insaneeesam

On Friday, I had laparoscopic surgery to remove an 11 cm ovarian cyst. It was an endometrioma and it destroyed my right ovary, so my ovary was taken out along with the cyst. At the time of surgery, it was discovered that I had endometriosis on the back of my uterus. It was removed during surgery.

I'm feeling a little lost in terms of losing an ovary and dealing with a disease that is not well understood and has a tendency to reoccur. I am scared that it will come back and my remaining ovary will be damaged. I am 22 years old and the thought of preserving my remaining ovary for another 30+ years seems daunting.

What should I expect down the line?

I wanted to ask for some advice or opinions about an 11 cm "complex cystic structure" that has been found on my ultrasound.

It started with pain in December - I had one episode, during my period , of severe pelvic pain. I waited a little while and the pain subsided some, so I did not go to the emergency room. I DID go to a doctor (actually, an NP), and she told me that I likely had a small ovarian cyst that had ruptured. She wanted me to go for bloodwork and an ultrasound, and follow up with a gynecologist at some point.

I did the blood work right away (CBC, thyroid and metabolic panels - and they were fine), but the ultrasound got put off. Had a normal period this month.

On Wednesday, I finally went for the pelvic ultrasound. I received a call THAT NIGHT from my NP that I needed to get an appointment with a gynecologist within the week.

This is what the ultrasound results said:

"There is a large, 11.4 x 8.3 x 7.2 cm, structure with diffuse low level echoes superior and posterior to the uterus abutting both right and left adnexa. On Doppler imaging, there are foci of flow within the structure. There is through transmission. This probably arises from one of the ovaries, maybe the right, but this is not certain."

I got an appointment with ANOTHER NP (a gynecological one) the next day. She did a brief exam and showed my test results to the doctor there. After consulting with each other, they felt that my cyst is likely a complex ovarian cyst, and, more specifically, a dermoid cyst. Due to its size, and the fact that I had pain in December, they do not think that it is something that will go away on its own.

I am going for another ultrasound (probably a transvaginal one this time) on Thursday at a different office, at which time I will also speak with a doctor who is a gynecologist AND a surgeon. If I need surgery, he'll likely be the one to do it.

Surgery seems inevitable given the size of this monster and the fact that I now definitely feel something in there

I have a 1995 Oldsmobile Cutlass Ciera that has recently begun doing something weird. When I am just driving along, usually around 30-40mph, the car starts accelerating on its own, even if I am not pushing down harder on the gas pedal to make it accelerate. Generally my foot IS on the accelerator when this is happening but it is DEFINITELY abnormal.. the car basically starts acting as if I applied a LOT of gas. As soon as I hit the brakes, it is fine.

I am hoping it's not a major problem because I would prefer to take it to the mechanic sometime during the week rather than over the weekend.

Thanks.

I unknowingly fed my cat something (a canned seafood recipe wet food) that she is allergic to. This came after my vet gave me the OK to try it out.

Her nose is extremely itchy and swollen. She seems to have a bit of a sore on it.

I only fed her about 1/3 of the can (it was Wellness CORE). That was around 1 PM on Wednesday. It is now 9 AM on Friday here.

I have no experience with a reaction like this, as her last allergic reaction was in 2005, and was the result of a long DIET filled with things she couldn't eat, resulting in a very bad attack with a long duration (and lots of vet visits) rather than one isolated thing.

Right now I have her in the cone collar, and I'm taking it off throughout the day so she can eat, be comfortable, go to the litter box, etc. She has pretty good mobility with it, but I really, really don't want this to be an extended thing.

My vet said just to watch her and call them up if she worsens.

Is there anything I can do? Any idea how long I can expect this to last?

Have you ever used Rescue Remedy on your dog? What did you use it for, and how well it did work?

I am trying to find something to use for my dog's mild-moderate firework phobia. My vet prescribed Acepromazine for the upcoming 4th of July, and I do not wish to use it. If he had prescribed something else, that would have been a different story, but I do not feel Ace is the best thing for my (fearful) dog.

I'm an idiot. I somehow forgot to put my dog's bag of food away and she gobbled down part of a 5-lb bag of Merrick Turducken. My sister caught her, says she probably didn't eat more than two meals' worth. Shouldn't be a problem, right?

So idiot me left a couple of treats out while I was clicker training my dog. My cat usually stays away from the dog treats but I guess these proved irresistible.

http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productI...

Ingredients: Chicken, Corn Syrup, Soy Flour, Wheat Flour, Corn Starch, Water Sufficient for Processing, Propylene Glycol, Animal Fat (BHA used as a preservative), Animal Digest, Bone Phosphate, Soy Protein Concentrate, Sugar, Beef, Salt, Potassium Chloride, Titanium Dioxide, Phosphoric Acid, Sorbic Acid (used as a preservative), Garlic Powder, Caramel Color, Natural Smoke Flavor, Red 40, BHA (used as a preservative), Citric Acid (used as a preservative), Yellow 5, Yellow 6.

Having a couple of them shouldn't hurt her, right?

1. Person A is at the park with his OTT Greyhound. Person B is in the small dog section by himself with three large mixes who he does not feel will do well with non-pack-member dogs. Person C comes into the big dog area with a small, unspayed Poodle *****, who the Greyhound chases. Person A has to leave because his dogs' prey drive is scaring the Poodle, whose owners quickly rush to pick the ***** up into their arms for safety over and over.

2. Person A is already in the park with a spayed mid sized mix. Person B comes to the park with a large GSD who decides to single out the mix, who is rather submissive and does not like to be crowded by strange dogs, and basically will not cease chasing her. Person A has to leave because the GSD will not stop and its owner fails to keep it under control, and the unspayed mix begins to snarl and snap at the GSD.

3. Person A is already at the park with a young, rambunctious Pit mix that plays a bit too rough for some other dogs' taste. Person B comes with a female shepherd mix who absolutely spazzes when the Pit mix starts jumping on her to play. Person B has to leave because her dog is getting aggressive towards the Pit.

This is self explanatory..

female, medium sized, thin but muscular build, mom was a 25 lb hound/terrier cross.

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a304/insane_sam/...

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a304/insane_sam/...

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a304/insane_sam/...

Here's mom.

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a304/insane_sam/...

My biggest problem with my dog is this. When she first came to my

house, my father (I live with my parents) tried way too hard to earn the dog's trust; as a result, she is afraid of him. I do believe some of it comes from the fact that her original rescuer pretty much admitted she wasn't raised around men, but I think his constant petting and chasing her around the house to get the leash on made it that much worse.

He has finally given most of that stuff up, leaving her alone when she cowers in the corner and leaving the walking to the other people in the house.

However, there are many times that she will see my father coming through the front door and give a growl, which he does not like at all. I try to explain why she does it, but my father is stubborn and that is her one fearful behavior that he absolutely hates. (It's not only with him - if a stranger comes through the front door she'll usually growl at them too, but I am able to control that by having her meet the new scary person outside the house first most of the time)

Yet, as uneasy as she is when he comes through the front door, she is very eager to lay by his feet while he's eating, waiting for him to give her something. He very often gives her treats and she has become more and more eager to jump up on him to retreive those treats. She is starting to accept his petting as well, as she nibbles on a piece of food in his hand she gently pets her with the other (again, not the way I'd ideally like her to be desensitized but he has had a bit of success with it)

Commands, however, are a different story. He tells her sit. She'll SOMETIMES comply, usually in conjunction with a throaty groan/growl.

It's not an aggrssive thing - I interpret it as a "give me the darn treat" frustated thing - but it is not a habit I'd like for her to keep practicing.

Again, I have told him that he should really mostly stick to the very very basic things that she'll do without fail - eat the treat out of his hand, touch with her nose, jump up on him to get the treat, etc - but he does not always listen to me and will sometimes insist on endlessly repeating "gimme your paw" "gimme your paw"...

One more note - she is pretty much fine with my dad so long as he isnt moving - sitting down at dinner, laying on the couch, etc. If he is up and walking, she is terrified. She has no problem relaxing 4 ft away from him on the couch, but the second he gets up, she flees.

So, given my situation and the things about it that are the most senstive areas, or the areas where there is really not much flexibility due to other people, what can I be doing better right now? I'd like to improve her behavior at the front door and most of all change her attitude towards my dad. I know a lot of it has to come from him, but I'm sure there must be some things I can do on my end to make it a little bit better.

- traditional leash walking

- long leash or offleash walking/hiking/etc

- dog sports/trained work

- allowing them in backyard or on large property

- dog park, play group, or something comparable

- interactive games, fetch, flirt poles, etc

- treadmill

- dog is elderly/disabled/cannot get much exercise

- other!

I'd love to hear your stories. Post your dog's name, age and breed. Be specific about your routines!

Oh, and if you're a lazy bum who just lets your dog out into the backyard for a poop and nothing more, don't compain on here when they jump all over guests and try to smash through the window to chase the squirrels..

This may or may not have been posted before but it is a very moving piece and certainly a case for why all pets should be spayed and neutered unless of proven show/work quality.

Certainly a tear-jerker.. please take the time to read and add your thoughts..

http://www.spoiledratten.com/HisNameisSam.html

When it comes to conformation and bone/joint health in dogs, I don't know too much.

My dog seems to walk with a little bit of a sway in the back. Like she's swinging her legs slightly outward. Maybe it's how all dogs really walk and its just my imagination. It's most evident at a fast-paced walk. I don't know if that's just an uncomfortable pace for a dog to move at or what. My gut tells me it's nothing, but I know we've got some health buffs on here so I figured it was worth a shot.

She acts completely normal - running, jumping, playing, etc. I can't really think of any behaviors that she's hesitant to perform from a physical point of view. She's about 16 months old.

I took this video today out in the field to show you what I'm talking about. You'll see that she'll run and trot and everything, but at that middle pace, she's got that swing in the back. Ignore the fact that she's all over the place, I let her do whatever for the sake of taking the video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CzTRK4-TvkI

At the very least, I'll ask my vet about it when she goes in to get her next shots next month. I know it's not an emergency because she's in no pain and this isn't a sudden thing. I just figured I'd ask you guys about it.

I love guessing other people's dogs' mixes. And I'm good at it too. But I'm stumped with my own dog.

Fortunately I have half of her family tree right in front of me in the form of a picture of her MOTHER:

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a304/insane_sam/...

Miss 25 pound Nellie.

And now, for my dog..

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a304/insane_sam/...

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a304/insane_sam/...

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a304/insane_sam/...

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a304/insane_sam/...

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a304/insane_sam/...

And her with her brother, just for another example:

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a304/insane_sam/...

Don't be boring and say her father was just a Lab unless you really believe that. Obviously I have no way of knowing what he was, but maybe the breed specialists on here can point me in some directions. The more I look, the more I see Doberman.. but I could be wrong.

I hate to sound like a troll, but 10 points to the best answer or the answer that opens up another reasonable possibility to me. Guess both Mom (pictured) and Dad.

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a304/insane_sam/...

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a304/insane_sam/...

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a304/insane_sam/...

^^^^ This is her and her brother, same litter.

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a304/insane_sam/...

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a304/insane_sam/...

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a304/insane_sam/...

I sure as heck don't know what she is. Maybe you do.

Here's her mom.. don't know the dad. Her mom's about 15 lbs lighter than she is.

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a304/insane_sam/...

Thank you!

My cat is just starting to hit her older years. She's still fairly active - doesn't play too much but can still jump on top of pretty much anything she wants.

She's been a thin cat most of her life. Lately she has gained a little bit of weight - up maybe 1 - 1 1/2 pounds. Her appetite also seems to have increased a bit.

What is alarming me is that her water intake has increased somewhat. I have mentioned this to my vet before, and he says that the only time there is a problem is when they are, in his words "literally living at the water bowl." He was talking about diabetes.

Now, I am under the imrpession that diabetic cats usually LOSE weight in conjuction with an increased appetite. So I'm worried more about kidney failure.

I'd say she probably drinks about 1/2 - 3/4 cup of water a day on average and when she urinates, its a decent amount. This morning she peed so much that the litter didn't absorb it all right away and it kind of sat on top for a while.

She is currently on the Hill's Prescription D/D Duck and Green Pea Formula. The food is greasy as hell but she has a sensitive stomach and allergies so I am not looking to change it.

None of these gains have happened rapidly.

So maybe if someone just wants to shed some light on what's going on with her and what I should watch out for as she ages?

My dog is a shy female who I am trying to socialize with as many people, dogs, etc as possible. We have a couple of dog parks in our area and I've been taking her to one of them occasionally.

She enjoys it sometimes, but other times, she doesnt. She's definitely more comfortable now that she's been there a few times than she was in the beginning. I try to scout out times of day when there are smaller groups, as I'm not a big fan of the dog park when its overrun with so many. Yet, she is definitely nervous when we first enter - tail low, doesn't want other (especially larger) dogs sniffing her, and lately she's been drooling a bit more.

After a little while she warms up to the other dogs, sniffs them and lets them sniff her. Generally dogs who are looking for an extreme wrestling or chasing buddy go elsewhere and pal around with those who match their own energy anyway. After some playful instigating from a 5 month old Catahoula puppy, she raced laps around the park yesterday chasing the little bugger. Today, she had fun playing with a Chihuahua, and a Pittie got her to play a bit as well.

But I know she isn't always at ease - she got very nervous when a man came in with his dog (she is more fearful of men than women, only some men it seems), but I also have to take into consideration that she probably sensed the oncoming rain and thunder shower.. she hates that stuff.

Am I doing the right thing by taking her? I feel like I am, but I also enjoy going to the park and watching the dogs play, so I just want to make sure that I'm doing it for her, and not me. I don't want to go backwards with all the progress I've made with her and have her dread going outside or in the car, like she used to.

In the beginning, my adopted Lab mix was shaky with housebreaking. She kept going in one corner of the living room. Ok, I thought, it's my fault for not watching her.

Then a few weeks passed and during that time, she was phenomenal. No accidents, could be left alone for a decent amount of time.

Now, recently, the accidents are starting again. Almost every morning we wake up to either a pee or a poop in the same corner of the living room. She goes out right before she goes to bed (usually around 12) and also around 3 am with my father who wakes up early for work. For a while she could wait until about 8:30 to go out, but now, almost every day, it's about 6:30 - 7:00! I don't know why this would be happening, she is a year old so I don't think it's an issue of control.

I'm wondering if it could be that she thinks going in the house means us coming down to her, almost like a separation anxiety thing. She doesn't like to be left alone and will whine if she hears us stirring upstairs when she's left downstairs.

We take up her water about 1-2 hours before she goes to sleep and feed her around 5PM, at least 6 hours before she goes to sleep. She usually pees and poops right before bed so it's not like we're leaving her when she needs to go, and like I said she also goes out at 3.

Today, I took her out FREQUENTLY in the backyard where she goes, and every single time all she did was either roll in the grass or lay down. I had her in the same room with me and she suddenly went into a squat like she was going to poop, I immediately took her outside and nothing. She just laid there. I got her up, walked her around, and she ran right back to the door.

Is it crate time for her? My mother is getting annoyed with all of this because of her precious wood floors (rolleyes) and I feel like I'm at a roadblock. I KNOW she can hold it, she DOES hold it some/most of the time - why not always?

My 1 y/o recently adopted Lab mix is fearful towards strangers and her new environment as a whole. She's been making progress but still uncomfortable. I've been making her meet people slowly and trying to get as many dog buddies for her as I can, as she is much more comfortable when around members of her own species.

However, she seems to have a problem with guarding that I don't want to worsen. She has guarded me and her sleeping space several times from other family members while asleep in my bedroom. She is definitely possessive of certain toys/chews, which I can deal with, BUT she gets very worked up when strange people enter the house and has growled at one of my friends who simply walked in the door and allowed her to smell him.

I've tried to introduce her to people outside, and THEN let them in, which seems to be working, but I know there's still an issue, moreso with men than women. I can't figure out if it's the result of fear, guarding, or both, and how to fix it.