25th May

Phoebe's PCV is still hovering around the 40-45% mark which is really good. Phoebe's Prednisolene dose had been reduced to 7mg every two days, although her ciclosporine dose is remaining the same for the time being.

4th May

Phoebe had her weekly visit to the vets today. Her PCV was still around the 41% mark, which is brilliant! Her Vet has reduced her pred dosage to 7mg/day. Things are looking really good for Phoebe at the moment!

1st May

Phoebe's last PCV result was at 41%, so she is still very stable. Phoebe is pretty much back to her usual bouncy self! Her vet want to keep her on the same meds for another week or so, but will the look at further reductions!

19th April

Well I was being paranoid after all! Phoebe was back at the vets today and her PCV is up to 42%! This is great news as I have been very worried about her this week. Her vet wants to keep her on the same dose of medication for another few weeks at least.

17th April 2007

Phoebe seems to have gone a bit quieter over the past few days, her gums seem slightly paler also. I could be being paranoid of course, but I am a bit concerned about her. She is due back at the vets on Thursday, so we should know more then.

12th April - More good news!

Phoebe as been on her reduced dosage of Pred for a week now, and she seems to be doing really well. She was back at the vets today for another PCV test, the result was an amazing 40%. This is superb news, her vet wants to keep her on the same meds for the next couple of weeks before (all being well) reducing it again. It is so good to see her looking and acting so well, especially as things were looking very bad for her just a few weeks ago.

5th April - More Progress

Phoebe was back at the vets again yesterday. Her PCV has risen 1% since Monday to 36%. Our vet has decided to drop Phoebe's Prednisolene dosage down to 13mg/day (She weighs 13kg). Phoebe will stay on 50mg/day of Cyclosporin for the next couple of weeks along with Antepsin 2g (3 per day) and Zantac Suspension 150 mg (twice daily). I guess this will be the telling time, hopefully she will continue to increase or at least hold her red-blood cell count where it is presently. The medium-term aim is hopefully to have the lowest possible maintenance dose of Prednisolene and give it to Phoebe alternate days to give her kidneys and liver some rest bite. Phoebe seems to be doing really well, she has a fair bit of energy. However she is still snoozing a lot. I am still limiting her exercise to a brief walk into the garden, though I am hoping that it will not be long before I can start taking her for short walks as I am sure she is getting a bit bored with the garden!

2nd April - The only way is up baby!

Phoebe is continuing to do really well, she still has significantly more energy than she had a few weeks ago. Though she does need to rest a lot which is understandable! We went to the vets for another PCV test and her red-blood cell count is up to 35% which is excellent. We are back for another test on Thursday.

30th March

Phoebe is doing really well, she has loads more energy! She had a trip to the vets and her PCV is now at 33%, this is excellent news as her Red-blood Cell count is increasing fairly rapidly! We are back at the vets on Monday, so hopefully we will have a further increase.

26th March - SUPER PHOEBE!!

Phoebe was at the vets today and her PCV is now at 26%! She is looking much better. The Vet was really pleased and said that he did not need to see Phoebe until next week. However for my own piece of mind I have booked her in for another PCV test on Friday - Hoping for a stress free weekend!

It is really great to see Phoebe improving, it is still early days but things are looking really good for her!

25th March

Phoebe seems to doing pretty well at the moment. She has a relatively large amount of energy at the moment, well it comes in bouts (she is still sleeping a lot in between)! We are back at the vets tomorrow, so fingers crossed there will be another increase in her PCV!

23rd March

Phoebe was back at the vets this morning and her PCV is now up to 20%. There is still evidence of red-blood cell breakdown but this also seems to be reduced. This is good news, but we have been here before so the next few blood test will give a truer picture I guess.
In addition to the medication Phoebe is currently on, she is also on 50mg/day of Cyclosporin.

Things are looking a lot more positive than they were last week, but we still have a long way to go!

20th March

Phoebe's PCV was still around the 16% mark today. She is still holding her own, though she does have less energy than she has had recently. Phoebe is back at the vets on Friday, so we should no more then.

19th March

Phoebe had another blood test today and her PCV has dropped to 16%. This is really not the news I was hoping for today. I was expecting it to have dropped slightly as I felt she had less energy this morning, but I had not anticipated such a reduction.
The vet suggested that Phoebe's antibodies may be reacting to the transfused blood that is still in her system, so the dramatic drop in her PCV may not be as bad as it sounds. Her blood results from last Thursday showed that she is producing new red blood cells, but at a very slow rate. Phoebe is back at the vets tomorrow morning for another blood test.The vet is considering using some alternative immuno-suppressant drugs and a series of injections to help stimulate the bone marrow to produce new blood cells.

Sorry this post is not as up-beat as my last, but I am very worried about Phoebe.

16th - 18th March

Phoebe seems to be be pretty stable on the whole, though I thought she may have had slightly less energy on the 18th of March. She is still being very sneaky with her medication, pretending she has swallowed the tablets when she hasn't! We are back at the vets tomorrow, we should get the results from her blood tests taken last Thursday and the vet will take another PCV test.

15th March - More positive progress!

Phoebe was at the vets again this morning for another full blood analyses. We should get these results on Monday. Her PCV is now at23.5%! This is excellent news, fingers crossed it will continue to rise.
I know it is still early days and the next few weeks will be the crucial time, but I am feeling really optimistic for Phoebe. Phoebe has now got some colour back into her gums and has so much more energy. That said, she thinks she has more energy than she actually has. She was very excited this morning jumping about and wagging her tail. Phoebe really enjoyed the interactions at the vets (apart from having blood taken!) but has been flat out snoozing since we got back home.Phoebe by her very nature is a very excitable dog, but I am trying to keep her calm where possible as I know how imperative rest is to increase the chances of recovery.
It is so good to see her making good steady progress!

14th March

Phoebe seems well today. I have fed her on small quantities of bland food today to allow her stomach to settle down. she is keeping her food down and her diarrhea seems to have subsided.
Phoebe has more energy today, she is constantly wagging her tail and following me around. Though she does tire quite quickly and is sleeping a lot. There is more colour in Phoebe's gums, they are still pale but distinctly pink tinged!
We have a visit to the vets tomorrow, I am hopeful of another rise in her PCV! It is so good to have her back home again!

13th March - Phoebe's Home!

We picked Phoebe up this morning, she seemed very bright and was very excited to see us! Her PCV is still at around the 21% mark.

Phoebe is the brightest she has been since becoming ill. However since coming home she has been a lot quieter and has been sick three times and also has diarrhea. I am sure I am being paranoid now, but after feeling initially positive about her progress I am now very worried again. I just called the vet that has been looking after Phoebe at the Edinburgh Royal Dick and he suggested that I laid off feeding her until tomorrow to allow her stomach to settle again. Phoebe has been through a fair bit this past week and a 3 hour car journey has probably not helped her stomach! If Phoebe is still being sick tomorrow morning I will take her to her vet for piece of mind.

I feel I have been very lucky with both my local vet and the vet who looked after Phoebe at the hospital, they have both been very helpful and caring, always happy to speak to me if I have anything I am worried about.

12th March

I heard from the Vet this afternoon. Phoebe seems to be doing fairly well. The Vet said that she was a lot brighter today and her PCV is up to 21%. This is excellent news as it is the first time her PCV has increased post-transfusion. Phoebe's blood tests today also showed that her bone-marrow is producing new red-blood cells. The rate at which the new red-blood cells are being produced is quite slow, but it is a step in the right direction!
What is more we are able to pick her up tomorrow, I can't wait!
Thanks to some very good friends we have managed to get together enough money to pay her hospital bill (thanks very much, you know who you are!).
I am feeling more positive now than I have since Phoebe first fell ill, though I know she has a long way to go.

10th March

I have heard from the Vet again this afternoon. Phoebe is stable, her PCV has showed no change from post-transfusion yesterday (19%). Phoebe has her appetite back again, and has a lot more energy. I just hope that her bone-marrow kicks into action soon. I asked the vet about thyroid issues and he did not seem to think that this was likely with Phoebe's condition. I am really missing her, I wish I could see her to give her a cuddle! Providing there is no negative change in her state I will not hear anymore news until Monday afternoon once her full blood results will be available, it is going to me a very long wait!!