On The Mend

  The old dog, Mr. PJ has been suffering a good bit with his arthritis, as of late.  The poor, old dog would yelp in pain with each shift in position as he tried to nap.  His back legs stiffened to the point that he could hardly walk.  He was mighty uncomfortable, to say the least, and getting him up and down the steps of the Little Bayou House was a tremendous chore for me.  Mr. PJ is a large dog and I am not the strongest person.  I, too, have arthritis and helping the dog in and out was strenuous on me.  Son helped a good bit when he could but a lot of times the need was too urgent to wait for him to get here.  I toted the dog. One night, it was eleven times that I had to struggle to get the 67 pound dog out to potty.  Most of the time, there was not the true "urge" but rather hip and lower back pains making him think the outing was needed.  The poor animal was distraught and could not rest unless I was with him.  The first night, I sat near his bed and petted him for the entire night. The next morning, we made a visit to the vet.  Mr. PJ was checked and given a prescription but we were told that it would take several days for the pain to subside.  For two nights afterward, I slept on the floor consoling the pup. 

  Mr. PJ's health has been improving daily.  With the medicine in him, he is able to go up and down the steps.  He is happily taking long, albeit slow, hikes about the hillside again and, today, was elated to get on the pier.  His favorite napping spot had been sorely missed.  (I had been leery of his being over the water because he was stumbling a good bit.)  It is good to see my sweet friend being more active and looking happy again!