You all know the saying, "This is one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind." by Neil Armstrong
Well yesterday and today at our house it was more like, "One small step for Sam, one giant leap for old dogs everywhere." Sam climbed the single step up to the deck alone yesterday - no one even saw him do it. Today, he did it again with about one finger of support from me (which he didn't even really need). I would never have expected him to climb any steps again. Yet, I let it be possible in my mind.
Another lesson from Sam, just let it be possible and see what happens... Thanks, Bud.
Monday, April 11, 2011
Sunday, April 10, 2011
Sam's Big Teaching - The Encore
This last piece is an e-mail follow-up from 2009...
Hi,
It's nearly impossible for me to believe that one year ago this week, we brought Sam home from the hospital after his mysterious 4 day illness. He turned 14 years old in January and is going strong. His appetite and attitude are fantastic, though he doesn't go up or down the stairs as fast as he used to. Snow is still one of his favorite things and I've attached a couple of pictures that Mike took on Sunday -almost 1 year from the day that Sam went to the emergency room with me in a full panic. The pictures show Sam relaxing in the snow, then rolling in the snow while eating snow, and then shaking off the snow. Sights that I never get tired of.
Sam keeps a busy schedule these days - kibble and supplements in the morning, followed by a carrot snack, then some rigorous napping followed up by an afternoon activity (such as barking at the neighbors' dog, chasing cats, teaching Mom some philosophy, cleaning up cat food off the floor, preparing for tax season, begging for more carrots, etc.), next up is a brisk round of napping, and the day culminates with dramatically greeting Mom or Uncle Michael when they come home, more kibble and supplements (and carrots), a final walk/run/roll in the snow and then AHHHHH bedtime.
I'll never forget the lessons that Sam taught me last year - and that he is still teaching me. Continuing to "let go" is an lifetime process and a rewarding one. Thanks to everyone for all their help during those difficult days - we really needed you and you were there. We don't know how much longer Sam will choose to be with us, but we'll try to value every day. We never really know how much time is left for anything, I guess...
All the best to everyone and hug your family (2 and 4 legged) from us!
Jen, Mike, Sam, Abby, Emmy, and the cats...
Hi,
It's nearly impossible for me to believe that one year ago this week, we brought Sam home from the hospital after his mysterious 4 day illness. He turned 14 years old in January and is going strong. His appetite and attitude are fantastic, though he doesn't go up or down the stairs as fast as he used to. Snow is still one of his favorite things and I've attached a couple of pictures that Mike took on Sunday -almost 1 year from the day that Sam went to the emergency room with me in a full panic. The pictures show Sam relaxing in the snow, then rolling in the snow while eating snow, and then shaking off the snow. Sights that I never get tired of.
Sam keeps a busy schedule these days - kibble and supplements in the morning, followed by a carrot snack, then some rigorous napping followed up by an afternoon activity (such as barking at the neighbors' dog, chasing cats, teaching Mom some philosophy, cleaning up cat food off the floor, preparing for tax season, begging for more carrots, etc.), next up is a brisk round of napping, and the day culminates with dramatically greeting Mom or Uncle Michael when they come home, more kibble and supplements (and carrots), a final walk/run/roll in the snow and then AHHHHH bedtime.
I'll never forget the lessons that Sam taught me last year - and that he is still teaching me. Continuing to "let go" is an lifetime process and a rewarding one. Thanks to everyone for all their help during those difficult days - we really needed you and you were there. We don't know how much longer Sam will choose to be with us, but we'll try to value every day. We never really know how much time is left for anything, I guess...
All the best to everyone and hug your family (2 and 4 legged) from us!
Jen, Mike, Sam, Abby, Emmy, and the cats...
Saturday, April 9, 2011
Sam's Big Teaching - Part 8 - No News is Good News
The finale from 2008...
Hi there!
It's hard to believe that three weeks ago Sam was in the hospital and we were worried sick. Except for his funky hairdo, you'd never know it.
He's been home for 2 1/2 weeks now and is scheduled for one more follow-up appointment with his internist at the hospital (probably on Wednesday this week). He is finishing his last antibiotic up and is diving into his regular dry food with gusto. He has resumed his selective hearing and mischievious antics - for example, on Friday, I took Sam and Abby out in the back yard without leashes (Sam has been off leash mostly since he's been home from the hospital). I had LOTS of treats in my hand since Abby has been known to scamper off to investigate Cleveland Heights when not attached to something or someone sturdy. Both dogs were fine in the back yard (after I managed to get Sam to leave the neighbor's yard and join us in the back yard), but on the way back to the house, Sam disappeared. Really, he just disappeared. I couldn't find him anywhere, for several minutes I called and waited thinking he had gone around the garage or something. Finally, I ran Abby into the house (she had stayed right with me, thanks to the cookies) and I went around to the front of the house - no Sam. I headed further into the front yard, towards the street and as I looked east up Silsby - there was Sam! About four houses up the street on the sidewalk headed away from the house! Needless to say, I ran down to get him and he started trotting home as soon as I reached him, "I was just coming home anyway, Mom!". He ran up the driveway and then into the neighbor's yard again, finally I had to go get him and chase him back into our yard where he still took the long route back to the house.
So....I was very happy to be scolding and chasing my 13 year old dog who had been hospitalized two weeks earlier! However, Sam's off-leash privileges have been temporarily revoked pending some retraining - especially, "Come!"... Sam's selective hearing tends to kick in when he's outside (he can hear kibble hitting his bowl from a quarter mile, but if he's 20 feet away somehow he can't hear his name - hmmmmmm????). Someone suggested that his selective hearing has nothing to do with his age and everything to do with his gender - hmmmmm????? That explains a lot!
So thank you again, everyone, for asking how Sam has been doing and for continuing to keep us in your thoughts. I'm going to send a couple of new pictures in a separate e-mail. They were taken only a few days after Sam came home and he was thoroughly enjoying the new snow. One picture shows him rolling in the snow which he has done for his whole life - he drops down on his shoulder then completely onto his side and then proceeds to roll vigorously on his back - making a perfect doggie snow angel.
All the best to everyone and please take care and be well...
Jen, Mike, Sam, Abby, the cats, and Emmy
Hi there!
It's hard to believe that three weeks ago Sam was in the hospital and we were worried sick. Except for his funky hairdo, you'd never know it.
He's been home for 2 1/2 weeks now and is scheduled for one more follow-up appointment with his internist at the hospital (probably on Wednesday this week). He is finishing his last antibiotic up and is diving into his regular dry food with gusto. He has resumed his selective hearing and mischievious antics - for example, on Friday, I took Sam and Abby out in the back yard without leashes (Sam has been off leash mostly since he's been home from the hospital). I had LOTS of treats in my hand since Abby has been known to scamper off to investigate Cleveland Heights when not attached to something or someone sturdy. Both dogs were fine in the back yard (after I managed to get Sam to leave the neighbor's yard and join us in the back yard), but on the way back to the house, Sam disappeared. Really, he just disappeared. I couldn't find him anywhere, for several minutes I called and waited thinking he had gone around the garage or something. Finally, I ran Abby into the house (she had stayed right with me, thanks to the cookies) and I went around to the front of the house - no Sam. I headed further into the front yard, towards the street and as I looked east up Silsby - there was Sam! About four houses up the street on the sidewalk headed away from the house! Needless to say, I ran down to get him and he started trotting home as soon as I reached him, "I was just coming home anyway, Mom!". He ran up the driveway and then into the neighbor's yard again, finally I had to go get him and chase him back into our yard where he still took the long route back to the house.
So....I was very happy to be scolding and chasing my 13 year old dog who had been hospitalized two weeks earlier! However, Sam's off-leash privileges have been temporarily revoked pending some retraining - especially, "Come!"... Sam's selective hearing tends to kick in when he's outside (he can hear kibble hitting his bowl from a quarter mile, but if he's 20 feet away somehow he can't hear his name - hmmmmmm????). Someone suggested that his selective hearing has nothing to do with his age and everything to do with his gender - hmmmmm????? That explains a lot!
So thank you again, everyone, for asking how Sam has been doing and for continuing to keep us in your thoughts. I'm going to send a couple of new pictures in a separate e-mail. They were taken only a few days after Sam came home and he was thoroughly enjoying the new snow. One picture shows him rolling in the snow which he has done for his whole life - he drops down on his shoulder then completely onto his side and then proceeds to roll vigorously on his back - making a perfect doggie snow angel.
Jen, Mike, Sam, Abby, the cats, and Emmy
Friday, April 8, 2011
Sam's Big Teaching - Part 7 - Three Day Update
At three days post release, Sam is still doing well. He has been getting stronger and stronger and is thoroughly enjoying the fact that he gets to eat unlimited "cat food" - he thinks that anything that comes out of a can is cat food, so even though he's getting canned DOG food, we are continuing to let him think that he's getting away with something and eating LOTS of "cat food". All of our other pets are extremely jealous of his punk hairdo - picture the seventh place entry in a children's poodle clipping contest. He has shaved ankles all around, a shaved square on his hip, shaved belly, neck, and chest. His temperature has stayed normal so far and he's been a champ about taken his many medications (buried in the "cat food", sssssssshhhhh.....). He's getting back into his normal routines, but is still tired and a bit wobbly from time to time. It was great to have him meet me at the door the other day for the first time since his return. We are scheduled for a re-check with the internal medicine doctor around Wednesday this week and I'll keep checking his temperature every day or so to keep tabs.
Thanks for all of your support and well wishes. We all truly value our friends and family and appreciate all of your e-mails and calls. My apologies for not getting back to everyone, if I haven't yet. I'm getting over a nasty chest cold from last weekend and Mike has been down with a chest cold/flu (temp of 102) most of this week. Hopefully, the ship is righting itself and we'll all be on the up and up for a while.
All our best wishes and love,
Jen, Mike, Sam, Abby, the cats, and Emmy
Thursday, April 7, 2011
Sam's Big Teaching - Part 6 - He's Home
I remember this day very well even though it was over three years ago now...
Hello Everyone,
Well, Sam has chosen to stay with us for a while longer. I picked him up at the hospital at about 4pm this afternoon and he greeted me with a bright face, relatively sturdy walk, and a wagging tail. His vet technician proclaimed her love for him and sang his praises as a dog and as a patient. He seemed unsurprised to have left such a strong impression on her. He will be on three antibiotics and Pepcid AC (to keep the antibiotics from upsetting his stomach too much) and is scheduled for a re-check in 7 days if all goes well. We are still expecting results from two tests. Current thinking is either an extreme inflammation in the intestinal tract or a tick borne disease.
Sam trotted a few steps on the rainy walk to the car (after urinating on the corner of the hospital building - nothing personal, I'm sure). As I was preparing to help him into the passenger seat of my car, he climbed right in on his own and walked into the back seat (where he traditionally rides). Okay, Sam, whatever you say. After running a few errands, we got home and Sam trotted from the car into the woods behind the house. He seemed to want to be loose, so I removed his leash. He then spent the next 10 minutes carefully inspecting his woods as if he was seeing them for the first time. I had the distinct feeling that he was thinking that he was glad to be back in the woods and even that he had forgotten that this was a really good part of being alive - there's always something new in the woods. I just let him wander around and sniff and get wet (though I was paranoid that he would eat something - which may be how we ended up in the hospital in the first place). Eventually he decided to come inside and was enthusiastically greeted by Abby (those who know Abby won't be surprised).
He is now resting comfortably in the bedroom - we'll have dinner soon. He came upstairs by himself earlier and didn't have any difficulty despite the fact that he hasn't eaten much for a few days and is a bit wobbly. It's sheer pleasure to see his face and feel his presence in the house again - for however long he stays. It could be hours or years - who knows. But then we never really know, do we? In honor of Sam, please hug someone tonight or tomorrow morning. Someone who may be surprised or that you might not have hugged otherwise.
All the thanks and love in the world to this wonderful network of people. I've been sending these updates to about 110 people. I'll keep you updated on Sam as we go forward. If anyone ever needs anything, please don't hesitate to contact me or other friends. One of the most important lessons that I've learned is to reach out in times like these - my previous reaction would have been to contract and not talk to anyone. I would have missed out on so much these last few days if I had done that. I'm happy to share any of the resources that I've discovered with any of you - medical knowledge, pharmacological information, doctor's names, names of human and/or animal energy work professionals or anything else. Please let me know if you are curious about anything that came up in these e-mails...
Thank you and have a wonderful evening,
Jen, Mike, Sam, Abby, the cats, and Emmy
(otherwise known as the Ark on Silsby)
Hello Everyone,
Well, Sam has chosen to stay with us for a while longer. I picked him up at the hospital at about 4pm this afternoon and he greeted me with a bright face, relatively sturdy walk, and a wagging tail. His vet technician proclaimed her love for him and sang his praises as a dog and as a patient. He seemed unsurprised to have left such a strong impression on her. He will be on three antibiotics and Pepcid AC (to keep the antibiotics from upsetting his stomach too much) and is scheduled for a re-check in 7 days if all goes well. We are still expecting results from two tests. Current thinking is either an extreme inflammation in the intestinal tract or a tick borne disease.
Sam trotted a few steps on the rainy walk to the car (after urinating on the corner of the hospital building - nothing personal, I'm sure). As I was preparing to help him into the passenger seat of my car, he climbed right in on his own and walked into the back seat (where he traditionally rides). Okay, Sam, whatever you say. After running a few errands, we got home and Sam trotted from the car into the woods behind the house. He seemed to want to be loose, so I removed his leash. He then spent the next 10 minutes carefully inspecting his woods as if he was seeing them for the first time. I had the distinct feeling that he was thinking that he was glad to be back in the woods and even that he had forgotten that this was a really good part of being alive - there's always something new in the woods. I just let him wander around and sniff and get wet (though I was paranoid that he would eat something - which may be how we ended up in the hospital in the first place). Eventually he decided to come inside and was enthusiastically greeted by Abby (those who know Abby won't be surprised).
He is now resting comfortably in the bedroom - we'll have dinner soon. He came upstairs by himself earlier and didn't have any difficulty despite the fact that he hasn't eaten much for a few days and is a bit wobbly. It's sheer pleasure to see his face and feel his presence in the house again - for however long he stays. It could be hours or years - who knows. But then we never really know, do we? In honor of Sam, please hug someone tonight or tomorrow morning. Someone who may be surprised or that you might not have hugged otherwise.
All the thanks and love in the world to this wonderful network of people. I've been sending these updates to about 110 people. I'll keep you updated on Sam as we go forward. If anyone ever needs anything, please don't hesitate to contact me or other friends. One of the most important lessons that I've learned is to reach out in times like these - my previous reaction would have been to contract and not talk to anyone. I would have missed out on so much these last few days if I had done that. I'm happy to share any of the resources that I've discovered with any of you - medical knowledge, pharmacological information, doctor's names, names of human and/or animal energy work professionals or anything else. Please let me know if you are curious about anything that came up in these e-mails...
Thank you and have a wonderful evening,
Jen, Mike, Sam, Abby, the cats, and Emmy
(otherwise known as the Ark on Silsby)
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
Sam's Big Teaching - Part 5 - Sam
Another dose from 2008...
Hi Everyone,
Well, this morning the doctor said that Sam's temperature is down to 102.5 (normal) without medication. In addition, his blood work is all normal as well (white blood cells up to 10,000, neutrophils up to 3,300, and hematocrit - red blood cells - at 36,000). We will be bringing Sampson home soon, probably today. The doctors are decreasing his fluids to see if he can keep his temperature down. We still won't know if we are out of the woods, but Sam will be much more comfortable at home regardless of what comes next. He's tired of being in the hospital and needs to come home.
A good friend and Reiki master (some of you know Linda Richards) helped me to see that Sampson and I have a co-dependent relationship. Linda said that if I could let Sam go, he might have the energy to keep on living and if I couldn't let him go, he would not. She said that he was fine either way - he feels that he has accomplished what he needs to here and if this was time to go, he was okay with that. We had this conversation last night and I released Sam from all his "obligations" - to get better, to live forever, to stop limping, to be perfect, to stay young, everything. He is free to just take care of himself now.
Whether or not this has anything to do with his temperature stabilization, we will never know. Some of you will think this sounds crazy - some of you will understand. I just wanted to share this because the exercise of releasing Sam led me to understand how much pressure I had unwittingly placed on him and how exhausting that must have been for him. We do this to our pets, spouses, children, parents, and friends all the time, I would imagine. I'm going to continue to work on releasing the animals and people in my life. For their benefit and mine. It does not mean that I don't love them - I do. I'm just releasing them to be themselves instead of what I "want" or "need" them to be. Maybe this can help someone else, as well.
I'll let you know when Sam comes home - maybe it will only be for a short while, maybe for a very long time - that's his choice, now.
Love to everyone,
Jen, Mike, Sam, Abby, the cats, and Emmy
Hi Everyone,
Well, this morning the doctor said that Sam's temperature is down to 102.5 (normal) without medication. In addition, his blood work is all normal as well (white blood cells up to 10,000, neutrophils up to 3,300, and hematocrit - red blood cells - at 36,000). We will be bringing Sampson home soon, probably today. The doctors are decreasing his fluids to see if he can keep his temperature down. We still won't know if we are out of the woods, but Sam will be much more comfortable at home regardless of what comes next. He's tired of being in the hospital and needs to come home.
A good friend and Reiki master (some of you know Linda Richards) helped me to see that Sampson and I have a co-dependent relationship. Linda said that if I could let Sam go, he might have the energy to keep on living and if I couldn't let him go, he would not. She said that he was fine either way - he feels that he has accomplished what he needs to here and if this was time to go, he was okay with that. We had this conversation last night and I released Sam from all his "obligations" - to get better, to live forever, to stop limping, to be perfect, to stay young, everything. He is free to just take care of himself now.
Whether or not this has anything to do with his temperature stabilization, we will never know. Some of you will think this sounds crazy - some of you will understand. I just wanted to share this because the exercise of releasing Sam led me to understand how much pressure I had unwittingly placed on him and how exhausting that must have been for him. We do this to our pets, spouses, children, parents, and friends all the time, I would imagine. I'm going to continue to work on releasing the animals and people in my life. For their benefit and mine. It does not mean that I don't love them - I do. I'm just releasing them to be themselves instead of what I "want" or "need" them to be. Maybe this can help someone else, as well.
I'll let you know when Sam comes home - maybe it will only be for a short while, maybe for a very long time - that's his choice, now.
Love to everyone,
Jen, Mike, Sam, Abby, the cats, and Emmy
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
Sam's Big Teaching - Part 4 - Mixed Results Today
The story continues...
Hello Everyone,
Your support is overwhelming. Thank you. Sam had some good and not-so-good news today. His temperature has gone back up (to about 104) but not too high and his red blood cell count dropped (which had been normal). On the plus side, his white blood cell count nearly doubled (to 2400) and his neutrophils were also up. His X-rays and ultrasound found nothing particularly interesting (no tumors or enlarged organs), there was a minor comment on his heart, so we're following that up. Sam had a sample of bone marrow taken so that the doctors can investigate his inconsistent and abnormal blood counts. Results from that test and a blood culture may not be back for several days. In the meantime, when we visited Sam tonight, he was still pretty down from the anesthesia (for the bone marrow aspiration) so he was definitely in need of sleep. We're hoping that his fever will plateau or will come down overnight without any additional medication. The doctors have also added another antibiotic to his IV to cover some more bases.
You are all wonderful and we appreciate your caring more than you could possibly know. Please keep the good thoughts coming and we'll keep encouraging Sam to be strong.
Take care, and love to everyone,
Jen, Mike, Sam, Abby, the cats, and Emmy
Hello Everyone,
Your support is overwhelming. Thank you. Sam had some good and not-so-good news today. His temperature has gone back up (to about 104) but not too high and his red blood cell count dropped (which had been normal). On the plus side, his white blood cell count nearly doubled (to 2400) and his neutrophils were also up. His X-rays and ultrasound found nothing particularly interesting (no tumors or enlarged organs), there was a minor comment on his heart, so we're following that up. Sam had a sample of bone marrow taken so that the doctors can investigate his inconsistent and abnormal blood counts. Results from that test and a blood culture may not be back for several days. In the meantime, when we visited Sam tonight, he was still pretty down from the anesthesia (for the bone marrow aspiration) so he was definitely in need of sleep. We're hoping that his fever will plateau or will come down overnight without any additional medication. The doctors have also added another antibiotic to his IV to cover some more bases.
You are all wonderful and we appreciate your caring more than you could possibly know. Please keep the good thoughts coming and we'll keep encouraging Sam to be strong.
Take care, and love to everyone,
Jen, Mike, Sam, Abby, the cats, and Emmy
Sam's Big Teaching - Part 3 - Keeping the Faith
Episode #3 from 2008...
Hello Friends,
Sam is much more comfortable this evening. His temperature is down to normal, BUT we don't know yet if that's due to the shot that he received at noon or if it's because he's broken his fever. The shot is very long lasting they told us, so it's not possible to discriminate the effect from any potential healing. At least he's more comfortable and he'll get a good night's sleep. He was very mobile when we visited him, he ate some dog food and some baby carrots that we gave him and he had eaten in his kennel when they offered him food earlier in the evening. All good signs. I'll start to feel better if his temperature is still down in the morning and closer to noontime tomorrow (24 hours after he received the shot). He will still be seeing the oncologist in the morning and having some more tests. Cross your fingers and your toes...
I can't believe how lucky we are to have such incredible support. Thank you all for your thoughts, e-mails, phone calls, energy, and prayers...
Love to everyone,
Jen, Mike, Sam, Abby, the cats, and Emmy
Hello Friends,
Sam is much more comfortable this evening. His temperature is down to normal, BUT we don't know yet if that's due to the shot that he received at noon or if it's because he's broken his fever. The shot is very long lasting they told us, so it's not possible to discriminate the effect from any potential healing. At least he's more comfortable and he'll get a good night's sleep. He was very mobile when we visited him, he ate some dog food and some baby carrots that we gave him and he had eaten in his kennel when they offered him food earlier in the evening. All good signs. I'll start to feel better if his temperature is still down in the morning and closer to noontime tomorrow (24 hours after he received the shot). He will still be seeing the oncologist in the morning and having some more tests. Cross your fingers and your toes...
I can't believe how lucky we are to have such incredible support. Thank you all for your thoughts, e-mails, phone calls, energy, and prayers...
Love to everyone,
Jen, Mike, Sam, Abby, the cats, and Emmy
Monday, April 4, 2011
Sam's Big Teaching - Part 2
Just a reminder, this Teaching is from 2008, Sam is hunky dory. The story continues below...
Well, we knew that we were lucky, but we didn't know how lucky. Everyone has been so wonderful in your support of Sam, Mike, Abby, and I.
Sam is still hospitalized and we still don't know exactly what's going on. His fever spiked to 107 and they had to put him in a cold bath and give him a shot to bring it down. That worked and it came down to 104 and when we visited with him this afternoon, he was mobile, wanted to come home and ate some food. All good signs, but the underlying problem is the low white blood count and the remaining fever. Sam is scheduled to see an oncologist in the morning since cancer is a possible cause of a low white blood count (as is a very bad systemic infection). We will know more tomorrow.
I can't thank you all enough for all of your prayers, spreading the word to others, and for your appreciation of just what a handsome and wonderful dog Sam is. My mom said it very well, "It's easy to give thanks when things are going well, it's not so easy to give thanks when things aren't, give thanks for Sam." So, I give thanks for Sam and for all of my friends and family. There are people praying for Sam across the country. Thank you all.
Take care and hug your family one extra time from us, today.
Jen and Mike
Well, we knew that we were lucky, but we didn't know how lucky. Everyone has been so wonderful in your support of Sam, Mike, Abby, and I.
Sam is still hospitalized and we still don't know exactly what's going on. His fever spiked to 107 and they had to put him in a cold bath and give him a shot to bring it down. That worked and it came down to 104 and when we visited with him this afternoon, he was mobile, wanted to come home and ate some food. All good signs, but the underlying problem is the low white blood count and the remaining fever. Sam is scheduled to see an oncologist in the morning since cancer is a possible cause of a low white blood count (as is a very bad systemic infection). We will know more tomorrow.
I can't thank you all enough for all of your prayers, spreading the word to others, and for your appreciation of just what a handsome and wonderful dog Sam is. My mom said it very well, "It's easy to give thanks when things are going well, it's not so easy to give thanks when things aren't, give thanks for Sam." So, I give thanks for Sam and for all of my friends and family. There are people praying for Sam across the country. Thank you all.
Take care and hug your family one extra time from us, today.
Jen and Mike
Sam's Big Teaching - Part 1
This Teaching from Sam began on February 2, 2008. I'm re-posting these e-mail messages for those who don't know this story. Again, Sam is ABSOLUTELY FINE. These e-mails and this story are from 2008.
Hello Everyone,
Our beloved dog, Sampson is in the Veterinary Emergency Hospital this evening. We took him in this afternoon because he wasn't himself, refused his breakfast and had a temperature of 104. We don't know yet what is going on, but he will likely be in the Hospital until Monday morning. We visited him this evening and were encouraged when he ate some food that we brought (with great interest, too) but there is still a long way to go. His temperature reached at least 104.6, but had decreased a bit when we saw him this evening (to 103.5). Sampson's white blood cell count is low and that can indicate several things - some bad, some not-as-bad. He is currently on IV fluids and antibiotics.
Mike and I would like to ask that you keep Sampson in your thoughts and prayers and send him any good energy that you may be able to spare. Whatever you believe in, we would like to ask that you consider supporting Sam while he heals. I'm sending a picture in a separate e-mail for anyone who may not have met Sam in person yet.
Thank you to everyone and we wish the best of everything to all of you...
Love,
Jen and Mike
Hello Everyone,
Our beloved dog, Sampson is in the Veterinary Emergency Hospital this evening. We took him in this afternoon because he wasn't himself, refused his breakfast and had a temperature of 104. We don't know yet what is going on, but he will likely be in the Hospital until Monday morning. We visited him this evening and were encouraged when he ate some food that we brought (with great interest, too) but there is still a long way to go. His temperature reached at least 104.6, but had decreased a bit when we saw him this evening (to 103.5). Sampson's white blood cell count is low and that can indicate several things - some bad, some not-as-bad. He is currently on IV fluids and antibiotics.
Mike and I would like to ask that you keep Sampson in your thoughts and prayers and send him any good energy that you may be able to spare. Whatever you believe in, we would like to ask that you consider supporting Sam while he heals. I'm sending a picture in a separate e-mail for anyone who may not have met Sam in person yet.
Thank you to everyone and we wish the best of everything to all of you...
Love,
Jen and Mike
Allie and Me
Here's a picture of us to go with my last post... See, she likes to lie right next to me...and she plays with toys...a lot.
My New Sister
Please note, this post (except for the last line) is Sam's perspective on our new addition to the Ark (aka, his new little sister dog). The humans in the house are a fair bit more enthusiastic about the new arrival :)
Sam says, "Since she appears to be here to stay, I guess I should tell you all about her. Her name is Allie. She's a Border Collie mix - emphasis on the mix. Some people say she looks like a harbor seal. What do you think? This is her running in the snow from last week...
Sometimes she steps on me and sometimes she knocks me down, but all in all, she's okay, I guess. She likes to lie down next to me, which I could do without. Well, maybe it's not THAT bad. She keeps me on my toes and she can be rather entertaining, I suppose. Who would have thought that I would have to train another sister dog at my age?
She likes to chase the cats which is good since I can't keep up with that task as well as I used to. As you can tell, I'm getting used to having her around and looking on the bright side (more treats, more trips to the barn). She also occasionally thinks about stealing my dog food, so I've been hustling right into the kitchen for meals.
I have to admit that she's probably added a little pep to my steps over the last couple of weeks. We went and picked her up on March 7th, the first night she didn't eat much or sleep very well, though since then she's been settling in to our routine. She's kind of small, only 26 lbs. and she's almost 2 years old (she told us her birthday is April 13th, 2009). Her full name is Allison Mary Margaret when she's naughty - thankfully that's not very often. Sometimes she likes to lick my head...
I suppose she'll grow on me... I've never been the most demonstrative guy, so that's about as snuggly as I get - especially with a youngster...
You're never too old to make new friends, right?"
That's my Sam, always an optimist...
Sam says, "Since she appears to be here to stay, I guess I should tell you all about her. Her name is Allie. She's a Border Collie mix - emphasis on the mix. Some people say she looks like a harbor seal. What do you think? This is her running in the snow from last week...
She likes to chase the cats which is good since I can't keep up with that task as well as I used to. As you can tell, I'm getting used to having her around and looking on the bright side (more treats, more trips to the barn). She also occasionally thinks about stealing my dog food, so I've been hustling right into the kitchen for meals.
I have to admit that she's probably added a little pep to my steps over the last couple of weeks. We went and picked her up on March 7th, the first night she didn't eat much or sleep very well, though since then she's been settling in to our routine. She's kind of small, only 26 lbs. and she's almost 2 years old (she told us her birthday is April 13th, 2009). Her full name is Allison Mary Margaret when she's naughty - thankfully that's not very often. Sometimes she likes to lick my head...
I suppose she'll grow on me... I've never been the most demonstrative guy, so that's about as snuggly as I get - especially with a youngster...
You're never too old to make new friends, right?"
That's my Sam, always an optimist...
Why I Should ALWAYS, ALWAYS Listen to Sam
So I was hoping to sleep in this morning after my super busy Sunday. Things were going well. I found a comfortable position, temperature was just right, ahhhhhhhhhh...... Bak, bak. Not BARK, BARK, like "it's an emergency", but bak, bak like "I'm not sleeping and I'm not going back to sleep either."
Jeez Louise, Sam, can't I just sleep in? How about a drink of water? I bought myself about five more minutes of shut eye with that one. Then, bak, bak... Okay, FINE, Sam. We'll go outside. Now keep in mind, Sam really NEVER asks to go out in the morning, unless it's very important. He is not frivolous with his requests. I had put him off for a while because he was out pretty late for his last walk the night before and I could tell from his bark that going out was not "essential" if you know what I mean...
So, I get up, put my bathrobe on over my pajamas, carry Sam downstairs with Allie charging around my feet, chasing cats and running like a wild thing. We get to the sunroom, open the door, on the deck - "Hmmm, it's REALLY warm out here.", help Sam walk across the yard, "Let's go to the woods this morning, Bud." I settled Sam in the woods near the garage and headed back to the house - as the first drops began to fall. By the time I reached the deck it was a steady rain, by the time I got into the house to get Allie and put on a coat with a hood it was raining BUCKETS. Oh crap. I get Allie and we head outside, she's not loving it. Sam is completely drenched and looking quite pathetic. I crouch over him as the thunder and lightning crash above us. My attempt to keep him dry - HA - was in vain to say the least. Allie fussed around in the woods, refusing to do her business and finally I called her in. I couldn't hold her leash and help Sam, so Allie and I ran for the house. After dropping Allie in the house, I went to collect my sponge, I mean dog. By the time we all got back into the house, Sam looked like he'd swum a few miles, Allie was soaked and spiky from shaking it off, my coat was wet through and my pajamas and bathrobe were wet, too.
No sleeping in for me today. If I had only listened to Sam instead of trying to buy a few more minutes of sleep we could have been back in the house when the storm started... A side note, Sam was very afraid of thunderstorms for much of his life and would almost always warn me of their arrival by lying on my head in bed. So, I know he knew this storm was coming and he tried to tell his stubborn old Mom, but did I listen??
Why I should ALWAYS, ALWAYS listen to Sam... I'll try to remember...
Jeez Louise, Sam, can't I just sleep in? How about a drink of water? I bought myself about five more minutes of shut eye with that one. Then, bak, bak... Okay, FINE, Sam. We'll go outside. Now keep in mind, Sam really NEVER asks to go out in the morning, unless it's very important. He is not frivolous with his requests. I had put him off for a while because he was out pretty late for his last walk the night before and I could tell from his bark that going out was not "essential" if you know what I mean...
So, I get up, put my bathrobe on over my pajamas, carry Sam downstairs with Allie charging around my feet, chasing cats and running like a wild thing. We get to the sunroom, open the door, on the deck - "Hmmm, it's REALLY warm out here.", help Sam walk across the yard, "Let's go to the woods this morning, Bud." I settled Sam in the woods near the garage and headed back to the house - as the first drops began to fall. By the time I reached the deck it was a steady rain, by the time I got into the house to get Allie and put on a coat with a hood it was raining BUCKETS. Oh crap. I get Allie and we head outside, she's not loving it. Sam is completely drenched and looking quite pathetic. I crouch over him as the thunder and lightning crash above us. My attempt to keep him dry - HA - was in vain to say the least. Allie fussed around in the woods, refusing to do her business and finally I called her in. I couldn't hold her leash and help Sam, so Allie and I ran for the house. After dropping Allie in the house, I went to collect my sponge, I mean dog. By the time we all got back into the house, Sam looked like he'd swum a few miles, Allie was soaked and spiky from shaking it off, my coat was wet through and my pajamas and bathrobe were wet, too.
No sleeping in for me today. If I had only listened to Sam instead of trying to buy a few more minutes of sleep we could have been back in the house when the storm started... A side note, Sam was very afraid of thunderstorms for much of his life and would almost always warn me of their arrival by lying on my head in bed. So, I know he knew this storm was coming and he tried to tell his stubborn old Mom, but did I listen??
Why I should ALWAYS, ALWAYS listen to Sam... I'll try to remember...
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