Daisy and packed up the car with all our and BeAnne’s possessions.  And then we added the kitchen sink because you just never know.

It is now nearly midnight as I lie in my bunk and tap out this blog with one finger.  BeAnne is between us asleep in her huge dog bed that Daisy lugged up to our cabin. BeAnne is probably dreaming about food or peeing.

Despite knowing and confirming with Northlink that there is a letter from my vet requesting that BeAnne can stay in our cabin, every crew member we have met on board has denied all knowledge of its existence.  They started by wanting her in a cage in our cabin so I said this had never been mentioned in my confirmation phone call with one of their staff this morning.  I said we had a cage and that BeAnne could travel in it but she would be very distressed.  They didn’t budge until I also said they could carry it up from the car.  By this stage they were also denying any knowledge of their collegue who I had spoken to earlier this morning.But, once they saw Daisy lugging up BeAnne’s huge dog bed, they calmed down slightly.

We took BeAnne to the “Smoking Deck” to pee where she refused point blank.  Each time we met a crew member we went though the same interrogation process of the kennels were over there, no, she wasn’t going in a kennel, yes the captain does know about this and yes, we have a letter from the vet. Enroute, we met a lovely lady boarding who was nearly in tears thinking BeAnne would spend the night in the kennels. I reassured her that she was in our cabin and the lady left us muttering “oh, thank god, the poor wee mite”.

Now the boat is crashing, whilst rolling and pitching.  It creaks in the gale we are sailing through but I put my trust in her that we reach our destination, if late.  The captain said we might be because of the Force 9 we are ploughing through.

Luckily i I thought to phone the vet surgery in Stirling before we left to warn them we might be late and to also ask if BeAnne should be nil by mouth as she was immediately having her scan upon our arrival and would be under general anaesthetic. Yes was the answer but she can have small amounts of water.

We can do this. We will do this.  My new family motto is Whatever it Takes or Faciam quodlibet quod necesse est or 想方设法

This is our sitting room (newly decorated).  It was tasteful and a vision of loveliness.  Now we have a single mattress, BeAnne’s bed (with statutory Icelandic lopapeysa) and my commotion.

(When I was a nurse many eons ago, a patient shouted “Nurse, I want the commotion”, so the commode has always been known in this house as The Commotion!)

Perhaps not a thing of great beauty but “the commotion” is a necessity as BeAnne would try and follow me to the bathroom in the night and that would mean stairs.  There is no polite way to disguise it.

So we had a vet appointment this morning and BeAnne was referred to Broadleys Veterinary Hospital for an immediate scan and possibly surgery.

I am currently waiting for the vet to phone back to confirm the time and date.  I have booked a cabin on the boat tomorrow night (easily changed if necessary). A hotel is also booked for 3 nights (they take dogs) and and we will take it from there.

UPDATE ON THE UPDATE:  Broadleys have just phoned to say Wednesday, 12:00.  So glad I booked everything ahead.  They were lovely.

We all feel a bit more relaxed about BeAnne’s condition.

Still, it is very stressful for us humans.  Daisy, Flossie and I went out for a ride, taking Loki with us.

This was the best therapy for us. I wish we had taken BeAnne.  She would’ve loved it.  One day, I hope.

We are all constantly by BeAnne’s side.  Her prescribed strict bedrest means that someone has to be with her 24/7.

Today as it was a nice day, if a bit windy, I decided BeAnne should snuff up some fresh air. Everyone knows that Fresh Air is good for you.  I carried her to the school for an hour.  She has a bed there.

Lambie was thrilled to see her, if a teensy bit jealous of all the attention she received.

Meanwhile Vitamin has come home.  She spent the spring/summer in a Fat Fighter Field away from home.

Now she looks good and is spot on to go into winter.

It was very interesting watching the herd’s reactions to Vitamin’s return.

Lyra was less than impressed at her seeing her mother.  She wants to rule the world, or at least her friends.

However, Fivla was absolutely thrilled to see Vitamin.

She spent much of the afternoon sniffing (pervy sniffing as we call it!).  I don’t think Vitamin recognised the hippopotamus that once was her photoshoot friend. That Fair Isle jersey ain’t got a prayer at the moment. The buttons that kept the sweater together would have someone’s eye out.

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The Minions, however, were vaguely interested in Vitamin – after all, they spent the winter with her last year – but quickly learned that Fivla wanted Vitamin to herself.

Tiddles even managed to look handsome.

He quickly wandered off.

More than anything, Vitamin wanted to talk to her old friend Delia.

Everything is now back to normal.

Now, to lose some weight.  Lots of weight, please!

Fatty fat fat fat!

Ok, firstly, the BeAnne update….

Last night she couldn’t stand at all, collapsing and full of ACP so we let her rest and if she pee’ed, well she pee’ed.  She was slightly incontinent – I worry about input and output.
She ate her supper happily enough but refused any water.  BeAnne has always been a good drinker (just like her Muzzah) so, after offering her water and being refused, I whizzed up a teaspoonful of cat food with water and she happily drank that down.

But what goes in must come out and BeAnne is a very private person about her toilet.  I tried manual expressing her bladder with some success but she was still obviously uncomfortable. At about 23:00, I went off to get changed for bed while Flossie stayed with her. BeAnne tried” to follow me and “walked”, if very wobbly.  With that knowledge, I picked her up and took her to the garden where she immediately squatted and had the most ginormous pee.  Brilliant.

OH brought down a single mattress and we slept together in the sitting room.

This morning, first thing I carried BeAnne to the garden where she pee’ed and then poo’ed.  As long as this method works, that is two healthcare hurdles cleared.

My little precious heaven has spent the rest of the day lying on the mattress, with either me or Daisy in attendance.  It is all she wants.  She tells us when she wants to go out and she is carried outside to do her business and carried her back in. I have not sedated her and have decided we will only do this if she is distressed/restless.

⾺ 🐴 ❤ 🐾 ⾺ 🐴 ❤ 🐾 ⾺ 🐴 ❤ 🐾 ⾺ 🐴 ❤ 🐾

One thing I had to do was move the Minions and Lyra into the Fat Fighters Field, where Fivla and Delia had already taken up residence last night.

Fivla has turned into a hippo and she must be thinner quickly or it will kill her.

The Minions have not met Fivla before and they politely introduced themselves.

Storm was in love.

Fivla was not impressed.

Anyway, everyone could do with losing some rotundness.

Being Thordale ponies, they all instantly got along without fuss.

(I am thrilled BeAnne can pee and poo outside and that Fivla is home – little things, little things)

Fivla came home (to slim down), Taktur was running up and down the fence and BeAnne went to tell him off.

Suddenly she wasn’t running.  She had collapsed.  Her left side didn’t work.

I was busy trying to put Fivla in the stable (away from her Lothario) while carrying BeAnne in my arms.  She just lay there.

OH called the vet surgery  – none at the surgery until 17:00 (it was 15:00) – so I called again and said I thought BeAnne had had a stroke and she needed to see a vet now.  We were told to come over immediately and a vet would attend.

Daisy drove me while I sat in the passenger seat with BeAnne lying in my arms.  All I could do was tell her I was there, I loved her and she must stay calm.

The vet examined BeAnne and her right side was now not functioning (which made me doubt that I had seen her left side give up, but later OH confirmed this too).

Her right front leg had no reflexes.  The other three legs worked.  She could not weight bear and she flopped over onto her side if we tried to stand her up.  At the moment, she is paralysed.

The vet weighed her, gave her an injection of ACP (Acepromazine) and then x-rayed her. BeAnne was a good girl.  She managed without an anaesthetic and I stayed at her head telling her how proud I was of her and that her mother loved her.  No wriggling, no distress.  Just total trust.

Diagnosis so far:
BeAnne has a spinal cord lesion at C7 (just between her shoulder blades).  There was no evidence on the x-ray of a tumour but this cannot be ruled out as x-rays shows bones far better than soft tissue.

Treatment:
The vet wanted BeAnne to have complete bed rest.  This is possible up to a point but BeAnne’s main aim in life is to be with me, wherever I go.  She suffers from separation anxiety (as do I from her) and will do anything to find me at the detriment of herself.

So the plan is that we are going to sedate her for the next few weeks.  She can wake up for food and to go outside (if she can weight bear, or I will use a towel sling to keep her upright) for a pee and poo and then she will have another pill (ACP) and go back to bed.  The vet has lent us a crate that is just the right size for her usual bed and it will keep her contained.

She will have steroids and sedation in pill form.

At the moment, BeAnne  is sleeping.  She managed a slight woof, when I came in from taking Fivla to her Fat Fighters Field (Daisy stayed with her).  We haven’t negotiated the pee’ing process yet but we will and if we don’t she has one of Lambie’s incontinence pads under her.  Everything is washable.  I don’t care.  I just want her to be comfortable and rested.

I will sleep on a mattress downstairs next to her crate so she knows I am near her.

There will be someone with her all the time – me or Daisy.  Daisy is her next best friend and a good substitute for me.

We will now start playing the waiting game.  If she doesn’t respond to bedrest and start to regain her legs, then she will be referred south for a CT or MRI scan and possible surgery.

The bit that I can’t get my head around is that our local hospital has a CT scanner but it is for humans only.  Words fail.

All your prayers please.  All your kind thoughts.  BeAnne needs them.  She is my little precious heaven.