Remembering JJ

Original sender: Ellen (posted at Eric's request)----
Eric, my deepest sympathies on the loss of this wonderful little guy. It was always so much fun to compare JJ's and Jake's runs. He had a happy home with you--one could tell because even giving him goodies if you were out of sight, he was much more interested in when you were coming back. I was very glad to hear that he got to spend time getting plenty of attention and ear rubs recently from his many ardent admirers. He was a cutie, no doubt about it.

Original sender: Eric (in response)----
I have many happy memories of getting ready to run with the whole gang trying to get some shade without running all over each other. Blaze, and Jake and the rest.

JJ (Jumpin' Jack Flash) 8-31-94ish to 11-28-06

Original sender: Eric----
This morning JJ lost his 2 month struggle with renal failure. He was lethargic all weekend so we went in on Monday to check his bloodwork. Last night he began to show signs of neurologic distress. He could not keep his balance and began to knuckling his feet when he tried to stand on the tops of his feet. The results of the blood tests came this morning and they showed that his kidneys were failing and the toxins in his blood were rising. After 5 surgeries and an extensive stay in ICU there was nothing left to do but say goodbye. When I signed the final paperwork I remembered writing the adoption check to the pound in Santa Barbara. I cried.

Thank you to everyone for their support and well wishes. JJ never stopped trying and remained a true cattle dog to the end. When his condition robbed him of his appetite he worked the crowd for ear massages. He could barely walk but he continued to bark at the border collie and tug on the squirrel. I miss him so much.

Tell your dogs and friends you love them every chance you get and let them know the blue dog of barkiness is waiting on the other side.

Happy Thanksgiving

Original sender: Eric----
It’s been pretty quiet here.

JJ had taken all of his prescription tummy meds and began having diarrhea last weekend. We gave him half an imodium on Saturday and a full one on Sunday with no result. Otherwise he was having a great time. We were at a show here in Orlando and got him out several times to watch the show and work the crowd. He was up to barking non-stop whenever Zac was running. He even did a jealous thing at the practice jump. I let him try it with the bar on the ground and he was so conditioned to get a treat with a “good boy” he ate a small piece of cheese. Actually he was relatively ravenous all weekend and ate about 6 morsels each day. He even got so excited at the sight of the hose I let him bite the nozzle.

I left a message for Dr Goldkamp on Monday and later spoke with Hope at UF. It was news to me to know that the diarrhea and vomiting are side effects of the renal failure and that we can only treat the systems until either the kidneys regenerate or not. He did not respond to Pepto Bismol and so we got a script for a couple of other tummy meds on Wednesday.

Thanksgiving was about as good a day for the boy I could hope for. I gave him some food about every half hour along with the requisite ear scratching. The weather was nice and warm. I left the slider open and he sunned himself on the deck. He sniffed about the yard. He barked at Zac. He took a nap on the bed. He followed my every move as I did chores around the house. He still had diarrhea but he did not vomit.

Today has not been as good of a day. He barfed a small bit before we left for work and he was very alert on the way in. He sniffed the AC vents and had very tall ears while he stood the whole way. On my first break he was pretty lethargic and I gave him a big drink which he promptly barfed. I don’t know if it was too big a drink or what. This afternoon he liked the ear scratch but was still very low energy. I don’t know if it is a side effect of the new meds or something else.

I’ll be feeding him the rest of his meals this evening with a slow and careful syringe hoping not to upset his tummy.

Looking Good

Original sender: Wendy----
I talked to Eric today - he was at a local (commuting distance) USDAA show. JJ, skinny and bandaged with his feeding tube, barked at Zac's runs, worked the crowd soliciting and eating cheese cubes and worked the crowd for many ear rubs.

Seems to me, he's not leaving any time soon if he has any say in the matter!

That's the piece I was waiting to hear. That's my boy!

20061117

Original sender: Eric----
I spoke with Dr. Goldkamp at UF this afternoon and went over JJ’s lab results. She has compared them with the last set of results and finds that they are improved in a couple of areas and stable everywhere else. She is a bit concerned that the Petsmart vet commented that his blood was watery. It turns out that his HCT (hematocrit) is at 28.3 percent and that that is below the normal canine range of 37.0 - 55.0 but some distance from the point where a transfusion would be indicated. She suggests having some blood spun down to get PCV and Total Solids readings.

It turns out Dr. Goldkamp has not been reading along at http://jjstatus.blogspot.com and did not know that he has been interested in food. She commented that it was a good sign and suggested we try substituting low protein foods gradually in an effort to outsmart him into eating stuff good for his kidneys. When I finished laughing (outsmart a Cattle Dog, yeah right!) I said that we would continue the KD in the syringe and experiment with different choices orally.

She discounted my theory (see 20061116 paragraph 3 (Nerd side note: if you put the date in yyyymmdd format when you name a document it will sort into chronological order making it easier to find what you’re looking for in a crowded folder)) that his eating binge Tuesday night caused him to not be interested in food until very late Wednesday. She doesn’t think that the changes in blood values happen so quickly in relation to specific individual meals to make such a connection.

Dr. Goldkamp would like to see him in 3 to 4 weeks to do a more complete follow up and to convert his feeding tube into a low profile model that won’t require the extensive bandaging.

Dr Goldkamp seemed to make a point that JJ’s values may never improve. Dr. Wallace was a bit more optimistic (Hey the BUN came down 25% and everything else is holding steady, let’s see what happens) though did not offer any other prognosis (okay, so thousands of miles and the ramblings of a worried guardian tend to complicate the picture).

I will continue to stop in wherever I find a scale and chart his weight progress. I don’t know if I will be able to wait a month to look at more blood work so I may do that sooner and then hit the fax machine.

Thanks for all of your support. Sorry about the nerd tidbit, I couldn’t help it.

20061116

Original sender: Eric----
I suppose I knew this would all be up and down.

JJ seemed brighter and more energetic this morning. I guess I was tardy letting him out and he had a bowel movement in the kitchen, thank goodness for old vinyl flooring. On our walk about the yard he did 2 teeters and the weave poles. I think he enjoyed it, he got that serious look on his face like it was good to be working. Of course he then vomited on the way to work.

I took JJ to the local Petsmart Vet for his follow up. When I spoke with the vet in Gainesville the other day we agreed that all she really needed was to see fresh bloodwork and to know his weight so we could evaluate his progress over the telephone.

His weight was up to 12.0 kg even after a potty stop and the barfing. He again was pleased to stop at the cash register and eat cookies. I limited his intake to 5 tiny treats (okay he got a couple of pea sized bits of my hamburger too). After his eating binge Tuesday, he had little appetite until late Wednesday. I theorized (having no training or expertise does not hinder the imagination) that the protein from Tuesday night caused his BUN to rise and that suppressed his appetite Wednesday. He did show an interest in food late on Wednesday, but he only got a couple of stroganoff-flavored mushroom slices.

Petsmart faxed me the results and I faxed them to Gainesville. I have not heard back to get an interpretation. I am able to ascertain that his BUN is down to 79 mg/dl from 105 at last check. The Petsmart vet commented that his blood looked thin and asked about anemia (apparently common in Renal Failure cases). This was news to me so as I peer at the results I do see his RBC (red blood cell count, I suppose) is at 3.84 and the normal range is 5.5 to 8.5. Part of me is scared he needs a transfusion.

I’m guessing this explains his frequent napping, again I have not spoken with a vet to find out what parts of his checkup are good, bad or unknown.

I’ll write more when I know more.

20061115

Original sender: Eric----
I brought JJ to work with me yesterday (and today) so I could do his mid-day feedings. He has to hang out in the car and the weather has cooled enough I can park under a tree and keep it comfy.

On the way home I stopped at the Petsmart with the in-store Vet Clinic to get another copy of his special KD food prescription (lost the first one) and while I was there I bought another case of the food since it was the last one on the shelf. I put him on the scale (up to 11.95 kg, up .15 from Saturday). As I was walking JJ towards the register he made a turn and dragged me down the food aisle and then carefully sniffed every package in the treat aisle. I set the food down on a closed register counter and followed his nose to a bowl of tiny, smaller than a penny, treats (presumably there to help the cashiers be heroes) I offered him a cookie and he took it!! I was so excited. Then he ate it. Oh my goodness. I managed to give the cashier my prescription card, my Petsmart card and my Visa card while continuing to give the boy cookies. He ate more than a dozen by the time he stopped being excited about them. I put a small handful in my shirt pocket and went back to the car walking on air. After he urinated (so much for weight gain) I moved stuff in the car so he could ride on the front seat next to me (the briefcase was much safer in the crate). I drove home scratching his ears and offering the occasional cookie. He didn’t take them all but he did eat another half-dozen or so by the time I got home.

Once home he vigorously sniffed the kitchen. It is hard when you know the dog is working you; I still caved and let him turn his nose up at KD kibble and eat broken up chicken jerky strips. Before bed we walked about the yard and he had his second bowel movement of the day (more than a healthy JJ does on road trips).

When we changed his bandage it looks like the site where the tube goes thru the skin is becoming irritated. I hope he can keep it together for long enough to let the nutrition and meds help him.