Chaco and the roadrunner

Joe took this of Chaco watching our local road runner. I've never seen him venture that close to our house. Joe said Chaco just watched and didn't let out a sound.

And a few more...

Thanksgiving and holiday decor Linn-Gust style

Daisy was pretty tired on Thanksgiving but at the end of our meal, she got up and went right for Devlan who was visiting from Belize (see photo). It was a quiet meal despite Nestle being the lone beggar (Chaco and Hattie were hiding under the table and Daisy was in the next room watching us). I'm including a few photos of our holiday decor with the dogs included.

"The Aftermath of Suicide" workshop

When someone has died by suicide, how do you support the people coping with the loss?
When someone has attempted suicide, how do you support the attempter and his/her family?

Learn from two experts in the suicide field how you can help people grieving the loss of suicide or a suicide attempt. What do you say? What can you do? What are the resources available? This workshop is geared toward anyone who might come in contact with people coping with suicide.

“The Aftermath of Suicide:
Supporting People Coping With Suicide Loss, Suicide Attempters and their Families"

Michelle Linn-Gust, Ph.D.
Michelle is the president-elect of the American Association of Suicidology and an international speaker and writer about suicide postvention and prevention issues. She is the author of Do They Have Bad Days In Heaven? Surviving the Suicide Loss of a Sibling and Ginger’s Gift: Hope and Healing through Dog Companionship, and the forthcoming Rocky Roads: The Journeys of Families through Suicide Grief. She also is a co-founder of the New Mexico Suicide Prevention Coalition.

JoAnn Sartorius, L.I.S.W.
JoAnn's work with high-risk adolescents and their families spans 30 years.
For the last decade, she has concentrated on suicide prevention as well as addressing the aftermath of suicide. Currently, JoAnn works throughout the state as a program coordinator and trainer for school-based suicide prevention programs, is a member of a suicide crisis response team, and presents educational workshops on suicide prevention for youth, school personnel and communities. JoAnn is a co-founder of the New Mexico Suicide Prevention Coalition.

January 21, 2010, 9:00 am to 12:00 pm
United Way Central New Mexico
2340 Alamo Ave. SE, 2nd Floor
Albuquerque, NM

Cost for the workshop is $40,
Counseling and Social Work CEUs (3) are $15 and payable to JoAnn Sartorius at the workshop

Minimum number of participants is 30, maximum is 50.

Registration online at www.chelleheadworks.com or mail a check for $40 per participant with names and email addresses of participants to:
Chellehead Works (check should be made out to Chellehead Works),
1711 Solano Dr, NE, Albuquerque, NM 87110
Questions? Email: info@chelleheadworks.com

PLEASE PRE-REGISTER!!!!!!!

Up and down..up and down...

Daisy did really well most of last week. Thursday, Joe took her to see the holistic vet, Dr. Wilson, and Daisy seemed really tired when they came home. She was okay Friday but not great. On Saturday morning, I caught her licking urine that was leaking out and when Joe got home from his Saturday jaunt to the flea market, Daisy had a fever. The fever only lasted a few hours though and by Saturday evening, she was outside barking at a car next door. Today she's doing really well and the neighbors came over for a while. She looks "spry" as Rich said but we'll see how long it lasts. Tonight, Devlan arrives from Belize so we expect (and hope) she'll have a good week.

Daisy guarding her left over dinner from Nestle tonight

Daisy, the comeback dog

Sunday things were looking really dire. And then Joe found a bump on Daisy's back leg Sunday night. We had planned to euthanize her Tuesday morning after I flew home Monday night. However, Monday morning Joe took Daisy to TLC to see our vet and it turned out that Daisy's platelets were up and the bump was an edema. And Joe said she was glad to see everyone at the clinic. She came home and ran around. We've been going back up the hill since. This morning she was running around with the others just like she always has. The only caveat is that she's feeling so good that she's tearing at her bandage (the tissue is healing so it probably itches). I found bandage pieces all over the house both yesterday morning and this morning. A small price to pay for having her running around. She's also had several ozone treatments and acupuncture which appear to be helping. I'm just glad she's engaged in life. As long as she remains so, we'll keep her here with us.

The time is coming

Although I haven't talked to Joe yet this morning (I flew to Chicago yesterday), it appears that the end of Daisy's life is closer than we had hoped. It's been frustrating. We've done all we could for her and I feel that we might have actually shortened her life. She enjoyed last weekend and on Tuesday morning, she even came up the stairs in the morning like she used to and curled up in the door bed there while I showered (like she always used to). She or Hattie always are my morning company but it's been all Hattie lately. Joe and I went off to Las Vegas for business and took Daisy and Chaco to TLC for boarding and brought in a dog sitter for Nestle and Hattie. When we returned the next day, Daisy's bleeding had picked back up and the tumor had grown. We already had an appointment Thursday for a possible blood transfusion and when we arrived, they had several emergencies. We ended up staying three hours. The longer we were there, the worse that Daisy looked. The vet didn't appear hopeful that a transfusion would be helpful. While they took her blood, we pretty much decided that we would euthanize her that afternoon before it got worse. But they brought her back and said her platelets were better than they thought they were. So we went ahead with the transfusion and picked her up late Thursday night. Yesterday, I left for Chicago and Joe took her to the holistic vet (an appointment that had been set a week ago). They did an ozone treatment and B12 shot. Joe said she was running around the house and fighting Nestle for Chaco's food (Daisy won). The question is: how long will it last?

Flying over the back of the couch

We have decided not to amputate Daisy's leg. After a meeting with the surgeon Tuesday and then a series of tests yesterday, the risks are too great for a good result that most likely wouldn't happen. I'm sure Daisy is glad since she's "gone under" so many times recently. They did find a few small masses on her spleen but the surgeon really doubts they are the cancer spreading. She had one before that the first oncologist felt was old and these new ones are probably more related to her blood issues. We won't be taking her spleen out to biopsy them either. The goal is simply to keep Daisy as comfortable and happy as possible. The surgeon did a great job wrapping her leg and it hasn't bled through for almost 24 hours. That means Daisy has free range of the house and the yard without being told no. Yesterday morning, before we left for the tests, she took a flying leap over the back of the couch to get to the other three dogs who were going outside. The wrap will have to come off every two days but at least it will allow her to have some fun with whatever time is left. Her platelets are low and she has anemia but things have been a little out of routine so we hope that since she's home, we can get her beefed up with some raw meat and other great food items. Joe looks a little lost since he doesn't need to take care of her this morning. I told him to take advantage of it and get a bunch of stuff done!

Missing Daisy on a Sunday

The worst part about not having Daisy here with us is Sundays. The clinic is closed so we can't visit her. After we made the decision to remove her leg, it was as if we were relieved of the pressure of not having options and it seemed like the leg was healing better, although this time with the Chinese herb yunnan baiyao used as a topical and hydrotherapy on the wound. However, it's not scabbing enough and she's still oozing blood. We meet with the surgeon Tuesday and we also never know how she might be healing since we can't see her today. We just miss having Daisy as part of our family (pack) and whatever the case, she needs to be home next weekend and I anticipate she will be home, minus one leg. As long as she can heal up those stitches from where the amputation is done, that's fine by me.