Happy Thanksgiving!

Today I am thankful for the 6 hours of uninterrupted sleep I got last night. Having this puppy has jettisoned me back to the days my children were infants! There has been a lot of trips to potty in the middle of the night. I am also thankful that Zola is feeling better. She started acting odd so I switched her over to the Hills L/D prescription food as recommended by the doctors,*and the people on the canine liver e-mail discussion list I joined. (e-mail lists are great support when you have a dog with a chronic illness) Odd behavior in a liver shunt dog is serious because they can have hepatic encephalopathy.  (*it should be noted that I don't always listen to the doctors)
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We also conquered the hurdle of "yes you have to potty outside even when it is snowy and yucky".  THAT wasn't easy! Luckily I had gotten her a new Fido Fleece jacket before the snow hit which I think helped. For awhile I thought I might have to cave and get her boooties as well. She didn't want to walk in the snow! She figured it out tho I do carry her to the yard to save her feet from getting to cold to quickly. One of the things I have been working on with Jenny is trying to get her nails shorter. Frequent nail trims just wan't doing it. Thanks to Jillian at Salty Dog grooming who has been dremeling them. This past tuesday was week two. I'm told both she and Zola are very cooperative and it looks like with a few more weeks we can reach our goal.

Her eye is also looking much better. We discontinued the ointment she was on and started using autologous serum instead. That is where they take some of her blood, spin it down, and use the serum on top (white blood cells) as eye drops. She will likely always have the dot scar but it isn't painful anymore.
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Since she is feeling so much better now she is getting feisty. She has initiated play with Jenny a couple of times but her play skills lack some finesse. Jenny seemed to tolerate her antics though. I inturrupt them if I think it is getting to intense. One of the lessons I forgot to mention the last time was that co-workers get as attached and worry about my dogs as much as me. Sometimes more. I never thought about that when I decided to take on a sick dog. I feel a little bad about that. At least my family got to have a say in it. It is nice to work with people that care that much tho.

I hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving Day. Enjoy your friends and family and pets!! Try not to overdo the food treats. Well at least for your pets. An extra piece of pie for you isn't the worst thing that can happen. Enjoy!