Day 2603

Dash had a seizure last night. This was very alarming, since he hasn't had a seizure in well over four years. We just did a check of his phenobarbital levels last month and everything was normal. Janet and I were convinced that we had his epilepsy under control and seldom worried about it anymore. Luckily, we still remembered what to do when a seizure occurs. Dash was very frightened during the episode, but we kept him calm and 45 minutes later he was acting like nothing had happened.

Hopefully, this is an isolated incident. If the seizures continue, we'll have to adjust his phenobarbital levels. I hate to give him more phenobarbital than he's already getting. It's a pretty powerdul drug. I wish I could train Dash to sleep on the floor with Dot. He likes to sleep on the edge of the bed, and could easily fall off the bed and hurt himself during a seizure. Needless to say, I didn't get a lot of sleep last night. The air was very dry and both dogs kept waking up with a dry mouth. Instead of going to their water bowls and drinking some water, they kept swallowing loudly, which made me think they were having trouble breathing. Dot pooped in her bed at some point during the night as well.

Janet cooked a special Superbowl dinner tonight. I was really looking forward to this meal when I was at the gym this afternoon. Unfortunately, neither of us realized until late in the day that the Superbowl is actually next Sunday. When Janet told me that the game was today, I had no reason not to believe her. I don't really keep up with these things. I guess if we'd thought about it, we would have realized that the game has been in early February for a long time. Oh, well. Dinner was delicious. Maybe we'll have the same thing again next week. I still think that if the NFL hadn't made that bad call during the Packers game and mistakenly penalized Dallas fifteen yards for having too many men in the huddle, the Cowboys would be playing in this year's Superbowl.

Despite starting the day with a medical emergency, it was actually a good day. The weather was crisp and cool like Dot loves. She had several good walks today and seemed to enjoy herself. Dash seems to have fully recovered from his unexpected seizure and acted completely normally today. I had a good workout and was surprisingly accurate shooting free throws on the basketball court. By the end of the day, I kind of forgot that I woke up dog tired.

My iPhone became a brick today. The screen was dark. It wouldn't respond when I plugged it into a charger. None of the buttons seemed to work. I thought I was screwed until I remembered that you can find the answer to anything on Google. Within thirty seconds I learned that by pressing the home and power buttons simultaneously for thirty seconds, you can almost always revive a dead phone. I tried the trick and it worked. I still don't know what was wrong, because this has never happened before. I did upgrade my system yesterday. Maybe that was the problem.

I hope that the weather stays nice and the dogs stay healthy next week. The stress is getting to me. I'm tired of waking up in the middle of the night thinking that Dot might be dead. I don't know if it's even possible to get a good night's sleep anymore. The slightest noise wakes me up. Now, I'm going to be wondering if Dash is going to have another seizure too. I need to remember to take things one day at a time and not to get ahead of myself. Today was good. There's a good chance that tomorrow will be good as well.

Spirit is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1388

Dot is much better today. With both dogs, if you didn't actually see the seizures, you'd never believe they actually happened. When the dogs have recovered from the seizure, they are completely normal again. Even though I have experienced multiple seizure episodes with both Dot and Dash, it is still hard to know what to do while the seizure is happening. It is important to leave the dog alone during the seizure, but equally important to get them to the vet immediately if the seizure lasts too long. Where do you draw the line? I guess the next step with Dot is to schedule an MRI scan of her brain. It would be nice to be able to rule out a brain tumor as the cause of these seizures. Of course, if she does have a brain tumor, what do you do then? I'm not sure subjecting a very old dog to aggressive chemotherapy is the answer either.

It's a good thing I don't fret about my own health as much as I worry about the dogs. There's so much wrong with me that I'd probably be totally dysfunctional if I worried at all. The dogs are different though. I feel like I'm their protector. You want to do everything you can to keep them healthy, but there's only so much you can do. Unfortunately, life is just as unpredictable for dogs as it is for people. The pretty little flowers I photographed today are called Crow Poison. They are toxic and should never be eaten. Of course, these little flowers bloom everywhere in the park right after a rain. One more hazard, in a long list, to watch out for.

Recent events have made me realize that life is chock full of unexpected hazards. You shouldn't have to worry about being attacked by a motorcycle gang while you are minding your own business driving home with your wife and two year old child. You probably shouldn't be shot and killed either, just because you forgot to take your meds and happen to drive your car into the White House gate. I was really surprised today to discover that the cause of all the panic in Washington DC was a 34 year old dental hygienist driving alone with a small child. She didn't even have a gun. Couldn't the police have just shot out her tires?

It's probably a good thing that I spend most of my time sitting at a computer and writing. If I knew what was really going on around me in Dallas everyday, I would probably be appalled. Janet and I hope to retire to an idyllic, small town with no crime someday. The only problem will be in finding such a place.

Until then, I'll just keep on working. I did some major website updates today and then wrote an article that will have to be completely re-written tomorrow because I managed to get all my facts wrong. Oh, well. At least I have something to do tomorrow. I had an out-of-the-office meeting this afternoon where I found myself actually recommending Wordpress as a solution to the client's problem. I was astounded and somewhat mortified to hear the words come out of my mouth. Was I possessed by the devil? Jeez, I hate Wordpress. Too bad it works so well

Hobbs is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1336

My gym is about as close as I'll ever get to experiencing Ground Hog Day. Every time I go, there is an old man reading the same book while he pedals a stationary bicycle very slowly. There is always a very thin girl who is speed walking endlessly around and around the oval track. And then there is someone who looks a lot like a competitive cyclist putting an elliptical machine through its paces as fast as he can while continually turning his head from side to side. There are other familiar faces as well, but these three are amazing. No matter when I arrive, they are always there, doing exactly the same thing.

I got a new photography job today, but other than that, it was a pretty typical Monday. Monday's are almost a textbook definition of boredom. Very little happens on a typical Monday, so in lieu of productive work, I invent little chores. I water the lawn. I do laundry. I don't usually try to catch up on things, because I've caught up already.

I should just go to a movie on days like this, but there hasn't been a new movie that has caught my interest for a long time. I'm becoming paranoid about leaving the dogs as well. Now that both dogs are prone to have seizures, I have this fear that the one day I take off for a long time will be the day that something terrible happens and I won't be there when they need me to take them to the emergency vet. I shouldn't think this way, but once your mind starts going in this direction, it's hard to snap out of it. I find myself checking the nanny cam on my phone quite a bit while I'm at the gym. Today Dash was so still that I thought for a minute that he might be dead. Luckily the nanny cam has a zoom lens. I zoomed in all the way and I could see him breathing. Then, it was back to the hand bicycle for another twenty minutes.

I think my social media efforts might have plateaued. Have people finally discovered that I seldom post anything new on Google+, Twitter, or Facebook anymore? There's still something new every single day on the blog of course, but you, my faithful readers, are a dying breed. Hardly anyone bothers to read blogs anymore. I don't know if I should care about the slow, but steady attrition of followers on Twitter. It's not like I'm going to start doing anything new at this point.

My research on seizures has netted me a lot more questions than answers. It seems that medical science has discovered, mostly through trial and error, a variety of ways to control seizures and minimize their severity, but nobody really knows what causes them in the first place.

As you can see, there are so few wildflowers left that I've started taking pictures of rocks.

Ellis is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1333

Dash had another seizure this morning. This new episode comes only a few weeks after the previous one, so it looks like the days of one seizure every four years are over. I'm beginning to recognize the different stages a dog goes through during a seizure, so I'm not quite as panicked now when these episodes begin. Seizures are still frightening events though. They can occasionally become life threatening events, so it's still important to take your dog to a vet as soon as you can after a seizure has occurred. Luckily Dash's seizures have never been prolonged or life threatening, so I've never had to deal with the complexities of getting him to the vet while he is still having convulsions.

Dash's veterinarian wanted to keep him for observation for the rest of the morning, and I reluctantly agreed with her that it was time to put him back on phenobarbital again. I hate the thought of Dash being on a strong barbiturate like phenobarbital for the rest of his life, but the thought of these seizures becomeing more frequent and more severe is even worse.

While Dash was at the vet, I drove up to the Land Rover dealer to see if the harmonic balancer I'd ordered had arrived yet. It turns out that the part had actually arrived several days ago, but they'd never gotten around to telling me about it. I guess we all have different priorities. I want to get this engine vibration problem resolved as quickly as I can. When it's 106 degrees outside and you have a dog in the car, the last thing you need are mechanical problems. I'm still driving the Defender, but at least I've got a service appointment scheduled for next week now.

I stopped for breakfast at a restaurant near the Land Rover dealer on the way home. This place has gotten rave reviews, but I was a bit disappointed. I guess I've gotten spoiled, since one of the best breakfast spots in the entire state is right in my own neighborhood. Maybe I just can't handle salt anymore. My meal was tasty, but it was way too salty for my taste.

Dash was completely normal when he returned from the vet, but it took me a bit longer to get the house back to normal. It is common for dogs to salivate excessively and urinate during a seizure and the bed was a mess. Not only did I have to wash the pillow cases, sheets, and comforter, I had to take the mattress pad off and wash it as well. I really feel bad when Dash has these seizures. His appear suddenly, usually on waking up, and are quite violent. Dot seems to be able to anticipate her infrequent seizures and has learned to go to a quiet place and lie down before the seizure starts.

Since there was also quite a bit of work to complete during this eventful day, I'm exhausted now. I think I got everything finished though. The dogs are resting quietly, the bed linen has been cleaned, all pending articles have been completed and e-mailed to the clients, website fixes are in place, and August invoices are in the mail. I hope the weekend is completely boring and uneventful.

Nautica is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1311

Dash had another seizure this morning. A bad one. I had almost convinced myself that these seizures were a thing of the past. Until today, Dash hadn't suffered from a seizure in over four years. We were so confident about his recovery that we were able to lower his Phenobarbital dosage and eventually eliminate it completely. Dash has been completely free of Phenobarbital now for almost two full years with no adverse effects.

Epileptic seizures can be quite alarming. At first your dog goes into convulsions, typically falling to the ground, gasping for air and twitching wildly like it has been electrocuted. There is not much you can do at this point. Vets tell me that once you make sure the airway is clear and the dog had not swallowed its tongue, to just leave it alone until the seizure subsides. When the convulsions stop and the dog tries to get up, it will often appear unsteady and even fall over like it is experiencing severe vertigo. This disorientation often causes the dog to become fearful and aggressive, and it will growl or even bite if you try to approach. Usually, after about twenty minutes, some sense of normalcy returns and you can take the dog to the vet to check all the vital signs. If you're lucky, there will just be the single seizure, but often they come in clusters.

Nobody at the veterinary hospital could tell me why Dash had a seizure today after so many years with no problems whatsoever. The violent seizure fell into the category of unexplained mysteries, just like my own elevated liver enzyme levels. It makes me nervous though. I have no idea when or where a seizure will happen again. I don't want to put Dash back on a powerful sedative like Phenobarbital again unless it is absolutely necessary. I don't want to become fearful to leave the house either. Life must go on. To add to the complexity, Dot has had her own problems with seizures. Either one of the dogs could have another seizure at almost any point. On the other hand, neither of them may ever have a seizure again. 

Since I was more or less confined to the house today while I kept an eye on Dash, I was able to get all my work finished with time to spare. Dash is back to normal now and there were no further incidents. If I didn't see the seizure with my own eyes, it would be easy to imagine it never even happened.

Since I didn't make it to the store today as I had planned, there wasn't much in the house for dinner. I found a can of Wolf Brand Chili in the pantry and heated it up. Although my nutritionist would have frowned on this meal, it tasted surprisingly good. It's probably back to Kale salads tomorrow though.

I took the dogs on their evening walk immediately after a short, but intense thunderstorm passed through the area. The air was much cooler, but the ground was still hot, creating a layer of ground fog that hovered above the roads and pathways in the park. The effect was surreal and beautiful, but it didn't last long.

Before I forget, thanks to Joan and Lynne for helping me identify the mystery plant I saw the other day as a Passionflower. I always enjoy learning something new. I now know that these beautiful vines have been used for hundreds of years by Native Americans for medicinal purposes and that they got their name because people thought that the different parts of the flower represented the Christian crucifixion story. The recent heavy rains flattened the plant I saw the other day, but I'm sure the Passionflowers will be back. I haven't seen a wildflower yet that didn't return the next year.

Beemer is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 957

Dash was better behaved in the car today than he's been in a long, long time. It would be nice to know what causes his panic attacks, but maybe we'll never know. The only thing that I can think of is that we have finally weaned him off of the Phenobarbital he's been taking for several years. The vet wanted him to take Phenobarbital to reduce the chance of another epileptic seizure, but he hasn't had a seizure in so many years that Janet and I decided to take him off the drug. It takes a long time to get off Phenobarbital. You have to reduce the dose very gradually, so there will be no side effects. The whole process took about three months, but last week he finally had the drug completely out of his system. Maybe there is still a risk of seizures, but I think Dash is better off without having to continually deal with a powerful barbiturate in his system.

I finally completed the animal rescue website I've been renovating this afternoon and re-launched it early this evening. Doing something over again is never quite as much fun as doing it the first time. I think the makeover is actually a big improvement over the original site I designed, but I'm certain that, in my desire to simplify things, I accidentally eliminated some stuff that needed to stay. The original design evolved over a period of many years and eventually became so complex that it was difficult to navigate and almost impossible to update. This new design will be easy to update. In fact, making the site easy to modify was my primary objective. Being the webmaster of an animal rescue site is kind of like being the manager of a motel. You get new visitors almost every day.  Maybe this time around, I won't be faced with re-inventing the wheel every week.

Dot and Dash had a great time at the dog park today. I was really surprised, since it was just as hot outside as it was last Sunday. Somehow, both dogs had more energy this week and raced around like it was a Spring day. I have no idea where this burst of energy came from, but some of it must have rubbed off on me. When we got home, I mowed the grass, vacuumed the house and had enough mojo left over to finally finish the animal rescue website.

I was pleased to get a lot done today, but I don't really expect today's get-up-and-go to last through tomorrow. After all, tomorrow is Monday. You can't expect much out of a Monday. I'll dip my toe back into the muddy waters of deadlines and delays. When I pick up the phone, I'll probably get put on hold. The postman will probably bring a pile of bills as well. That's what happens on Monday's. I suspect that I'll eat cold cereal for breakfast. I never have a desire to cook on Monday's. I don't have a desire to do much of anything on Monday.

Tink is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day