Fakin' it

So over the weekend my dear dog Bam was limping even tho we hadn't been running, or even really walking fast in the last few days. I decided to call the vet on Monday and we went ahead with x-rays yesterday.

Now she had to be sedated for the x-rays. Why? Well, if she would have been willing to lay on her back and have her back legs turned out and then pulled straight she could have just had the x-rays. For some reason, I didn't think that would work. :-)

I dropped her at the vet yesterday morning and by mid-afternoon the vet had examined her, called me once, done the x-rays and called me again. I was working myself into a frenzy because I hadn't heard anything (must be bad, right?) but by about 3:30 I had a call from the vet. Yeah, the x-rays were clear. That's right! No arthritis, no bone spurs, no abnormalities, no cancer. Nothing. So as the vet said, the good news is there's nothing. The bad news is I spent all that money and don't know why she's been limping.

The prevailing theory in my circle of peeps is that she's been faking it for sympathy or faking it because she doesn't really want to exercise. My boss even told a story about some people he knew who had a dog. I'll summarize: dog is in an accident, dog takes about 6 months to rehab, limping a lot etc, getting lots of attention; dog gets better and dog doesn't get as much attention; dog learns to limp to get attention. Tooooo funny!

Anyway, I AM relieved that there's nothing serious going on but also puzzled. We're trying some anti-inflammatory meds for a couple of weeks and see how she is after that. You know my motto: Better Living Through Pharmaceuticals! I support the industry in which I work. :-)

So, three cheers for no cancer! Three cheers for no arthritis! And finally three cheers for the faker!

Old dog, new meds

I found out today that Bam probably has arthritis in her hips. That's why my poor girl has been limping after runs. Poor baby.

The vet says I can still take her running, but need to watch the distance and if she limps after a run I need to shorten the distance. So, we did a little over 3 miles today and she's limping tonight. Sigh.

I'm supposed to start her on glucosamine and see if that helps. I'll probably also do x-rays of her hips to confirm the diagnosis and see how bad it is.

For now, she's going to get a few weeks off from running. Walks only. Hopefully the glucosamine will help because she is going to be pissed off when she sees me going for runs and I don't take her along! I'll have to learn to sneak out of the house. Or maybe running at lunch at work is a good idea.

Hmmm....wonder how much hip replacement is for a pooch. :-)

Home for the holidays

Jeff and I spent the holidays back 'home' with my family in Illinois. We've spent the last few Christmases on the farm and have been really lucky with the weather so far.....knock on wood. This year was no exception. I probably didn't even really need to bring my heavy winter coat. There were some days when it was warmer there than it was in California! Amazing.

We arrived the 23rd and had luggage issues.....it was lost....then found....of all places, on the plane! Niiiiice. At least it arrived tho. Christmas eve my brother came up from the Champaign area to the farm (about an hour's drive) with my sister-in-law and my adorable 3 year old niece. Her vocabulary has increased about 100x since my last visit over the 4th of July and once she overcame her bashfulness she was just like a chatty Cathy doll. :-) She really is a genius, I'm sure of it.

When my brother tried to explain to her that we would have to wait until after lunch, when everyone else arrived, to open presents she said "That's not a good idea." Hahahahahaha. Not afraid to say what she thinks, that's for sure!

After Christmas Jeff went home to attend to some errands and I spent a few days at Toys 'R Us, otherwise known as my brother's house. Why didn't they have toys like this when I was a kid?!?! We had picnics and played with dolls and dinosaurs and dragons and beauty parlor and Spencer basically just wore me out. Kudos to Rob and Susie who do this all the time! No wonder they are tired! Well, Susie especially since she's expecting my second niece in about 2-1/2 months! Yep, another girl. Wow, my brother is soooooo outnumbered. :-)

It was a great visit, and trying to get back into the swing of work and working out has been hell. Although I did go trail riding (bicycles) once while I was there and did a 5 mile run. Sadly, it wasn't enough to cover for all the eating I did and I've gained a few pounds. Time to go back to the gym and back to the salads. :-( Damn my love of food anyway!