Day 1689

It was a long day. Dot is having trouble getting up and down. We're kind of between a rock and a hard place. She's still too weak for physical therapy, but it was the physical therapy that was keeping her strong in the first place. She's lost a lot of weight along with some muscle mass, but we sill have to feed her a bland diet with small portions until her incisions have fully healed. It's a balancing act. I know Dot would like to eat large meals to pack on the pounds and then go on a long walk. She's not ready yet, unfortunately. First she needs to be able to get out the back door without stumbling on the single small step down to the patio. It's hard to tell this to a sick, but very stubborn dog. Especially when she thinks she's ready to go anywhere.

It didn't help matters that it poured rain during the morning and the stock market dropped over 300 points during the afternoon. All in all, it wasn't a very auspicious day. I probably shouldn't worry about Dot so much, since she has been making steady progress every day. I know that this is going to take time, but it's sad to see her muscles start to atrophy again, especially since we've all worked so hard this year to keep her active and strong.

There were more website problems to unravel today. First on the list were calls to technical support to find out why a client's online forms weren't working properly. I'm beginning to hate online forms and databases, since they tend to crash every time the hosting company changes servers. The rest of my day was spent trying to figure out how to modify a site that I didn't build in the first place. Working with other people's code can be baffling at times. Why did they do it that way, I wonder? Sometimes I learn something from unraveling these mysteries, but mostly it's just irritating.

There will be no trip to my favorite breakfast restaurant tomorrow morning. I had initially thought that I might be able to get away for short periods when Dot's condition stabilized, but since she's having trouble getting up and down, I need to stay nearby. Dot needs to rest. The last thing she needs right now is to get frightened while struggling to get up after she's been sleeping. Old legs sometimes need a boost, and I've had lots of experience keeping senior dogs walking. I talked to Dot's physical therapist today and hopefully we can get her back on the water treadmill soon. Water therapy is great for older dogs, because the buoyancy of the water takes weight off the tired muscles while still allowing a full range of movement.

I'm still having trouble comprehending that it's August already. I guess it will be OK to give Dot her monthly heartworm pill in the morning. One more question I forgot to ask. We were told to go ahead and continue heartworm medication after Dash's surgery, and after Spot's as well. I'll probably still call the cancer center first thing in the morning though. I hate ambiguity.

I'm looking forward to the weekend. My Jawbone fitness band said I slept less than three hours last night. I think I need to rest just as much as Dot does.

Shelby is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day