LIFE'S BETTER IN THE MOUNTAINS

Friday, July 29, 2016

We Love Lucy


It's been a rather rough week for our Lucy.  She developed a "hot spot" on her cheek which spread quickly as they are wont to do.  She went in to see the veterinarian who said she is seeing lots of dogs with hot spots recently.  (Hot spots are areas of moist dermatitis.  Starting with one small area, they can spread very rapidly..)

Lucy has never had a hot spot before, although our Ellie seemed to get at least one every summer.  The veterinarian also found that Lucy has an ear infection as well, another first for her.  So she is on an antibiotic and a topically spray as well as ear drops.  Because the area is on her cheek and neck, a cone to protect her from scratching is not feasible.  So the veterinarian recommended keeping her sedated with Benadryl.  It also helps prevent the itching in addition to the sedation.  I was amazed at the high dose...75mg three times a day.  The veterinarian wrote on the instruction sheet that that was indeed the dose and not a typo.  Apparently dogs metabolize the drug differently than humans do so a dose that is excessive even for a 150 pound human is appropriate for a 60 pound dog.  The drug is definitely sedating her, but not making her dopey.  She still gets up when called and walks normally.  But she is asleep the minute she lies down again.

The only good thing going for her is that she dearly loves bread.  So three times a day she gets a little sammich (that's the way you say "sandwich" in WI) with cream cheese and pills inside.  She is so attuned to the process that the instant we get out the cheese and open the baggie with her slice of bread, she is right at your feet waiting for her treat.


This was taken several days before Lucy developed her hot spot.
She loves to rest on my husband's shoes and lie underneath the recliner.

Our heat wave continues, but at least our breezes have returned.  Rain is very spotty and seems to miss us every time.  Our little creek is really down and our trees are looking dusky in the forest.  We are watering our shrubbery on a regular basis.  Very unusual for mountain summers.  Some of the tubing and rafting vendors are not putting people on the rivers because the water levels are so low.  Recently our LOW temperatures at night have been 70.  And the swimming areas and waterfalls are flooded with people.  We've already had five deaths and two serious injuries from idiots getting swept over a waterfall.

Two quotes today seem appropriate for these days when so many are preaching isolationism:

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Make a career of humanity.
Commit yourself to the noble struggle for human rights.
You will make a greater person of yourself, a greater nation of your country and a finer world to live in. 


And from Albert Schweitzer:
Seek always to do some good, somewhere.
Every man has to seek in his own way to realize his true worth.
You must give some time to your fellow man.
For remember, you don't live in a world all your own.
Your brothers are here too.



HAVE A WONDERFUL WEEKEND, EVERYONE


 

15 comments:

NanaNor's said...

Hi there, I'm so sorry to hear about Lucy's hot spot and ear infection. I know that you are having excessive heat and humidity; it's got to be miserable for everyone. Hope you have a great weekend.
Hugs, Noreen

Carolina Linthead said...

My love to Lucy! I hope she heals quickly. BTW, University of Cincinnati, where I got my Ph.D., has a building named after the inventer of Benadryl: George Rieveschl. It's a very useful drug, but wow, that's a high dose! 25mg will make me sleepy. And two excellent quotes from men who have greatly inspired me over the years.

KGMom said...

Poor Lucy. I agree....that is an amazing dose level. Of course it's no surprise that dogs metabolize drugs differently. Some that are harmless for people are lethal for drugs.
We too are now excess heat and dry spell. We live near but not on the Susquehanna river. It is very low. Every year some idiot tries to walk across it ( it is a very wide river) and steps in an unexpected hole and has to be rescued.

The Bug said...

Aww poor puppy! Hopefully she clears up soon! Benedryl makes me very loopy - I'm glad she seems to be tolerating it well.

Arkansas Patti said...

Ooh, that Benadryl really puts them out. Callie had it with her butt surgery and she slept most of the recovery time away. For that I was grateful.
Sure hope her hot spot clears up. Bet it itches. May your dry spell end soon.
We have been getting rain every day which has helped with triple digit heat.

Anonymous said...

So sorry to read about Lucy's health problems. Hope it all clears up quickly, and that she is off the benadryl as soon possible. Also hope the temps cool down and you get some much needed rain.

Ginnie said...

Poor Lucy ... but at least she is sleeping it off. Hopefully she will be completely well soon.

Tara said...

Aw, Lucy! Our Boo has a big hot spot right now, we trimmed him and spray him with "stuff." You are not alone.

You get humidity along with the heat, yes? That's what wipes me out. Well, okay, the heat does as well. You getting cabin fever?

I love your quotes. They are rock solid truth, and DJT has never lived by those principles at all.

I hope you and your husband have a good weekend, and that Lucy heals quickly.

Ms. A said...

I'm going to cross my fingers and hope they didn't give her any of the veterinary fluoroquinolones.

Advocin, Advocid (danofloxacin)
Baytril (enrofloxacin)
Dicural, Vetequinon (difloxacin)
Floxasol, Saraflox, Sarafin (sarafloxacin)
Ibaflin (ibafloxacin)
Marbocy, Zeniquin (marbofloxacin)
Orbax, Victas (orbifloxacin)
 
Hope she's on the mend soon!

Busy Bee Suz said...

Poor sweet Lucy. Are golden's prone to hot spots? I've never dealt with that before. I hope she feels better soon....and I think the sedation part must make it easier for her and you too. (less worry of her discomfort)
Have a good weekend; hopefully you'll get some needed rain.

Barbara Rogers said...

Great quotes. Sending healing energies through virtual space for Lucy...and for all of us dealing with climate changes and political upheavals.

Lowcarb team member said...

Sorry to hear that Lucy is a little under the weather ... hope she heals and feels better soon.

I read on many of the blogs I visit that the heat seems to be more excessive this year!

I hope you manage to keep as cool as possible this weekend and who knows you may even get to enjoy some rain!

All the best Jan

Vicki Lane said...

Poor Lucy! Hot spots are the very devil to get rid of.

It seems to me that the heat has abated a mite in the past few days. Which is not to say that it's cool. Just slightly less unbearable.

Nance said...

If only we could all sleep through our latest Discomforts. Sigh.

Isn't this heat and drought terrible? We here in NEO are in a Moderate Drought officially now. No rain to speak of in ages, and all my landscape beds are cracked and sad. We have lost some decades-old trees, shrubs, and everything looks so awful. The soil can't absorb the water even if we do try to water. It's all very odd.

Here's hoping All Of Us feel better very soon, especially Lucy.

NCmountainwoman said...

Thanks for your comments, everyone. Lucy is improving although it takes a while for these hot spots to heal completely.

Noreen - Thanks, we are definitely waiting for a break

Linthead - As a young intern, my husband "cared" for Dr. Rieschl in Cincinnati. I use quotes because he was a wet-behind-the-ears intern on his first rotation. They didn't do much more than interview patients at that time.

Donna - The "heat dome" seems to have covered the entire country.

Patti - We have had a few drops of rain, just enough to increase the humidity to intolerable.

Robin - thanks

Tara - Yes, we do have more humidity than normal. Usually it's not so bad because we often have a breeze.

Ms A - Yes, we have her record flagged that we do not want her to have those fluoroquinolones. Not worth the risk of such awful side effects and almost always another drug can be substituted.

Suz - Yes, Goldens are prone to hot spots because of their double coats. But this is the first one Lucy has had so we've been lucky.

Barbara - thanks

Jan - Thanks. Yes, most of the US is under the "heat dome."

Vicki - Even a few degrees makes a difference, doesn't it?

Nance - thanks. Yes, it's so sad to see the effects of the drought and heat.