Ramble On

Sunday, May 24, 2009

Diary of Gracie's Canine Renal Failure - 4

Our dog Gracie was diagnosed with early stage canine renal failure last year. She had some issues earlier this year – lethargy, declining to eat or drink – that indicated her condition had progressed to the final stage. During this week week, while we are at the cabin on vacation, without regular internet access, I’ve scheduled for chronological posts of my wife’s account of the events since Gracie was diagnosed as being in this stage.


March 11th
Gracie’s about the same, eating a bit more but it's still a struggle. I'm getting used to sticking in the needle between her shoulder blades after pulling up some skin to form a “pocket” but I've got needle pricks in my fingers from my learning curve. Occasionally, she will bleed if I hit some capillaries. It’s a huge bore needle and Gracie flinches when I stick it in her flesh. Jim has become adept at holding the fluid bag and pushing the fluids to regulate the flow. But, Gracie’s a very calm dog and takes the pain stoically. Jim sits on a chair to hold the bag up and I sit on the floor in front of him with my knees up around Gracie, sort of forming a corral. She sits between us and only gets restless towards the end of the treatment. She gets her G3Chews and Pet Tabs as a treat as we begin the treatment and after is rewarded with a few tosses of her fluffy soccer ball. The fluid collects under her skin and forms a big mound which eventually seems to move down around to the front of her neck. To make her more comfortable, we warm the fluids bag in a pot of warm tap water to bring it closer to her body temperature, and we warm a bath towel in the dryer and lay it across her back and sides as we administer the fluids. This acts to keep her calm and also helps keep her warm.

The carafate and blood pressure medicine are costing a small fortune for a one or two week supply, which is disheartening. I’m also buying five bags of fluid with set ups and needles from the vet every 10 days. The fluids cost about $10/bag. The medication regimen is fairly rigid, administering the carafate an hour or so after the others since it will prevent the other medications from being absorbed in the stomach. We have a follow-up with the vet next Tuesday. Hopefully, Gracie’s numbers will have stabilized—that’s about the best we can hope for at this point.

She's still a trooper—enjoying our walks and the small fluffy soccer ball tossed up to her as she waits at the top of the stairs to catch it. She the rolls it down the stairs, starting the game again.

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