I was so excited to pick him up but i really didnt realize how bad he was. We basically have to treat him as if he just had back surgery. I left the hospital with so much pressure and responsibility that these 2 weeks are up to me for him to get better n not have to have that 3rd surgery. I keep reassuring myself that i have done this twice before, why am i so worried and scared. i guess its because this time around it was my fault that it happened to him. Was he going to hate me?…will we make a good team like all the other times. i was so unsure of myself. but the moment when the doc handed him over to me, i knew he forgave me and that we would get threw it. He is such a fighter, which makes mes just as strong. He mainly stays in his crate for most of the day, and will until he is fully healed. (and will be there whenever i leave him alone or leave the house!!) I started his physical therapy for his hind legs which are getting better day by day. On monday he couldnt even fix his toes right, but now he can and is walking pretty good. His legs are basically just very stiff now and will take a bit of time to ’straighten’ them out again.
first day back
lukie eats well!!
notice how his legs are straight like a stick! yea, im gonna fix that!
Doctor just called and said lucas is actually improving! he can fix his toes when as before he couldnt. i go and get him in an hour. im cant wait to see him!!
The doctor called early this morning and said lucas is doing great. His xrays didnt show anything where he would have to go into surgery right away. no rupture! He is stable and no change is happening. which is good. He said there is compression on the spinal cord and we are hoping that it will heal on its own. We just have to wait 2 weeks for that, he’ll either get better or worse, and if worse…then another back surgery. I go get him tomorrow morning. This is probably the best outcome i would have thought of for him. I was thinking he had broken ribs and/or his whole back was broken. No more baby gates! they are going in the trash!! I bought them to protect him, and they almost killed him!! sigh…if this was a child, a law suit would be happening right now.
Its about 1 in the morning. I just got back from the vet specialty center here. Lucas is staying the night for x-rays and to be monitored. Sigh.. I really dont know what happened, but when i came home tonight i found the baby gate half way down and really didnt think anything of it until i picked up lucas to take him outside to pee and he screamed! i knew right away that the baby gate fall on him. i called his hospital right away and took him in. He was still walking “okay” he was a little off but still in the beginning stage. I’m just now waiting for the results of the x-ray to show what is really wrong. I’m hoping to god its nothing too bad. Something they can fix and i can take him home and care for him.
Lukie probably had one of the best christmas’ he’s ever had. The weekend before christmas we went to my bros place and had our christmas there. There was a tree and this is first time hes ever had a tree before. He would just stare at it for hours. It amazed him and he was like a little kid snooping around at the gifts. But he knew not to open any of them unless i said he could open it. He had loads of fun there. Then we had christmas again at our house on christmas and he had fun too…he has 5 harley bones now which for the ones that dont know…that his all time favorite toy, like a security blanket. He got another ‘puppy’ like the one for his birthday and food, treats, and alot of blankets. He also had another christmas when my sis came the day after christmas and since we didnt go visit the family (for safety reasons) my sis bought those gifts over. He got a squirrel from my aunt vickie and blanket from grandma. He loves that squirrel! I think he loved this christmas!! I can only hope we have many more to come!! * still waiting on pics from my bro.
I always fear thanksgiving, cause of those horrible memories from his first back surgery. But he’s doing really good and hes healthy…i couldnt be more thankful!!
I been talking to my friend about her long haired dachshund and comparing different traits. its so funny how most if not all dachshunds have the same personalities! Ive listed some of lucas’ traits….I have some pictures of lucas from this month and a video of him at the end.
Lukies traits:
1.) Dont EVER EVER touch his paws…”ugh..grr” (i havent cut his nails for over a year now…i figured u never really need to….the ‘new’ nail pushes out the ‘old’ nail. i always find broken nails around the house. its better then hearing him scream)
2.) He’s stubborn as a mule…He will NEVER EVER go out when its raining!! NEVER!…He will wait for days to poop before he goes in the rain LOL! but he LOVES the snow!
3.) He gets moody when hes hungry…he’ll bark at his food, or hit his bowl.
4.) if hes done something wrong (e.g. bite u) he will make sure ur okay and try to make it up to u. (he bit me by accident the second day i got him)
5.) You can tell he understand everything you tell him by his eyes.
6.) If i have done something like accidentally step on him…he will want hours of love treatment…expect petsmart, treats, new toys and many kisses. He’s very melodramatic when hes “hurt”.
7.) He enjoys bath time…BUT ONLY if the water is hot, and if im using his favorite baby shampoo.
8.) He enjoys getting his hair cut BUT ONLY if I do it and if i dont get too close to his paws or he wont show himself for the whole night lol
9.) He likes to be around kids but doesnt like to be touched by them…he gets tense when kids touch…*kids always go for the back…and they usually hit…not pet*
10.) He gets moody when hes tired or wants to go to bed. *see video
11.) He likes toys that are squeaky toys…if its not squeaky, dont bother to buy it.
12.) He loves BLANKETS!!! He likes to get his bed and blankets just perfect before he lays down. He also likes to bury his toys under his covers, then trys to ’save’ them
13.) He’s emotional…which lead him to separation anxiety…When one person leaves the house, and one stays behind…he will just stare at the door until that other person comes back. *his prozac helps a bit tho
14.) Hes very smart…he knows exactly how to work every family member; if its for a treat, or a belly rub…he will get it! Even tho hes stubborn, he knows how to come and sit etc, but he aint doin nothing unless there is a treat involved.
15.) He has an “arm bitting habit”…he nibbles all the time on his paws and even his toys…hes done this from day one…(all medical reasoning’s are ruled out.) Its just a nervous habit, like how i like to click pens all the time. He actually did it in the video…did it to his toy then his arm…weird habit. lol
16.) He’s very good out in public…He esp likes to go to the “trash man” (recycling center) and to lowes. He usually never ever barks in public unless we are at petsmarts…he usually screams/barks/growl when we walk thru the doors, to let everyone know hes there….but he calms down when we get inside. he likes to be center of attention.
17.) There is no hugging nor kissing nor getting too close to another person. He will snap at 2 people hugging or even when u get more then 5 inches too close.
18.) In the car, he likes the air blowing on him or he will throw a tantrum. *tantrums= “ugghhh” “sighhhh” jump in my arms…”aarrrrrrghhh” try to squirm out of my arms.
19.) he also likes to hear music in the car, it calms him and makes him fall asleep…and he will know if u turned it off, he’ll wake up and throw a tantrum, then if u turn the music back on, he’ll calm back down. amazing.
forgot to mention he got an elevated bowl feeder! Every dachshund should own one mainly for their neck and helps them intake their food slower.
Good news..Lukies arm is healed yay! His birthday was last friday…hes 6 years old!! He got 2 new toys-(named them “puppy” and “basketball”), more food, treats, new toothbrush and toothpaste and poop bags. He even got to go to petsmart! He was too excited when he got his toys, especially when he saw “puppy”! lol its been forever since he got a new toy!!!
birthday gifts
squeaking…he was actually starting to get mad with it! ahh i love toys that boggle his mind!
who got the milk carton out of the trash? he looks very guilty…
It’s been over 6 months since his second surgery. We moved back up to Indianapolis for the semester, which I got him on a good routine. His ‘leg locking’ stage has ended, which I’m very glad. He’s been on Reconcile (prozac) for his separation anxiety for about 5 months now. We figured we would try the generic brand since it was cheaper; $15 for a 30-month supply over the $60 for a month supply. I noticed it wasn’t made for a dog to take, wasn’t flavored or chewable like the regular brand. I had to put it in cheese while he would out smart me but sucking on the cheese and spit out the pill. It would end up taking hours for him to just swallow it. After a week on generic, he was running around crazy, it was like he was going through prozac withdraws…he was just so hyper. Last Monday night (another holiday-go figure) I came back from dinner, and he was just so excited to see me, like he hasn’t seen me in a year. He started running around like crazy. I asked him if he needed to go outside, and he even got more excited and ran faster. It scared me so much cause he hasn’t acted like this for over 6 months (since before his surgery or before Prozac I should say) I finally got the leash on him and took him for a walk, we usually go around the block but he stopped half way and he didn’t want to go anymore. I picked him up and carried him home. I put him down and he started walking but couldn’t walk on his right arm. I thought there might be something in his paw since he was walking just fine outside. I could tell by his eyes and the way he was looking at me when i was examining his arm that he hurt himself. I called my parents before they got too far from my place and told them to come back. Of course it was after 6 pm and all vets are closed. We called the hospital where lucas got his surgery from and they had us come in. after an hr…he was walking on it, so the doctor knew his arm wasnt broken if he can walk on it. the doc said he must have pulled a muscle in his shoulder. He got a shot of morphine that night….whoa, a handicap dachshund on morphine is not a good match. He started seeing things, and was scared of any fast movement. He walked drunkly, which scared me to death. I had to put his ‘red legs’ back on him cause his hind legs were so weak! I couldn’t sleep a wink that night, thinking it was something more serious then just a pulled muscle. By morning, he was back to normal, ate peed pooped, and we drove an hr away to get the regular brand of Prozac. No more generic!! Generic=fake. All week hes been sleeping and resting. Doctor gave us rimadyl to give him twice a day for a week. I’m just so thankful that hes okay. This incident has made me realize that he will have to be on doggie prozac for the rest of his life. It has calmed him down a lot and can proudly say he’s halfway normal when hes on Prozac. His birthday is next Friday the 23th…everyone is coming to celebrate it next weekend. 6 years old! His birthday is always very special. Maybe he will even get a new toy since he hasn’t gotten a new one this whole year!! (I don’t let him play with many, since he likes to ‘kill’ them and shake them to death…its just an accident waiting to happen)
Last friday, the day before his check up…i came home from work and noticed lucas’ bark was different. Like its scratchy and a bit hoarse. I was very worried cause the last time this happened 3 days later he was paralyzed and he was going in for surgery for a ruptured disc. I examined him making sure he was walking okay, and to make sure there were no signs of a ruptured disc. No watery eyes, no muscle/body stiffness, he was peeing and pooping…there were absolutely no signs of anything serious and the fact that we had a checkup with the doc the next morning i felt okay. We talked to him about his nerves and about his legs locking up which i explained in previously postings. He assured me that it was just a stage which i figured it was as he went thru alot of different stages during his first surgery recovery. His nerves are just getting their feeling back in them and the same with his bark. Since lucas lost his voice completely before he went into surgery, were all amazed that he can even bark at all. So he told us lucas looks great, and theres nothing to worry about with his bark. His personality and playfulness shows us all that hes just being lucas and this is how his bark is and prolly will be. I remember after his first surgery his bark was different and i was a bit sad cause i knew id never hear his ‘normal’ bark again. but then i got used to this new bark, and now ill just have to get used to this hoarse scratchy voice. As long as he is happy and enjoying life like he is then any bark will do. One good thing the past two weeks there has been no locking of his legs when he goes #2. Actually he can now hold up his weight by himself. He doesnt need me to hold him in that postition anymore. Ahh so proud!
Since the last posting, Lucas has been doing so much better when he goes #2. Hes legs dont lock as much as they use to. Its about once a week now!! He been having the greatest week! He’s so hyper and he has his personality back. We go for a walk every evening now. I never let him go too far tho. I try to make him his favorite meals once a week: Boiled chicken livers or salmon. I usually always put 1000 mg of fish oil on them also. Eats them so fast…doesnt even take 30 seconds. We are so proud of him!!! He is one little strong boy. I got some pics. Finally!
Loves to roll in the grass!!!
Cooling off in the garage
Found a stick
Lucas loves his bath time….so do i esp after rolling in the grass!
lukie eats well!!
Posted by lucas8 
