The Story of BB the Great Dane

The Brothers Grin paying attention, 20 weeks

Okay. The physical therapy is not going so well for the Beebs. He still refuses to use his fixed leg. And doing the manual manipulation… he resists it terribly. To the point that his muscles are so tense, so tight, I can barely move the joints. I tried “tricking” him, by just moving the leg enough to feel resistance, and holding it there until he relaxed and had some chew time on his bone. Then I moved it some more.

But he only let it go so far before the ooching and shoving started. It’s not far enough. I’ve just held him down and done it, but that worries me. If I try stretching a tense muscle too hard, there is the risk of tearing it more than stretching it. I’m wondering if walking first rather than last will tire him enough that he can’t resist as much.

On a hunch, I tried manipulating the other legs. Yep. What I thought: not that it hurts so much as he doesn’t want his parts messed with. If there are any physical therapists out there, PLEASE give us some advice? Would a muscle relaxant be strong enough to stone him and make it easier for him? Or would it reduce his bite inhibition too much?

I have a friend who used to do some PT with me. She doesn’t manipulate so much as do muscle releases. Instead of torqing my neck around, she turned it slightly, found a pressure point, and held it until the muscle relaxed. I’m calling her Tuesday!

You might have noticed that I did his pt last night. I discovered yesterday, that Mom sits on the couch crying while she’s got my brother doing it for her. Later, I gently reminded her she can’t do that. She can’t dump it on someone else. BB trusts her, he needs her, and being upset only makes him upset. He’s not in awful pain, though I’m sure it’s uncomfortable. BB just doesn’t want it done. He wants to be left alone, and he can’t be.

And BB’s personality is more timid than ever. That’s not unexpected, but he refuses to walk on anything but carpet. In a house with laminate floors, that’s not going to work. The most concerning thing though, is his reaction to my neice, Emily.

Em is 2, and loves the pups. But she is 2. She’s loud, sudden in her movements, and at eye level with him. Alot of timid dogs don’t handle kids well. We’ve dealt with that before. He will take treats from her, let her touch and play with him, then suddenly he doesn’t.

Yesterday, after about 4 hours of her running about and yelling and all the stuff small children do, Beebs was really really stressed. Mom had put him in the expen shortly before I came downstairs from a nap, hoping she’d leave him alone. She did for awhile, but while I made dinner, Mom and Mike went to sleep. Dammit, they should know better.

When I came in the living room to see what the carrying on was all about, she was throwing his toys at him. No telling how long that had been going on. He barked at her, he moved to the middle of the expen where she couldn’t reach him, and generally looked like he wanted to run away.

If Mike hadn’t planned to take his daughter downstairs, I was going to tell him to. Later, after Em was gone for awhile, she came back, and when she reached for his bone, he snapped. He had her fingers in his mouth growling. He left no marks, but all the same, it’s clear he doesn’t want her near him.

He gave no warning either. One moment he was calm. The next he wasn’t. All his previous warnings had been ignored, and no one was listening when I said he was being pushed too far.

So there’s gonna be a showdown about keeping Em away from BB. Not just in the same room, but AWAY. She can monkey about with Kenai, he handles it all gracefully. But BB can’t take it. He’s stressed, he’s in pain, and he shouldn’t be subjected to hours upon hours of something that frightens him. The timidity can be worked on, but not while he feels so vulnerable and afraid.

I’m a bit put out with Mom about it all. I understand how hard it is, really I do. I’ve watch my past loves struggle and hurt and I couldn’t make it go away for them. But her reaction to all this is doing BB harm. She needs to protect him from the carrying on, as sweet as her grandaughter is, and she needs to step up to provide the care he needs.

Sitting around crying because her baby’s got a bad leg doesn’t help him. That’s the important thing–helping BB. She’s a Vietnam Vet, an army nurse, and she’s got to find that inner strength and calm or he really won’t ever get well.  

Please, if you’ve read this and are not offended, would you pray for BB and his situation? Prayer has worked miracles with him so far, and he needs some more. Mom needs some more too. Em is still here today, so I’m gonna be the heavy, but I’m really concerned that when I’m not around, she’s going to push him too far. He’s going to seriously bite her if his limits are not respected. It will not be his fault.

And PLEASE pray that he beings to want to use his leg. If he’s not walking by the time he goes back for his check up in three weeks, amputation will be imminent. Danes don’t do well as amputees–they are just too big to make up for the loss. Already his other three legs are being damaged, growing strangely, and the other hind knee is clicking and making noise. His life will be cut short if he doesn’t walk, and soon!