am now seriously sleep deprived. Why? Because when I have gone out to feed the boys for the past 3 nights, Parlay has been in distress. Pulse 60, Respiration ranging from 25-38+. And the coughing. And the bloody noses. And the ANXIETY--it is written all over his face and body.
I guess I would be anxious too. Imagine what it must feel like if you were desperately trying to breathe-- yet you were limited to breathing in and out through a straw-- all the while your heart pounding away to get your blood oxygenated...ARGH!!
I have determined that the Paste Lasix is just not working at all. I think that trying it may have put Parlay in a down spiral.
I think that the dosage is wrong. Although it is written on the tube that the amount of lasix per dose is higher than the injectable, it comes out of the tube wrong--it's not thick enough to stay put which leads to overdosing at one instance and then, not giving enough at the next. Either that, or the stuff just does not preform when orally given. Maybe it's a combination of both of these facts. In any event, I am giving up on the paste. As much as I hate to do it, the injectable formulation seems to be the way to go.
Of course, with Parlay's stress comes anorexia. No, not mine (God knows that I have GAINED weight trying to put weight back ON him!!) Parlay is pretty much back to not eating. Not really even eating the grass. What a sin too, because I was just getting the weight back on. So? Is it the Lasix, or lack thereof? Is it his belly bothering him? The antibiotics? Is it the supplement addition to the grain feedings? Is it a Parlay thing?
It has been a tough couple of nights. =-(
Today, Parlay seems pretty calm. He hasn't eaten much, but his eye is soft and although he is breathing quickly, it is not with enormous effort. His heart beat is also a bit rapid, but rhythmic and not pounding.
What has changed? Well, the sun is still out...
Sunday, August 2, 2009
They Keep Coming Back to Me
The words and thoughts from Vicki.
Whether you are a believer in intuitives or not (and God knows, I am still on the fence about it) I think that just speaking with Vicki has helped me to focus on things that I already may have known and may not have been putting together.
And here is where I am today.
The parasite. The problems associated with parasites. The idea that it was NOT an ingested parasite. A fly? A gnat?
My most hated parasite? The tick. The nasty blood-sucking vermin that I loathe above all others.
Parlay has always been allergic to tick bites. The reactions get worse each year, as appears to be customary with most allergies. The result of a tick bite on Parlay leaves an itchy, oozing, painful sore that will eventually turn to a large area of missing hair.
Back in 2006 Parlay had a really bad reaction to multiple tick bites in one area of his chest (Cursed blankets!) After a few weeks of conventional treatment with cold hosing and dressing the wounds, something else came about-- weird lameness issues, a very cranky attitude, highly sensitive skin, and finally, a bout of laminitis. It was so weird and uncharacteristic!
A blood test confirmed what I suspected immediately. Parlay was diagnosed with Lyme's Disease with Elisa value of 413 and Western Blot listed as HIGH. We aggressively treated with 6 weeks of Doxycycline. A huge difference was seen almost immediately.
Parlay has had two recurrences that we have treated with Doxy since then. Each new bout of Lyme's being "announced," by different symptoms. The first reinfection seemed to bring on another round of odd lameness---one leg off, then another, back to being touchy about being handled and girthed. The second relapse found Parlay post-legged lame in all four legs--it was a HORRIBLE sight!
This morning, after a difficult 12 hours of VERY HIGH P&R (60/40 and above), an agitated and cranky horse and a relatively unsteady walk off from a standstill, I made the association. I ran in to my computer and did a Google search for Lymes related congestive heart failure. My screen filled up with articles and medical papers.
Of course there could be a correlation. Lyme's is one of the nastiest diseases around and there is really so little known about the symptoms. I texted the vet. There is no harm in trying a course of Doxycycline, so off we go.
You can hope and you can pray, but in the end you need to THINK and LISTEN to what the universe is saying in answer to your prayers. Maybe this is a breakthrough?
That is MY prayer today.
Whether you are a believer in intuitives or not (and God knows, I am still on the fence about it) I think that just speaking with Vicki has helped me to focus on things that I already may have known and may not have been putting together.
And here is where I am today.
The parasite. The problems associated with parasites. The idea that it was NOT an ingested parasite. A fly? A gnat?
My most hated parasite? The tick. The nasty blood-sucking vermin that I loathe above all others.
Parlay has always been allergic to tick bites. The reactions get worse each year, as appears to be customary with most allergies. The result of a tick bite on Parlay leaves an itchy, oozing, painful sore that will eventually turn to a large area of missing hair.
Back in 2006 Parlay had a really bad reaction to multiple tick bites in one area of his chest (Cursed blankets!) After a few weeks of conventional treatment with cold hosing and dressing the wounds, something else came about-- weird lameness issues, a very cranky attitude, highly sensitive skin, and finally, a bout of laminitis. It was so weird and uncharacteristic!
A blood test confirmed what I suspected immediately. Parlay was diagnosed with Lyme's Disease with Elisa value of 413 and Western Blot listed as HIGH. We aggressively treated with 6 weeks of Doxycycline. A huge difference was seen almost immediately.
Parlay has had two recurrences that we have treated with Doxy since then. Each new bout of Lyme's being "announced," by different symptoms. The first reinfection seemed to bring on another round of odd lameness---one leg off, then another, back to being touchy about being handled and girthed. The second relapse found Parlay post-legged lame in all four legs--it was a HORRIBLE sight!
This morning, after a difficult 12 hours of VERY HIGH P&R (60/40 and above), an agitated and cranky horse and a relatively unsteady walk off from a standstill, I made the association. I ran in to my computer and did a Google search for Lymes related congestive heart failure. My screen filled up with articles and medical papers.
Of course there could be a correlation. Lyme's is one of the nastiest diseases around and there is really so little known about the symptoms. I texted the vet. There is no harm in trying a course of Doxycycline, so off we go.
You can hope and you can pray, but in the end you need to THINK and LISTEN to what the universe is saying in answer to your prayers. Maybe this is a breakthrough?
That is MY prayer today.
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