Marley's and My Best Hanukkah Gift!

The four medications I had for Marley -- lactulose, metrondiazle, denosyl and amoxillin. Lactulose has almost run out during my November 9th visit. I asked the vet about a refill. She said according to the bloodwork, Marley does not need lactulose. A week later or so after that appointment, metrondiazle has run out and I called vet about a refill and the office said no refill needed. Denosyl has run out a day or so before the next vet appointment on December 3rd, so I thought it's no harm to wait until then to find out if any refill is needed.

On December 3rd, I had an appointment with Marley's vet, who I have begun taking her to near my home since November 9th on my blog after I pulled her out from this hospital, for her another bloodwork. While there, I waited for Marley's turn to be taken in, there was 5 rescued cats roaming around at the vet office. One of the cats climbed onto my shoulder and sat comfortably on my back while I was holding Marley in my arms. I had to chuckle when Marley squinted her eyes and moved away her head in fear, thinking the cat would claw her when the cat only swung its tail. Marley can learn to tolerate cats but not my other dog, Murray, who is a true hunter. Marley would join him as a pack if she saw him go after an animal. They have killed a possum in my yard and since then, I have added a wind chime under my storm door to alert critters to run for their lives when I open the door. No dead animals found again.

Did you just talk briefly about me on this blog?

Marley demands to get closer to the dogs at the vet office and sniff them or else she'll bark up the storm! She is loud, considering that she can't hear herself and has given the wrong impression to people that she's mean and vicious -- actually she's quite the opposite and harmless! :) She does the same with people she is unable to get closer.

When it was Marley's turn, they had her blood drawn to be sent for testing and have the result back the following day. I had to call the next day to find out the result. The assistant took her to be weighed and said Marley has gained to 11 lbs and 4 ounces from 10 lbs and 7 ounces. I was relieved to know she was gaining albeit slow.

I called through relay and was nervous to learn about the result. The vet picked up the phone and I asked her about the result, being tempted not to hear it. She responded with the news that Marley's bloodwork has returned to almost normal. I couldn't believe what I was reading and asked her if she was serious. She said yes and she was very happy about the result. She said I can go back to Marley's regular food. I was afraid to jinx it and continued feeding Marley her special food while slowly changing the food that's proper for her diet. The news was my best Hanukkah gift and that one gift is enough for the whole 8 days! I do not know if Marley thinks it's enough and probably wants more :)

Don't stop feeding me special food just because I am well!

P.S. I just heard back from this person from the liver support group for dogs that I should be cautious in spite of the bloodwork result. Here is what she said:

"My opinion is that she's only "near normal", I wouldn't change food just yet. Do you have the most recent blood work results you can share with us so we can take a look at them? It's very possible she could have had an acute attack from an outside toxin. If Marley is eating the food you have her on now, which I think is lower protein, I would probably wait until you run the next set of blood work and BATs to know for sure that she's completely leveled out blood-wise. Why rock the boat or make a quick decision that might interfere with her progress? Also, I would look at her previous food and examine ALL the ingredients to ensure there's nothing in that particular food that she may be adverse to long term, cumulatively speaking.

Maria"

While remaining cautious and taking Maria's advice to continue feeding Marley bland diet with low protein, M&M and I truly, truly want to extend our appreciation for your kindness and support through the difficult time. The donation some have offered will help pay down Marley's medical bill and those who have donated will be contacted individually to show my gratitude. I have been overwhelmed since Marley became ill and didn't have much time for anything else.

To maintain this blog's integrity for the sake of deaf animals, I will scan the medical bill with the breakdown of the costs that accumulated to 2k and post it on here.

A hard lesson I have learned is to get pet insurance for both of my dogs. This topic will be discussed in the future blog.

Here's a wink to mommy for taking care of Marley!