Dolce's Setbacks

Last week I called Dr. Adams to see what the plan would be since the pin on the right side of Dolce's jaw had broken through the skin on his chin. Brett and I brought Dolce in last Thursday thinking Dr. Adams was just going to look at him and decide whether to trim the pin or to remove it (since that will eventually have to happen). Dr Adams decided to keep Dolce over night, take x-rays in the morning and decide the best plan of action. The next day we heard from Dr. Adams and he gave us the bad news on the left side of Dolce's jaw...the "less" injured side that had only required to be wired back together back in January.

At this point I am raising money for Dolce's 2nd surgery, which will require that a pin be placed on the other side of his jaw.

If you are able to make a donation towards Dolce's 2nd surgery please either donate to his chipin (http://sierralawe.chipin.com/dolce-needs-another-surgery) OR you have a few other ways to donate:

If you are uncomfortable with donating money through the chipin there are other options for donating.

1) Donate directly to La Dolce Vita Animal Rescue Foundation. You can make a check out to the rescue and mail it to: 26655 Agoura Rd., Calabasas, CA, 91302 Please make sure that you specify that your donation is for Dolce who is being fostered by Sierra Lawe

2) You can also make a donation directly to the vet's office. California Animal Hospital, 2736 S. Sepulveda Blvd., Suites C & D, Los Angeles, CA, 90025 or call it in to them (310)478-5915. Please also specify that you are making a donation towards Dolce's vet bill he is listed under Adopt a Chow (since they recommended this vets office for Dolce and La Dolce Vita did not have an open account here...it's a long story)

3) You can make a donation directly to La Dolce Vita's paypal account, ladolcevitarescue@gmail.com. Make sure to specify that this donation is for Dolce who is being fostered by Sierra Lawe. Also make sure to select the payment as a "gift" so that Paypal does not take a potion of your donation.

The Spirit of a Puppy and the Body of an Old Man

Since Brett and I have had Dolce we've frequently commented on the fact that his back legs have very little muscle on them. In fact his back end has such little muscle he doesn't even hold his tail all the way up...when Dolce is happy his tail goes out more than up. The cutest thing he does is what I call the cow tail wag. Since he cannot hold his tail up, when he's standing and wags his tail at you, its just like a cow that wags their tail side to side.

Dolce has had trouble with walking since he came home with us. Those poor back legs are stiff with little bend to them, they're so weak they shake sometimes...probably most of the time. This morning his back legs were more shaky and weaker than normal. So shaky he eventually gave up and sat down. This broke my heart to see. Dolce has the spirit of a young dog, but his body is giving out and I hate seeing this...it doesn't seem fair. It isn't fair! I just want to find relief for him and make everything new again. Once again I'm on the verge of tears because I wish we could have gotten to him sooner. I'm so glad that Dolce has a good life now...but I wish he could have been with us earlier in his life, maybe then he wouldn't be in the shape that he's in. It's so frustrating to see his little body fail him, because he is not an old dog in spirit...not even close! He loves going outside, going for rides in the car, barking at the neighbors gardener, the dog park. He's not an old dog that wants to be left alone, he wants to be with us at all times. He had no idea that sleeping in the "big bed" is fun and always opted to sleep in his own bed on the floor. When I had my wreck I was home in bed for 4 days, partially because every inch of my body hurt and partially because I was pretty depressed by what happened. For those 4 days all 4 of the dogs slept in bed with me, and Dolce FINALLY understood how awesome the big bed is. After that he refused to sleep in his bed, he would sit on the floor next to the bed and look up and wait. Now every night he sleeps right next to me, all cuddled up.

I want to make sure he has the best life possible and I want to keep his body working for him for as long as I can. What can I do to help him with those legs of his?

Dolce is doing just fine these days. He's staying up on his heart meds and they seem to do the trick. The only cause for concern is the pin in his jaw, which has now broken through the skin and is exposed on his chin. Dr. Adams mentioned that we may end up having Dolce's pin removed sooner if it broke through the skin...I'll give it another few days before I call Dr. Adams and see what he thinks.