I know I haven't been really active here lately but life has been busy & I've been struggling with depression as well. Ah, my life. Anyway, I need help & good vibes for the Peanut (Aspen). Go get something to drink & be ready for a long story.
This goes back to June '08. Aspen was diagnosed with Pancreatitis. We got that under control & he's been thriving & I'm now slowly changing him off of the Rx diet that, to me, has no nutritutional value at all. Read: all corn & grains to lower protein/fat quality kibble. All seems to be going fine with transition.
That's part one of the issue. Another aspect of this problem is his back. He has now been banned from the bedroom unless I'm there to supervise his getting off the bed. We've tried training him to use the steps & ramp but he just won't have it. So his back is bad. I've been taking him to Dr. Lee for acupuncture on weekly visits & will try to get as many chiro visits in as I can.
2 weeks ago I noticed that Aspen was acting ouchie & took him to see Dr. P (regular vet). Dr. P Rx'd nsaid & a muscle relaxant for his back. We followed the dosage & he seemed to be okay for about 5 days & fortunately we had an appointment with Dr. Lee later that week. (Are you getting lost yet?) During our appointmment, I asked Dr. Lee to look at a lump that had just appeared. She recommended that I go have it looked at. Yup, that was already my plan since his gums were also looking pale. Aspen was also due for some follow-up blood work because his Alfos (?) numbers were high & we have been keeping an eye on them. The plan was to go get the lump looked at & get another blood draw done. Dr. P took a poke @ the lump and announced it was a hemotoma. That made sense because of another relationship problem with me, Grady, Aspen & houseguests. Long story & not really pertinant to the story.
We get the results of the bloodwork back & it shows a low grade anemia. Dr. S (Aspen's usual vet) recommends that we wait 10-14 days & take another cbc. Fine. I can deal with that. So this week at Dr. Lees again we notice that there's been a 6 month trend of his hemoglobin, Hematcrit & RBC have been trending down so that now they register as low on the reports. His lump is back & his gums are still pale. We go back to see Dr. S for another CBC & CpL to see if the reticulation (sp?) is good. Dr. S was also able to get a sample of the lump.
So now, it's a holiday weekend & I won't get the results of the CpL, cbc or sample until Tuesday. I'm freaking out. Aspen is really droopy. I don't know if it's from the anemia, pain from his back or just feeling ick. His gums look worse to me & I'm scared spitless about my boy.
So please, The Peanut needs all the good vibes you can spare & I need any advice you have.
Thanks for sticking with my story.
PS: Mods, if you think this needs to be moved, please feel free.