Winter Weather

It is now December, Poppy will be exactly 9 months old on Christmas Day!  Amazing that she has got this far.  Since the middle of November she has been getting stronger and stronger, and really has improved so much that she has been almost a normal dog.  She has not been carried on her walks, and she has gone all the way to the Church and back - probably at least a mile walk.

She has coped with the frost, but we are now in 7 inches of snow, and the story is quite different.  It seems that when the snow and cold get up her legs she really struggles, and yesterday I had to rush out into the garden to rescue her when she fell down and couldn't get back up.  It has been a bit of a reality check, but we hope it is only temporary.  In the house she is still the same and enjoying annoying Abbie!

In fact yesterday I placed some small Xmas gifts on the tree, and one fell through - I didn't realise this had happened.  A few minutes later I glanced through to the living room and noticed Xmas wrapping paper - strange I thought!  Then I realised that Poppy was busy chewing on one of son's Xmas pressies!

7.5 Months old

Wow time is flying - Poppy is now 7.5 months old, and she is really naughty with it.  Today she managed to eat her way through my curtain tie-backs!  She is almost a normal teenager dog, other than tiring relatively easily.  Although earlier this week I was certain she hadn't yet been for her walk and took her out, only to meet Dad half way round our walk who said she had already been out - she coped incredibly well for 2 walks in the space of 30 minutes.

She seems to be pretty stable now with her actual condition, and although she does still sometimes fall down, which is quite distressing for us, as we try to avoid this happening (it  mainly happens when she has done too much) on the whole she is managing really well.  The only times when it is very noticeable that she is struggling is when it is colder.

When it is mild she really marches out, and she loves to go for her walk.  On the way back she stops, demands the ball and won't carry on until she has it firmly in her mouth!

The next hurdle is going to be her season, and then spaying.  We have just had Abbie "done" which was a success, so we are feeling a bit better prepared for when we need to approach this with Poppy, or Po as she is now called most of the time. (We still think she looks slightly chinese!)

28 weeks old now

18.7 kgs now and still doing well.  Although Poppy is putting on weight in the main she is really coping well.  I took her to the stables last Wednesday and she was really tired, having met Phoebe (terrrier cross), Woody (Spaniel), Bracken (Labrador), Stanley (Labrador), Ollie (Spaniel) all at once, and wanting to play with all of them, but the next day she still managed a decent walk to the play park and only had to be carried a short distance.

Her playtime with Abbie in the evening are getting totally out of hand - but are great fun to see how much she loves life!

Week 26 - 27

None of us can believe that Poppy has made it successfully past 6 months.  Let's keep our fingers crossed for the next 6 months.

We had a think last week about whether her condition has deteriorated at all, and the consensus is that it has not really got any worse, although her weight has created a few more difficulties for her.  She does not often fall down when she goes out of the back-door which is a big improvement, but sometimes on a walk if she is going downhill she will topple where her weight is too great for her front legs to cope with.

We have cut down her lunch, so she is just on a half cup of puppy food, ideally we will try to maintain her weight around 18kgs.  At last weigh in in this period she was 17kgs.  Obviously with no real muscle mass to add to her weight we would think that about 18kgs could be a good weight - we think it is a weight her body can cope at, as well as a healthy weight.  We will continue to monitor and see from there.

Poppy and Abbie are now partners in crime - Poppy's beautiful soft bed has now been largely shredded!  As Poppy seems to actually prefer the other dog's beds, (plastic high sided ones) we will probably invest in one for her soon as well.

Abbie and Poppy have just finished one of their totally mad playtimes lunging at each other and rolling on the floor.  They do seem very happy when they play together.

Day 60 to 67 (Monday to Sunday - 25 weeks old)

A good week, I think we have just about worked her out - well at least for the time being.  Poppy mustn't be over fatigued as that really causes her a problem, but so long as you just do the right amount, she is fine.

She has been to the "River" twice this week, once with me, and today with Dad, who remarked that it is the best he has seen her in ages.  She was carried part of the way back, but it is a fair bit further than to the play park, and she did walk half way along the riverbank.

Poppy still really loves meeting other dogs, and we made it to dog club again this week, much to her satisfaction.  We did not really do many of the exercises, but she just loved saying "hello" in particular to Bess a black labrador who is about 18 months old.

Talking of black labradors, Abbie and Poppy are now firm friends.  Where Abbie pretty much ignored Poppy for about a month, they now do so much "playing".  Poppy loves to try biting Abbie's leg or ear, whichever she can grab, to attract Abbie's attention, then they often roll around on the floor together for several minutes, or Abbie runs off to get a toy for them to play tug with, or runs out of the house and round the garden, with Poppy desperately bunny hopping after her.  When Abbie tears round in circles, Poppy will literally bounce round on the spot.

This is also what she does when she is waiting for a meal.  She gets really excited - it is so lovely to watch.

Poppy is such a happy dog, and so sweet with it.  She really is a lovely dog to have in the household, other than when she has her stubborn streak on!   At those times not much will make her move!  So pretty typical of a near 6 month old pup.

Day 54 to 59 Tues to Sun (24 weeks old)

After the slightly rough period at the end of last week, this week has been far better.  It may be that if we over fatigue Poppy she really struggles to pick up, so we have tried to be really careful.  Poppy is pretty consistently getting out for her walk to the Play Park, but at the moment we have given up on boots.  She seems to have managed to toughen up her feet at the moment, and we went through a phase of her really struggling with her right paw.

Her right paw definitely turns outwards a lot more than her left paw, and when she is tired or it is wet her front paws do get really splayed.

She has taken to "giving up" when we want her to start the return journey - but we think this is just tactical from Poppy, as when you offer her the chance to carry home Abbie's ball, she suddenly perks up.

I have carried her a fair bit this week, but today (Sunday) I took her out with Abbie and she really enjoyed it, and seemed to manage quite well.

She is not keen if we leave her on her own, and she does tend to cry, but the radio being left on seems to help matters.

We may drop her lunchtime feed soon, as she has started on a handful of Chappie complete with her puppy food and thus seems to manage the quantity a bit better.

Day 47 (23 weeks old) to Day 53 - Thursday to Monday

After the highs of Wednesday Dog Club came the lows.  Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday have not been too good for Poppy.  She has fallen over far more than previously, and has a definite limp from her right front leg.  When she falls over it seems that her front legs literally give way so she does go straight down on her face - not a nice thing to witness.  She seemed mainly to fall when on a downward slope, so pretty obviously her centre of balance is affected where her lack of muscle is unable to compensate.  She has probably fallen about two or three times each day.  However, being such a positive puppy, she picks herself back up and carries on like nothing has happened.

Today has been far better again.  I took her out this morning fearing the worst (she has not actually been out for an official walk for a couple of days as she was not good), but she was actually really positive, in fact she marched outwards to make sure she got to the Play Park.  I let her wander off lead around the grass area and she seemed really happy.  She did not fall at all.  On the return trip she was more tired, and a bit limpy on her front right leg, so I carried her the final 20 yards, rather than totally tire her.  She then played ball in the garden with me, bouncing after the ball when thrown a few yards ahead.

Dad confirms that she has had a far better day, so let's feel positive again and hope for the best for the week to come (although bad weather is forecast so it may not be too great).

Day 40 - 46 (Friday to Wednesday)

Well I haven't been very good at blogging recently, but not because there is any problem, other than the weather!  As it has been very wet recently Poppy has not got up to much - but the last couple of days have actually been far nicer weather so she is back on form.

Indeed tonight, we went back to dog club after a 2 week absence.  Poppy had a wonderful hour.  She did all the movements that all the other 5 puppies did, which included a down stay, sit stay, recall on the lead, heel walking, recall across the yard, heel walking around the other puppies, retrieve the ball, follow off the lead, and puppy playing!  She may not have done alot of anything, but at least she did something of each of them.

We are now on mark 3 boots, and I think this is really helping.  They have been made more like mittens, so are quite easy to put on.  They have velcro closures, and are lined with fleece and sheepskin, so are softer and more padded. The outer layer is made from one of our pony's old rugs, so they are sort of shower-proof; although still not yet fully waterproof, as the seams obviously let in the water.

I am sure that these new boots really helped her to achieve a whole hour on tarmac tonight.  She is so good having her boots put on, I think she realises that they do help.  Although she does not like having her warm coat on - this was used for the first time yesterday morning to her disgust!

We weighed her on Monday and she is now 15.9 kgs.  We have started to add some Chappie complete to her feed and slightly reduce her Puppy food.  In part to get her ready later to move on to Chappie, and also to make her meals smaller in actual volume.  She does struggle with the quantity that the Purina Puppy seems to be, and just the act of eating can fatigue her.  Since we have changed, she gets 1 cup of Purina Puppy and a small handful of Chappie and she seems to get on far better.

She is nearly as tall and long as Abbie, but much slimmer still.  I reckon about another 5 cms to go on the height and quite a lot of width - although this may be where we really notice a difference as of course not much of her body will be muscle.

I have been trying to get a good photo of her, but whenever I have the camera around she always seems to move - ironic for a puppy that has difficulty in moving around!  Anyway, the following picture is the best I can do at the moment, it does capture some of her cheekiness!

Day 39 - Thursday (22 weeks old)

Another grim day, but I managed to get Poppy out before the rain really set in.  I was worried early on this morning as she seemed to fall forward in the garden when doing her "wee" - but I think it was just so wet that she actually slipped into the flower bed.

She has been quite a rascal for a lot of the day, as she is grumpy she can not go out in her beloved garden.  She has been hounding Abbie, and also Joey.  Abbie even got cross with her at teatime and gave her a very small growl.  Poppy looks quite strange at the moment as she has very few teeth - and when she opens her mouth more often than not it is full of blood as she is busy chewing things to get her teeth to come through, and obviously her teeth are falling out, and her gums are quite soft.  Poor thing she is nearly a vampire dog!

Mark 3 boots may be on their way at the weekend, I have decided that I need the top of a padder, and a similar base, but probably just slightly longer, and a gusset.  I will try to design and produce at the weekend - with the aim being to use horse rug canvas so that they may also be waterproof.

Day 38 - Wednesday

What horrendous weather - no dog club for us today.  Poppy does not do well in wet weather - fortunately this morning it was dry for long enough to get out.  We just went to the Play Park with the boots, that have been waterproof sprayed.  I wouldn't say they were totally waterproof, but certainly passable as showerproof, as we got home with dry feet, but wet soles of boots.

Poppy manages well in her boots at present, and she is getting used to having them put on.  I sit with her in her bed, and she lets me take each paw in turn to put on the boot.  Sometimes, we have to be chewed whilst putting on the boots!

Day 36 & 37 (Monday & Tuesday)

Poppy was not totally shattered from her weekend adventures which was good news, although as we still think, her actions are really those of an older dog, rather than a puppy - eat, walk then sleep until next eating session!

She is really bright, and it may be because her mobility is limited her brain is really active.  I have played "wait and recall" in the garden once before, but both Monday and Tuesday, she just "got it".  She sat on command, waited patiently with a "wait" and hand signal and then came on one call - first time at a bound!

I would think that she finds this great fun, and there is a reward for it as well!  Let's hope we have a dry day Wednesday so we can go to DogClub - boots are not yet waterproof, so further revision is required.  I have sprayed them today with a shoe protector, so we will see in the morning if this assists.

Day 34 & 35 Saturday and Sunday

Where does the time go?  Poppy has been out in her new boots, lovely baby blue - or at least they were before she went for the walk!  She has walked the furthest she has ever been, to the bridge, then along the track by the river to the open space and then home.  She really walked out well, and if you didn't know any different you would not know how disabled she really is.  What a wonderful puppy.

This walk has really tired her though, so although it was great at the time, it was probably too far, and we are paying the price now.  She is far brighter though than previous fatigued episodes.

She is such a fighter, she really does not have any muscle over the majority of her body - she pretty much keeps herself upright and walking through grim determination and guts.

We have had a lovely weekend with her, and will certainly treasure some of this time, in the future.

Day 33 Friday

New boots!  I felt that the existing boots were a bit too big, and also a bit bulky where I fasten the velcro, so we have made new boots, which also incorporate a waterproof inner sole.  I have tried them on Poppy and they looked good, but yet to take her for a walk in them.

Poppy has just had a really good "rough house" with Abbie, it is so nice to see her playing like a normal puppy - eating Abbie's ears, eyes or indeed anything that gets in the way!  Poppy is also absolutely determined to steal slippers at the moment.  B left her slippers under the table last evening, and today they were found and well chewed!  Dad has also had a five minute period with his slippers disappearing all the time.  A treat was used to tempt her to leave and drop the slippers, but somehow I think this clever puppy will actually work out that this encourages stealing, rather than means stop stealing!

It was wet out this morning, and Poppy still managed to walk all the way to the grass (but we didn't go on, to prevent her getting too wet) and back again.  We even managed a little play with the tennis ball on the way home, although this did involve her tripping over her own lead!

Tonight we have been "up the yard" to the field where I keep my pony, and Poppy has been reunited with the lovely Vet who literally gave her a stay of execution.  It was wonderful to have her say that she could not believe how good Poppy was looking - she was really pleased with her.  She commented that her neck was far less pronounced than when she last saw her, looking more like a normal labrador.  Poppy was on fine form, walking half way across the field and back, playing tennis ball, and exploring the muck heap!  She is a tired puppy now, but it was certainly worth it.

Day 32 Thursday (21 weeks old)

Poppy was a bit tired today, after the excitement of yesterday, however, she still seems to be stronger than at any previous time so far.  The worry of course is whether she will maintain this strength, again as ever, only time will tell.

Day 31 - Wednesday

A later walk this morning, nearer to 8am, and we actually met people!  Poppy was really excited as Bouncer was about this morning, he is certainly one of her favourite boys.  She also met Mable, who is a miniature schnauzer, and very sweet.  The new boots are certainly working from the point of view of mobility.  I have just about got the hang of putting them on her.  Put her in her bed, and cuddle her across my lap, at the same time trying to put one foot into the boot, and do up the velcro, whilst Poppy tries to eat my hand, and Abbie tries to be very helpful licking me and the boots!  It was easier this morning than yesterday though, so hopefully eventually it will work well.

The walk is so much easier for her when she has her boots on.  In fact she marches out!  I have two problems to overcome with them though.  1) they are not waterproof, so when it is wet, as it was today, by the end I think it is uncomfortable walking in the boots.  2) they are slightly too big.

So more prototypes may be needed before we find the optimal boot.  Most of the commercially available boots are both too expensive and too long, they come most of the way up the leg, and I don't think this will be ideal for Poppy.  Well for now it will be good to atleast have her managing to walk all the way on the tarmac.

We weighed Poppy again today, and the good news is she is still putting on weight, today's weight was 14.7 kgs.

Day 30 - Tuesday

Wow, Poppy has been with us for a whole month now, and is still going strong - in fact the common consensus is that she is getting slightly stronger.  This morning she went out for a walk, with her boots on, and coped even with the damp weather.  When she got home, she decided to play rough and tumble with Abbie and then chased Abbie round the table!  Poppy is now 48cms tall, so just 5cms short of Abbie to the shoulder.

She is eating well, and seems really happy with us all.

Day 29 - Monday

Another great walk - this morning Poppy went the furthest she has ever been, with the benefit of her new boots.  To the Play Park, round the front of the houses, and back home, with only 2 stops (and these were sitting).  In the evening, she enjoyed stealing my slippers, which were at the bottom of the stairs, whilst I was on the phone sorting out car insurance - she is such a rascal!

Day 28 - Sunday

Grandad came to visit today, and Poppy had great fun attacking his walking sticks and shoes and slippers - she is getting really mischievous. She really seems to have a bit more strength which is quite amazing, although she does sometimes struggle to get up pushing with her back legs, if they are in the wrong position.

Day 26 & 27 (Friday and Saturday)

Sorry couldn't get internet connection last pm, so no post until today - and it is an important one, as the padder puppy shoes worked!  Poppy walked all the way to the Play Park and back again without lying down once - amazing!  She also had a good play with the other two dogs, chasing Joey trying to get the new yellow and black softy ball (now minus the squeaker) from him.

We are all feeling really positive about her progress at the moment.  We think she may be getting a bit stronger, and so long as we can keep her weight sensible we are hoping that she will cope OK.

Saturday has been miserable and wet, so we just did one lap of the close, which was enough (and no shoes on, as it was too wet for them, as of course they are fabric); I think the cold and wet will be a problem for Poppy, but she has been pretty bright all day, but no way would she have managed any longer walk.  When she is full grown we will try a wet weather jacket - I have already secured a lovely warm coat for her, which may need some adjustment as it is XL! but only £5 in the sale at Pets at Home.

Day 25 - Thursday (20 weeks old)

As expected after the excitement of yesterday, a very quiet day today, but not a bad day.  Poppy went for a good walk to the Play Park with Dad this morning, but he carried her home, as she was fatigued.

I have made her padders, using baby padders and velcro.  We have tried them in the garden and they seemed to be quite good, but the real test will be out for a walk tomorrow.

Day 24 - Wednesday

I have just put to bed a very tired, but happy pup.  Today we have been on a good walk, been to visit Granma and been to dog club.  The trip to Granma's was good, Poppy travels well in the car, and then enjoyed exploring Granma's house and garden.  A tiny accident in the hallway, but never mind, she has not been visiting before.  She was really interested in the new house, and also meeting different people.

I took a chewy rawhide stick with us, and she did enjoy eating this without the other dogs hounding her.  She just makes a bit of a mess, as she wedges the stick between her dew claw and her first toe, but then the rawhide gets all over her legs and everywhere.

We only stayed until before lunch, as we also had dog club this evening.  I thought she may have been too tired, but as soon as she saw the lead she was ready to go.  Dog club was good fun, Poppy did not manage much, but she did a couple of nice down stays, a really nice recall across the yard (about 5 yards distance) and what was lovely played with another puppy, Harvey (a Bearded Collie, about 11 weeks old).  He bounced all over her, and only knocked her off her feet once.  We tried out the new padders as well, and I am hopeful if I can get them to stay on they will be really helpful, as for the short distance she did wear them it seemed to make her walking a lot easier.  I will try to get some velcro and be creative tomorrow.

Day 23 - Tuesday

Today has been one of Poppy's not so good days.  It has been terrible weather, and I don't think the damp is good for her.  She has however been brighter than on her previous bad days, and it is over a week since her previous really bad day, so potentially quite positive.

We had weigh in today and she is now 13.9kgs, so still putting on weight well which is good news.  She now has 1.5 cups of Purina Puppy in the morning, 1 cup at lunch and 1.25 cups at tea.  She loves her additional biscuits and small treats, and will get in her bed on command in the expectation of a biscuit.

We played some "find" games today and they went well, just in the front room, as it was too wet outside.  She managed to find the treats hidden under the empty margarine pot, and some of the ones under the chairs.

Poppy really enjoys playing tugger games with Abbie, clutching at the teddy bear as Abbie goes past and trying her best to win the prize!  Abbie has played far more gently with her today, and I think they are starting to get some level of understanding.

Another good thing that happened today was claw clipping - as you know I am not particularly fond of doing this, but Poppy just lay down chewed her rawhide chew and quite happily let me clip.  I am happy now at the length of her claws, and this may help her with her walking.

Day 22 Monday

Sometimes it is sad just to think that Poppy will never be quite like a "normal" puppy, and the small glimpses we get of total normality are quite hard to come to terms with.  Today, just before tea, Poppy spent several minutes really annoying Abbie.  She was trying to bite her ears, her legs and indeed anything that came close to her mouth!  She followed Abbie round and round the table, much to Abbie's annoyance.  Abbie having been told off earlier for pulling Poppy when playing tug, was not going to take a chance of getting told off again, and simply put up with this puppy, just walking to and fro hoping she would give up - which within 5 minutes of course she did, when she just ran out of steam. We think that in dog language, Abbie can't quite make out this puppy - she knows she must be gentle with her, but yet at times she is a near normal annoying puppy.

Poppy is getting lots taller, and heavier.  We think that she is not deteriorating, but we are starting to worry that weight will be the main enemy, as this is making it harder for her to get to her feet, although when she is on her feet, she seems to be quite strong, other than when walking on the tarmac.

A continued waiting game.

Day 20 and 21 (Saturday & Sunday)

Sorry two days together, only myself and daughter spent most of yesterday in London, researching for her A level at the V&A.  So Poppy spent the day with Dad, very quietly as she was very tired, but bright.

Sunday got off to a good start, I took Poppy out for her walk with her beloved Joey.  I have probably mentioned this before, but Poppy really loves Joey, the pair of them are often co-conspirators! She was so excited to be going out with Joey, and had a real bounce in her stride.  No problem getting to the play park today, although I do think the pavements are very hard work for her feet.  A nice wander round on the grass and then back home.  A fair few stops on the way back, but each time just a short lie down, followed by a brisk pace to keep up with Joey (not that he really goes fast).  I have placed a bid on Ebay for some baby padders, and have just found out that I have won them, so I am hopeful that this may be something I can use to help Poppy's feet on the pavements.  It may or may not work, but it is certainly worth a try.

Poppy has had a great day today, she has been bright for the whole day.  She spent a good hour chewing on a chew stick, and also enjoyed carrot peelings as I was preparing lunch (a bit of a ritual, where the dogs all sit below the counter where I peel the carrots, and wait for me to toss bits on to the floor).  Poppy is quite funny when she eats carrots, as she gets really foamy round the mouth, it looks like she has rabies!

At teatime I wanted to make a cake, so this was going to involve the mixer machine.  I am trying to get Poppy accustomed to noises like this, so the plan was to give all the dogs a hollow bone with some margarine in it to keep them occupied.  As ever, Abbie and Joey were immediately at their "stations" below the counter when I got out the cooking things.  The only trouble was Poppy has never encountered margarine before, and so it took Dad's help to actually persuade her the bone contained something nice!  Anyway the trick worked, as I managed to run the mixer without her disappearing down the garden.  I'm not sure if she will treat the food-processor the same way, as it is rather more noisy.  Her latest fear is the ironing board - the garden is obviously the best place to be if this strange squeaky thing comes out.  Regrettably this is one of the drawbacks of only having Poppy from 16 weeks, as her standard socialisation was very delayed.  Still she is doing pretty well, so we won't worry too much.

Although she is not particularly active from a walking point of view, she has been very alert all day, and shown interest in everything going on.  She very much likes number one son's bare legs when he comes home from running, and gave him her normal good lick!

Day 19 - Friday

Back on track with blogging on the actual day, apologies if any confusion.  Dad takes Poppy out for her walk on a Friday, and she was very keen to set off with him today.  He took her to the Play Park and said that on her way outwards he felt she could have made it to the village; on the way back however, her clockwork motor ran down!  We are wondering whether this has anything to do with her realising that she is on her way back home, and whether the stimulation of the outward journey and excitement gives her more energy - the only trouble is, there is not really any way of testing this, as if we were to walk all the way to the village, it is a jolly long way back carrying a 13kgs dog!

She is tired today, she had her lunch sitting down, rather than standing (first time all week) but again not totally shattered like Sunday.  She slept a good deal during the day, and was not at the gate to greet me when I got home.  But when I was opening my post and accidentally dropped the envelope "sneaky stevie" (as we have nick-named her, in these situations) was there and the envelope was suddenly in the garden being chewed to pieces!

Her other nickname is Poppy Po, as the children think she looks chinese!  I am not too sure about this, but they think her long face makes her eyes look slightly chinese like.

This evening when I came back from riding with Abbie, Poppy came to greet me, and drank her water standing up so that is a good sign at the end of the day.

Day 18 - Thursday and 19 weeks old

A bit worried in case dog club has totally tired Poppy, but she seems quite bright still this morning. A very short walk though, just around the close, but this fulfils her need to go "beyond the gate" and a quiet but not totally shattered day.

Day 17 - Wednesday

Dog club day again today, so very hopeful that Poppy would have enough energy to attend (and that there may be a few other dogs to meet).  Well we were in luck, as Ollie the 14 week old border collie was in attendance.  Poppy loved him immediately, and effectively anything Ollie was asked to do, she at least tried to do.  So we did heel walking around a bucket, find the treat in the bucket, go through the tunnel (treat pot went through as well the first time, but then she just thought it was good fun!), lie down stay, return to heel, recall across the yard (not very far, but came with a bound - bless!), and to show off to Auntie Sheila - "on the mat" which was done to perfection.

This all took about 30 minutes, obviously not constantly on the go, but with small breaks.  After that she was pretty tired and laid down on her mat, getting up now and again when Ollie did something fun, or to get in his way when he was supposed to be concentrating on a recall or something similar - what a rascal.  By the end she was totally whacked so got a good carry out to the car - but I can safely say she had a great time.  Her tail did not stop wagging the whole time.

When we got home, I was really worried that she would be too tired, but she managed to drink her water initially standing up, and then came to lie down with us in the lounge.  At bed time she was very sleepy, so I snuck a cuddle with her, holding her like a baby in my arms - very lovely getting licked all over my face for my trouble.

So whilst a tiring day a very enjoyable day for Poppy and one that will become a treasured memory in the future.

Day 16 - Tuesday

Not much to report today, which in a way is good news.  Nice walk to the Play Park this morning, and I let Poppy off the lead when we were there so she could sniff round on her own.  Two quiet pauses on the way back home, but not so tired that she needed to be carried.

Poppy has spent a fair time asleep today, but is far brighter than on Sunday even when she seems more tired, and she is getting quite naughty.  At teatime she was impatient and couldn't wait for her tea to be dished up, so she stuck her nose in the food cupboard and very carefully carried out the box full of kitten food (aka the treats!) - not something any of our other dogs have ever even thought about doing!

I wore a skirt for the first time in several weeks to work today, again this was seen as fair game - Poppy decided to get underneath it, and then surreptitiously grab the hem and start to chew!  Quite a character.

Day 15 Monday

A big relief after the worry of yesterday.  Poppy has had a great day today.  A really good trip to the Play Park this morning, with her paws hardly splayed at all, then a run around in the garden with Joey.  A good day with Dad at home, and then games in the evening.  Poppy is really getting the hang of "On the mat" and also "Find the treat"; tonight the treat was hidden under the flower pot as well as on top, and she worked out how to use her head to push over the flower pot to retrieve the treat.  I will try taking the "equipment" to dog club on Wednesday, to see if she can manage there as well.

Weigh in day today, was also good news, not a surprise that she has put on weight, weighing in at a healthy 13kgs this week.

I have purchased a winter coat for her today, in the sale at Pets at Home - this is a positive move thinking that she will definitely grow into it to wear in the winter.

Day 14 - Sunday

Two weeks down the line, and mainly we have been really pleased with Poppy's progress, but today has been one of those worry days.  She was keen to go out for her walk this morning, but it was evident very early on that she was struggling - her feet were very splayed and she was finding it hard to walk on the pavement (it had rained overnight, so possibly this makes it harder work).

We got back from the start of the Play Park open space after a couple of rests, but then she was very floppy for most of the rest of the day.

Fortunately, she has perked up after teatime, and has been following Joey round the garden and having fun in the mud!

I have read up on splayed feet and doggy boots, and one thing that seemed common for splayed feet was to ensure that nails are clipped sufficiently.  I hate clipping claws after making Bramble's foot bleed because she moved at the wrong moment.  So I sat on the floor with Poppy and cautiously have clipped the ends of each of her front claws.  Her back feet are far better, they are wearing more naturally.  (We have never had to clip Abbie's claws as she keeps them down with her running activities).

I am considering trying to get some baby padders for Poppy.  I am worried that the commercial dog boots will be too heavy for her, but baby's padders may work.  This would be just to help her walk on the pavements, as this seems to be the main problem at the moment - as soon as she gets to the grass she obviously finds it far easier.  I will see what can be done.

Day 13 Saturday

An exciting trip today, to the Reservoir, in the car.  Poppy is very good in the car, obviously she has to be lifted in and out (although she would try to get out on her own if she could).

The Reservoir is only about 5 minutes drive, but I thought it would give Poppy a change of scene and a chance to meet some other dogs - that's a first - no dogs here!  We walked about 20 metres along the walkway, and then I carried her over the "parapet wall" and she watched the water, lap noisily around the shoreline.  Poppy was not too sure about this!

She then decided that she could be an adventurer and climbed her way back up the shallow steps to the top wall, and then promptly turned around to climb down again.  She does look very bright and able this morning - just not very fast at anything.

I measured her height today, she is about 43cms to the top of her shoulder (Abbie in comparison as a fully grown labrador is 53cms).  We will try weighing her again this weekend as well, although we have no worries about this side of things as she eats really well now.  1.5 cups of Puppy food in the morning, a full cup at lunch and same at tea.  Plus a few titbits for rewards (we normally use kitten food - a good tip offered to us years ago by Sheila, as it is very small and smells nice).  We use 35mm film cases to keep our titbits in, again this means that the idea of a titbit is very easy for the dog to catch on to, and the pot can also be rattled to attract attention.

Poppy seemed to really enjoy the change of scene, although seems pretty tired now, so we may have a quiet rest of the day.

Day 12 Friday

Dad's turn to take Poppy for her walk this morning, he reported that she did very well, to the Play Park and back with the "clockwork" running down just at the end of our drive.  We normally have loads of dogs around our area, but the last few days we have not seen any when out with our dogs, so our socialisation skills are not really being tested.

A good game when I came home from work.  She has worked out "which hand is the treat in" and uses her nose to indicate which hand to try.  Also "on the mat" seems to be a favourite (but the other dogs also enjoy this, so I really need to try this with just Poppy).

Day 11 - Thursday (18 weeks old)

We were all worried that Poppy would be really tired today after an evening at Dog club, but we were pleasantly surprised.  Although her morning walk ended up with a carry home, as we probably went a bit far (to the Open Space and the exciting stream), but after a couple of minutes rest she was back up again.

We are starting to get to know her now, and gradually we will hopefully work out what Poppy enjoys and what she can cope with.

I am still desperately searching the internet for any new information about HMLR or as it is now technically known CNM - Centro-nuclear myopathy.  This name was adopted in 2003 after some scientists in France identified the cause of the disease is basically a defective gene.  Apparently they think that in one dog a spontaneous change occurred of this gene, making it "bad".  Then with close breeding, the faulty gene was bred into the breed.  It seems that if you breed with one faulty gene carrier then you will just get carriers, but if you breed with two dogs with the faulty gene then 25% of the litter will be clear, 50% will be carriers and 25% will have the disease.

I still have not found out much more than this with my searching, although one website I visited today reckoned that the disease stabilises at 5 months.  If this is true then perhaps we only have a month more of total worry?

Poppy does seem to need to bark, more than our other labradors.  We think this is probably because she is slightly insecure when she hears noises that she doesn't understand.  Certainly high pitched noises like electric saws, and also bells seem to be a worry to her.

She also dislikes the hoover and the food processor, but tends to run away from these rather than bark.  It is not surprising that she is slightly insecure, as obviously with her history, we do not believe that she had much socialisation prior to at the earliest about 14 weeks.  Gracious I have known her 4 weeks now, and I would certainly say when I stop and reflect on her progress that there is no definite deterioration in her condition in this period.  In fact I would say that there may even be slight improvements; she is standing up for her food now, which she did not do originally (in fact when she was first rescued she would not even eat, and when we baby-sat for her she needed to be spoon fed), she is very alert when she has the energy, and enjoys going exploring. 

I still think that Dad's description of a clockwork toy running down is probably about right, we just may gradually be able to wind the clock up for a bit longer.

Day 10 - Wednesday (First Dog Club)

Dog club has always been on Wednesday nights; Bramble (our first black labrador, who died aged 5 from a Spinal Stroke - another very little known about illness) started our trips to "Auntie Sheila's", and Joey and Abbie have followed, so it is only right that Poppy will do so too.  Sheila is an absolute wonder, she is an absolute font of dog knowledge.  Every dog that I have ever seen come to the club always behaves when Auntie Sheila takes the lead!

It was a big ask, as club for puppies doesn't start until 6:30pm, and this is obviously after a long day being awake and active.  These days, unlike in Bramble's day, most vets have their own puppy parties for early socialisation, so many puppies miss out on Auntie Sheila's club.  Today was one of those quiet puppy nights - it ended up just with Poppy.  It didn't matter though, as she had a wonderful time, and met the "big dogs" at the end of her class.  Sheila was really encouraging, and helped me with some games that we can play quietly.  So today Poppy has had her first experience of "Find" with a small treat on an upturned bucket.  We tried on the floor first, but it was obvious this was quite hard, so immediately Sheila shifted the focus to a slightly raised environment.  Poppy loved it!  Then we had to have a couple of trips round the playground - to find all the dangerous objects that had been left behind by visitors during the day - a piece of sharp clear plastic, various assorted broken parts from toys, of course any available stick and pieces of tarmac left from the recent replacement around the entrance steps!

Sheila has suggested trying to let Poppy work out which hand a treat is in (we tried this out when we got home, and she got it right first time every time except once!  Joey is still trying to work out this game!)  We are also going to think about a mat game - setting up two mats and sending her to lie on each in turn on command - this may take a bit of development, but it could certainly be possible.  Also collecting (rather than retrieving as such) a pot with treats in it, with the reward being the treat from the pot.  Fantastic food for thought for some future games.

It really feels that to a certain extent we have just been living day to day, but we should now look at giving Poppy some additional games to stimulate her mind.

Although she was tired when she came home, she was very bright and continued to "show off" to the other dogs for about 20 minutes before she eventually lay down to sleep.

We are hopefully starting to get better at working out what she can cope with - I certainly think that the less "bouncing" that is done the longer she seems to last.  This morning's walk was very successful on this basis.

A steady Poppy is seen in this video (aged 17 weeks).

Day 9 (Tuesday)

Poppy did not have such a good day today - a bit worrying she has been very sleepy and worn out for most of the day.  She started the day well, with a good breakfast, and a walk to the Play Park, but then spent the whole of the rest of the day sleeping.

She perked up about 9pm, but still seemed quite lethargic.  Let's hope that it is just a blip, as she is already incredibly precious to us, and I know that we may one day have to be very brave about her future.  We are quite pleased, in our research we have identified that the Kennel Club do actually have a DNA register, which shows the currently known dogs/bitches who have the disease or who are carriers, or who are clear of the disease.  This is very positive, as sometimes we wonder whether the "authorities" take this sort of thing seriously.

(The Kennel Club site uses the modern name for Hereditary Myopathy which is Centro-nuclear Myopathy (CNM))  http://www.thekennelclub.org.uk/item/2717

Day 8 (Monday)

Well Poppy has been with us a week now, and I think we can say is well and truly settled in.  The dogs were all given new soft toys yesterday evening as a treat (Abbie and Joey normally destroy theirs within a few hours) but this time was different.  Poppy was given the small teddy, and appreciated it, gave it a good chew and a lick.  Abbie was given the big panda, very pleased and went to the bottom of the garden with it.  Joey was given the fluffy brown bear - not impressed, dropped it, and went back inside - this was obviously the cue for Poppy to start her mischief!

Brown bear came out, had a chew and a lick, but all the while eyes were on Panda.  Abbie is so pleased with her new toy and the fact that Joey hasn't destroyed it yet, that she has to show everyone - bad move, when this included Poppy - who promptly latched on to said Panda and tugged.  "Oh no, puppy has it - must let go" says Abbie. We have always said she is a bit stupid!

Mischief didn't stop there though - there is a small hole in the grass, but Poppy just manages to collapse at that point every time; some would say convenient!  So the hole gets larger and larger, so Dad covers it with a heavy parasol stand.  That should sort it out.  But no!  Not for a determined and very clever puppy, who uses both her nose and her splayed paw to full advantage, to gradually dislodge the stand and get back her hole!

This disabled pup needs just as many guidelines as a healthy 4 month old.

This morning's walk was excellent, real excitement, and in particular as she met Bouncer again, who I think she is very keen on, and also Martha (collie-lab cross).  So the return trip had to be done is stages, as she used up all her energy bounding up to Bouncer!  It seemed to work though, just letting her lie-down for 30 seconds or so before she was obviously about to tire completely and by the time we got home she was ready for further mischief!

Dad is armed with chews, toys and tuggers for the rest of the day's proceedings!

Day 7 (exactly 4 months old)

Poppy shares her birthday with Abbie, both were born on 25th March - quite a coincidence.  We have had a weigh-in this morning.  Poppy is 12kgs and Abbie is 23kgs.  Not too bad for either, although we have threatened Abbie with a diet as she has "put her leg out" twice this week when jumping for the ball.

Poppy is managing her food standing up each day now, which is really good, and she does really love it when we come down to serve breakfast.

As it's Sunday today, we felt that after the dogs had been fed, watered and toileted we deserved a short "lie-in" so we went back upstairs.  After a while we heard a tiny bit of "talking" which we thought might have been the dog next door, or might be Poppy - it was not really crying, more just a quite noise asking for attention, a "hello anyone there" type every couple of minutes.  We ignored it for a few times on the basis that you should not encourage your dog to be vocalising simply for attention, and it seemed to stop.  I got up and went back downstairs, then felt quite guilty as Poppy was asking for attention - she had gone into the utility room, obviously to play with shoes (Dad's best trainers were on the floor) but she got more than she bargained for; in knocking off the shoes, she managed to knock over the mop which in turn had closed the door.  Her "hello anyone there" had meant just that, as she had effectively shut herself in!  Not the first of our dogs to managed this feat I must stress, but she was certainly a very happy labby when she was reunited with us all!

Some socialising was called for this morning, as we are obviously slightly behind on matters, but also limited by Poppy's endurance.  A trip to the post box seemed a good walk - only about 20 metres further than the play park.  Poppy set off with normal bounce, but I am trying to restrain this, so that her energy can last longer.  From a sport science perspective, her type II muscles (which we believe are the affected muscles) are the ones that need glucose and are those that deal with bursts of energy.  Her type I muscles are those that use oxygen, and in theory are the ones that deal with endurance.  The theory for us here is that if we don't let her have the bursts of energy when she goes on her walk and keep her walk at a steady pace, she may cope better.  Nearly at the post box, two dogs, she couldn't see started barking - this is something she is not sure about, and then two other (not too nice ones) came round the corner - time to be carried I think!  So we took advantage of this and headed out to the main road - an absolute disaster on a Sunday as a car boot sale takes place just along the road, so it is really busy.  Poppy took it totally in her stride (safe in my arms) watching a various assortment of cars, vans, motorbikes, caravans, trailers and push bikes go past.  Back to the post box and on to the floor again - yes, that was a good choice, the smells on the post box were obviously wonderful!

She made it all the way back, even meeting Joey on the way back and deciding she needed to play with him (this did not help my keeping her at one pace theory); so I am really pleased at her progress to date.

Day 6

The Puppy with Hereditary Myopathy

Another good start to the day, no overnight problems and a hearty breakfast. Let's try a slightly longer walk today, as she seems very keen. So we went to the true "open space", this is about a 300 metre walk from home, accomplished very nicely with good sits at the kerbs.

At the open space is a stream, so we sat and watched this quite fascinated for a while - I did not let Poppy go paddling yet though, as I want to see how strong she can get first, and the trouble is in the Winter the stream gets quite deep.

She was determined to climb up the hump and then stare in amazement at the field of sheep - given half a chance I think she would have been amongst them trying to sort them out.

We nearly made it back, but with about 20 metres to go, I noticed her getting slower and her front paws "splayed" which seems to be a quite obvious sign with her of fatigue. Her back legs then didn't quite come through quite right, so I scooped her up and carried her the last bit. On arrival at home though, having had a short rest she was ready to go again!

I left my riding boots in the kitchen to be ready for when I cam back from the loo - but what's this when I came back, no boots. Oh there they are in the garden with a naughty puppy. Only disadvantage for Poppy stealing boots or shoes, is that they are slightly heavy and can topple her over as she goes out of the back-door step.

A sleepy morning after all this excitement, but again a lovely time with this precious puppy.

Consideration needs to be given about her quality of life, as obviously this is what we are trying to give her. My friendly vet, asked for a second opinion from a well respected Orthopaedic Vet and was told that the note he has against Hereditary Myopathy is very simple - RIP. To me this seems very desperate, as the puppy has not asked to be born, and us humans are probably to blame with our close breeding for the genetic defect.

I feel that we probably need to consider some sort of scale for life quality and I have come up with my own necessary ADLS for a dog. Taking this from my industry (finance) where for care home cover you have to fail 2 out of 5 ADLS for cover to enable you to go into care.

ADLS or Activities of Daily Living, for a dog (to me) are the following:

1. Drinking water from a bowl

2. Eating (with assistance from a raised bowl, or spoon if needed)

3. Toileting (with easy access to the garden, including a ramp if necessary)

4. Walking (for a dog with this condition, we will accept walking around the house/garden, but with no dragging of hind legs etc)

5. Playing/chewing - important to a Labrador. Again not necessarily to the same standard as a normal able-bodied dog, but to enjoy and with some enthusiasm.

Well fortunately at the moment, Poppy easily passes all 5, but we will try to "stick to our guns" and give her quality rather than quantity, so if the worst happens we will be brave against this scale.

I am intending to post some short videos of her progress, partly for us to cherish, and partly to help anyone else who comes across the disease to see what can be "coped with".

Day 5

Another totally clean night - what a clever puppy!  Poppy is so bright early in the morning - she was jumping around when we were getting breakfast ready.  Dad took her for her walk today, to the park again, except she ran most of the way there, and then he described it as a bit like a clockwork toy coming back, as she gradually ran out of steam.

She has had a good brush today and enjoyed it.  Abbie thought it might be OK to be brushed today (normally not very keen!).

Poppy now seems to have quite an appetite eating well at breakfast, lunch and tea.  This should hopefully help to give her as much energy as she can have.  I read a new paper today which said that if a HMLR case gets to 12 months, at which time the disease should stabilise, they may also then show some slight improvements.  At the moment main thing is very much running out of steam, although we are trying not to tire her - she tends to play quite alot with Abbie and Joey.  Tonight was lovely, we thought she was too sleepy to do anything and I took all three into the garden for a play.  Got the tugger out and Poppy was playing with me, when Joey decided to join in - so I let the two of them tug each end.  She loved it and when Joey "won" she bounced all round him trying to persuade him to play again.

She has been munching most of the things she shouldn't today, shoes, sticks, mud and flowers - oh well she still ate her tea!

Day four

Fantastic start to the morning, as we went for a lead walk, just to the park and back, and Poppy met Bouncer a lovely, big, soft yellow labrador, which went well; but mainly when we got back for the first time ever she drank from her water bowl standing up.  As her normal drinking posture is literally laid out prone with whole face in the water bowl this is a tremendous boost for us.

It is a real questionning game, will she get stronger, will she cope with this illness, will she continue to have enough energy for these little walks and fun games?  Of course only time will tell, but the first few days have been really positive.

Dad is going to try to brush her, and clip her claws today, so lets hope this is a positive experience for her.

Day Three

6am start, but what a fab puppy, no mess at all - more than could ever be said at this age for the able bodied ones. Poppy is really bright this morning, bouncing around. Ate a very hearty breakfast, on the newly rigged up raised dinner bowl. A "herby-treat" pot, from the horse, with the lid on, and with a large plastic feed bowl on the top. First time I have seen Poppy eating from a standing position. 100gms of Purina Puppy went down very well. She has a tiny bit of "meat" on top like the others, so she feels she is a big dog.

Abbie goes out for her walk first every morning - her aim in life is to play ball. So the walk tends to be a bit of a drag Mum to the "open space" and then wait patiently for Ball to be thrown. Well this morning, a small one was in the way - very keen too to get out. I am always of the opinion that to train a puppy you need one-on-one walks, so reluctantly we shut Poppy behind the gate and went for our normal walk. Half expecting to find a worn out puppy when I got back, I was surprised to find a very alert pup still. So lead on, and off we went - she loved it! No problem with the lead, and lets bunny hop most of the way! We did put in some nice "sits" at the kerbs, and it is obvious that she has never been on a lead, but she was not the least bit concerned - if the big dogs can do it, so can I seems to be her philosophy.

Just a walk as far as the "Open Space" so about 200 metres in total, but she still came back with energy which was great.

She is now settled with a plastic bone, and does seem to be tired, but that is over 1 hour of constant "on the go" playing and walking without tiring, so very positive news. I am hopeful that as this week progresses she will appear more able, as stress is another factor which fatigues a dog with Hereditary Myopathy of the Labrador Retriever (HMLR), and the change of home must surely have been stressful, even though she had stayed with us for the weekend two weeks ago, and definitely seemed to recognise where she was when she did arrive on Monday night.

Day Two

All quiet overnight, but I think the dogs all had an early start. Just in case anyone else does ever read this, the three are, Joey (Border Terrier) aged 6, Abbie (Black Labrador) aged 4, and the aforementioned Poppy (Black Labrador) aged about 16 weeks. Ancestry of Poppy is unknown. We simply know she was bred as a working labrador, breeders couldn't home her due to her condition and vet couldn't see her put to sleep - so we ended up with her.

Poppy was ravenous at breakfast, she needs to have her bowl held up as she tends to sit down to eat and if left to her own devices she tends to lie down, which is obviously not so good for digestion. We are trying to work out whether some sort of stand for her bowl will work.

Drinking also tends to be done flat on the floor, so a very wet face ensues when it is licking you!

Plenty of morning energy, and only a small accident overnight, but then pretty tired for a lot of the day, but as were the original two, so not much read into this.

Some early morning running (or bunny hopping as her condition makes her do) and trying to play rough house with Abbie. She ate well today, 3 square meals of Purina Puppy - about 100 gms each meal, moistened with water.

More money has been spent - the new bed (low sides and nice and soft for ease of getting in and out) and a pink girlie collar today! No problem with accepting the collar, but when Dad put the lead on, she was totally not sure about what was expected. We'll leave her be for today, as she has had a lot to cope with. See what tomorrow brings.

Day One

Poppy aged about 14 weeks

We did not look to have 3 dogs, but it just happened. Poppy arrived last night a beautiful black bundle of Labrador Retriever. At 16 weeks old we should be expecting mayhem and destruction, but Poppy has been born with Hereditary Myopathy of the Labrador Retriever; a genetic disorder which means that her type II muscle fibres will not develop properly. This may lead to problems with walking and holding her head up, and she will tire easily.

We decided to take her on, to give her as much quality as we can in what may or may not be a shortened life. If she reaches about 12 months to 18 months without being too disabled we believe that the disease will stabilise and she should have a relatively normal life span.
It will all become apparent over time, which is why I have decided to write this blog. Inevitably this will have a sad ending, but I hope that this may be in many years time, and that in between Poppy will have had the chance to experience a very loved life.

The typical bunny hop gait of a dog with HMLR