Monday, April 7, 2014
I am happy to report that Henry did wonderful this weekend! I worked from home on Friday and Henry got some much needed rest. He didn't sleep quite as well as he normally does on the first night home from surgery. I think the biggest problem was getting used to the cone. But, by Friday afternoon, he was doing a lot better managing the satellite dish around his neck and was able to get a bit more comfortable.
In true Henry style, he also coaxed me into spending some time outside with him on Friday. His thinking was that sunshine is the best medicine. I don't know about that, but I was happy to see him wanting to do the things that he enjoys.
On Saturday morning, we noticed that a lot of the swelling in his eye had subsided. By Sunday, some of the redness was also fading. Overall, I think he is healing very well. He has taken it all in stride.
Benjamin and Luna are also taking it very well. Ever since Henry came home last Thursday, he has been a one man wrecking crew with his cone. He has been bumping the cone into Benny and Luna all weekend. They have been very patient with Henry even though there have been times he has almost bowled them over with his cone of shame.
Friday, April 4, 2014
I am so happy to report that Henry is home and is doing very well. He was super happy to see us yesterday. Once he said hello, he marched right out of the vet's office and was scanning the parking lot wondering where we parked because he was ready to get home.
Once we got home, he made no bones about wanting to eat. We gave him a bit of food and he was ready for more. I thought it was a really good sign that his appetite was already back.
I think the hardest thing for him to manage has been the cone. His cone is catching on everything and when that happens he's not sure if it because of something he can't see or if it is because he has a satellite dish on his head. I'm sure in a day or two he will be doing much better getting around with the cone of shame. For now we are super glad he is home and doing so well.
Thank you for all your warm thoughts and kind wishes. It meant so much and was such a tremendous help in getting through these last few days. Have a great weekend!
Wednesday, April 2, 2014
Recently, our steadfast and always strong Henry has been having ear and eye troubles. His ears have rebounded (infection-wise, not hearing-wise), but his eye woes have not only not cleared up - they have gotten worse.
At the follow up appointment on Thursday of last week, we weighed all of the options about what to do about his eye. His vision in his left eye is lost. Due to the size of the cataract in his eye, there is no hope of vision coming back if we are able to get the glaucoma under control. And despite our best efforts, we have not been able to come close to managing the glaucoma. He has not responded to the stringent course of treatment that was recommended. So, the best thing to do for Henry is to remove the painful, angry eye and allow the true healing to begin.
This whole scenario took us by storm. Henry has always been the "healthy" one. He's barely been on oral medications. Rarely eye drops. Always been able to walk far distances. Trachea still a perfect circle. Could see. Could hear. Well, in the last 10 days he basically went deaf and blind in one eye and now we have to have is eye removed.
One of the harder pills to digest is that the surgery is tomorrow. And tomorrow is Henry's birthday! The guilt I feel for scheduling Henry's eye removal surgery on his birthday is enormous. I almost put the surgery off for another week, but Henry is in a lot of pain from the glaucoma. The eye vet describes it as having a constant migraine in his eye. And it just breaks my heart to see him push he eye into the furniture or to paw at it to help alleviate some of the pressure. So, I took the first available surgery day, which happens to be his birthday, in hopes of bringing him some much needed relief.
We will keep you posted. And don't worry. We are worried enough for everyone. May good health and happiness be with you all. Squeeze your babies today! We will stay as positive as we can. Thanks for all your love & support.
Monday, March 24, 2014
It turns out that Henry's ear infection was really the least of his problems. Last weekend, we noticed that his left eye was getting really cloudy. By the time Sunday night rolled around, his eye was super red and seemed extra big. We made an appointment for him at the vet on Monday. After seeing his eye, the vet did a pressure test and quickly confirmed that Henry has glaucoma in his left eye. The pressure in his left eye was a 22 and normal eye pressure is between 10-15. It was also confirmed that Henry had no vision in his left eye. However, if the pressure in the eye was reduced, there might be chance for him to regain his vision in that eye, assuming the pressure in his eye never goes above a 30.
We left with 3 different eye drops to give to Henry in hopes of reducing the pressure in his eye, making him more comfortable and potentially restoring his sight.
On Thursday we went back to the vet to check on Henry's progress. Unfortunately, the pressure in Henry's left eye was even higher (25). Our vet recommended that we take Henry to the eye specialist and in the interest of time we do it the next day.
We made the trek to the eye vet on Friday morning. The vet confirmed that Henry does indeed have glaucoma in his left eye and that he can not see out of his left eye. However, she also told us that the very small cataract that Henry had in his left eye has exploded in size. The size of the cataract means that Henry has no chance of regaining the vision in his left eye once we get the glaucoma under control.
Our main question was how did this come on so suddenly? The eye specialist explained that there are a few possibilities and we are currently waiting on blood work to help us determine what is the cause for the sudden glaucoma. The first scenario, is it is the result of an infection (most likely from a tick bite). We are waiting on the results of a blood test to confirm if this is the case. A second scenario is that this is the result of an auto immune disorder. A third possibility is that the glaucoma is caused by cancer that has spread to Henry's eye.
Of all these scenarios, the simple infection would be the easiest to treat and would offer the best long term outlook. The worst case scenario would be cancer of course. And while I immediately worry that it is the worst case scenario, I think if it was cancer that has already spread to his eye, Henry would be showing some other signs of sickness.
For now we wait and see how the blood results come back. From there we will figure out the next steps. In the meantime, Henry goes back to the eye specialist for a follow-up visit later this week to check on the status of his eye. Hopefully, the pressure in his eye will be much better.
Wednesday, March 19, 2014
We have been noticing that Henry's hearing has not been as sharp lately. Even with duller hearing, Henry shines in the hearing department compared to Benjamin and Luna who are practically completely deaf. But, one day last week we noticed that Henry was not being his normal self and we noticed that he couldn't hear anything at all. Later that day he started scratching his ears like crazy and we had a sneaking suspicion that he had an ear infection. So, off to the vet we went and the vet confirmed that Henry did indeed have an ear infection. Henry was prescribed ear drops to tackle the infection and we vowed to be more diligent about cleaning his ears.
The hope is that after Henry's ear infection is cleared up, his hearing will return to normal. Although, I must admit, I'm kinda concerned that it won't since there hasn't been any improvement so far.
Friday, January 31, 2014
The end of the sofa with a clear view out the front door is the most coveted spot on the couch. This spot is almost always occupied by Henry. But, luckily for Benjamin and Luna, Henry is willing to share his spot with them.
Monday, December 16, 2013
I posted last week about Benny's impressive fur growth spurt after we started him on some new meds. Here is more information on the magic little pills that we started him on:
Free Form Snip Tips
A Free Form Fatty Acid offering maximum potency of EPA and DHA.
Omega-3's for Small Dogs and Cats
We purchased these from our vet. I believe they were sold as a supplement and a prescription was not required. They have worked wonders for Benjamin for his fur issues. Take a look at his fur patch now (and Luna photobombing the shot).
As with anything, talk to your vet about these before you start giving them to your pug.
« Older Posts
| More Recent Posts »
Want more? Wander through our archives.
