Today we made a very difficult decision. Sitting here writing this tonight - I start to cry again. It was a decision that was for the best but was still very hard to do.
We let Jenna go back to the Greyhound Rescue Group. She did nothing really wrong - she did not have an aggressive bone in her body. She is the sweetest, most loving dog I have seen in a long time. Unfortunately, she is also a very playful YOUNG dog and we have three SMALL, OLD dogs.
Jenna's favorite pasttime in the last couple weeks has been - "let's pounce on the dogs". The three IG's are afraid to go outside with her - they refuse to go out if she is out in the yard. And they all love to be outside when it is nice. If they did go out when she was out there, we would have to stand over the little ones to keep Jenna from jumping on them. Thea has already borne the brunt of one such "pounce" when her neck was cut. And now she is becoming more and more unsteady on her back legs and it doesn't take much to make her lose her balance. The last 3-4 days Fancy and Jenna have been out together (they seemed to get along better). But for the last 3-4 days, we have gone running to the back door because Fancy would be yelping and crying outside. We could not see what happened but Fancy was very scared and wanted inside.
So after discussing it this morning and realizing it was not fair to any of them, we decided to let Jenna go. We know she will find a new home really fast as she is such a sweet dog. And we are hoping she will have a BIGGER playmate that she can run and chase around the yard. And the little girls here can now go outside and get off the chair without being jumped on.
We both will miss her and we both have cried, but we also know it was the right thing to do for all the dogs and for us. We love you Jenna!!
And here she is - my own little "Frankenstein" - Thea-stein. Today she had her 3rd accupuncture treatment and she is showing definite improvement. Her head tilt is almost gone and she seems a little less painful. She can move her neck a little more freely now. Dr. Olson is pleased with her progress and her next appointment won't be for 3 weeks!!! Then after her accupuncture treatment, she is extremely tired and as you can see, she crashed in the back seat of my car and slept SOUNDLY all the way home.
I am very thankful she is feeling better and I pray she will continue to improve. Knowing she is feeling better makes it easier for me to leave her for a few days while I visit the Shenandoah National Park. I am excited about seeing some beautiful country and taking some beautiful pictures.
Vacation - what a wonderful thing!!! My vacation started on Friday and I will be off all this week. It will be a time of relaxing, photography, and fellowship. My friend Sandy and I will be leaving on Wednesday morning and driving to Shenandoah National Park. We will be spending three days and two nights in a lodge on the Skyline Drive in the Park. It is supposed to have fabulous views and lots of hiking trails. I am looking forward to peace and quiet, and taking lots and lots of pictures. We will also be visiting a couple of the caverns that are there - Luray Caverns and Shenandoah Caverns. Then we will head back home on Friday and will probably stop and see other sights and spend the night somewhere along the route home. It will be a vacation with no set in stone plans and lots of time to do whatever we want. I know though that I will miss my "girls", especially Thea. She seems to be doing better with her treatment. But we spend so much time together (she goes to work with me every day and she follows me everywhere I go in the house) - that it will be hard not having her with me. But I know Terri will take good care of her. I am looking forward to this vacation - I know the Lord will bless our time together and bring us even closer to Him!! Lord, thank you for loving me and thank you for all the blessings you have given me. I pray you will watch over us and keep us safe while on vacation and that you will reveal yourself to us in everything we see and do. I pray everything we do while on vacation, that it will bring glory and honor to You. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Jenna had her second therapy dog visit today. Started out a little rough - I stepped on her toe going out the gate in the backyard. Then I took her to the clinic to have her toenails clipped and they quicked her and she yelped on every toe they clipped. Big baby. But then we arrived at the assisted living center. And she did very well. Started out pulling on the leash alot, but my friend and evaluator, Laurie, worked with us on that and very quickly Jenna was walking at my side very nicely. About halfway through the visit, Laurie asked me to walk Jenna down the hall, turn around, come back, stop, walk slow, walk fast and a few other things. I didn't realize at the time but she was giving her the therapy dog test. And she passed it. She just needs to go on one more visit and be evaluated with Laurie there and if she does ok, she will be certified!!! She really does like to be petted and to see everyone. But after about an hour, she was tired and ready to go home. As you can see by the picture, she slept the rest of the afternoon and evening. It's hard work being loved on and petted by so many people!!!
Tuesday Thea had her first ACCUPUNCTURE treatment! We were shown to a separate room away from the exam rooms with a couch, a little "water fountain" and soft relaxing music. Dr. Olson explained what she was going to do and what she was hoping to accomplish. She examined Thea's neck and looked at her x-rays. Her goal and my goal is to get Thea off of her pain medication and the prednisone and to be able to curl up when she sleeps again. She started off with a needle in the top of her head. This was the "calming" needle. After about 60 seconds, Thea sat down and you could tell she was already more relaxed. She then put six needles in different spots on her neck and one in the middle of her back. Then we were left alone for 15 minutes to relax. Thea did very well and was not upset at all. When Dr. Olson came back and took the needles out, she told me that Thea might sleep most of the day and not eat her dinner. Which is just what happened.
She has her next appointment next Tuesday. I feel encouraged by this treatment. Both my vets feel it will help. I am hoping it will take away the pain that I know Thea has. I also feel blessed that the Lord has provided this opportunity for her. There are not many veterinarians that are able to do this and to have one right here close is definitely a blessing.
"Thank you Lord for providing this opportunity to help Thea. Each day I have with her is a blessing for me and I thank you for all you have given me through the gift of her."
