Monday, April 3
Apr. 4th, 2023 12:14 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
gottawonderToday I am grateful for:
Continued pleasant weather.
That I decided to take Roxy to the vet to check on her stitches.
Last night I noticed that her skin was tearing. Not the sutured incision, but the skin next to it. It worried me to no end that it would get worse if not addressed.
I called the vet's office, and they did not have an appointment time available. I got a cold response from the person answering the phone, almost a brush off. I had asked if it were possible to speak to the vet that did the surgery, and it was like "nah, she's busy".
I called back, since the first person put me on hold, and after five minutes I decided she wasn't picking it up again. This time, the person (a different person?) was warmer, and suggested that I send pictures and maybe the vet could look at them.
I decided to take Roxy with me to town instead, and just wait in the lobby of the clinic. Sometimes if you just show up and show a willingness to wait, a vet will find five minutes to look at something like stitches.
It was still a bit frustrating, since RIGHT ON THE CARE SHEET it says that you can ALWAYS get the vet to look at the incision if you have concerns.
Anyhow, after about an hour, right at the end of the day, the doctor that did the surgery was able to look at her, and then come talk to me.
She said that yes, Roxy had torn the fragile belly skin next to the incision, so she undid the top two stitches to take the strain off of her skin. The sutures weren't going to help if the skin around it was tearing. This is because they had to take some skin out with the lump, and pull it together to sew.
She likely tore it just squatting to poop, as we have really limited other exercise since the surgery.
They also cleaned it good, and she said the incision lower down was healing really well, so it will all hsve to heal kind of from the bottom up. She said it was staying pretty clean, but in light of the tearing, gave me more antibiotics for her.
They also did their best to put a dressing on it, though it's a terrible area to get it to stay.
Then we talked about the results from the biopsy that were back (I wonder when they were going to talk to us about it?).
It was indeed cancerous, and a very good thing we got the lump removed. The "good" news is that it was a Level One cancer, meaning localized and less likely to recur. She said the margins were clear.
So, while I will likely remain very vigilant about any growths, this is about as good as it gets.
So, I am pretty emotional about the events and just plain tired, as once again I didn't sleep especially well (though my congestion is mostly gone and I can breathe through my nose again).
I had to pick up more hay cubes, and spent some time petting the very old and sweet "barn cat" in the farm supply store.
Then by chance, I noticed that a new horse tack store opened up right across from the farm supply store. It actually carries English stuff. This is good news, since the only other REAL tack shop is in the city over an hour away from us. I only got a quick look around before they closed, but it's enough to know that it will be useful.
Then I went to the pottery studio. I had NO plans to throw or trim or anything, just to check to see if some pieces got fired. They did, and they look really good. I glazed them last week, but I was so wrapped up in my thoughts about Roxy I had no idea if they were going to work out.
Last week I didn't feel able to talk about Roxy, but after the better news today, I felt like I could.
The one lady that I have worked with a lot this winter was there, and I was kind of talking more to her though there were others present.
She gave me a big hug, and offered to come get black out drunk with me if I needed it. It was an odd (given that I don't really drink) but heartfelt offer, and I appreciate her willingness to come be with me if I needed a friend. She knows that I am alone a lot, and SHE is a widow, so I think she appreciates how hard it can be to deal with things alone.
We then talked about her husband's death, and the illness (and the miraculous events that led to him living about 8 years longer than they said he would) before his passing.
The once dog-walking friend showed up part way though, and that led to more discussions of dog related illnesses and treatments and just general life stuff.
So, while I didn't do anything related to pottery, I had a good visit with people for almost two hours, and I needed that more than anything else. It's been a stressful week of trying too hard to be strong.
Then I picked up some groceries, and it was nice to see the same clerk I often get since I shop the same time each week more or less. We joked a bit about "funny seeing you here" and talked for a while as I put through the groceries. It is so very nice to have these kinds of connections, even if they are somewhat ephemeral.
I'm sure it's nice for her too, to have someone "see" her as a real person.
I am grateful that my husband provides the means to care for our animals, so that I can be home with them, and to pay these vet bills, and to give me the TIME to do things like take an animal in to the vet. I'm grateful that he never gets stingy about caring for them, and that he cares for them too.
A lot of people hesitate to extend actual money towards caring for animals, and to recognize their intrinsic value.
I am grateful for getting groceries, as always.
I came home and put everything away.
I learned about the Panatal, an enormous region of flooded grassland that is mostly in Brazil, and parts of it are in Bolivia and Paraguay.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pantanal#Fauna
Continued pleasant weather.
That I decided to take Roxy to the vet to check on her stitches.
Last night I noticed that her skin was tearing. Not the sutured incision, but the skin next to it. It worried me to no end that it would get worse if not addressed.
I called the vet's office, and they did not have an appointment time available. I got a cold response from the person answering the phone, almost a brush off. I had asked if it were possible to speak to the vet that did the surgery, and it was like "nah, she's busy".
I called back, since the first person put me on hold, and after five minutes I decided she wasn't picking it up again. This time, the person (a different person?) was warmer, and suggested that I send pictures and maybe the vet could look at them.
I decided to take Roxy with me to town instead, and just wait in the lobby of the clinic. Sometimes if you just show up and show a willingness to wait, a vet will find five minutes to look at something like stitches.
It was still a bit frustrating, since RIGHT ON THE CARE SHEET it says that you can ALWAYS get the vet to look at the incision if you have concerns.
Anyhow, after about an hour, right at the end of the day, the doctor that did the surgery was able to look at her, and then come talk to me.
She said that yes, Roxy had torn the fragile belly skin next to the incision, so she undid the top two stitches to take the strain off of her skin. The sutures weren't going to help if the skin around it was tearing. This is because they had to take some skin out with the lump, and pull it together to sew.
She likely tore it just squatting to poop, as we have really limited other exercise since the surgery.
They also cleaned it good, and she said the incision lower down was healing really well, so it will all hsve to heal kind of from the bottom up. She said it was staying pretty clean, but in light of the tearing, gave me more antibiotics for her.
They also did their best to put a dressing on it, though it's a terrible area to get it to stay.
Then we talked about the results from the biopsy that were back (I wonder when they were going to talk to us about it?).
It was indeed cancerous, and a very good thing we got the lump removed. The "good" news is that it was a Level One cancer, meaning localized and less likely to recur. She said the margins were clear.
So, while I will likely remain very vigilant about any growths, this is about as good as it gets.
So, I am pretty emotional about the events and just plain tired, as once again I didn't sleep especially well (though my congestion is mostly gone and I can breathe through my nose again).
I had to pick up more hay cubes, and spent some time petting the very old and sweet "barn cat" in the farm supply store.
Then by chance, I noticed that a new horse tack store opened up right across from the farm supply store. It actually carries English stuff. This is good news, since the only other REAL tack shop is in the city over an hour away from us. I only got a quick look around before they closed, but it's enough to know that it will be useful.
Then I went to the pottery studio. I had NO plans to throw or trim or anything, just to check to see if some pieces got fired. They did, and they look really good. I glazed them last week, but I was so wrapped up in my thoughts about Roxy I had no idea if they were going to work out.
Last week I didn't feel able to talk about Roxy, but after the better news today, I felt like I could.
The one lady that I have worked with a lot this winter was there, and I was kind of talking more to her though there were others present.
She gave me a big hug, and offered to come get black out drunk with me if I needed it. It was an odd (given that I don't really drink) but heartfelt offer, and I appreciate her willingness to come be with me if I needed a friend. She knows that I am alone a lot, and SHE is a widow, so I think she appreciates how hard it can be to deal with things alone.
We then talked about her husband's death, and the illness (and the miraculous events that led to him living about 8 years longer than they said he would) before his passing.
The once dog-walking friend showed up part way though, and that led to more discussions of dog related illnesses and treatments and just general life stuff.
So, while I didn't do anything related to pottery, I had a good visit with people for almost two hours, and I needed that more than anything else. It's been a stressful week of trying too hard to be strong.
Then I picked up some groceries, and it was nice to see the same clerk I often get since I shop the same time each week more or less. We joked a bit about "funny seeing you here" and talked for a while as I put through the groceries. It is so very nice to have these kinds of connections, even if they are somewhat ephemeral.
I'm sure it's nice for her too, to have someone "see" her as a real person.
I am grateful that my husband provides the means to care for our animals, so that I can be home with them, and to pay these vet bills, and to give me the TIME to do things like take an animal in to the vet. I'm grateful that he never gets stingy about caring for them, and that he cares for them too.
A lot of people hesitate to extend actual money towards caring for animals, and to recognize their intrinsic value.
I am grateful for getting groceries, as always.
I came home and put everything away.
I learned about the Panatal, an enormous region of flooded grassland that is mostly in Brazil, and parts of it are in Bolivia and Paraguay.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pantanal#Fauna
no subject
Date: 2023-04-05 07:00 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2023-04-05 10:19 pm (UTC)I also have more time than most people to care for them.
It's something I reflect on, from time to time; how my life has become this animal caregiver role. What started as having animals for my enjoyment has shifted to something more akin to committing my self to service.
I hope she has many happy years ahead as well.