Monday, January 4, 2010

Thistle Sacks and C6 Results

Today I stopped at Ocean State Job Lot, a local discount store, to see if they had thistle sacks to make my own "Tug It," per Kathleen's recommendation. I bought three figuring they might not last long, and I was right. Two are already ripped to shreds!

I cut up a sample of the Natural Balance Duck & Potato which contains a protein both boys can eat. Apparently I have forgotten that Natural Balance rolls are like doggie crack. Wow. Ike thought the sack was fun and wanted to do the terrier death shake to it, while Bug just wanted to make off with it. Bug tore the first bag, so I placed the torn bag inside a new bag. Bug thought tugging on the sack was the BEST and proceeded to rip #2. So, it looks like this would indeed be a useful training tool for Bug and I should bite the bullet and order a "Tug It" since the thistle sacks don't last long.

In other news I heard from the New Vet today with the boys' C6 results. Bug's C6 was 138 (down from 424). HOORAY!!! That is a difference of 286!! Literature says if it drops by 50% at the six-month follow-up you can feel confident the Lyme was successfully treated; Bug's dropped by 67%. I will likely do another six-month follow-up with Bug - just to be sure his antibody level continues to drop (paranoid). Now of course, I do need to figure out why I think he is off. Hopefully the acupuncture will help that.

Ike's C6 is 254 and New Vet would like to treat with doxy. I am going to contact my homeopathic vet. My inclination is to treat, but I want to be open with my homeopathic vet.

Bug's good news overshadows Ikey's titer results. I don't feel like 254 is that high (compared to 424) and Ike is not showing pain. I am REALLY curious to see if I notice any changes in Ike's behavior once treatment starts. I wonder if his high titer is related to his increased reactivity with T, among other things.

5 comments:

Sam said...

Good news for Bug, and Ike sounds like he's on the mend, too! I definitely think the reactivity could be linked to something medical - and I hope that's the case so that it goes away!

Holly said...

am so happy about Bug! Good thoughts for Ike - he should respond quite well to the treatment.

Jenn said...

Have you ever had Ike's thyroid tested? Compared to Bug's numbers Ike's don't seem that high - but every dog is different so treating with doxy is definitely an option. Oh - and now I have to go look up Tug its! I have a dog training friend that just had a baby this summer and she has a mesh bag for her baby that I think she said was similar to a tug it. It has holes so Gracie can mash food through it but not get any pieces big enough to choke on. for some reason it totally cracked me up that it was like a dog toy.

Dawn said...

Good news for Bug, I hope Ikes count can come down. While you are waiting for your tug it, regular old white sock works well and holds up a bit better than the thistle bag. I used one with peanut butter in it to start teaching Grace to tug. Just be sure to store in plastic as the oils leach out.

Jules said...

@ Sam + Holly - Thank you - I am so excited for Bug!

@ Jenn - Yes, I had Ike's thyroid tested 2 years ago - I believe. Everything was totally normal! That's really funny about the baby accessory - what you are describing sounds exactly like a Tug It!

@ Dawn - oh...good point/idea. I have used a sock with Ike before - I put Guinea Pig droppings and urine soaked bedding in it to get him amped up, but I think food would work better for both boys. And they LOVE PB.