Introducing The Princess

On most mornings, when time allows and Jim is on the day shift, I get up at 5:00am with Jim, eat breakfast, feed the dogs, and go back to bed for a while. Sometimes it's the highlight of my day, having the warm bed all to myself. But today I woke up before my alarm, unable to sleep. I felt panicked, with a heavy weight on my chest. I feel the weight of what lies ahead of me, of getting through this in the most positive manner, of not writing my dog off as dead already. I have to learn to look at every day as a gift, and at my dog as, well, a dog. Not a patient. That's kind of the point of all I'm doing. I want her to enjoy every day. I want her to still remain a dog, and not be fussed over every second. Her mental wellbeing is as fragile as her joints at this point, and I have to find the balance of protecting the two. It seems like a huge task, but I've been preparing for it my whole life. I think I'm just afraid of it.

So today is Tuesday, which means it's underwater treadmill day. We do underwater treadmill twice a week. We've been doing it for over 3 years now. We started off at twice a week in the beginning then went down to once a week after about six months. Then about six months ago, when Indy started having trouble getting up, we went back to twice a week. We drive an hour and ten minutes each way to a wonderful place called Chicago Animal Rehab, in Chicago Ridge. The therapists there have become our friends, as have the staff at the facility CARE shares space with. Indiana really loves everyone there, because they treat her like a princess and feed her treats. Indy gets loaded into the treadmill and does 25 minutes, uphill, with the resistance jets on.

Last week didn't go well. When the treadmill started, she took a header into the water, which I think freaked her out. She never got her groove, and kind of refused to walk. So today I'm bringing her life jacket along, hoping it will provide a little extra security and buoyancy for her, if not a handle for us to guide her along if we get desperate.

I think I'll give her a massage and do some joint manipulation before we go too, to see if it loosens her up.

She's been eating well lately, now that we've learned all of her "rules" (which are strict, indeed). Her not eating is always a concern, and it's almost a barometer to how she's feeling. We can get her to eat every meal these days, though sometimes we have to hand feed her with a spoon; The Princess doesn't like to get her snout covered in food. I figure she's earned the right to be picky, and if spoon feeding is what The Princess wants, it's spoon feeding The Princess will get. At your service, Your Highness.