Let's talk about some of the harder things for a bit. Over the past year, Nicki has slowed tremendously. Our mile plus walks have dwindled to a block, on a good day. She never has the awful breathless spasms anymore, thanks to her meds. But she really hates taking her meds. Then there's the problem of the vomitting and diarrhea that hit her every few days. At first it wasn't even once weekly. Now it's too often to put away the rug cleaner. When those spells hit her, they knock her out. They take all of her energy - and there's precious little left. I hesitated for a long time - a year - to post the video I took of her during the attack that finally alerted us to her DCM. Before you get upset, I had already called the vet. So many times we call vets and doctors, and by the time we get to them, the problem has eased or passed completely. I wanted the vet to see exactly what Nicki was going through. I took this video while waiting to go in, as they'd given her an appointment. Right after I took the video, I called back and begged them to call me if anyone was a no-show so we could come in earler. "She can't breathe." They told me to bring her in immediately.
Nicki had been in for every wellness visit, every problem, every shot, for eight years. Two years ago, during her routine checkup, for the first time ever, one of the vets told me she had a heart murmur. A murmur. The next year she passed her checkup with flying colours, but still had "a little heart murmur". Otherwise, she was, as the vet tech relayed "a unicorn". Perfect weight for her size, good teeth, sound, strong, shining eyes, healthy coat - my girl.
Last summer, a friend passed. We had to go out of state to the memorial, and Nicki went to board with a friend who has taken wonderful care of her over the years. It's a home boarding situation, but the friend has many dogs of her own, and also does grooming. In other words, there are a LOT of dogs. Nicki likes her quiet home life. She's really meant to be an only. I think being around so many other dogs 24/7 is stressful for her. Then, of course, being away from Momma is super stressful.
The problem appeared as soon as we brought her home from boarding. She began to cough. A lot. I thought she'd contracted kennel cough, despite being vaccinated against it annually. The day after, we were in full emergency mode. So now you've had the background. And here is that video of her from a year ago. At this point the situation was already easing somewhat. But if we're here to educate and advocate, we need to share information. It can be hard to watch, so you've been warned.
Since then, the meds have kept the beast at bay. But it has lurked surreptitiously, stealing my girl from me. Muscle wasting is one of the results of the disease. I had to adjust Nicki's harness to a smaller size. Her collars hang loose around her neck. I can feel her bones too easily. I can't just "feed her up" to boost her strength because her system is terribly precarious. Changes send her into multi-day bouts of vomit and diarrhea. On top of that, three of her medications have vomiting and diarrhea as side effects. I knew it would be a losing battle, but there are so many lost battles along the way.
Right now, in typical Aussie fashion, she wants to be near me at all times, but she also wants to be on her favorite beds or napping spots, so it's more like she wants *me* to be near *her*. When that doesn't happen and she relents to be wherever I am, we have moments like this one, in the late afternoon sun of the end of spring. There's a little breeze, but the sun is already hot. Trees and grasses are letting their pollen out to drift away. A little cloud of gnats swirls in the air, almost indistinguishable from the pollen and dandelion pappi. Leaves rustle. Cars go by. And Miss Nicki surveys her kingdom.
