The Other Side

I was recently on the other side of the exam table and I cannot say that I enjoyed it. I had gone home to do a seminar and visit with my mother, Heather Logan. I hadn't been home to visit in about five years so I was pretty excited. My husband, Troy, went on a photography trip with a friend of his to Trinidad. I had one of my girls staying at the house to take care of the dogs. I really didn't expect to have any problems.

I did get concerned when the housesitter texted me to say that Jazzy wasn't eating well. Normally, Jazzy eats with the enthusiasm of a Lab. As she still had a good attitude and was drinking, I advised her to keep a close eye on her. Well, by Sunday morning she still hadn't eaten so I told her to take Jazzy into the Fish Creek Pet Hospital.

It turns out that Jazzy was much sicker than she looked. The bloodwork showed that her kidney enzymes were elevated so she was put on IV fluids immediately. The radiographs did not show any areas of concern. As the day progressed, she was not improving. The next morning an ultrasound was performed and the kidneys were normal. At the end of the procedure, she had bloody jellylike feces. Not a good thing! I gave permission for the specialist, Dr. Clarkson, to go forward with endoscopy. Since she was stable and well hydrated it would still be safe for her to go under general anesthesia. Her esophagus and stomach appeared normal. Apparently, the large colon was a bit interesting. The analytical side of me enjoys interesting cases; however, I don't like being the owner of one!!! The lining of the colon looked a bit angry and she oozed blood more than normal from the biopsy sites.

The phone call to tell me that she was going to need at least two plasma transfusions did not give me the warm fuzzies. The plasma would provide her with the factors of the blood that would allow her to clot better. Three different antibiotics were also started. By the time I got home three days later, she was ready to come home. I got off the plane and the first stop was the hospital to get her.

Not going to lie, I could barely see her through the tears as they brought her up front. She crawled into my arms and I didn't let her go until I got home.
This is one of my favorite baby pictures.

We are still waiting for the biopsy results but it is looking as though she had an overgrowth of bacteria (most likely a nasty type of E.coli) and became toxic from it entering the blood stream. I really appreciate all the staff at the Fish Creek Pet Hospital for saving my baby girl's life!