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Lulu`s Diary
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Lulu got hit by a car outside our home. Our neighbour Mick, kindly came to tell us. Mick and his partner Trudy had seen the accident happen and ran out into the road to stop Lulu getting hit by any more vehicles. Thank God they did, it is their quick thinking and kindness that means we still have Lulu, if it hadnt been for them we wouldn`t have had her alive, we are eternally grateful to them, thank you so very, very much.
Thanks also to anyone else who assisted that I have yet to be informed about. I'm only just getting to know the full story.
We rushed her to Rase Vets, she was bleeding alot and yelping. they dressed her wounds and put her on drips for fluids and pain-killers, and also anti-inflammatories. She was in a bad way.
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Me and Bri sat with Lulu all day to calm her as she was panicking so much. She couldnt understand why her back end wouldnt move. They put us out in the sunshine at the back of the vets in the paddock and we laid with her.....(even among the horse poo!) I fed her cooked chicken that they gave us. I also dripped water off my fingers into her mouth as it was all bloody and we thought she might want to wet her whistle, but she didnt seem to want any water. The vets kept coming to talk to us and we arranged for her to go to a specialist first thing Monday morning.
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We went to see Lulu but she was in a kennel cage and was very tired. She seemed to want to be left alone to sleep so we didnt stay too long. She tried to move and got upset or in pain and was yelping it upset us.
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Moved Lulu to a specialist in Yorks
Lulu had her operation on her spine, she had 2 wobbly vertebrae so they have put in 2 rods to stabilise it. they took out as much of the disc as they could find. She was still sleeping when they rang us in the evening so I guess she`d have alot of that to catch up on after what she`s been through.
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Lulu is no better but no worse which is good as some dogs go downhill after the operation. They are having trouble getting near Lulu to administer treatment such as physio as she is snarling at them because she is so frightened. They are having to sedate her to be able do these things.They re-dressed her gash on her leg and say she moved it a little bit more today. They said it will need more attention later on her ligaments. They have had to put a catheter in her bladder as they arent sure if she is weeing voluntarily or if its just overfill. (the bladder spills over like an overflow when it fills up if not emptied voluntarily)
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Bri just rang them and shes doing well starting to trust them for doing the physio, and they've fed her direct to her stomach with a tube and now shes settled down so she must've been hungry. hoping to go see her tomorrow or friday cant wait any longer! itching to see her and hug n kiss her!!wanted to go today but
just ran out of time.plus they didnt want us to go today really I mean they cant stop us but they advised its best to let her trust them first. But overall she is doing good!
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We went to see Lulu. She tried her best to get up to come and see us but of course her back legs are still out of action. Considering what she has been through she seemed ok. Still no more than a twitch on her injured back leg, and nothing at all on the other one.
She is coming home soon but they have to make sure her bladder is working before they can let her home.
They have began stepping down her pain-killers and they say she has no ill effect from that.
We didnt know til today but she has a broken rib on her left side.We are told they heal themselves but it takes months.
Tomorrow they are going to have another look at the injured leg and see if they can close up the wound more.
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Bad news. They rang and wanted us to go up to talk. They say we should put Lulu to sleep.We are deeply shocked. We thought she was getting better?? Uh? Now she has fluid on her lung. She has a broken pelvis which we didnt know about before.The pelvis will heal itself if left but maybe not in the right place. the fluid will go from her lung if she wasnt laid down all the time. But they did a EMG to test for nerve function and theres absolutely nothing in one of her back legs. The Sciatic nerve is severed and they say it will never come back and should be amputated if we go ahead and decide not to put her to sleep.
So at best we will have a 3- legged dog.with remaining back leg not that good.My god I never thought it would come to this. I mean shes just gone thru all that surgery, shes just got her bladder back working and just started eating & drinking again. How can you put a dog to sleep when she seems so perky and pleased to see you, licking your face all fussy?? I cant do that to her. It's not my decision she's Bri's dog.
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Last night we went to hell and back. All the talk of `you should put her down` was as much as we could take. We were heart-broken to even have to think of such a thing.
After much deliberation, chats to our own vet, talks with friends,many texts to & from friends, lots of time on the internet researching...we reached a decision. We will not put Lulu down. She is improving. We can not give up on her. She was over-the-moon to see us yesterday.
Our own vet says there is still time for her leg to come back. We did decide we should go ahead with the pelvis operation to have it screwed/pinned or whatever they do to secure it, then Lulu will be free from pain when there are no more bones rubbing together.
So she is due to have the operation on her pelvis Monday....an additional £2000.
We had another phone call from the specialist they want the £4244 paying before they will do the pelvis operation.
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Lulu has been eating and drinking properly by herself instead of having to be fed by tube. She hated that tube in. She used to rip it out bless her. She is still not allowing the staff at the hospital to go near her and gets aggressive with them, it must be the trauma because she wasn't like that before. She will let me, Bri or Will near her but seems to trust no-one else which is a shame as she's doing herself no favours. She needs the physiotherapy they keep trying to do. That aside, they were really pleased with her.
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Specialists rang they are saying they want a goodwill gesture of half the money now before they will do Lulu's pelvis operation. Can they do that? It's not fair on Lulu to leave her sat there in pain. They said she's abit depressed today...I'm not surprised sat there with her pelvis broken! I'm sick of all this arguing over money...why aren't lives important? Life is precious in my eyes, any advice?
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to update you all we have spent most of the day chasing people for ideas on how to raise funds, how to get more exposure, applied for loans, cried alot, been stressed to an unbearable level!
Someone offered to pay for Lulu if they could get proof that Bri could have a loan to repay them within 2 months, but so far we've been unable to get a loan. We are trying to find out why...checking credit status etc. but it takes too long. We are still waiting to hear back from yet another loan company to see if they they will lend the money or not.
We tried to get Lulu's appeal on Calender but they wouldn't entertain us.
Tomorrow Bri and the person who may lend the money are speaking to Bri's bank to try and sort something out. Then hopefully we can get Lulu's bills paid and the operation will get the go ahead.
We rang the vets Lulu had to be sedated to have her bandages re done. and is ok but feeling abit grumpy. she is eating and drinking though. wish I could see her and sit with her and give her a big cuddle!
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Latest news!!
LULU SAVED!!!
A benefactor has stepped in to save Lulu, we cant thank them enough! Wonderful!
The bill should be paid shortly and Lulu can come home once it is paid!
They have said now that Lulu's pelvis has started to heal itself so does not need the operation. Lulu is now emptying her bowels and bladder herself too so that's good.
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the benefactor hasnt made payment as yet, I must admit I am still panicking so much incase anything goes wrong. I miss her so much I just want her home. I want to comfort her and give her
a big ((((((((((hug!!))))))))))
I hate the thought of her sat up there wondering where we are, and are we going back for her? `Hang on Lulu we're coming for you soon baby!`
I wrote letters to some celebs today and shall post those in the morning....anythings worth a try.
I got excited today when the vet rang....I thought oh this will be them saying its paid you can come and fetch her....but no.  they just wanted the benefactors mobile phone number.
URGENT!
Due to the lack of payment being made we are still saying Lulu is running out of time and needs help. Please donate if you can.
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Been up to see Lulu. She seemed so pleased to see us. Her eyes were showing the third eyelid and looking abit glazed I dont know why. She is off the drip now and on tablets for pain relief.
We were told wrong that she is using her bladder and bowels herself..she isnt. They `towelled her out` of her kennel that's all. They didnt take her outside. Although she has had a sniff at the door. They have told us she has a 5% chance of ever standing again let alone walking. We got confused and started to think are we being cruel keeping her then? It's hard to know what to do to be right. If the benefactor pays the bill and she comes home we shall give her a chance and if she really doesnt improve and is so miserable we'd have to consider the worst.
The specialist says she can come home Wednesday as long as the bill is paid.
Lulu's eyes were abit crusty I dont know what causes that??
Lulu received her first parcel today...some pee pads, thank you to whoever sent those,much appreciated.xx
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not much to report. Bri rang to see how Lulu was and they said she was fine and had just settled down ok for the night.
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Lots of help coming in from people all donating shampoo, bedding etc. thank you all so much it's very kind of you.
As you can see lots of messages for Lulu and us on the guestbook, we are truly grateful to you all for your support, thank you.
Bri just rang to ask how Lulu is and they said she's the same as yesterday, no new developments, just had her tablets and gone to bed now ( 10.45pm)
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Well here I am back online. Sorry to you all who have been worried about Lulu...I havent been able to get online for afew days due to a fault on our line. HUGE APOLOGIES!! I know you must all have been worried.
LULU IS HOME! SAFE AND SOUND!
GLAD TO BE HOME!
and we are so thrilled to have her back home as we never thought it was going to happen
We collected Lulu yesterday at 11.30am...it was supposed to be at 11am but we had abit of a wait at the vets.They told us they do not think she will ever walk again but we will not write her off like that. We are going to try alternative therapies and see if she improves at all. She has to have a chance.
Today I have seen slight stretches from the leg that they told us is totally dead...but I dont know if it means anything, it may just be pulling from her body muscles or something I dont know but we are going to find out.
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Lulu has had a reasonable day, been perky. She had to go to our vets to have her dressing changed today so she got to see the lovely sunshine we have had. She loves being in the car...she is so nosey she just loves staring out the window watching the world go by.  The vet told us that the muscle is already wasting away in her good leg so we need to do physiotherapy on it (which I had started to do gently) they said flex her muscles and massage them too to stimulate the blood flow, otherwise if her leg gets better there will be no muscle to use so it will be pointless. She lets us do that to her and seems to enjoy the massage. She had abit of scurf on her where she's been shaved and I have been using one of those dog grooming gloves with rubber bobbles on to gently rub it and it comes off easy. It must itch because she loves it when you rub it for her.
Back home she had a play with her teddies and chewed one up abit, poor ted!
She has done her toilet business again fine today, and her uncle Will visited her so she was quite chuffed with that. We moved the room furniture around abit today too so as to make it easily accessable to all of us, it seems to work better.
Lulu is eating and drinking well.
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Lulu woke us today with a messy bed....she had pooed. I have been doing some acupressure on her each day and we have seen slight movement in her `dead` leg, also when she stretches out the `dead` leg stretches out too so maybe there is some hope ?? We are going to speak to alternative therapists to see if there is anything they can do to help her. Today she is outside in a travel cot watching Bri do some gardening...she is loving the open air. I have put a quilt over the back of the travel cot to block any breeze off her with her having a bare bit on her back...we don't want any chills getting to her bones. today is the best day we've had since she came home, no whining, just a content dog...happy sat out in her travel cot, a blackbird was getting worms from where Bri had weeded and kept going to have a peek at Lulu...she seemed to like seeing the birds.poor Lu though one bird even pooed on her back, bless! I've been massaging her leg muscles as our vet said and today has seen massive improvement...her `dead` leg has actually moved alittle! I still keep doing the acupressure on them too and something seems to be working. I will put pix up of Lulu in her travel cot on the website shortly (oh btw..they were doing maintence or upgrading the site y/day thats why it was out of action for awhile). We brought Lulu back in the house as the weather heated up this afternoon..dont want her getting heat stroke...and when we tipped the cot gently on to its side to get her out something strange happened...Lulu just laid there upside down on her back, supported by the cot side and cushions...and was totally at ease..no pain...happy as larry,she laid there for around half an hour and fell asleep...I sat with her to watch for her waking...and did massage on her legs...when she woke up her `dead` leg moved and stretched out but doesnt go back it just goes outwards if you know what I mean. but then also she started to twitch it too! we were amazed.  back in the house we let her lay on a foam sofa bed on the floor and I did alittle more massage..and to our surprise her `dead` leg moved again several times! we couldnt believe it! wow! there is real hope. when we took her out for last wee wee's she actually was trying to use that leg!OMG! I really hope she gets the use back in that then she wont be a 3-legged dog! |
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We took Lulu for her dressing to be changed at our vets today. She enjoyed the ride out and was looking out of the window at the world going by. Our vet said that the movement we have seen in her `dead` leg is merely a reflex from the other leg, when she stretches her legs both of them will stretch out due to a reflex that goes across the top of the pelvis.
Lulu seems quite happy considering her problems.She's had a play with her toys and enjoyed that. She's eating and drinking well.
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Lulu slept really well had a comfortable night, must have felt better for having her dressing changed. She woke up at 4.45am for a wee wee.
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Lulu is improving daily. She has begun to use her bandaged leg a little now which is excellent. She has a play each day with her toys and sleeps alot....when she sleeps she dreams...most likely of running through the hills and dales she used to, bless, as you can see her legs galloping along as she sleeps. At least it will satisfy her urge to run if she dreams about it. She's getting stronger each day and we have noticed she sits up straighter now as she is getting her strength back. All in all a good day. |
LULU WAGGED HER TAIL PROPERLY TODAY
when her uncle Will came in to see her she looked, saw who it was and actually WAGGED HER TAIL!! BRILLIANT!  She has had a good day seems to be wanting to be more active but we have to keep her as still as we can until her bones heal.
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Lulu had a good day again yesterday. She went to have her dressing changed again and our vet was pleased with her, said she hasn't got any bed sores or anything so that's good. Her leg wound is healing well, but will take quite abit longer yet to heal fully. Lulu enjoys her rides out to the vet and is very interested in the scenery she has a good gawp out of the windows as she travels, she also slept quite abit yesterday in the car but that's good as you need to sleep to heal, that's when your body repairs itself. She is putting weight on her good leg when she goes outside for a wee. we are going to get her to a physiotherapist for electrotherapy on her leg muscles. All in all a good day again! |
We rang around to find a pysiotherapist for Lulu today and managed to find one who will do the electrotherapy on her leg muscles. The machine used for the electrotherapy is called `Neurotrac`.
Lulu is sleeping alot today, but she's ok.
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Lulu is doing fine. She needs this electrical stimulation for her leg muscles or we will lose the muscle so we are taking her to a specialist shortly to get that.they can teach us how to use the machine and hire it out to us or we can buy one...its up to us.but she needs that daily to keep the muscle mass.if theres no muscle obviously she'd never walk so we have to keep it strong its our only hope of her ever walking.
she is moving her tail more each day so some feeling is coming back there thankfully.It was so nice to see her tail wag last saturday...I was thrilled.I had missed seeing that.
She has to come off her tablets now so we are weaning her off them gradually as one of them may have addictive tendencies,although it's not so likely with her only being on them a short time.
She is getting stronger in herself generally, and sits up better now rather than slumping about. She has also started to whine and get excited when she sees us put our coats on as she has remembered that used to mean she was going for a walk...so her mind is fine! bless. she hates it when Bri goes out in the car without her cos she used to go almost everywhere with him. but I've told her she just has to get better then she can do all that again, and I think she will, she is a very determined dog.
Bri sleeps in the lounge with her....Lulu is on a foam sofa bed and we got a single bed for £10 out of the ads for Bri to kip on so she isnt left alone at night. we have also figured out why she was jiffling about alot in the night...we thinnk she may have been panicking thinking she was still laid in the middle of the road after the accident so we put a nightlight in the room and she is more settled. we figured if she wakes up and can look around and know she is at home safe n sound she would relax more and it seems to work.
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Lulu had a real good night last night slept through. Seems much more settled now we are weaning her off the drugs, they can cause anxiety so that may have been the reason for her restless sleep either that or maybe shes just overcoming some of the trauma now and her mind is settling.
I gave her a bed bath today to freshen her up and she looks real well. She eats well, drinks ok and seems to be settling into more of a routine now.
We are seeing more and more movement in her tail too which is great.
Her bandaged leg is doing well healing up fine but still will take afew weeks.
For the first time since the accident Lulu today tried to lift her bandaged leg to try and scratch her ear! great! it's something.
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Lulu went for her bandage to be redressed again today at the vets.He was pleased with it as there is now some fur growing where it has healed over so that's fabulous news. Maybe in 2 weeks the bandage will be able to come off....we'll have to wait and see. Lulu is moving her tail a little more each day shes moved it about quite abit today. Shes quite playful and getting stronger every day...hence the new song on her list....`Stronger` by the gorgeous Gary Barlow.
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This morning as she awoke, Lulu wagged her tail at Bri. Brilliant, she is moving it more each day.
She has slept alot again today, but she is fine. She had a little play earlier this afternoon and chewed & licked her teddies. She is so happy when she is laid upside down on her back she lays there so calm and looks around and just looks so happy!
When we took her out for a wee around teatime I sat with her outside on the grass for afew minutes so she could have a breath of fresh air...she was quite content.
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Lulu has begun her EMS treatment ( Electric Muscle Stimulation) on her leg muscles to prevent wasting. She is taking it ok, the only problem we have is she thinks you are going to her to play so she gets all excited. We tried doing the EMS treatment on her `dead` leg just incase there is any hope, but it is unlikely to return to normal, there are still no signs of deep pain sensation, although there does appear to be something at the top of the leg, only a little though.She appeared to pull it up today so I dont know??  Her degloving injury on her leg is doing well...healing good. She wags her tail quite alot now so that is good to see. She also is getting really strong and can nearly out-run us when we "towel her out"....she charges off out of the room like she's going to run a marathon! She is completely off her tablets now and no ill effects so far, no signs of withdrawal. |
I was watching Lulu's `dead` leg today as she slept. She was pulling it up & pushing it down...how come she can move it in her sleep? Uh? She was `galloping` with all her legs in her sleep so why can't she move it when she's awake? Mmm...will have to do some investigating and find out. |
Lulu's `dead` leg moved again today as she slept. She was pulling it up & pushing it down...I still dont understand...how come she can move it in her sleep? Uh? Strange. She has had her EMS treatment again and we've seen more twinging of her `dead` leg so we live in hope.Somethings certainly going on in there...  |
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Lulu slept really well last night, certainly more settled, she slept for 7 and a half hours. I think that's the longest she has slept solid since she came home.
She had a wee wee at 8.30am then had her breakfast, washed her front paws and went back to sleep. She is so content now it's so nice to see after the weeks of torment she's gone through. Yesterday I gave her a bed bath which she always enjoys.
At least now when we take her outside to do her business she is trying to stand on her bandaged leg and can support herself for 15 secs.
She seems to have accepted her fate and took it well. She has come to terms with what happened to her and seems to realise that she can not just go walking around like she used to. We play with her everyday to stimulate her mind and prevent boredom.
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The EMS treatment is really helping. We had Lulu outside for exercise after seeing signs of her starting to use the leg and she could actually stand for the first time since the accident! Amazing when you think back that they said she would never stand again....she's proved them wrong thank goodness. Now after 2 weeks of EMS.. she can lift her injured leg to scratch her chin. Well done Lulu! |
Lulu continues to improve. She stood unaided for 21 secs today. The electrotherapy is amazing. Without it I feel we would not have had the return of leg function that we have so far. Her degloving wound is shrinking and should be healed in a week or two so she can then go to Hydrotherapy and see if we can get those legs exercised, the more she will use them herself the less Electrotherapy she will need. We did get Lulu a pushchair to take her outside in and she loves trips around the garden. Bri and Will did try to take her for a little walk 100 yards up the road (well on the path) in the pushchair but she was terrified of the traffic understandably, so they brought her back in. Poor thing she was shaking. So we won't be trying that again in a hurry. Just we had thought she was eager to go out as when she is on foot she tries to head for the road! When we go out in the car she loves that but on the way to the vets the other day she was sat facing backwards looking out of the window and when we stopped at a junction there was a lorry pulled up behind us and Lulu barked & growled at it, so she is clearly still scared of traffic. |
I had Lulu out on the lawn with me today as it was a nice sunny day. She enjoyed sniffing around and rolling upside down. It seems to give her the zest for life and awaken her, it's good stimulation to keep her going. She actually managed to use her good leg to kind of `walk` to me abit. She follwed me as I moved out of the sun and she actually got up alittle on her good leg and `walked ` to me about 3-4 feet. Brilliant! She cant fully extend the leg but at least she is using it alittle now, which all helps. Also when she is "towelled out" for wee wees she is starting to gain balance on her three legs, and the degloving injury is not far of healed so we are hoping in a week or so be able to take her to hydrotherapy! She can now scratch her own ear and chin with the injured leg....it's doing really well. Slow progress...but nevertheless progress. Bri rang an orthopaedic surgeon to ask advice about why Lulu can move her `dead` leg in her sleep. He told us that different nerves move it when it's asleep. When she is awake she needs the sciatic nerve to move it but obviously we suspect it is severed so don't know if there is any hope for that but we will keep on with the EMS. We are going to take Lulu for nerve function tests in the near future to see if there are any changes. |
Bri was out in the garden today and Lulu was whining because she wanted to be with him so I put a cot side across the doorway to stop her getting outside but so as she could sit near the door and watch Bri. She enjoyed it. She is trying to get around the house more now, and at least she is also trying to use her leg to push up on now as she tries to stand. She cant get fully stood up yet but can get halfway which is excellent.
Later on we took her for a ride out in the car. We went to the woods where she used to run loose before the accident, and we pushed her around in her pushchair so she could see where she used to go...hopefully it will inspire her and encourage her want to get better, she loved it..her head was sat right up and she enjoyed it. She was looking around and even caught a fly in her mouth!
We brought home a twig to remind her of the woods whilst she's at home.
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More good news...Lulu has actually had movement in her `dead` leg yesterday and today. Today I saw it for myself...she really does try to move the leg when walking! It does not move much but yes it certainly does move. Wow!  She steps with her good rear leg and the `dead` leg is trying to pull forward also, my goodness I hoped she would regain use of it but was never sure it would happen, I couldn't believe it when I saw it move. You get so used to seeing her how she was...and it is so strange to see that leg move after all this time. So there is real hope for her maybe becoming a four-legged dog again. We took her to our vet today just to show her progress off, and he said there is definetely muscle mass returning to even the `dead` leg. That is wonderful news! |
Just had Lulu outside for a roll on the lawn and I couldnt believe it when I saw her doing a pedalling/cycling motion with BOTH rear legs! WOW!
Lulu was rolling on the grass then both rear legs moved in a pedalling motion! Fantastic! Then she did a pooh..not so nice but ah well it has to come out.... ...hehe
Me and Brian had a look through the website pix last night to see how Lulu has progressed since the accident, and it was upsetting to look back at those pix of her in hospital but my how she has progressed!
She is amazing!
We have faced criticism from some people for keeping Lulu alive after the accident but I'm glad to say they have only been a select few. But we knew that we could not give up on her, she deserved a chance to recover, and we always said if at any point she has had enough and wants to go we would have let her and done the decent thing. To be perfectly honest she has never shown anything like that at all, she has always had the most fantastic will to live. So that deserves to be rewarded with the best care and effort on our part. She is a star and is doing brilliantly. When she takes her first proper steps in the future we shall try and get her tale in the newspaper and tell the world about our amazing Lulu.
We found with Lulu we had to be a little bit cruel to be kind and make her realise she still has got her rear legs, as she did seem to get used to being disabled, we tried all sorts, the only thing we found that helped was she had to want something herself if you know what I mean....it did no good putting her in the babybouncer we bought and modified for her as she couldnt understand what it was for but yet if she was out on the lawn and wanted to get to say a treat she would put the effort in to try and use it. we even tried Bri driving off down the drive without her (me staying with her) to try and kick off a reaction in her and that helped abit. she hates him leaving her she wants to go in the car with him. We have got most success from having her out on the lawn and throwing treats away from her to make her move to get them, and thats how she has got using her injured rear leg, she starts hydro next week can't wait!
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Lulu sits at the front door now on nice days looking out at the world and she loves it. (we put a cot side across the doorway) It also means she sits still so I can manage to get the EMS treatment done on her legs.
We try her outside daily to get her to use the good rear leg, making her realise she can step now with it, Bri "towels her out" while I hold her lead and guide her around the garden, we walk slow reminding Lulu to pick up her foot and use the leg, I'm pleased to say she actually took 5 steps consecutively again yesterday. Great! One lap around the garden is enough for her.
The new song on her list is I'm Still Standing...I know it should be `I'm standing up again`......but Elton wouldn't record that version! Ha Ha!
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Last night Lulu took 8 steps on her own when we took her out for toilet duty...she took her own weight on her good leg so we lowered the towel down to let her stand unaided and she actually stepped forward 8 steps unaided. Great! She still can't fully extend her leg but at least she is trying.
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Well things are certainly looking up. As Lulu progresses it means we can keep getting rid of things, like she no longer needs the bed we had in the room for Bri to sleep on near her as she sleeps upstairs in Bri's room now. We keep going through different stages with her, and the better she gets the less stuff she needs. We are selling the single bed (£10). The bed drawer used to store Lu's sheets but we have now bought a plastic tub to put them in...so that's given us more space. (well it will once the bed's gone) The baby bouncer can go too as it was never much use but still we were trying anything to get her to walk again. The large sofa bed has gone and is replaced with a smaller one. She no longer needs the cot mattress in the back of the car as she sits on the back seat now so the mattress has gone upstairs to make a bed for her along with her big cushions off Esther...she loves those. Pee pads are history too she no longer needs them so I am donating them to some other doggy who needs them like Lulu did. The pushchair will be able to go in afew weeks once she starts walking more by herself so I shall give that to anyone who wants it for their dog. (email me via the contact page if you want it when we are done with it) It won't be long before Lulu is a normal (well she was always abit loopy!) dog again sleeping in a normal dog bed and all the equipment we've needed to help get her better will be gone....brilliant! Back to hydrotherapy on Tuesday! |
 Lulu has been back to hydrotherapy tonight...Bri calls her `Hydrodog`...ha ha.
She did 15 mins this time instead of 10. Bri went in with her again, and the good thing about the hydro' is at least all those walks she has missed having or craves now well at least she can have them in the pool if you know what I mean. She is free for awhile from her disability and can `run` in the water and let out all that frustration and desire to gallop. Dot (the lady who runs&owns the pool) put the jets on for her tonight as she told us it helps to massage a little as well as creating more resistance in the water. Just the power of the jets seemed to be sending Lulu in circles! Dot also said because Lulu is nibbling that knucking scrape injury on her `dead` legs foot she must have some feeling in it. Again she seems to use it as far as the knee but no further.
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It is early days yet I know but the hydrotherapy does not seem to do as much good as the Electrotherapy. We have not seen any vast improvement since starting hydro` yet with the EMS treatment you see big changes quickly. So we are holding off the hydro` for awhile and trying to give more EMS to build those muscles to aid her walking ability. Considering she has been going twice a week to hydro it hasnt done alot of good well not that shows anyway. The pool is always too cold and I don't think it is a good idea to put Lulu in cool water not with her injuries, the whole idea of hydro` is supposed to be that the pool is warm so as not to cause constriction of the blood vessels, but when Lulu is in there you can see her shivering...that's not right.
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We have moved Lulu into our utility room/porch area as Bri is going to make a garden for her so she can nip out the back door into it and enjoy fresh air. She loves to be outside and now she is more mobile she could manage to get around a small area. We have a lawn area already there, and a small paved area too, the only problem is the rough concrete path so we are going to cover that with rubber matting when we find some so as Lulu can not hurt herself. She will enjoy the freedom to go out as & when she wants. It will be all fenced off so Lu cant get out. She can have a little kennel too. We are trying tactics to make her move around as she is stationery too long...and this will be a good move as she will have to move about in & out of the house, and around her garden. The electrotherapy continues to improve her walking ability. We have registered Lulu at another hydrotherapy pool that has a trained person in the pool with her, but she wont be going just yet. She had an allergic dermatitis on her skin, a bad reaction to fleas but that is under control now with the help of Frontline & Medrone tablets. The first lot of Frontline we did her with didnt seem to work, either that or the hydro pool washed it off?? Bri bought Lulu a new bed today as he was having a tidy up in his bedroom...it's bone-shaped...she loves it. Bri takes her up with him to bed at night and she flops out on her new bed like `ah lovely..my new bed!` ha ha. The bed is anti-bacterial so will help her skin condition maybe, and it has a removable cover so we can wash it if she has any accidents on it! To see her new bed click link below http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/8702472.htm(pic of Lulu on her bed added 19.9.07).....I forgot to take a pic of her on new bed til now! doh.
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My idea to put Lulu in the back of the house in the utility/porch area was because she will have to move about more. We positioned things to make her move around. Like putting her food the opposite side to her drink so she has to move to get both, also she has to move from the utility room to get into the porch to look out the gate into her garden , (we haven't got it fenced off yet) then when she wants to go back to bed she has to move again...the idea was to stop her being so stationery. Well it seems to have paid off. There has been a vast improvement in Lulu since we moved her there. We think it may also be because that's where she used to be before the accident. It's as if she's thought, `Oh I used to be here and I was ok, I could walk so I'll walk then.`
Well that's our guess anyway, it just seemed weird she wasn't moving about that much but since we put her there she is moving all over and for the first time she is walking on that good back leg with it straight up, fully extended, not crouched so that's really good news. Lulu's degloving injury is now completely healed so that's one less thing to worry about. |
Lulu's website was featured in the simple site.com weekly email to all simple-siters...see Sept pix for pic I got of her bit from the email. So maybe we'll get more hits now? Bri got a letter from a guy in Yorkshire who tried to help us when things were tough with Lulu & the specialists, we had sent him a letter to explain that she was not pts after all and also sent him a picture of Lulu and the link to her website. We got a nice letter back from him today, thanking us for letting him know how she's doing and wishing her well, thanks Joe! Lulu managed to walk around the garden last night when we took her out for her last wee & pooh of the day, she even managed to squat herself no support from us. Fab! |
We are doing less washing of bedding now as Lulu has less accidents. She seems to know when most poohs are coming just not all! She has gone from being a broken up poorly patient to a healthy dog who walks abit funny. Bri is amazed with her.  Her skin condition is clearing up slowly, it's not all smelly like it was and the brown scabs have almost gone. We wondered why the `dead leg` sort of crosses infront of her good rear leg when she walks, but soon realised...if you imagine you can not feel the bottom of your leg and try walking that's what happens, it pushes across at an angle. (How do we know? well sounds daft but bend one leg up from the knee, holding it up behind you to imagine its `not there` then try walking and you will see it pushes across at an angle) .....blimey the things you have to do eh! haha  The only thing we are concerned about it the loss of muscle mass on Lulu's rear end, I can not do EMS treatment as it can't be done near the heart and the muscles concerned - as far as I can see - go from the rear to up near her chest. So we will seek professional advice about that. |
Really good news....Lulu's `dead leg` is actually starting to lift itself up when she walks! The toe is still dragging but we have a boot on order, should be here soon. It's really good that the leg is at last showing signs of recovery. |
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I received an email today from Provincial Rubber. I had emailed them to ask if they would be kind enough to donate a sheet of rubber matting - 2ft x 8ft - to Lulu for her garden area to cover the path so she hasn't got to be on rough concrete.
Their reply today brought wonderful news that YES they would donate the rubber matting to Lulu! Fab! How kind of them. I offered a link to their website on here & a mention on Lulu's donation page in return for their kind gesture.
Check out their website on the links page.
Lulu seems really happy, playing with her toys, trying her best to `fetch` when we throw them. She is full of energy today, and got really excited when I took her out in the garden. She didn't want to come back in, but I said don't worry we are going for a ride in the car soon to buy your birthday things! Yay!
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Not much luck with the treadmill, Lulu is terrified of it! Well I knew it was a long shot but thought we'd try anything. We tried holding her on it but she cant manage it, probably because it's on an incline.
Lulu paid Black Sheep Vets a visit today with me and Will, Richard said the muscle on her back end is building up, Karla & Richard both thought that Lulu is doing really well. She walked in to the surgery ok, just I forgot to put her boot on so that foot was scraping on the floor abit, oops.
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 Lulu goes with Bri to his dad's at weekends, and she has managed to go for her first proper walk in the street since the accident. She walked approx 400 yards, she is really inspired because it is a town with lots of other doggy scents around which she sniffs and follows. Last week she went with Bri again and was loose around the yard as it is enclosed, she enjoyed playing with their dog Lily! (see pic above)
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Annie brought Lulu her birthday present...the pink dog coat off Lulu's wish list, so a big thank you to Annie! The coat looks lovely and will ensure Lulu does not get any chills in her bones this winter. |
Lulu actually ran a tiny way today! She got all excited and ran out into her garden! WoW! Is she ever going to stop surprising us? Amazing.... Go Girl!  |
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Took Lulu for her first walk in the woods since her accident. She couldn't wait to get out the car and be off!
She managed to walk 200 yards or abit more...see Lulu's Comic page for pix.
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Lulu was at the vets today shes got an infection on her `dead` foot so she's got anti-biotics and ointment for it. We are going to buy her a rear leg splint to hold the `dead` foot in position forward to aid her walking and to prevent it dragging.
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It has been a very hectic few weeks lately, and Lulu has worn me out bless her. I've had to attend to her foot every day to keep it clean and wrapped up so as it heals. Sometimes you take her boot off then just nip to fetch something and 2 seconds later she has chewed the scab off so it's been a struggle to keep her off the foot. She seems very possessive of her foot and gets crabby if you won't let her near it. She even pulled the boot off so we put gaffa tape on it so she couldn't pull the velcro fastener off. Now the weather has got very wet we also put gaffa tape on the base of the boot to make it more waterproof. It seems to work well.
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Lulu weed all over her bed today and the wee had blood in it so I got intouch with our vet Richard to ask if it was serious. He told us it is probably Cystitis and to keep her drinking plenty. She had been abit whiney over the weekend and looked down so I wondered what had been wrong with her. She had weed once or twice in the house and she has never done that before, apart from when she has been "towelled" upstairs but you can't blame her for that it's just the pressure on her bladder.
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We took Lulu to the vets today as she was no better. Richard, our vet gave her an injection of high dose antibiotics then gave us a course of antibiotic tablets for her. He said he would expect to see a rapid improvement by tomorrow, Richard said to make sure she gets plenty of water and if for any reason she won't drink bring her in to be put on a drip.
We had put Lulu in a nappy to take her to the vets so she didn't wee all over the car seat, and when we took it off her at the vets it had blood and clots in it, which Richard says is serious. If she doesn't improve he wants to admit her in to have blood tests etc.
we also have to take in a urine sample for testing.
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We managed to get a urine sample from Lulu last thing last night so I dropped it in to Richard our vet for testing, he will be intouch later today With the result.
RESULT: Richard emailed to say Lulu's urine sample shows some mild kidney damage sadly. He wants us to take in another urine sample for testing to see how she is doing when she is on her last day of tablets.
Fingers crossed. But she seems to be improving so hopefully all will be ok, but at this stage we just don't know. Lulu is back eating as normal so that's good news and she seems perkier this morning.
I made various charts to pin up in the kitchen so as we can monitor her drink input, wees, poohs and tablets.
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Lulu appears to be getting better. Yesterday she seemed happier, playing and having a roll about upside down. But this morning she woke us up at 3am for a wee, then she was whining abit so I had to sit with her. She went out for a pooh around 6am had her tablet and breakfast then went to sleep.
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Lulu was back for check up at the vets today, she seems ok, apart from she's not eaten anything today, Richard gave her more antibiotics as she still has fever and her urine sample showed up crystals but they are just from the antibiotics hopefully. I forgot to ask about the kidney damage though so I don't know if she still has that? Will ask next time. He was pleased with her progress, she has responded well to the antibiotics. |
Apologies to all who donated to Lulu who have yet to receive a photo as promised, we just have not had time to do them yet. We are aiming to send them out early next year.
Lulu continues to improve she is quite lively and happy, playing with her toys.
Yesterday I started doing the EMS treatment again on her ` dead` leg to see if we can gain any improvement there, it would be nice if her foot would come back to life abit then she would be able to walk properly and it would also help build the muscle tone back up in her `dead` leg too.
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not much to report, Lulu seems to have got over her urine infection ok, she is full of energy and playing lots with her new teddies from the charity shop. We are so busy trying to get ready for Christmas, so much to do! |
Bri, myself and Lulu took a present to some very special people today...we took a Christmas fruit hamper across to the neighbours Mick and Trudy who saved her back on that night in May. They stopped other cars from hitting her and came to fetch us. We wanted to take them a Thank You gift and especially wanted them to see how well Lulu is doing. They were quite amazed at how well she's got on since her accident. She amazes everyone bless her. She's such a fighter. It was nice to be able to show them that she has made such progress. Lulu growled at them initially but soon let her guard down and let them stroke her. It was so nice to be able to take Lulu to see them.........walking herself. Thank You to all of you who have helped Lulu this year you are all stars! |
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
Now Christmas is over we have started Electrotherapy on Lulu again as her `dead` leg has gone quite weak, we were going to leave the Electrotherapy until spring when the warmer weather's here (we didnt want to be shaving her fur off in the winter) but decided we dare not leave her leg any longer or it may be too late. The muscles are responding well to the EMS. The leg kicks out now and again...like a mule! I don't know if that's a reflex or something? The good news is that Lulu has some feeling back as far down as just below her hock...I know that her having `feeling` in it is not the same as `motor` but surely it's a good sign that somethings happening? I hope so. we are focusing on this `dead` leg now and giving her EMS daily to hopefully see further signs of improvement real soon. fingers crossed. Alot of ppl we meet seem to imply that we did the wrong thing keeping Lulu alive, they say `you should have had her pts, it's cruel keeping her like that`.....well to all you out there that think that, all I can say is this: "It's easy to preach to someone else, but when it's you and your pets life you do anything to keep them with you, it's a little life after all, it's precious. if it had been your pet would you have had her pts? would you really? It's a hard thing to do play God. When you are faced with that option it's not easy. But fear not ... Lulu is very happy! She enjoys life, plays alot with her toys loves to go visiting her buddies, and has even started to have proper walks again so no worries....be happy that she's happy! She's doing well. Ok?"
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Where have all the dates gone off this diary?? Uh?? I havent deleted them...strange...
Note: Not been on here so much as Wills dad passed away suddenly so we have been helping him deal with his grief and helping to organise the funeral. (I have put a pic of the horses we had on Jan/FebMar Pix 08 because they were so beautiful) we did Wills dad proud, putting together a lovely service and I designed the church leaflets too. Bri printed them. We put on a lovely buffet back at the house and I thought seeing as though we had never organised a funeral before that we did a good job.
I have still been doing Electrotherapy on Lulu when I can, I did abit on the `dead` leg yesterday and got a good response, the two centre toes were twitching so now we know somethings getting through to them so that's good. The muscle mass has really disappeared drastically since the accident, so now I have to stick at this leg and get it back up to standard as I really do feel she will walk normal again by summer. She tries to use the leg (apart from the knuckling foot dragging) so I guess it's just too weak to use. Once the muscle is restored she will be able to use it much better, lets hope she does. The leg gives out big kicks when you touch the tendons near her hock, she kicks like a mule! I hope that's a good sign.
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Lulu now has a tiny bit of muscle built up on her `dead` leg. You can feel the tissue starting to come back so that's good. It will build up more over the coming weeks. She continues to be very happy, very lively! Playing outside in the garden, going for short walks and she especially loves a good ride out in the car! |
Today we awoke to snow and lots of it! It looks very Christmassy outside, the snows afew inches deep. Lulu went out for a play (see Lulu Pix Jan/feb/mar 08 page)...she loves it. She was trying her best to run alittle sniffing the snow and chasing through it best she could. |
 Snow again! At 9.30pm snow started to fall so we went outside to throw snowballs for Lulu...she chases them and eats them, yuk! I was surprised at how fast she was running...the snow seemed to inspire her! I am now doing abit more aggressive Electrotherapy on Lulus `dead` foot as we really need to start seeing some change. The foot is getting very sore and swollen. So I thought I'd `up` the electrotherapy abit to get more of a response. Today the leg was pulling up while I was doing the EMS although the foot stills droops.
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I came up with a new idea to protect Lulu's foot until we get her a new boot, as her boots are totally worn out now.......in a word pipe-lagging! Ha ha I know it sounds crazy but to be honest it's working really well, it seems to support her leg abit too to reduce that awful drooping of the foot; so maybe the swelling on the joint will go down abit if it isn't being bent over. It also acts as a prop to help her stand all I was concerned about was it hurting her other joint in the leg higher up but we're keeping an eye on it. The skin underneath is getting abit purply/red from previously being dragged along so we may take her for a checkup at the vets to make sure it is ok.
Lulu is very happy in herself, she enjoys days of nice weather (sparce I know) where she can be out in the garden and she plays around, sniffs about and chews her rubber chicken! We play `fetch` with her...throwing the rubber chicken or her other fave toy...the knotted rope....that was a bargain from £ land! I did originally buy it for Joe the border collie friend of Lulu's but never got to send it so gave it to Lulu - and she loves it - ....Daisy & Joe if you're reading this....sorry!! Hope you are both well!
Lulu even has the odd night out staying over with her uncle Will!
She certainly gets around! Only the other day she was in Barnsley & Dewsbury! We were visiting friends....hi to Darron, Meayla, Blake, Tommy and angel Briony, the chicks, Lewis, the rat & dogs! Phew!
Hello!!!
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The pipe-lagging seems to be helping Lulu's `dead` foot, the swelling has gone down now the foot isn't dragging so that's beneficial to her. Bri has told me why she can run faster than she can walk...it's because when dogs walk they alternate their feet putting one foot infront of the other but when they run they use both front legs together and both back legs (normally) work together to scoot them along...so that explains why Lulu can run faster than she can walk! when she walks obviously she slows down abit cos the fourth leg isn't there to push on |
New Boots/ Water Infection/Reflection/New `Leg` Song Wanted/Acceptance/Confusion/Emotional
Lulu has another water infection, so she is back on antibiotics. She seems to be responding well to them and is much happier today than yesterday.
I am continuing to do Electrotherapy on her worst affected leg, and the movement does seem to improve with the treatment albeit slowly. Nothing major to report but the leg appears to move better after the Electrotherapy. We have to keep trying. We have been debating as to what to do with this worst affected leg, and Bri does not want it amputating, I don't think he can bear the thought of her losing it, and wants to keep trying to recover its function so I am happy to continue the treatments on it.....as I agree and I do have a phobia about amputation! Eek! It makes me feel queasy to see amputees. As you may have noticed we have also decided to stop calling that leg `dead`...it was Bri's idea, he said maybe it's having a bad psychological effect on Lulu calling it dead, maybe she just thinks oh well if its dead I cant move it then, and gives up......anything's worth a try!
we are also trying to add a new song to Lulus list but havent thought of one yet re the worst affected leg....the W.A.L. ha ha
The pipe-lagging was a temporary success but no good long term as it makes the foot sweat badly and creates sores.....well it was worth a try until her new boots arrive, they are on order but have to be specially made to size and come from Ireland! Maybe the leprechauns make them, ha ha. Hey maybe the luck of the irish will help Lulu's leg repair! haha.
It's been abit of an emotional time Bri finally spoke out about his feelings on it all, he says he still kept thinking Lulu was dead from the night of the accident and when we were going up to the specialists to see her he says it was so hard and so much to deal with that when we came home it seemed easier here, Bri kept telling himself she was dead and gone, with her not at home he thought she's dead; he then once we had her home it confused him cos he thought she had died and he said it was too much to deal with, it didnt feel right.....what a weird year Bri must have gone through, phew! That sounds odd. Poor fella.
He says it's took til now to accept what has happened to her and face up to it. He has had to accept it; like we said you've just got to get on with it and make the best of it. Lulu is doing so well and she is happy so Bri has to deal with this and find some kind of peace within himself.
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Lulu's Friends
I have introduced a new page called Lulu's Friends, you can add your message and photo of your pets here, to build up a page of Lulu's Friends!
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We are taking Lulu to see a professional physiotherapist in 3 weeks time. We feel we need a professional physiotherapists opinion on her worst affected leg so as to know how to progress.
Yesterday whilst I was doing the electrotherapy on it the leg was `cycling` so dont know if that's a good sign or not? One would think it is? But we will see.
Bri has spoken to a neurosurgeon about Lulu and he says there's no reason her w.a.l. shouldn't be working. He says if she can feel it she should be able to move it as the sciatic nerve supplies both feel and motor. It's funny how Lulu uses the leg for the first steps of the day then doesn't bother, is it psychological like we've said before or what? I've not seen her do this but Bri tells me she does. Whilst she was asleep tonight I was watching it cos it was moving then, her toe was even twitching slightly. I'll be very interested to hear what the physio lady makes of it.
We are getting her some protein powder tomorrow, I emailed Craig Bracken's owner to ask what he had used for her and he used Sanatogen so we'll be getting that first thing see if it makes a difference.
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Good News!!
I was washing Lulu's w.a.l. last night and rubbing between her toes to dry them when I noticed muscles twitching in the back of her leg so I pinched her outer toe and low and behold her leg pulled up!! I was in disbelief so I pinched it again, and yes sure enough the leg was moving! It only seemed to be pulling up on the back muscles/tendons? though, the front muscles didn't appear to be doing anything. So I don't know if it is muscles or tendons pulling up but somethings moving. We are going to video her pulling the leg up later...but that's Bri's department I can film her but transferring it to here I can't do.
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We took cards to Black Sheep Vets today for their 2nd birthday. Happy Birthday Black Sheep!Lulu had a bath today (see pix july/aug/sept 08 page) she didn't like it much but she did like being rubbed all all over getting rid of those itches. She likes being groomed too. Lulu stayed out in the garden with us while Bri cut some hedges. We took her to the woods - where she used to go before her accident - for a walk tonight and she absolutely loved it! She couldn't wait to get out of the car, and she practically ran off with Bri! Wow! So we will be taking her there again regularly if it inspires her to move that's just what she needs. |
A trip to the vets today to buy more bandages for Lulu's w.a.l. While we were there we decided to experiment with some casting material, and try to make a cast for her leg to create a permanent boot/support. It seemed a success initially as Lulu was able to get up easier and quicker but wasn't 100% effective as she is still inclined to drag the leg, I think she needs the splint that pushes the foot forward, but well you don't know til you try...so it was worth a go. we are all learning along the way I noticed later on this evening that Lulu's foot had swollen with the cast on. Everyone has said that Lulu does seem to be trying to pick up the w.a.l. more lately, so that's good |
Lulu's Birthday Today! She's 4! Bless!
The weather was gorgeous so we were out in the garden all day, hardly any breeze so it was lovely.
Lulu enjoyed it, she was playing with her toys.
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Lulu went to the vet today after having problems retaining her urine. She has been abit whiny lately too. She wee'd all over the hall floor today so Bri syringed some of the urine up and put it in a sample bottle to take to the vet to get tested. I noticed that it looked slightly cloudy and pinky, so thought she may have blood in it, so I booked her into the vets at 4pm.
The vet said she has got an infection and also some crystals in her urine, so she has been given anti-biotics. We have to take another urine sample in when the tablets are finished to check that the infections gone.
If Lulu doesn't respond to the drugs she will have to go in for more tests/scans etc. Fingers crossed she'll be fine! I'll keep you posted.
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Lulu's worst affected leg is still showing hopeful signs of improvement. She definetely have movement as far as the hock, we still are seeing that she tried to move that leg more, we asked the vet to check the muscle between the hock and knee to see if he thought that the electrotherapy is doing any good, and he says there does seem to be a little more muscle than before, so fingers crossed.
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 Sorry there isnt many photos of Lulu from October, it has been a very sad time for us. My baby boy Pickle, my cat was found close to death on our driveway, just laid there not responsive, on 11th October, we rushed to the vet but he passed away on route sadly, it broke my heart to lose him, he was a very special boy, I have been in shock ever since. I still cant believe he's gone. He was only 5 and in perfect health, so we don't know what happened. Whether he was poisoned or what we just don't know, even the vet didnt know what caused his death. No signs of injury, all he had was a broken tooth and had bit his tongue, suggestive of a seizure maybe? But then I read on the net seizures can occur after death apparently so can be inconclusive when trying to establish cause of death. Of course a post-mortem would have maybe told us more but I could not bear the thought of it at the time. He was the most gorgeous cat you could wish for, RIP Pickle, Mama loves you so so very much Babba xx. We will never forget you, not ever dumpling.
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Something weird happened today Lulus worst affected leg was going like the clappers in a scooting motion for awhile, so dont know what that was all about.but at least its moving somehow!
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Lulu got a new sofa bed! Yay! There you go Lula...a nice clean bed, well for a few days anyway, haha.
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We are going to get Lulu a wheelchair/trolley asap.....she struggles to walk any distance and her back end drops to one side, it's not fair to keep her struggling so she needs a wheelchair
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Thanks for dropping by, enjoy Lulu's tale
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