The hot wire question...

I sprung Chaucer from the vet yesterday.  Under the effects of cortisone he is relatively asymptomatic and desperately wants to play ball.  He simply couldn't understand me when I told him he needed to take it easy.  The fractures are in the bony protrusions (from the spondylosis) and are small however the compression of the disks is significant.  Vet says maybe 6 months for total fusion if he can manage not to injure himself again.  He's limited to level ground only (although the 3 steps to the bed were okay-ed if I make sure he takes them slow).  And NO jumping!  He still runs the risk of causing permanent damage at this point.  Eeep!

We talked about his activities and agree that the repetitive action that likely lead to this condition/injury is fence-jumping.  That is...not that he jumps fences but that he jumps up and down at the fence due to our proximity to the street and the random strangers that reach over the fence to pet the cute dog.  A problem I have long lamented.  The vet suggested I use a hot wire to train the dog not to jump.  I'm not understanding how this will help since it's the humans on the other side of the fence that are instigating the behavior.  I thought about electrifying the whole fence but something tells me I might open myself up to lawsuits from the community in that event.  Not that it wouldn't be personally satisfying  >:}

I will have to accompany the dogs outside at all times now.  Probably with Chaucer on lead for at least the next few weeks.  I'm thinking of rigging some sort of tether and harness that will allow him to go out in the yard but not make it all the way to the fence.  I'm afraid that he will still leap against the halter though for bikes and skateboards and really fun things like that so not until I can be sure of the fusion.  What seems more reasonable at the moment (unfortunately) is moving some place with a private yard.  Ugh! 

Aw hell...

Chaucer was a little slow on Wednesday night, spent Thursday in a crate while I was at work, even slower when I got home. Friday he yipped when Stormy bumped into him on the way out in the morning so another day in a crate. When I got home he was roaching noticeably and would follow me only to flop down against my legs and tremble. Rushed him to the vet and his core muscles were so tight the vet couldn't evaluate him. At that point I started praying for a stomach problem and pretending I had never heard of back problems in corgis. They gave him a steroid and kept him overnight.


Lots of emergencies today so they didn't call me until they were closed...apparently not concerned about giving him back anytime soon. X-rays showed significant spondylosis with signs of previous and current fractures. Turns our L4/5 and L5/6 are very bad and the disk spaces significantly narrowed. Somehow he's fractured them again and according to the vet our best hope is that they will fuse. He's walking but they told me that he could easily paralyze himself if he's too active at this point. Shit! Have you met my dog?!! I'll start working on telling the sun not to shine 'cause that will be easier than getting The Dude to not play. Good thing his likes his crate.

I won't know more until Monday afternoon but they gave him a stronger steroid for the pain and are keeping him through the weekend. Blood tests will tell us what kind of pain meds he will best tolerate for the rest of his life. I don't know how bad this really is since I've not seen the x-rays and I don't know what the long-term prognosis really is because it all depends on how these fractures heal. Very scared at the moment. No matter how you slice it, a fractured spine on a long dog turns my stomach.

On top of that I had to help host a baby shower today. Thank god for good friends who know when not to ask questions and just hug.

Stick with me...I'll get to the point

I love the Biography channel. Unfortunately it's not part of my regular dish package. It is one of the free previews this month though so I'm making the most of it. I also love ghost stories and apparently Saturdays on Bio are all about ghost shows. Sweet!


So anyway "Haunted History" is sort of cheesy. The narrator actually played the Devil in a short-lived TV show called "Brimstone" that I watched in high school which I think is a nice touch. The episode I'm watching is about hauntings at sea. So of course they've got this scruffy Norwegian-sailor looking guy telling stories on the dock. He leans in to start telling the story of The Flying Dutchman all spooky-like and he reaches down to scratch the head of his loyal... .. Pembroke...WTF?!? Not that I was taking the show all that seriously to begin with but now I'm laughing my ass off. I mean sure, they are compact and would probably be more than happy to dispatch rats on a ship but really...a Pembroke? Spooookkyy.....


At the end of the show this salty fellow picks up his Corgi (who is grinning from ear to ear BTW), nods to the camera "No one really believes in ghosts," and turns and vanishes, Pem and all. Again with the laughter...God I love this station!