The Cockers ...

In a world filled with unaccountable, irresponsible, stupid people, I am glad to have my vet on my side. Thankfully he doesn't fall into the above mentioned category of people .... the cockers thanks him too.

Both girls had an appointment on Saturday - Etta Mae had an urge to see Dr. Jason early and climbed on a table, knocked down a bowl of guacomole, shattered the bowl and proceeded to suck on broken glass chards ... I can't blame her, the guacomole was good. So she got an early visit on Friday with a follow up on Saturday with me and Snickers, Steve too.

Despite what the "rescue" vet stated, Etta Mae is far from healthy and her bloodwork is FAR from normal ... note people, always look at the blood work yourself, and familiarize yourself with the connotations of LOW and HIGH, this may keep your dog from suffering. So, Etta has a heart murmur, one notable enough to require medication and Cushings disease which is causing her kidneys to fail ... all of this was detected from the blood work done by the vet who said she was "Fine" ... so my old girl, my pity adoption, is going to have a dental to remove some teeth with exposed roots, get rid of the lingering bacteria which could futher damage her heart and get to take some heart meds daily. We have also decided to put her on Anipryl ( I think ) which will help with the progression of the Cushings and also alleviate some of the doggie dementia symptoms we are seeing. Aside from that, my friend Teri has formulated a homemade diet for Etta with the appropriate nutrient content for a girl experiencing her problems and supplements to support her heart and bad coat (from the Cushings). I wish someone would give a disease name to my fatness and psychoness ... alas nothing has been discovered.

Etta's condition won't cost a lot financially and doesn't really have an effect on our desire to care for her throughout the remainder of her life, but it does make me realize that people just aren't accountable and just really do not care. The bloodwork that I referred to was done on June 25, 2008 and since then, until the day I got my hands on it last week, no one has done anything for this poor girl to alleviate the symptoms she is experiencing. Cushings basically makes you feel liek you are on prednisone, which explains her extreme need for food and her frequent and untimely urination, as well as the increased water intake. I'm sure the other vet just thought she was a fat cocker with incontinence, which would explain why he put her on unhealthy doses of Proin for her "incontinence" - forgive me if I am wrong, but aren't vets supposed to investigate, diagnose and treat ... which one of these did this vet intend to do, as based on what I am seeing he did none.

Despite their inability to be accountable to the lives they cross, Steve and I will do our best to make sure this little girl, who is full of life, enjoys all of hers. And to think the idiots who allowed this to fester are telling themselves they "saved" her ... saving a dog is more than picking it up off he side of the road or taking it from an irresponsible owner ... but that soapbox is more than what can be contained by this blog ...

Nonetheless, Snickers bloodwork came back and she is A-OK ... Dr. Jason says she needs a dental, but I am convinced dentals is how he is savings for the boys (3 of them as of the 25th) ... kidding of course (in case he's reading).

One healthy cocker and one to go ... which I am sure with proper attention to diet will pave the way for a lot more life for Etta Mae Jones.