Thursday, May 7, 2009

Better?

Well I am feeling better, I guess. I had a very boring day yesterday. Mom put me on a leash inside and outside the house. She carried me up and down the stairs (we have a tri-level house so there are a lot of stairs), kept me from running and jumping, and basically made me rest all day. Dr. Jan highly recommended to us that mom give me the rimadyl. She said the benefits of the anti- inflammatory would outweigh the possible side effects of me being sick to my stomach. So mom gave it to me with lots of canned food to coat it and I kept it down and was fine. Whew - big sigh of relief. So it's difficult to tell if I am better because maybe the medicine is making my shoulder hurt less? Or maybe I am just ok and don't really need the medicine or rest any more? Just hard to tell.

Today mom and dad have to work most of the day so I will be forced to rest again. But mom is going to take me on my regular walk (if I seem fine while we are out there) and let me do a little on my own - like potty and some stair climbing. We're supposed to stay on the rimadyl for 2-3 days. This is Thursday so the big question is - How do we know if I'm well enough to go to the trial on Saturday? If I am well, then we want to go. But we also don't want to risk re-injury or making it all worse. Mom would rather miss this trial than have me be seriously hurt and out of commission for months. But she is a big worrier and maybe I really am ok to go. What would you guys do and how would you evaluate your dog's fitness?

Thanks to everybody for all your comments - we really appreciate your good wishes for my speedy recovery!


Gotta go walking!

Ricky

PS. The morning walk went just fine - mom says I am acting normal. So now is it the rimadyl or am I all better?

11 comments:

Diana said...

Well, if it were me and he should be on the Rimadly for 3 days then I probably wouldnt take him to the trial. It would be hard to tell if the Rimadly was making him feel better and he may do something that will cause the injury to flare back up. But, Im sure you know your dog best and you shuold trust you judgment. Diana

Dawn said...

Sadly I agree with Diana. I was thinking that the rimadly might make Ricky feel better, then when he jumps over something and won't know he's injured...he might hurt himself again.

Dawn said...

Darn. Hit send too soon. But what does the VET say about doing the trial?

Lian said...

Hi Ricky, I've just caught up with your post, sorry to hear you injured yourself. I think you shouldn't go to trial this Saturday, the contacts will definitely get your uncomfortable, you need a good rest for at least 2 weeks. The KNIGHTs shelties send their kisses across the ocean xxx

Cowspotdog said...

Maybe it is not one or the other but a combination of both.....isn't that how it normally work - rest and medicine? I agree with Dawn...check with Dr Jan about the Trial and if she says okay then go and have fun.

Sara said...

Go with your gut (your mom's gut!). If your mom is going to worry, it won't be a fun trial anyway......so it would be better to wait this one out.

See what the vet says....

Anonymous said...

We'd say skip the trial, Ricky... you don't want to overdo it too soon after all that.

Josh and Jessie

Xsara and Tani said...

I always check with my vet before I decide, but I'm afraid in your condition I would decide to skip the trial :( Rimadyl is a strong medicine, it's very possible that it's making him feel better, but that doesn't mean that the injury is all gone. I hope he feels better soon and that you'll be back to running and competing in no time - being sick is no fun at all!

Marie said...

Boy, it's a hard decision to make, but either way I think your mom is going to do what's best for you. Sometimes that just means waiting for the next trial to come along.

Arran, Arthur and Mum said...

tough decision. :( Does the trial have a training / just for fun class, maybe you could go and do that with out doing anything strenuous like contacts etc and it would be good for the experience but not putting a strain on you.

Johann The Dog said...

So how are you feelin' today, Ricky?