Update on Jordan

When I came home from work today I was pleasantly surprised to see Jordan more alert. I'm not sure if it was because her narcotics were wearing off, or if she was simply feeling better. When I looked into her eyes I could see her again.

As I sat on the edge of the sofa and talked to Joe about her, I noticed her trying to scratch her face with her back paw - one of the 2 paws she'd been unable to move yesterday! I told Joe to look and she did it again. I rubbed her head and told her what a good girl she was. She enjoyed the rare petting from me, since I am allergic I usually don't pet her.

Then Joe told me that while he was out of the room for a few minutes she had managed to get herself into the bathroom, where her water bowl is usually kept. (The meds make her thirsty.) This too, seemed to be an improvement, as she had not been mobile since Thursday!

We decided to go out for dinner and talk about Joe's interview. For the last 3 months he has been acting as interim director and today was his 2nd interview, a panel interview, for the permanent director position.

Normally Jordan barks when she hears the car's engine stop and she knows we've come home, but she had not done that since Thursday. Tonight when we pulled into the driveway and turned off the engine, it was like music to our ears: Jordan was barking! Joe said excitedly "Do you hear that??"

When we got inside Joe lifted Jordan into her laundry basket and we went into the back yard so she could go to the bathroom, eat, drink, and have her meds (cleverly smuggled into peanut butter balls or slices of cheese). He sat her on the grass, and before he could lift her into her typical peeing position, she tried to get herself up and walk. She didn't quite do that, but she did get herself a few feet away, where she leaned forward and peed. She had not peed without assistance since Thursday. When she finished peeing we gave her lots of praise and petting, and she ate, drank, and took her meds.

So, the fact that she is getting some movement back in her hind legs, she's started barking again, and the fact that she never stopped eating, we are very hopeful that she will continue to improve. Of course we can't tell if she will fully recover or not, be we are certainly much more hopeful than we were on Saturday.

Thanks to all for your kind inquiries and concern. More later.