Heidi update

I was just sending a couple of emails to people wanting to try CV247 and was looking for the info on Heidi's diet as her owners were really amazing at documenting her regime.
I'm not sure if many of you have been checking in recently for updates, but I've been a bit remiss.
Just went to Heidi's blog a little heart in mouth to see how this sweet rescued Border Collie was doing and I was delighted to hear she's feeling so well a year on from such a very dark prognosis that's she'll actually starting to be a bit naughty!
Here's a link if you want to read the whole story... well done team Heidi!

Heidi 7

26th May 2009 - another op pending

I cannot believe it’s so long since I last wrote anything. I’m really sorry to those of you who have been concerned that something may have happened to Heidi - I assure you she is full of beans & raring to go!

The operation to remove the growth on her mammary gland is booked for this Friday. Her heart is strong (although the murmur is still detectable) & she is in a totally different place to where she was before the last op, as am I. I no longer wait with baited breath for her bark first thing in the morning, wondering if she’s made it through the night, but I do still relish the sound of it when it slips out from her joyous little body while she waits for someone to come down to see her in the morning.

I have been taking some time out of work to reassess my journey. Many issues have raised their heads in the last month or so & one of them was about trust. I watched Heidi that day; her trust is implicit. If there is something she’s unsure of she runs to me & always has from last November. If I need to do something for her, after I’ve explained it she will let me do anything & will come over when called at the vets, even though she’s feeling a bit wobbly about it she trusts me to keep her away from danger. The level of her trust is immense. Her history is one of broken trust & here she is offering it to me freely & unstintingly, unconditionally. It is never forced, although sometimes she takes a millisecond to consider it, she always comes forward. If my little collie can trust in such a way & live with the consequences of it being abused (in the past) why should I give a second thought to who I can & cannot trust? For today, I trust. If tomorrow that is broken, so be it. I’m going to avoid wasting time worrying about what might be & focus on what is.

I give you all my assurance that if there is any change in Heidi’s health, I will write it on the blog. When she was going through traumas before I found it really helpful to just write it all down, but when things are going well it’s harder to write; “Heidi’s really fit & bouncy. Watched a snail today.” could get a little monotonous! No news is good news here.

Travel well.

R & H x

Heidi 7

2nd April - Week 3

I find it difficult to believe that it’s three weeks since Heidi’s op. She has been through so much & yet here she is bouncing around the garden like nothing has happened. Remarkable.

We had her blood test results on Tuesday. She is now hypothyroid which explains why the scales hit 13.6kg (a whole kilo heavier than when she came to us last November, & a kilo I never thought we’d see). We’ll have to watch she doesn’t pile on the pounds with her all new metabolism so have started to cut back on her food - there was rather a lot of it.

We now give her her Soloxine an hour before her meals & this morning you’d have thought I’d killed her mother the way she looked at me. You see, if we are in the kitchen we are feeding her not giving her the most meagre piece of cheese & then walking away for an hour before the good bit happens. I was quickly forgiven (albeit an hour later). HRH is now constantly hungry & will graze anything off the floor. BO (before operation) even bits of food on the floor would be left, but now anything is game; fluff, bits of wood, chicken pooh (that’s generally outside…), soil, potato peeling which have missed the compost, etc.

The lump which disappeared last week has gradually reappeared. I have no reason to panic about it - I’d much rather have Heidi with a lump & feeling comfortable than her without it & feeling dreadful, which she apparently was. She is so vital at the moment & so very keen to be out & about again, & that is what is important. Obviously I’d be delighted if it went & stayed away, but only if she feels well with it. Barbara has suggested we make a little bra for her to keep the lump protected from knocks & abrasions so the sewing machine will be put to use this weekend. Would it be a Grrrrra?

It’s just so wonderful to see her verve back again. Although her twinkle was always in her eyes, even when she was feeling dreadful but there was anxiety there too, the sparkle has returned to her eyes. That collie mischief which leaves you utterly vulnerable to smiling all the time is back. When our old cat, Spike, was living out his last days I had several people tell me I should have him PTS. My answer was always the same; while he has that twinkle in his eyes, no matter how small, he stays because he wants to. He, like Heidi, had bad days, but you could feel the strength of their will to stay through it all. The road to wellness or physical death isn’t easy & is strewn with obstacles, but by knowing there will be “off” days & looking for the light in their eyes you will know whether it’s right for them to continue with your support or whether it’s time to help them out of their failing bodies. The day Spike died the spark was just a glimmer. He wanted neither water nor food, but just to be held for one last, peaceful cuddle. He needed no help to leave & when he did leave it was one of the most precious moments I have ever experienced. There was no fear from either of us & it was beautiful. I still cry for him as I miss him but he reached out with his silver-grey paw & touched my soul.

Bob Champion said, “With hope, you can achieve anything.” With hope, fear has no place to reside. With hope you can look into your companions eyes & support them in a way that is appropriate. It is possible to be both hopeful & realistic by taking one day at a time & enjoying each, precious moment with them. Stroking their faces, gently scratching the point behind their ears which makes their eyes go soft, quietly brushing their coats, or just watching them while they sleep, telling them softly how much you love them.

Take time to get to know their twinkle, it will serve you well.

R x

Heidi 3

19th March - Day 7

Is it really a whole week since her thyroid operation? It seems like a very, very long time ago.

Something we have noticed is that at 11am each day she appears to have a dip when her tongue has a slight bluish tinge, her gums are very pale, either her legs or ears go very cold & she seems a little lack-lustre. Barbara gave us a homeopathic remedy (Carbo Veg) which she had today & within minutes she’d perked up again. Has anyone else experienced this following a thyroidectomy? The only connection we can make (a somewhat tenuous one) is that her operation was around this time of day. I understand the body has its own rhythm & cycle, but could the removal of the thyroid create such a seemingly hormonal response at approximately the same time each day? I would be very interested to hear from anyone with suggestions.

I cooked up a batch of her food last night & I have no idea whether I’m doing it “right” - is there such a thing as getting the diet “wrong”? I have the proportions for each food type, I see that the oats are to be baked - but baked how? I had made up some little biscuits from oats soaked in fresh carrot & apple juice. They taste lovely (I know, it just looked too good!) but are a little too abrasive for Heidi’s still tender throat so Meg & I are eating them. Are there any existing CV247-ers who can advise? I have been cooking up the veg by boiling the root, steaming the greens & putting the chicken, fish & liver into the root saucepan for a few moments before removing them & then whizzing the veg through the hand blender. The meat gets mixed in afterwards. What does anyone else do? Heidi wolfs it down with her added dandelion leaves for her anaemia - never thought I’d be happy to see “weed” coming up early…

Heidi must think I’ve gone completely soft in the head as I just keep beaming when I see her doing simple things like trotting through the dining room (she always used to amble), wagging her tail furiously (it used to wave), or just sleeping peacefully stuffed down behind the cushions on the sofa (a trick learned by watching Meg - our sofa is usually trashed before we get a chance to sit on it).

Just for today, look at your companion & appreciate them just for being there.

18th March - Day 6

Another landmark - last of the post-op medication given this morning (anti-inflammatory) & she had the last antibiotic last night. Why do veterinary pharmaceutical companies make horse tablets for dogs? They claim to be “palatable” but if you have an animal who is off their food, fillet steak ain’t palatable because it doesn’t get to the bit of the mouth which tells the brain “Mmmmm! This is yummy!”. Come on Vet Pharma’s - smaller or liquid please.

We’re still waiting for the thyroid results, but still grinning that her lump has reduced (the bloods have been sent to Jean Dodds in America so will be about 2 weeks). I hope to put a photo on later, but here is one of Heidi where you can see the lump on her tummy. It has little effect on her day to day life beyond me being paranoid when we walk somewhere new in case she decides to go into the undergrowth & catches it on something. Heidi is such an attentive dog that she’s more than happy to mooch alongside you or trot after Meg if she’s sticking to the path.

(The dog suit was being modelled for the website as a protective barrier for allergic dogs.)

The lump makes her look like a boy dog, but she’s all girl!

We’ve had a glorious time in the sunshine this afternoon & you really wouldn’t know that this little dog had major surgery only 6 days ago. I was potting up strawberries while Meg was finding different ways to plant her Cuz (a squeaky toy whose squeak has lasted over a year & survived my running over it in the van three times). Heidi? She was back in her old position behind Meg waiting for & willing her to run so she could chase after her. I was the party pooper - it was so hard to stop her having the first bit of fun she’s had in nearly a week but we have time for fun on another day now.

Fun is something that she’s been a little short-changed on since coming here. Being aware of her heart rate, I have tended to keep as much of her life low-key, but she would go nuts if you played ball with her. Having rubbish eyesight from the cataracts her ability to catch the ball in her mouth was dramatically reduced, but she never stopped trying & celebrated with us when she did manage it. We would have a very sparkly Heidi after a short game of ball!

Link to Heidi's blog

Editor's note: In my day the feeding was totally different. Sally had raw NZ Lamb's liver and organic carrot juice - plus some supplements. But she had liver cancer. John used to alter the diet for different cancers and different dogs. Are there any of the old school out there able to help? I think less may be more. I remember John wanting the dog to have as few chemicals and non-food elements as possible - no salt. Bottled water (had to be glass bottles, too). So as simple a diet as possible and as natural as possible. It was only after we cracked the cancer that we brought carbs back into the diet and put the weight back on. She was already very thin when we started as she had trouble digesting for some time until we started the treatment.