My Analysis Of Stella By Photos

Like any other pet owner, when there is a medical issue or looks like a medical problem, we all look back to see when it happened, how it happened or did we miss anything.
So today I thought I'd post what I looked at yesterday, trying to double check and see if I had missed a sign or something that led us to being concerned enough for a couple of different vet trips and different tests for Stella.

Not until I went through my photo file in Stella's folder did I see that my memory was not as sharp as I thought. I was inaccurate in thinking Stella had not ran for months, or when was the last time her tail was upright and curled and most importantly ... when she started looking and feeling skinny.

For easy searching like this, I have a lot of different folders for my picture library on my computer. Within those folders I add a title to the first picture of the day in the form of yyyy mmm date. I keep the pictures within each folder sorted with newest on top. Consequently it was easy to scroll through thousands of pictures looking for the certain points I was looking for.

Those points were running, playing, tail up and curled, how she looked, the leash, and when both her and Sadie were side by side on the prowl.

My search lead me back all the way to October 14, 2016 where these first four pictures took place. It was the looked like a good starting picture to show her rib cage and how she looked. They showed her running at full speed and the first time my pictures picked up her scratching ... that she is still doing this morning.

All through November, December to January 2nd I found pictures of her running full speed. Honestly I had forgotten she had ran this much and this recently.

I started to see a slimmer waistline for her but I always thought when she was looking a little thinner it was because of the two and sometimes three walks per day for about 30 minutes each she was getting, along with the running.

Nothing is ever regular in her running, it might not happen every walk but when she does run it is usually at full speed.

Not quite 4 months later she is still scratching but I have yet to find any fleas, raw skin, etc ... even as of this morning. At the time of this picture January 2, 2017 she is still eating the same food she has ate the majority of the time since arriving in August 2015.

Again my memory the other day failed me when I had forgot she had played, wrestled, with Sadie out in the snow in January 5th. I did not see any of this inside the house this winter like I did in 2016.

I am not seeing any issues with her looks here. Maybe a little thin but she looks active and I think with her tail upright and curled that is a good sign. It is the first time that I saw any kind of ribs showing every so slightly ... it's January 11th.

I started increasing her portions of kibble, thinking with her recent activity she is burning more calories than she is taking in. She was slightly overweight when she arrived in August 2015 but she was free fed. I feed her twice per day as per her request but it's weird feeding times.

She wants food first thing in the day and then starts howling at lunch usually around 11:30am but doesn't anytime after that until the next morning.

Through the month of January all activity looks to be normal. I don't really have any concerns and figure the added kibble will put some weight back on her.

By February 4th I don't see anything that would make me think that anything is wrong with her. Even this morning there may not be anything wrong with her and I believe the two visits to the vet prove that. Yet I can't forget how different she looked one year ago yesterday, April 21 2016 in the picture I posted yesterday on this blog. The picture below was taken February 4th of this year.

I know it sounds weird but I did not rule out the possibility that when I put a 6' standard leash on her to keep her from running off during our walks, February 10th, that just maybe that had something to do with her lack of activity and seeing her tail in a lowered position more and more as we walked. Then again that could be over-analysis.

Then about the time I think something might be wrong with her, looking a little sick, hard to tell with a bloodhound expression .... she takes off running at full speed to come from way behind us to catch us on the start of our walk on February 23rd.

Even though the temps are warmer plus she has had one bath with a shampoo that is geared to relieve itching, she sits in the sun on March 4th and scratches away.

We week later I am starting to see more ribs. but at the same time I have switched to a rated 4-star food with more protein and fat. I know it will take up to 4 months before I could see a change but Heidi was showing a lot of improvement with weeks of eating the new food.

I had forgot all about her trip to the neighbor's drainage ditch. I am not sure how long she was there as Sadie and I were walking and I had left Stella behind early in the walk to let her do what she wanted. I also have never smelled anything foul from this ditch so it is NOT like an open sewer or septic tank type of runoff.

Still ... it is a drainage ditch and their has to be something coming out of those pipes that can't be too healthy. This took place on March 14.

Now I am getting concerned when I see this picture and at the time when I pet her I have been feeling more bones than I want. Her hips, shoulders and her ribs are too boney. On March 18th we go to the vet for a checkup and a blood test to see if there is anything internally going on.

If you think she is sick and something going on .... the afternoon walk on the same day as the vet trip .... she is running full speed like nothing is out of the ordinary.

Her and Sadie spend the next week running all over the field on our walks. With a clean blood test result and a vet that is not that concerned, I keep the added kibble going and wait for some signs of her gaining weight.

On March 29, a little over a month since the change to kibble that is higher protein and fat ... I think I am seeing some weight gain. She looks to be back to her old self, active, curious but I forget that she was running full speed just a week or so before and tell myself I can't remember the last time she ran really hard in the field.

I still wonder if something is wrong with her. After doing searches on the internet, and reading information on PetMD website I am not finding any kind of symptoms listed, that Stella is showing. Once I thought it was possible thyroid problem or maybe she was getting diabetic ... yet everything was looking normal from her daily routines.

On April 20th, just a few days ago I thought she was looking better, maybe a little heavier ... still I could not remember the last time she had ran at full speed. She had loved to run in the field before and recently when she had the same situations to run, she stood and looked. Plus she had been walking slowly more and more on our walks.

So, after talking to the vet owner about my concerns, we went back in yesterday for a different test than we did in March with their other vet. He wanted to see her in person just to make sure.

After some squeezing, probing and checking her heart rate he did not see any reason for x-rays. With a strong heart rate, a normal appetite, normal stools and a tick/heartworm test coming back negative he felt she might not have been processing the protein in food in the past.

Like I stated on last night's update, he suggested changing food and source of protein plus monitor her weight using their scales for free. When I told him we were on week 9 since we last changed food to a higher protein and higher fat, he said to stick with that food for another couple of months.

He said they can loose weight fast but it takes much longer to add that lost weight back on.

As you can see Sadie was happy to have her friend back. With Heidi taking her big chair to sleep in, she moved to the couch with Stella. As far as Stella is concerned, she is fine and there is nothing going on ... except that crazy scratching.

With all the two tests showing all things are good and a 7-8 weeks of more added kibble to her meals, I am expecting to see some improvements on her weight where the ribs don't show and she does some sprinting in the field.

Someone asked what supplements I was giving her for possible joint and hip pain ... I am giving her four chews per day of this Hypoallergenic Hip & Joint Supplements. (not an affiliate link)

Let me know if you think I have missed anything that I should have noticed or if you have any ideas. In the meantime I will keep you posted.

Stella Update - Nothing Serious

The weatherman wasn't joking the other night when he said those afternoon rains Thursday afternoon would bring cooler temps behind it. Nothing drastic but a 20° decrease was somewhat of a rude awakening this morning.

All that meant though, a sweatshirt had to be added to the shorts and t-shirt combo for this morning's walk. Sometime in the middle of the night I woke up and shut all of the windows due to the cold breeze blowing inside.

Sadie did not show her normal excitement for walking Friday morning, at least inside, as I was getting ready. Stella was still sleeping on the floor behind my desk chair and Sadie even laid on the floor while I changed shoes for the walk. Usually Sadie is giving me 'the stare' to walk by 8:30am.

With more rain scheduled by 2pm Friday I was hoping the grass would be dry enough to mow before then. Without a hot sun and very cloudy I wasn't sure it would be. I had to mow the yard before 2pm no matter what. The grass is tall and a prediction of rain Friday afternoon and all day on Saturday I cannot afford to wait. I was able to get it cut with time to spare.

I decided about a foot outside the door that I was going to let Stella do whatever she wanted and go where ever she wanted on this morning's walk. I figured the worse case would be me having to walk over to the neighbor's woods to get her.

It was surprising to see her trotting to catch up to us and continued to follow the path along with me. Sadie had already locked into a scent and fallen into a unconscious state, taking off on her own exploration.

Sadie showed the most excitement of the day when she buried her head into the tall grass. I could hear her jowls making that strange noise bloodhounds make as she inhaled her newest adventure.

Stella was taking her normal stroll along the path. It's Friday and to her there is nothing to rush.

Sadie took off in a sprint as fast as she could go. She had figured out exactly where "they" had gone and she would find them. At least she thought she would find them.

At this point in time she knew "they" had to be nearby but where were they? Who is they?? The deer of course.

More searching was involved but she still did not come up with any answers and didn't find the suspects.

The lack of results didn't slow her desire and she continued to search at a frantic pace because she knew they had to be here somewhere.

In the past Stella would have sprinted toward Sadie as soon as Sadie started running ... but not today, she stood looking, barely wagging her tail.

Sadie in the meantime had finally called it quits. She knew the deer had headed into the 'no fly zone' and she had done all she could do today. Looking back through pictures from a year ago, Sadie and Stella had a great deer chase this time last year ... really just a few days ago last year.

It's times like these as a pet owner, you wish they could talk verbally and tell you what is wrong with them. Every test, exam, her systems are normal and that is what is confusing the situation.

She leisurely strolled toward her favorite wooded area but I found out she was only following a scent and then moved back in Sadie's direction. She seemed to follow this same path the past week on both walks of the day.

With Sadie and I on the south edge of the yard, Stella walked straight for the house door. Not even a glance in our direction. It was too early for lunch, so that wasn't her reason. Once I sat down at the computer to download the pictures taken, she curled up behind my chair and went back to sleep. That is her normal routine until lunch is served.

With the vet having walk-in hours until 7pm, I waited until the end before taking her over to the vet. The last time I went at prime time in the afternoon, the place was packed and I was there almost 3 hours. A different vet at the small facility wanted to see her and do a different test.

He gave her a heartworm/tick 4DX Combo Test. I was glad to see that all of the results were negative. He thinks it's possible she stopped processing protein from her kibble and suggested changing food. When I told him I was on week 9 since changing food he told me to wait and see how she reacts.

It could take up to 16 weeks before the food change makes any difference. Sometimes I might see differences before that. Stella weighed 65 pounds today.

Combined with the blood work their other vet did and showing everything was normal, with no diarrhea nor vomiting, he does not feel there is anything serious going on with her.

I did find out on the way over, 11 miles, that Stella was able to lay down across the back, side to side, of the Mini Cooper Countryman. She slept most of the way there and back for her first ride in the Mini.

Sadie was thrilled  when her buddy returned home. She started barking, which she rarely does. Sprinted around the house, sprinted outside and then sniffed every inch of Stella while wagging her tail.

So as far as we know, everything is good with Stella and we will take her back in a couple of weeks to get weighed. He did say that as fast as they lose weight it will take longer to put it back on. I showed him the picture of her taken one year ago as a comparison.

Sorry this blog post is rushed, probably not enough detail for some but it's late. I figured some news is better than no news. I'll write more in Saturday's post.

Light rain tonight here in 'the tropics' of southern Indiana.

What's Wrong With Stella ??

One of the features of Facebook and Google Photos is, they will automatically show you a picture from 1 year ago, sometimes 3 years and even 5 years ago. It's nice to look back at those pictures most of the time, other times not so much.

As long as the pictures are on file, they will remind me with pictures of Winston and other past hounds that have passed on. In Stella's case, today's Facebook reminder showed me just how much different her health was just one year ago today.

I started noticing a change in her coat last December along with a loss of weight. Her ribs were starting to show. She was always near the color of Sadie and same texture of hair. Except on her lower tail was a coarse black and tan. In the middle of December her overall coat started changing to the that coarse texture with a few black hairs showing up.

She also started scratching a lot, which was something she never did. What was more concerning to me was her loss of weight. Nothing had changed in her diet, lifestyle or her appetite. She howls daily at lunch time when it's time to eat. She still is a happy go lucky personality ... but two things have been different.

The two pictures of her running were taken one year ago today. That is one thing she no longer does and she use to LOVE to run ... she ran every chance she got. The picture below is from this morning's walk and is the new normal for her. She might trot at times but she never runs like before.

The second thing she stopped doing these past four months is playing with Sadie. When cabin fever would hit in the winter, she would nudge Sadie to see if a wrestling match was in order. Not this winter nor this spring so far.

There is a lot of difference in her energy level in one years time. Sure, she is getting older and will be 8 years old this July but I have never had a basset hound nor a bloodhound change their activity this much just because they are getting older.

The picture above is one year ago, the one below was taken this morning. She does more of this slow walking than anything else.

Again, a year ago her color was a lot like Sadie's and she was much more muscular. At times it was hard to tell them apart.

The picture below was take last week, even after showing signs that she is gaining her weight back slowly but surely. If it wasn't the weight loss, I'd think that she was only having old age issues with her joints hurting, which is part of being a large breed.

With the weight loss starting in the middle of December (confirmed by photos) I decided it was just not a joint problem. With her annual check up not due until August, I didn't wait and took her in to see the vet. They did blood work ... all levels normal. No sign of worms, nor heart worms.

They gave her some antibiotics and approved of the joint supplement I had bought online. So far, after a little more than a month, I've seen no changes except for the slight weight gain. She has not ran full speed but has trotted a little more since the weather is warmer.

With the bloodhound normal expression it is hard at times to tell if they are felling bad in some way. Like any other dog, they don't let on if they are in a lot of pain. They mask it quite well.

I will keep you posted with any updates but I'll admit I am and have been concerned with the changes in her.

The Hounds Still Get Two Walks Around A Thunderstorm

Stella decided to protest this morning when I caught her veering off in the direction of the neighbor's field. When I yelled her name, she stopped walking and stared at me. When I said "over here", words that she has been responding to very well these past few weeks ... she sat down and wouldn't move.

You may have noticed my front page to the blog has changed a little. Instead of one page with the latest post and 18-27 pictures all included ... I have manually added a page break. Then I changed my settings back to 7 posts per page.

I like the look of it and I am getting favorable feedback from a few readers that not only like the format but also tell me my blog loads faster and uses less data. 

I really think I will stay with this new format. I just wish there was a different way to add the page break to pasts post all at once instead of one at a time. With that process I have done 21 posts or 3 pages worth and may not do any more previous posts. The current or future posts will slowly push the older format further back in the blog.

I also think with the new format, it will be easier to see when I make more than one post per day. Sometimes there are more pictures in a day that can fit on one post or more topics floating in my head than can fit in one post. So be sure to check for multiple posts per day sometimes.

For some reason this morning I was more anxious to get the morning walk started than even Sadie. I had to asked both of them if they wanted to go for a walk, instead of the norm of Sadie standing and staring at me.

What a change it is to start your morning walk with temperatures in the mid 70's instead of the high 20's. Yes, I know that was months ago but I always remember those freezing walks. I am not a fan of cold weather.

Stella decided to take it slower than normal this morning. I did not bring the 6' leash and in fact it is no longer thought about when we start to go outside. Like I said yesterday, most of the time she has been walking with us instead of her making trips to the neighbor's woods.

Again, Sadie was always too close for pictures. I think I found out why as we made the final turn home.

Parts of the field are growing by the hour it seems, while other parts have grass that is no taller than an inch high. I forget that it's only April and we will still have plenty of time before the hay gets tall enough to where the hounds are hard to see.

When I turned around and didn't see Stella, I assumed that she had gone past her boundary and was either heading down into the gully or close to the edge of the bank. I couldn't see her anywhere until I downloaded the picture, made it larger. Then I could barely see some of that bloodhound red hair dead center in the picture.

I was happy to see when I called her name, she came trotting out of the thick brush.

As we made the final turn home, I noticed a tick on top of her hair on her neck. Then after closer inspection found one digging into her ear. Last April was so much worse for ticks that I had a counter up in the left corner of the blog with a current count of ticks pulled off the hounds and me.

If they were on one hound, Sadie probably had one too. She always acts different when she has multiple ticks on her. I think that is why she kept walking so close to me this morning that I could take pictures of her.

I don't know how I missed these ticks on her ears, but two of them on the outside of her ears had been there long enough to be a little full. The two inside her ears had not even dug in yet. When we got back home and I could use my "tick off" tool, I found 3 ticks on one spot outside of her ear.

She was more than happy after I pulled them off.

I decided to sneak out to Walmart before the hounds started howling for lunch. The rain/storms were not due until around 2pm and I wanted to make sure I was home when they happened so Stella had zero chances of freaking out. She has not made any damages while I have been gone in a little over 4 months !!!!

I made it back in plenty of time. The sun was out and I drove the Z4 over with with the top down. The more west I went the darker the clouds were getting. I was wondering if I was going to make it to the parking lot so I could put the top back up before it rained. I was only in the store long enough to make an exchange but when I came outside it had poured rain.

The further east I went the sun came back out and based on what I was seeing on the roads, it had not rained at all. Radar showed spots of storms in the Midwest. I just happened to hit one.

It was a different story at 1:30pm. The winds picked up, the smell of rain filled the air and Stella moved her sleeping spot over next to the big kitchen island to sleep under cover on the inboard side away from the windows. That seems to be a consistent storm spot for her.

The rain was hard, it came down sideways and was gone within 15 minutes. Cold air followed it and it was cold enough to put on a sweatshirt for a short period of time. It still looked like it was possible for a fairly dry late afternoon walk ... in the meantime I wasted my afternoon away playing Mahjong and enjoying my view from the kitchen table.

With every container of cottage cheese or yogurt, the hounds get to lick out what is left of the container and Sadie always gets the last chance. Sometimes she has to put the container in the prime spot to get the very last drop of cottage cheese.

By late afternoon the sunshine was out and it felt hot outside. The backyard grass didn't see that wet so we took off for our 2nd walk of the day. Sadie took off from the start with all of that added protein she finished an hour earlier.

Stella did many stops to either investigate or to scratch. I am not sure there is anything to scratch and that it might be a habit. I think the habit option might be real because she will stop in the exact same places in the walk to scratch.

She was moving all over the field this afternoon and at no time did I have to give her a verbal command to follow us, catch up with us or move our direction.

She slow trotted into the backyard, stepped on my foot as she ran past me and met me at the door wanting back inside. LOL ... she doesn't realize just how heavy that one foot of hers feels when being stepped on.

I can't see much more happening tonight but a little Cincinnati Reds baseball on FoxSports Ohio/Cin and more cold ice tea. We've had a good thunderstorm, two hound walks, lunches and a short trip to WallyWorld ... quite a day.

Retirement is good here in 'the tropics' of southern Indiana.