Blog
Miracle puppy
Posted on 22nd October, 2024
Six weeks ago, we took our doggies, Riky and Lola, to our favourite coffee place for an early morning walk. They both have so much bouncy energy, and Lola, the younger of the two, is always active and jumps around, but when we got back in the car, she was subdued. When we got home, she was wobbly on her legs, and by the evening, her back legs had stopped working, and she was dragging them across the floor. It was awful. Our dogs are like our children, and I’ve always known that when a dog can’t use its back legs, it often means. . . Well, it didn’t bear thinking about.
After visiting a vet, we were told about a clinic in the nearby town of Trenčín that specializes in neurological problems in dogs. They did an MRI scan and found that one of the discs in Lola’s spine had dislodged and was pushing on the nerves in her spinal cord that make her legs work. The vet in the clinic said they could operate, but it was risky with her age. We took the risk, and I’m so glad we did because she came through the operation, a testament to her resilience, and her legs were much better.
However, the last six weeks have been stressful, trying to keep an overactive dog from moving too much. Lola hated having to go into a small cage. Even though it was comfy with a blanket, water and her toys, she would bark and bash on the bars. After nights of no sleep, I kept hearing lines from the William Blake poem, with the words, ‘Little Lola in a cage, puts all heaven in a rage.’ Our other dog, Riky, had also become incredibly distressed when Lola disappeared for four days. They’ve never been separated for more than a walk or a haircut, and he refused to eat or drink. And he couldn’t understand why she was locked in a cage when she did come home.
He wouldn’t even let us give him water in a syringe, so he ended up three times at the vet’s on IV. Everything seemed ten times worse after nights with no sleep, and for a couple of weeks, we really thought we were losing our minds. How could two little balls of fur cause so much angst and chaos? I just wished they could understand what was happening.
Thankfully, Lola’s now much better, walking well. Riky is happy and hydrated. And we’re sleeping. All of us. Everyone at the Neurovet.sk clinic, where Lola had her operation, were amazing, the surgeon, doctor and the nurses who looked after Lola. Our regular vet Pavol Zubrický, and all the nurses at Veterinarna Poliklinkia Althea in Nitra have been brilliant, as always. And Lucia Radošovská, who does Lola’s rehabilitation has helped her to get stronger and use her legs again. We are forever grateful to them all for their expertise and care.
In between running a puppy rehabilitation centre, I’ve been writing the next Erika Foster book. I’m thrilled to share that it’s in the works, and I can’t wait to tell you more details soon. I also wanted to catch up with my readers around the world with news of new book releases. . .
Dwaalspoor /The Lost Victim is now published in The Netherlands and Belgium in Dutch. You can get your copy here: https://www.boekerij.nl/producten/dwaalspoor-9789049205058
The Czech and Slovak editions of The Lost Victim have also just been published. Get your copy in Czech: https://www.grada.cz/zahadna-obet-14221/ and in Slovak here: https://www.grada.sk/zahadna-obet-14221/
And, A Vítima Perdida /The Lost Victim is also published in Portugal: https://almadoslivros.pt/products/a-vitima-perdida
And it’s great to see Nine Elms, the first book in my Kate Marshall series published in Turkey. You can get your copy here: https://www.ithakiyayingrubu.com/nine-elms-kate-marshall.aspx
And it always excites me to see my Coco Pinchard romantic comedy novels published into translation. Just in time for the festive season is Kerstmis met Coco / A Very Coco Christmas which is now available in The Netherlands and Belgium, in print ebook and audio, too https://www.boekerij.nl/producten/kerstmis-met-coco-9789402324440
Thank you as always for all of your messages and love on social media. I’m very lucky to have such wonderful readers. Rob x