Week 4!!! Sweetie is truly our Princess Regal Beagle!

Week four has come and gone and Princess Regal Beagle is proving to be a champ! 

While her dachshund siblings still give her lots of room, she is improving on a daily basis- We now have new signs that she needs to GO!  She is now getting herself off of her bed to pee, or at least to get herself off of the mess that she left behind!  This started Sunday, and prior to that our previous such notification was that she would raise herself up into a seated position and that would alert us to the fact that her bladder was no longer full and that she would appreciate a change in her bedding, slaves. 

On Saturday, WHN observed that Sweetie was attempting to use her right rear leg to scratch herself in the neck area- Sweetie was sitting on her bed, and you could see that she was trying to get her leg to do what she wanted it to do- unfortunately she had to settle for WHN giving her scritches  instead, but this shows that the nerves are communicating. 

Unfortunately, her rear feet both still knuckle, but we are still stacking her outside after she does her business.

Her appetite is still Regal Beagle sized and she is drinking up a storm!''

Dad even came up with a great idea- instead of buying disposable pee pads, he had WHN buy some of the incontinence pads used on people beds which are then thrown in the washer and dryer -   Four cost less than 60.00, which is a lot less than disposable diapers and pee pads are for a month.  These have proven themselves to be lifesavers and are a less stressful to use- we bought the largest size available and they are easy to change out on her bed- no more having to swap out the bedding, the pads and the bed and waiting for them to dry.  Sweetie stays clean as does the house!  WHN has ordered two more as we are going through 8 a day right now, and plans are to buy two more each pay day until we have three days worth on hand, in order to cut down on the amount of laundry- instead of washing just one or two, WHN can wash four or more at a time and still keep Her Majesty clean and dry without worry.

Sweetie is a complete drag!  She manages to drag herself to wherever the action is and WHN needs to remember to return and replace the drag bag she did order for one in the correct size- While Sweetie is a statuesque 36 lb Beagle she is NOT an XL!  WHN was able to go the convent last week and sew, leaving Sweetie in her diaper panties, and lo and behold, Sweetie met her at the door! (Yes her diaper was soaking wet and the floor needed to be washed, but that is irrelevant to Sweetie)

Dad came up with another great idea for Sweetie and it arrived late last night!  He had the idea of using a mechanic's dolly to allow Sweetie some mobility within the house so that she could be moved more easily from room to room so as not to feel left out.  She tried it last night and was unsure of it as it moves a little easily, but she loved that she could be right next to WHN for tv time instead of across the room.  Dad will be getting a couple of small bricks this weekend to use as breaks to keep the dolly from moving while Sweetie uses it.

On the two legger front- this past week, both Dad and WHN came down with yet another gastrointestinal viral infection- the third since their return from NJ.  Yes, another trip to the ER- Dad's fourth since May and WHN's third since May.  Neither could keep anything down, not even ginger ale, and both ended up dehydrated after only 24 hours.  Taking care of Sweetie became a challenge due to the light headedness of both parents and the continued incipient muscle weakness for WHN.  It is making the rounds of ST Louis and since it is viral, nothing can be prescribed but all must be endured.  Dad was able to return to work yesterday, but WHN has to forgo her volunteering for another day.

Next week we have a fabulous story to tell!  Miracles do come true!