Update. . .

Lucy is home from the hospital.  We made the difficult decision in the middle of the night to take her in because her belly looked like this in the morning:

 And like this in the evening:

This wouldn't necessarily be abnormal in a dog that just had surgery except that Lucy had bleeding problems before her surgery that could have been life threatening without a plasma transfusion.  The only reason they caught the bleeding was because a superficial cut on her nose wouldn't stop bleeding.  They decided to run a test to find out if her blood was clotting and that test gave them the news that she was bleeding internally and unable to clot normally.  So last night when we saw the bruising getting increasingly worse and her nose beginning to drip again we couldn't help but think the problem had returned.  Unfortunately, we were right.  Lucy spent the rest of the night and most of today at the hospital for observation and more plasma treatments.  Not only is her liver severely damaged but it is beginning to take other organs down with it in an effort to save itself.  We really just have this one chance to turn things around because it's either going to work and she'll get better or it's just not. 

In the meantime, she's happy to be home and she's alert and responsive. . .

The doctors and lab assistants fell in love with her sweet spirit and obedient attitude.  She seemed to know what they were doing and what was expected of her.  She knew which bed was hers and which room to go into for her tests.  They didn't need to leash her while she was in their care and she always had a tail wag for anyone who stopped to chat.

We are not giving up hope yet. . .

Broken. Record.

So. . . Lucy is back in the hospital.  She showed signs of having a bleeding problem last night- the bruising on her belly became much, much worse and the little cut on her nose began to drip.  She had such a good day that it was difficult to make the decision to take her in but, finally, at about 1:30 a.m. we made the trip back to the vet hospital to have them take a look at her.  They took a blood draw and confirmed that she is bleeding again but they don't know right now how bad it is but it does prove that her liver is not yet able to function the way it needs to.  Without racking up another huge bill, they are going to do what they can and observe her closely for at least today.  We are wating to hear from the specialist that has been treating her to see if there are any options left.  Hopefully we'll hear something soon. . .

Easter Sunday. . .

Due to all the Lucy-drama, I now have a back log of pictures to post!  Not sure when I'll get to all of them but this set was taken at church on Easter Sunday:

Mood Swing. . .

Last night I went to bed wondering if Lucy would even make it through the night and this evening I'm thrilled with the good news that none of the scenarios the doctor predicted were causing Lucy's illness.  The biopsy results just came back and it turns out that Lucy has some kind of genetic problem with too many white blood cells and they've been building up over time and settled somehow on her liver.  The outside of her liver is severely damaged but the inside is fine.  I don't really understand it but that is my take on what the doctor told Rob that he explained to me.  I'll put a better explanation up here after we see the doctor again on Monday for Lucy's WELLNESS visit! 

In the meantime, she still has to take it easy since she is not quite out of the woods.  We'll continue to give her all of these meds through the feeding tube for as long as it takes:

Hope feels so much better than despair. . .

Tapped Out. . .

Lucy is home.  We had a long conversation with the doctor in charge of internal medicine and she cut straight to the chase.  Other doctors that we've spoken with have tried to instill hope and optimism about Lucy's condition but this doctor laid it all out on the table.  We do not have the results yet from the biopsy and that will be crucial to the entire case BUT we do know that her liver has been severely damaged and may or may not be able to recover.  If the results of the biopsy tell us that her liver is still healthy enough to regenerate itself then we are looking at several months of intense medication and monitoring before she is out of danger.  Even then, she will need regular visits to the vet (3-4 times/year) for the rest of her life for blood tests.  If the results tell us that her liver is damaged beyond hope then we are looking at just a few days before Lucy can no longer sustain life.  It all feels bleak.  It's not what we hoped for.  Both scenarios suck.  I'm tapped out- mentally, emotionally, financially,  spiritually.  I remind myself that it could always be worse.  As much as we love her, Lucy is not one of our children.  She's a beloved pet who brings joy into our lives but the people in my family are alive and well and healthy.  We have a roof over our heads, food in our fridge and plenty of work on the horizon over the coming months.  But right at this very moment, as I look at the bill I just paid and the kitchen table covered with the medications that I'll be giving her through a feeding tube for who knows how long, it's hard to feel hope.  But still, I know I'm blessed and I'm going to hold onto that for as long as I can. . .

Comic Relief. . .

Surgery Day. . .

 This is what Lucy looked like on Sunday evening when we left her at the vet hospital.  She was loopy, sedated and bleeding from her nose.  It was very, very sad.

This morning we went back to the hospital to check in with the vet and visit with Lucy before her surgery.  I'm pretty sure she knew who we were but she was still pretty sedated.  It was hard to see her that way but at least we had a chance to tell her how much we loved her and scratch her ears.

We played the waiting game for the rest of the day.  We were hoping to hear something by mid afternoon but the surgery didn't even start until around 5:30 in the evening.  There wasn't anything we could do at the hospital so we spent the day trying not to think about it and staying as busy as we could.  Gloria used up all of her Easter side walk chalk making this:

We spent the evening with family at Rob's parents house and it helped to have something else to think about for awhile.  We waited anxiously to hear from the vet and finally got the call around 8:00.  I don't fully understand what was said but what I do know is that we really won't know anything for certain until Wednesday or Thursday.  The surgery consists of a laproscopic biopsy of Lucy's liver so I guess that means they make a few small incisions and go in and take samples of her insides.  They didn't see any immediate signs of cancer so that is good, although it's possible that the lab could still see that when they do whatever it is they do. Unfortunately, they did find that the liver was very diseased which could mean a couple of things.  It could be chronic active hepatitis (no cure) or infectious hepatitis which can get better with drugs as long as the liver isn't so diseased that it can't regenerate.  They said the best we can hope for is that the hepatitis is caused by a toxin and that her liver isn't damaged beyond repair.  The lab results will tell us exactly what the problem is but we won't have these answers until Wednesday or Thursday. 

Meanwhile, they were pleased with how well she did in surgery and recovery and they said we could come and visit her in a couple of hours.  All four of us went back to the vet hospital around 10 p.m. to tell Lucy good night.  She was very sedated and I'm not sure she knew who we were.

It's hard to wrap my mind around the fact that all of this has happened over the last week.  It wasn't too long ago that she was jumping around in the backyard with the kids during their Nerf gun battle. 

I'm trying to stay positive and I feel the good thoughts and prayers from friends all over the place.  So much hope and encouragement.  Plus, this little bit of sunshine helped a whole bunch:

So. . . more waiting.  We'll go and visit Lucy again in the morning and look at the possibility of bringing her home in the afternoon.  It's hard to say what the day will hold. . .

Lucy

Lucy is in the hospital.  She took a turn for the worse today and we knew she was very uncomfortable so we at least wanted to get her something for the pain.  Her nose had been bleeding for about 12 hours.  It was just a slow drip and, at first, the vet said it wasn't really anything to worry about but after they ran some tests, it turned out that her blood isn't clotting the way it should.  After several more tests and close observation, the doctor believes the problem lies in Lucy's liver.  We have heard over and over that because she is so young (only 4) they would like to believe that it isn't cancer but they just can't rule it out.  There's a slight possibility that her gall bladder ruptured but, by the time we left around 10 p.m., they had almost ruled that out.  They want to take out a piece of her liver to run some tests but need to stabilize her first and make sure she won't bleed to death in the process.  This involves giving her plasma transfusions and vitamin K through the night in hopes of being able to do a biopsy on the liver as soon as possible.  It's all very overwhelming.  It was difficult to leave her there in a kennel, sedated, with blood dripping from her nose.  BUT, she is getting the best care possible and, thankfully, I still believe in miracles. 

Three Things. . .

First, an update on Lucy: She is mostly the same.  We thought she had lost her appetite since she wouldn't eat anything yesterday or this morning but it turns out she's just feeling very picky.  The vet told us we could give her plain chicken with white rice in lieu of the bland, expensive stuff and she scarfed it down three times today.  She is still yellow but she is also still getting around pretty well and is pretty perky.  She wears out very quickly so it's obvious that her body is working hard at getting rid of whatever is making her sick.  We go back to the vet in the morning to see what needs to happen next. . .

Secondly, I've been working really hard this week on getting all of my books organized so I can sell them for close to what they are worth.  I kept most of my home school stuff separate from the yard sale because some of it is worth an arm and a leg.  I've been searching the web to find fair prices and I've gone through every single book to sort it into piles: some by subject, some by title, some by curriculum, etc.  Probably way more work than was necessary.  I expected it to be a lot of work but I didn't expect to feel so sentimental about some of the books.  For the most part I think this has been a very good transition year for all of us.  After teaching both of my kids for the last 11 years, Gloria has had a great year at her charter school and Zach has worked pretty much independently of me.  Mostly because I can't do Calculus and Physics.  We've had some great discussions about politics and world religions but he sets his own schedule and finishes his work.  I check in to make sure it's all getting done and that's about the extent of my "teaching" this year.  But on the other hand, this was a big part of my life for a very long time and looking through the books brought back memories of snuggling on the couch reading books, getting those Aha moments when something clicked (for me as well as for the kids!) and even taking a scalpel to the belly of a frog.  Those times are all behind me now.  It's a little bittersweet.  I am pretty happy, though, to say good bye to all of these books!!  I'll have a big book sale on Saturday and then I'll be moving on. . .

And, lastly, the kids decorated their Easter eggs this evening.  I boiled the eggs and went about my business, eventually returning to take pictures. . .

It's been a tough week for a lot of reasons but today I actually felt a glimmer of hope. . .

Lucy . . .

The results from Lucy's blood tests came back today but we still really don't know what is wrong with her.  The vet really hasn't seen anything quite like this.  I'm not sure what it all means but her liver and gall bladder "numbers" are really, really high.  Everything else, however, is fine.  Her vitals are good- heart is strong, temperature is normal, her immune system is working great.  But for some reason her gall bladder isn't functioning correctly and the bilirubin is passing into the blood stream instead of the route that it is supposed to take causing her skin, eyes and gums to turn yellow.  I have no idea really what any of that means but the vet says she is very, very sick and, all things considered, she should be pretty unresponsive.  But. . . she's responding pretty well.  She's obviously feeling poorly but she is somewhat active and is acting almost normal.  She is now on three different antibiotics and a special (read: expensive) dog food that helps the liver function.  We go back to the vet on Friday to repeat the blood tests.  If her numbers are the same or even higher, we are looking at surgery.  If she shows improvement, we finish the antibiotics and life gets back to normal.  So now, we wait.  And watch.  And pray.