Parting is such sweet sorrow

one of my most favorite pictures of Maeby!


I dropped Maeby off this morning at 8AM.

I gave her a dose of RR and Arnica dissolved in water before we left. Also gave her a few drops of RR again before the Vet Tech came to take her away. I keep imagining her in a kennel, feeling very alone and terrified. I hope to God that RR is keeping her less anxious. They also let me leave her with my T-shirt and her favorite toy. I hope that's calming her a little too.

Maeby is such a happy-go-lucky gal. She doesn't act any different when we go to the vet -- still has a bounce in her walk, still wags her tail like it's a metronome. She got a little freaked out when the Vet Tech came to put on a name collar and hospital leash, but got happy again when she saw that I was following them. It wasn't until she realized that I wasn't walking behind her as the VT lead Maeby to the kennel area. Poor girl kept looking at me with a very confused, bewildered look on her face.

And that's when the waterworks started.

I guess when you're crying and sniffling back snot, Maeby sounds like Baby. Because that's the chart the receptionist kept looking for when I went to pay my down payment.

God bless Starbucks and Cinnamon Dolce Latte. I nursed on a venti all morning.

I'm just waiting now for that phone call -- the call that says everything went great, that nothing weird was going on inside her joint. I must keep thinking positive thoughts.

Tonight will be my first night in 2 months without that goober. Dear God, please keep my little Maeby safe and healthy.


***

4:30PM

I just got a call from Dr. Owen. She said Maeby's surgery went great. Gosh, I feel like 1,000 pounds have been lifted from my shoulders. I don't know why I was worried about so many things. Like, the anesthesia. Or that maybe her injury was worse than we originally thought. Thankfully, Maeby is doing well!!! I can go pick her up tomorrow morning. I can't wait to see her.

I asked about the potential of her other knee rupturing. Dr. Owen said her guess is that this first injury was linked more to her other injuries, and not due to the way her leg bones are. THANK GOD. How the heck would I raise enough money to get a second TPLO?

And now, our journey is just beginning.....

Supplements, Vitamins, and Pills, Oh My

Things Maeby has been receiving since Sunday 3/11:

• 2 Milk Thistle caplets a day (1 morning, 1 night)
• 1 Super Joint Enhancer cap (1/2 morning, 1/2 night)
• Fresh carrots, apples
• 1T yogurt

Things to give night before surgery 3/15 AM:
• 4 pellets Arnica
• 4 drops Rescue Remedy


Things to give Friday 3/16 AM (POST SURGERY):

IN FOOD
• Vitamin E, 100 IU 1x a day
• Vitamin C, 250mg, 2x a day
• 1 Milk Thistle caplet, 2x a day (Days 1-3 Post Surgery)

IMMEDIATELY AFTER FOOD
• 1/2 Super Joint Enhancer cap, 1x a day

1 HOUR AFTER FOOD
• 4 pellets Arnica (Days 1-4 post Surgery), 4x a day
• 4 drops Rescue Remedy, Skeletal Support, Physical Recovery, and Pain Relief, given 2 minutes apart, AT LEAST 4x a day


I need a calender or something to keep track of all this stuff!!!

tomorrow is maeby's big day.

Maeby loves the park

i'm scared out of my mind. this is a pretty crazy surgery -- bone sawing, metal plates, screws.

so please keep maeby, vin and i in your thoughts tomorrow. i really hope everything is textbook and goes smoothly.

i know some people think i'm completely crazy for doing all this. others tell me they don't think they'd be able to go through it. but you know what? i believe in my heart you would or could if in my situation.

since the moment vin and i found maeby, she instantly bonded with us and trusted us. the weekend we adopted her, people we ran into at the park marveled at how happy and comfortable she was with us, and were surprised to learn that we only had Maeby for 1 day. she came into our lives so that we could take care of her, not so that we could abandon her because she needs medical attention.

maeby is the dog i've wanted my entire life, but never had. she's so smart, obedient, and sweet. her personality can light up a room. she deserves such a good life, and i hope this surgery can allow her to have one.

anyways, thank you everyone for being so incredibly supportive. the most amazing thing is that many of those who have been so empathetic arent even animal lovers!!! it just goes to show that we are surrounded by really good people.

I've become my worst nightmare

I've turned into that crazy dog owner, the one who makes vet hospital staff cringe everytime she calls or comes into the office.

OK, maybe it's not so bad. But I keep calling my surgeon's assistant with a million questions. She's extremely quick to call me back, and patient when giving answers. But honestly, sometimes I question her answers. She told me to give a hot compress for the first few days of an injury, and cold compress afterwards. Isn't that completely backwards??

And yesterday, when answering a question, she called me honey.

"Should I stop my glucosamine supplements before surgery?" I asked.

"HONEY, Maeby will be on those supplements for the rest of her life with the condition she's in."

That's not the question I asked! I asked if I should stop those supplements because some may have an adverse affect on the system during surgery. Honey in the context of her answer sounded so... so... PATRONIZING.

Thus, my feeling that she must think I'm THAT crazy dog owner.

So like I said, I've become my worst nightmare.

Maeby's Surgery is in 2 days

Maeby's surgery is on Thursday, so I spent Sunday running errands to get ready.

Treats, bones, carpet runners, yogurt, pumpkin filling, marrow bones, a harness. I've been looking into herbs and homeopathic remedies to help her recovery process along as well. I've been giving her Milk Thistle with each meal, along with fresh ingredients in her food like apples, carrots, and ground turkey meat. She's been going #2 very regularly, and it's been a good consistency! I thought it would be soft due to the new food and M.T but nope!

I swear, she's got a stomach of steel. I guess when you're trying to make it on the mean streets of Mexico, you gotta learn to eat anything.

She's been keeping quiet in her x-pen since her full tear last Monday, and she's been so good about it. She's used to sitting next to me on the couch, and now she lays quietly on her bed and stares at me, but quietly. I usually end up going into the x-pen and sitting with her head in my lap. She's such a good, good girl.

I'm going to give her Rescue Remedy before her surgery and after. I've been taking some, and I really do think it's calming my nerves. If I think too much about the surgery, it really starts to freak me out. I tried some during one of said freakouts, and it actually helped. I think I'll be using this a lot this week.

Well, off to work. Only 2 more days of spending time with my Maeby until all the craziness begins.


***

8PM

Bought some more floral essences for Maeby today, after speaking to a woman named Polly who makes the Pet Essence line of floral essences for pets. So far I have Physical Recovery, Pain Relief, and Skeletal Support. I'll give her these along with Rescue Remedy, Arnica 30C, and another homeopathic herb that's good for skeletal support as well. SO MUCH FREAKIN STUFF. I just hope it makes her comfortable and helps her healing.

She's chewing on her first marrow bone and she LOVES IT! Hope it cleans the tartar off her teeth too.