What a difference a day (and night) makes

The nasty virus that everyone has been talking about, well, it hit my house.  Only it didn't affect me, it rendered it's fury on my four legged baby girl, Marleigh.  

I didn't sleep much Sunday night due to things running through my mind...  you know, taxes, photo shoots, things to do during the week, etc.  So I just knew that Monday night was going to be my night of getting some sleep that I so desperately needed.  Wrong.  After watching The Bachelor and just about lost my religion over who he picked, I went to sleep around 11 p.m.  And about midnight I was awoken by Marleigh whining and shaking.  And a few things went through my mind...

First of all I should probably share with you that Marleigh is my only baby.  She may not be human but she is and will forever be my first child.  For those of you who disagree, you can stop reading this now.  She is a chocolate and tan, short haired miniature dachshund weighing about 14 pounds.  

She brings me much joy and I don't really remember life without her.  She is my parents first granddog (they now have two, my brother has a long haired miniature dachshund.)  They love her so much that she goes and stays with them on the weekends and sometimes longer.  Marleigh isn't a cheap baby either...  She has had her fair share of problems over her almost 7 year life.  The shots she is suppose to get every six months, well, she is allergic to some of them so now she only gets the ones she HAS to have.  She has never been nor will ever be boarded so the wonderful docs at Till-Newell decided which shots she now gets.  That was just the beginning of my what we now call my "special child."

October 2007, after moving back to Meridian in Aug 2007, she developed a very high fever and stopped eating or even wanting to walk.  We almost lost her that Saturday night... but thanks to Dr. Misty McNeil and Dr. Daniel Newell at Till-Newell she recovered from what they call, a mystery.  And as many know, dachshunds are known for having back problems due to their long spines.  You guessed it, she had a ruptured disc in her neck in July and had to have major surgery at the MSU Vet Hospital the first week of Aug 2009.  Thankfully, she has recovered from all the above and is doing great now.  She is expensive, but very much worth it.  She is a cutie but her personality alone will make you fall in love with her.

Thinking the worst Monday night, it was a relief to know that she was only having tummy problems.  This continued however every 30 minutes.  And if you recall, Monday night was cold, rainy and windy.  She has been trained to only go outside and that's all she knows.  So every 30 minutes, we were going outside in the monsoon.  Both of us would come in wet and cold after each trip out.  So, yesterday morning we were at the vet at 7 a.m.  She got two shots, two different pills and a paste (which smells like peanut butter) and can only have chicken and rice for the next few days.  It was still rough after we got home yesterday morning but by noon things were looking up.  

No rest for the weary though, I had photo shoots all afternoon.  Mom came to sit with her while I was gone and fixed her rice to go with the chicken I had boiled.  (I can cook but have no clue how to make rice.  It is always gooey when I make it.)

Finally, at 8 p.m. last night, I was in the bed and sound asleep.  And my sweet little girl slept, too.  She woke me up at midnight needing to go out but we came back in and she climbed in her recliner and slept until 6 this morning.  I'm telling you - my bed never felt so good.  And I'm thankful for no bags under my eyes today!