1st Post Op Posting (Pics Below)

Well, we did it! We have all survived the first few days after surgery!!! Hooray! Sassy is doing so incredibly well that we're almost nervous that something's wrong!

So, I took her in to the surgery center on Thursday morning. Dr. Milton wanted to make 100% sure that Sassy's knee was messed up, so he asked to re-scope it. He wanted to do this because he examined her again on Thursday, and she wasn't limping at all. Well, as he and I both expected, Sassy's knee was messed up but not at the emergency stage. However, what makes the timing more important is that we have a real baby on the way, and we need to go ahead and get her rehabbing finished asap! So, Dr. Milton asked if I wanted a few minutes with Sassy before they took her back, and I definitely wanted that time! She was so nervous, and she was so happy to see me. I'm still not sure if seeing her was the best for her, and I'm not sure it really helped me either! That look on her face when I left the room caused me to have a complete meltdown on my way into work. I was a big ball of nerves all day Thursday, until I got the call...Sassy had done great!!!! I cried again - for her and for me!

I called Friday morning to make sure I could pick her up on Friday. The vet tech came on the phone LAUGHING! He told us that Sassy was a "big ole handful of a dog" and that she had already broken 2 e-collars. No surprise there. Her last e-collar had so much duct tape on it, it probably weighed 10 pounds! He also explained that Sassy had decided that she had had enough of her IV, so she went ahead and took it out for them. Again, no surprise there. If Sassy doesn't like something, it gets "taken care of" asap, by her. It's best for everyone when Sassy isn't left to make those decisions, but hey, sometimes she outsmarts us all!

Sassy has already started walking on her bad leg, which is awesome! We tried to hold her up with a towel under her abdomen because some dogs need that. Not our Sassy Frassy! She is a trooper! I'm amazed by her every time I'm with her. As much as she's got to be hurting, she wags her tail, rubs her head on us, and gives us countless kisses!

We've had to sort of go with the flow when it comes to spending time with her. We can't let her out of the laundry room, especially with little Eloise running around! The e-collar they sent us home with has a Velcro closure, which has been great! She only wears it in the kennel. We get up with her in the morning, let her out of the kennel, give her all of her medicines, take her e-collar off, and pet and pet and pet! We pet her before we take her outside because it calms her down significantly! Which is good because she's 91.5 pounds (see below) of bounce otherwise! We put on her leash, walk her outside, and let her stay out there as long as she wants or as long as we can be outside with her. This morning, for instance, we went out around 4:30 and stayed out there until about 4:45. Dr. Milton said to encourage her to walk around and sniff things - so we are. Then we go inside, get her food ready, sit with her while she eats, and then have one last major pets and kisses session before she gets the e-collar back on and she goes back in her kennel. She gets her medicine 3 times a day, so we've decided to go through this process (including feeding her) 3 times a day. She's used to eating twice a day, but it seems to be working well because she doesn't want to eat that much at one time. So, at least 3 times a day, we get her out and she gets to move around for about 30 minutes. We also get her out for a quick bathroom trip before bed and before we go anywhere, but she's usually not really interested. It's a lot of time out of our days, but it is well worth it. When she's running at top speed in a year and leaping for tennis balls, I will look back on this time and know that I would gladly have taken even more time to get my little girl back to tip-top shape!

Speaking of food, Sassy has refused to eat her own food, but she has fallen in LOVE with Eloise's food. Unfortunately, she can't eat all of Eloise's food, but we let her eat a few bowls just to get her eating. We bought her some soft food that goes with her hard food yesterday, and that seems to be going over relatively well. We've had some trouble with getting the e-collar back on Sassy. But, Pup-peroni to the rescue! We tell her she's getting treats, and she about puts the e-collar on herself! Thank goodness for Pup-peroni! Our lives would be a lot more difficult without it! She has lost 3.5 pounds since she initially went in for an evaluation a few weeks ago. Since her activity as been restricted, she hasn't been eating as much. Which is good because we've had to reduce her food by 1/3 to avoid gaining weight. Apparently, we need to get her to eat a little more! She's 91.5 pounds now. Still a big girl, but we don't want her to lose too much weight!

So, here are some pictures of Sassy. The first ones are after the first scoping of her knees. You can see the little patches of hair shaved off. Her hair is beautiful, so I was a little sad. Little did I know that was just the start! Please excuse the "junk" shoved around in our laundry room, we've had to get everything out of Sassy's way, so things are pushed around! I've also put some pictures on here of the night before the surgery. You'll notice that she's sitting with her bad leg tucked under her - classic sign apparently. Thanks for checking on us!

Surgery Day for Sassy

So, I haven't posted in a while because we have been having too much fun with our puppies! Unfortunately, Sassy has had a little too much fun. :(



Sweet Sassy Frassy has torn her ACL and her meniscus, and she has to have a TPLO surgery tomorrow. Basically, they break her bone, level it out, and put a metal plate over it to keep it stable. The recovery time is 6 weeks strict kennel rest and then several months of rehab. It's going to be rough, but it's going to be totally worth it. I'll update with pictures and info on her surgery and her recovery in case someone goes through this same thing in the future. Here is a link to information on the surgery. This isn't our doctor's website, but it's a good idea about what she'll be going through. http://www.vetsurgerycentral.com/tplo.htm

A few months ago, we took Sas to the vet because she was limping a little. I'm so paranoid that she's going to have hip dysplasia - I do not play around with limps. The vet gave us an anti-inflammatory and told us to rest her. She got better, and then a few weeks ago, the same thing happened. We were referred to Dr. Milton, canine orthopedic specialist extraordinaire, who scoped her knees. He gave me the bad news, but he also gave me a boatload of hope! Thanks, Dr. Milton! Apparently, Sassy's signs and symptoms are textbook. Limping, followed by rest, followed by feeling fine, followed by limping, rest, fine, repeat. Hopefully, I can get some good pics for everyone to show her recovery and her return to 100% Sassy Frassy greatness! My sweet baby is limping and crying when she even moves her back leg now. It's the saddest thing in the world!

So, sweet Sassy Frassy, you have one more hour to play, to eat, and to drink. Tomorrow starts a big adventure for all of us, but you have to be strong, little girl! Because as bad as it will be for us, you're the one who has to have the surgery. I sure hope we made the right decision!

So Sorry!

Well, Mommy went out of town, and she took the computer, so we couldn't blog. She was gone for 2 whole weeks, and then she and Daddy had the nerve to go out of town AGAIN! And they actually spent time with (gasp) another dog! It was our cousin dog, but still. We wanted to go! So, what's been going on with us lately? Not too much. Eloise is doing super on her new medicine, and Sassy just keeps getting bigger. She has her big girl collar on now! Yeah, Sassy!

So, Sassy has been eating tons, but she's been playing tons, too. She has a hard time putting the toys down when she eats, so she decided to start putting her toys in her bowl while she eats.

See?

She has gotten so big.

We baked Daddy a birthday cake. It's pretty awful looking, but Mommy and Daddy said it tasted just fine. We didn't get to have a bite. Some birthday. :(

Sassy has been playing a lot in her baby pool. She's almost too big for it!

Eloise is still perfect. Of course. :)

Sassy was wiped out after a hard day!

Eloise wanted nothing to do with us after we had company.

Sassy chewing on what she's supposed to chew on.

Sassy chewed on something she wasn't supposed to chew on. Thanks, Sass.

Sassy is OBSESSED with these windchimes!

On guard duty! What was that??

We were very happy to see Mommy when she got home. Sassy even jumped in her suitcase! She doesn't really fit, though! Just so you know, this is one of those big suitcases!

Our Cousin Luca.

Mommy and Daddy not hanging out with us. :(

Mommy and Daddy's nephew. Our cousin! We love him!

Thanks for stopping by!

Eloise Update

Well, we haven't figured out what's wrong with Eloise's head, but they have diagnosed her with congestive heart failure due to a newly developed heart murmur. She goes to get her medication on Monday. Bad day for Eloise, :(

BUT, on a much happier note, it's Daddy's birthday!!!! Happy Birthday to the best Daddy in the World!!! We love you Daddy!

We've Been Busy!

We have been so busy lately! Mommy started a new job, so she's been a little stressed and tired. We've been trying to cheer her up by being adorable, and I think you'll agree that we did an excellent job! Daddy's parents also came to visit us, and we LOVE it when we get to see them. They like to play with us and give us treats. They didn't bring their dog, Baby, because Baby's been sick. Poor, Baby! Daddy has been busy helping Mommy more around the house and cooking dinner to help her at night. We're all pitching in to help - and here are some pictures we took to show what we've been doing! The Soileau household is a real team, and we pitch in TONS! Thank goodness we're here!

Here is Sassy playing with her vanilla bone. Mommy and Daddy like these bones because they make our breath smell like cupcakes! We like them because we can chew on them and not get in trouble (Sassy's note to dog: DO NOT CHEW ON THE WINDOWSILL ANYMORE - oops!).


Mommy and Daddy have had this flower for a LONG time. The Patterson grandparents gave it to Eloise a long time ago, but she only likes soft toys and never played with it! When Sassy saw it, she looooooved it! Here is Sassy playing with a flower. She might be a tough dog, but she's all girl underneath! She loves flowers!




And Eloise has been extra silly lately. She jumped up on the couch and burrowed into Daddy's shorts! Mommy and Daddy looked over at her, and they couldn't stop laughing. No one could tell if she did it by accident or on purpose, but it sure made the night fun. Mommy and Daddy are still laughing about it!








Sassy harasses Eloise constantly. Eloise sits on the back of the chair regularly now to avoid Miss Sassy. If you look closely, you can see Sassy's head on the chair. Mommy and Daddy don't let Sassy on the furniture, so she just puts her front paws on the chair. Mommy and Daddy fuss at her for that, but she still does it. She's a rascal! In all fairness to Sassy, she's not technically on the furniture if her back legs are on the ground, right?? Anyway, Eloise camps out up here a lot now to avoid the puppiness of Sassy.


Here's a funny picture of our Ivanyisky grandparents! We love ya'll!


Sassy had to go get her latest round of shots on Saturday, and she already weighs 46 pounds! She's going to be really big!! She's been extra silly since she's gotten bigger. Mommy was taking a bath the other night, and Sassy jumped in the tub with her! She's so silly! But Mommy should have known that Sassy likes water, so we blame it on her. It was really funny. Just look how big this girl has gotten! Mommy and Daddy keep saying that she doesn't look like a puppy anymore and that she looks like a dog. We think they are confused because Sassy's always been a dog.




On a serious note, little Eloise has some big medical tests coming up on Wednesday. Mommy took her to the vet with Sassy on Saturday, and they kept feeling around on her head. Mommy has been watching a place on Eloise's head for a week or so because she thought it was just a knot on her head. Well, the vet was a little concerned because the bump is so close to Eloise's eye, so Eloise has to have x-rays done on Wednesday. They also discovered a heart murmur. We're all keeping our fingers crossed that our little Eloise is just fine, but we could use all of the good doggie thoughts over the next few days. We love you, Eloise! We'll let you know how it goes on Wednesday!


Thanks for stopping by!

Sassy and Eloise - Saturday

Hi! Eloise here! I just wanted to show everyone what Sassy does to me. Here I am sitting outside enjoying the summer sun. I'm not bothering anyone, see?

And then Sassy shows up. Gah! And Mommy and Daddy keep telling her what a good girl she is. I don't get it. I tell them when I need to go outside, and they let me out. When SHE says SHE needs to go out, they jump up, open the door, and run outside with her. Mommy and Daddy keep telling me that I was like that when I was little, but I don't remember that. Don't all dogs know that they need to go outside?? Here is Sassy ruining my wonderful moment outside and totally being a camera hog. She's getting so much taller than me!

Sassy got a big girl bowl today. She was eating from bowls on the floor, but she wasn't eating as much as she should, so Mommy and Daddy bought her bowls that are up in the air. But she's not the only one that got something new! I got a new collar!!!! It's bright red and beautiful! Thanks Mommy and Daddy!

Thanks for stopping by!

Very Sad Road Trip

So, Mommy and Daddy were very sad this weekend. They had a very close family friend pass away. It was our grandmother's best friend. We can't imagine what that would be like. Daddy grew up with Mrs. Nancy's kids, so he's very sad too. We wanted to cheer him up, so we decided that we should go to Louisiana with him and Mommy. We can make anyone smile! So, here are a few pictures of us on our road trip. Isn't Sassy getting so big???

We were up VERY early (for Eloise) to get ready to go!

We piled up in the car and we drove for a VERY LONG TIME! Mommy and Daddy kept telling everyone how good we were on the trip. Their dogs must be really bad! We knew Mommy and Daddy were sad, so we tried to be extra good!

Sassy is too big for the loaner kennel, but this is the only one that would fit in the car!

Mommy fed us when we got there - we were obviously STARVING!!! :)

On the way home! Mommy and Daddy had a very sad morning, and then they went to the family's house to eat a HUGE amount of food. They were very sleepy, but we made it home! Daddy's the best driver. We stopped alot to walk around! Oh, and it rained that day. :(

These are our Ivanyisky grandparents! They were sooooo nice to us. We got puppy biscuits! They have a dog named Baby, but Mommy forgot to take a picture of her. She didn't like it when we started growling and playing with each other!

We really like this picture of Mommy and Daddy.

We were so glad that we could be there to make Mommy and Daddy and our grandparents smile this weekend. We know they needed it!

Thanks for stopping by!