Winding down...

by John Jeanneney

My old German tracking dog Joeri (pronounced Yori) and I are winding down from our tracking careers. For me that career lasted 40 years. Dogs, even if they are of German origin, aren't as fortunate.

   Having to finally retire, when you are a dedicated and passionate tracker, is not easy. Here are the ways that Joeri and I handled the transition.

   First, let me write about Joeri, who understands well that the bond between tracking dog and handler endures, even when adventures in the woods are over.  Joeri is beside my chair as I write this. If I go to another room, the bathroom, for example, he follows. He sleeps with me on my bed.

   Joeri has several big rawhide chew bones, which he leaves around the house. But it is an old, dry deer leg, hair, hoofs and all, which he carries with him everywhere in the house. This is not for chewing, but it is a souvenir of the best years of his life that he will not forget.

In parallel with Joeri I have my own souvenirs. On my desk are my "trophy antlers” that a little, six point buck knocked off against my jaw and chest as he charged me near the end of the track. The buck "cold conked" me and gored Sabina, my tracking dog. With a deep gash in her flank, Sabina was licking my face as I came to and opened my eyes after the blow. We kept on tracking.

   Still fresh in my memory are the two cases where hunters teared up with joy when I found their deer. My tracking dog and I shared the hunters' emotions.

   I still dream of tracking, but I shuffle through the woods and realize that I am no longer capable of taking a real live call. I feel useless, and all I can do is answer the telephone and dispatch calls to other trackers Some of them use another of my dogs, Tommy, whom I trained and tracked with up until my final good year at age 80.

Getting old is not easy; Joeri and I comfort one another.

Joeri sunbathing in John's office, next to his deer leg.

How is Joeri doing?

Several people asked recently about Joeri so a short update is in order. Joeri is doing very well though his gait is not 100%. But he can run freely off-leash and use his nose on rabbits again. This picture was taken in our 11-acre enclosure a week ago or so.

We are not going to use him for tracking wounded game as we do not want to put him at risk. When you track a real wounded deer you never know the terrain and cover that you will be tracking in. Sometimes the brush is so thick that we have to crawl on our knees and elbows. We have quite a few dogs that need a real experience in the field, and Tommy, now 5.5-years-old is a real pro. Joeri can enjoy his life without stress and pressure of expectations. We are so happy to have him as he is a great companion with a lot of soul.

Joeri and Gilda hanging out together and relaxing on a lazy Sunday afternoon

Two pals, Joeri and Gilda, hanging out together on a hot and hazy Sunday afternoon.

Dog days of summer are here

What a hot and humid summer it has been! When we bought this piece of land 15 years ago we never anticipated that we would be using a small pond as much. Anyway, few days ago I read that so far we have had 10 days with temperatures above 90F (32C) so by now the number must be at least 12. And this is just a middle of July.

Joeri gets to the pond on a regular basis, and I thought that a short video would show his mobility 10.5 months after the incident with a herniated disc. He is not 100% yet, and he might never be, but for sure he moves around pretty well and he really enjoys himself. He has always been a a very special dog and it is deeply satisfying to see him living his life to the fullest.

Joeri's first trip to the pond this summer

Most of our regular readers remember Joeri's problems with his back. Now six and a half months after his second incident his movement is still deficient. He is very mobile, that's for sure, and pain-free. But his topline looks sometimes like his back is broken, and his right hind leg does not have a normal range of movement. We carry him up and down the stairs. I don't think he will be tracking again because with as many dogs as we have it is not necessary for him to do it. We would not want to risk another relapse. However, he is a very happy dog, with a great attitude, and today he really enjoyed his first trip to the pond. He loves to retrieve from the water, and I think we are going to have a lot of fun together this summer.

It feels like summer is here.

Celebrating Joeri's 5th Birthday

As regular readers of this blog know, Joeri suffered a herniated disc on August 27, 2012. He underwent a surgery almost immediately, and then on November 15 he went down again. At the time we were very close to putting him down as he was paralyzed and he lost bladder control. We put him right away on prednisone and some other drugs such as tramadol, methocarbamol and gabapentin. He also received several acupuncture sessions and cold laser treatments. Luckily Joeri responded well to this conservative treatment and has been improving steadily.

This picture was taken this morning in my den on the day of his 5th birthday. We both are so glad that he is with us wagging his tail and slowly regaining his life.

The video below was taken today as well. A direct link to the video is click here. You can see that he is not 100%, not yet, but we are optimistic. He feels very good, would like to jump and run. It's been now only three months since his relapse so we are still restricting his activities. He gave us a scare the other day when all of sudden he tried to jump on the couch. He did not reach the top, fell down on his back (on the carpet), but it seems that nothing happened. He was disappointed that he did not succeed but was not in pain and did not suffer any damage. We hope that by mid-April he will be able to resume normal life.

 

Update on Joeri: 5 weeks after his relapse

It has been a while since our last update on Joeri. Sorry that the pics' quality is not the best as they were taken with my cell phone.

Joeri is making progress but he is improving quite slowly. Once a week he goes to Shaker Veterinary Hospital where Dr. Gabriela Varcoe performs acupuncture and cold laser treatment on him. The pictures come from one of his latest sessions. He likes his trips and visits there, maybe because he gets a lot of attention and some extra tasty cookies. We are working on reducing his prednisone dose and frequency, and this has to be done very gradually. He also gets Adequan shots and this coming week we'll be starting him on gabapentin.  His appetite is very good and altogether he acts happy and wags his tail often. We are doing everything possible to give him a a chance for recovery!
 

 

Update on Joeri

Joeri is steadily improving and today he is feeling better. Now he can walk without support, on a short leash, and even though he is a little wobbly, he loves his short potty walks. So far he has had two acupuncture sessions and one cold laser treatment. This week we will try to reduce his prednisone and try to wean him off tramadol (pain killer). He still spends most of his time in a big crate in my den. When I work on the computer, he is loose in my den, stretched on the blanket. Glad to see him doing better, that's for sure!

2013 Nature Calendars...and Joeri

Sorry for taking a break from the blog, but for the last three days I have been focused on my photography. It is so hard to find any time for it, but it is especially difficult during hunting and tracking season. If you'd like to see results, go to http://www.cafepress.com/calendarsbyjolanta. There are four calendars there with my photography, two are nature oriented, one is with wirehaired dachshunds and another one with field trial beagles. When you click on the covers and go to a specific calendar, you will be able to see the pages. You can read Patt's testimonial about the calendar she has ordered for the second year. Thank you Patt!

To purchase or view info on this calendar go to http://www.cafepress.com/calendarsbyjolanta.736043965

This calendar is located at http://www.cafepress.com/calendarsbyjolanta.714081196

I uploaded images from the calendars to http://jola.smugmug.com/NaturePhotography, where they can be purchased as prints or merchandise. If you have any questions about those, e-mail me.

We got some e-mail asking about Joeri. As you remember Joeri was imported from Germany as a 14- week-old puppy 4.5 years ago. On August 27 he had a surgery for a herniated disc, and then on November 15 his back went down again. This time he was put on a high dose of prednisone and other meds, plus he had an acupuncture session. He was improving for a while, but in the last two days he regressed. He does not use his legs as well, and he has been leaking. Most likely it is a response to some reduction in prednisone dose, so as of last evening he is back on a high dose again. I can't tell you what an emotional roller coaster this has been.

Joeri on the evening of November 25 resting comfortably in my den.

I have a ton of material for the blog. You guys have been very busy, and I really appreciate that you take time to write down your experiences and share them with all of us. I'll be posting a lot of new material in the next few days. Thank you and good luck in the woods!

One step at a time for Joeri

Today, for the first time in 5 days, Joeri started to improve. He has a very long way to go but he started to go to bathroom on his own. He also started to attempt to use his hind legs. Now we have some grounds for hope! Also today he looks much better than yesterday, he is all stretched on the blanket, has asked for tummy rubs, and his eyes are bright and happy.

Tonight I am working on a 2013 calendar with wirehaired dachshunds. I have gone through many pictures, which I took in 2012. I have come across this portrait of Joeri from March 2012. What a beautiful, soulful dog he is!

Being in the woods is a good therapy

A big thank you to all for your support, encouragement and offer to help with Joeri. Yesterday he was worse than on Thursday, his hind legs completely immobile, his bladder had to be expressed. So far he has not responded to the meds: high dose of prednisone, tramadol, methocarbamol, pepcid. But his tail is still wagging. He has an appointment on Wednesday for acupuncture. We are going to give him some time and see what happens. Today he has a better appetite and his eyes look brighter. He is a hunting dog through and through, and for him to spend the rest of life paralyzed, in a cart, is just not an option. 

Today we were in the woods and it has helped both of us. John was tracking and I was hunting. John found his buck, and I shot a doe. All in all today was a better day than Friday.

Tommy found this nice 8-pointer in Cairo, NY

John was prouder of me than I was. While he was tracking in Cairo, I was hunting. I actually managed to stalk this doe, so now we will have some venison for the freezer.

Unplugging for few days

Thursday was a bad day. Joeri got much worse. This is 11.5 weeks post-surgery. He is not completely paralyzed but he is dragging his hind legs, and he is in a pretty bad shape. This time we will are going to try conservative treatment with prednisone and see how it goes. We might have a very tough decision to be made ahead of us. This is beyond sad, actually it is truly heartbreaking.

I think we are going to unplug for a while. Our gun season starts on Saturday, and we both would like to get out of the house and be in the woods. If we don't answer e-mails or phone calls, I hope you understand. We'll be back here next week.

Joeri's surgery for herniated disc: Four weeks later

Today marks the passing of four weeks since Joeri's surgery. He has been improving steadily. His gait is not 100% back to what it used to be, but everybody says that it is just a matter of time. Joeri certainly is enjoying extra attention he is getting! He goes on leashed walks several times a day as without a leash he'd be ready to run and jump. Yesterday he gave a scare when we forgot to put a gate up that keeps him in the kitchen/dining area when we have meals. Few minutes later we found him going downstairs on his own. Not so soon buddy! A couple of more weeks and you will be able to move without any restrictions!

John walking Joeri

Joeri's road to recovery: 10 days after surgery

We received some inquiries from people asking how Joeri is doing so this is an update on his condition. As you recall Joeri underwent a surgery to repair his herniated disc 10 days ago. Details about what happened are given here.

Joeri is doing really well, but I have to admit that we had a couple of days that were very tough on him and on us. When he came home on Wednesday afternoon (August 29), he started to improve steadily. But when on Saturday evening we removed a back patch with pain medication as instructed by Joeri's surgeon, he regressed. On Sunday and Monday he was in a lot of pain even though he was getting pain killers orally. He did not want drink or eat, just stayed in his crate. He could move but you could see that he did not want to. So far these two days have been the most difficult, maybe because we did not expect such a sudden setback.

On Tuesday, after the Labor Day holiday, we called the vet to report his slightly elevated temperature, the lack of appetite and general malaise. Dr. Fitzpatrick reassured us that Joeri is going to get better and there was no need to bring him in. We were told to take him off Tramadol (oral pain medication) as probably it was suppressing his appetite. I have to say that I was very sceptical, yet on Tuesday afternoon Joeri indeed started to improve quite dramatically.

Joeri on Tuesday afternoon resting on the blanket in my den.

On Tuesday afternoon Joeri's appetite came back.

His eyes were bright, and he started to feel much better.

When you look at this picture carefully you won't be able to see Joeri's tail. The tail was wagging so fast that it is just a blurr. Joeri spends part of the day, when the weather is right, outside in a small pen. His interest in his surroundings is back.

Day #10 post-surgery. I took a leash off  Joeri to take this picture, but he walks only on the leash now. We are afraid that if he saw a rabbit he could try to go after it. He does a lot of ground sniffing and territory marking. And he started to lift his leg to do it.

Looking pretty scruffy early in the morning. He is overdue for grooming but for now we are not going to worry about it.

On Monday, September 10, Joeri is going back to Pattersonville clinic to have his stitches removed. Hopefully from now on he is going to improve steadily.

Many, many thanks and deep gratitude go to our good friends who provided a much needed support. I don't think we could do it without you!

Joeri's ordeal: disabling disc disease one month from tracking season

It looks like August 27 is not our lucky day. A year ago Tropical Storm Irene messed up our house, and now, a year later to the day, we found ourselves in a difficult situation again.

As most of you know Joeri is a 4 1/2 year old wirehaired dachshund that we imported from Germany. He was a very precocious puppy with a great conformation and nice temperament. He also showed a real talent for field work, especially for natural blood tracking, so for the last couple of years he has been John's number 1 tracking dog. The two are very close. Joeri did not fare as well as a producer, and we stopped using him for breeding two years ago.

On August 20 I noticed that Joeri's gait was a little different and he walked with caution. Not knowing what the reason might be, we crated him and observed. From the way he acted we thought that it might have been Lyme disease or a back problem. Two days later John took him to our regular vet. He tested positive for Lyme and was put on doxycycline, but at the same time he was put on prednisone as he showed some tenderness in his back. He was in some discomfort but not a great deal of pain. He wagged his tail, ate his food. He was put on a strict crate rest.

On Sunday, August 26, Joeri felt much better, but when I put a leash on him for his last bathroom walk, he jumped up, his body twisted a little, and he yelped. I could see that things were worse. He moved very slowly and with difficulty. By Monday morning he had deteriorated. We made a phone call to orthopedic surgeons located 50 minutes from us and got an appointment at 1 PM. This was emergency. Unfortunately John had a personal medical appointment that he could not cancel so I drove Joeri by myself to the Pattersonville clinic and I could see that he was really hurting.

He was examined, and luckily he still had some deep pain perception in his hind legs, but when I left him there he could not use them to walk any more. A CT scan revealed a herniated disc behind his last thoracic vertebra. The ruptured disc material was filling approximately 40% of the spinal canal and there was a severe degree of spinal cord compression.

The sooner a herniated disc is treated surgically the better, and odds for a full recovery decrease with delay. Joeri was operated on Monday evening, and the vet’s report said that “the herniated nucleus pulposus was carefully removed from the spinal cord and the spinal canal to decompress the spinal cord”. According to Joeri’s surgeon, around 80% of dogs recover after this kind of procedure. There are no guarantees that this is not going to happen again. As far as I know Joeri's problem was not caused by any injury, and according to his doctor Joeri’s disc would have ruptured sooner or later.

We picked Joeri up on Wednesday afternoon, and the final bill was $3954. The first couple of days were very challenging. Even though Joeri had been on pain medication and muscle relaxants, you could see that he was in pain, especially in the mornings. As far as medical issues go, I have always believed (and still do) that when a dachshund's back goes down, this is the most traumatic experience that a dog and owner can go through.

John and I have been extremely lucky over the years. When you read statistics that 1 in 5 dachshunds will experience a back problem at one point in life (some very mild that respond to crate rest), our experience has been more like 1 in 50-60. Since we joined our breeding programs 18 years ago we have not owned a dachshund with a back problem (until now), and we probably produced 4-5 that had to be treated (one was put down). But there is no doubt that the dachshund is predisposed to premature aging of spine, and Intervertebral Disc Disease (IVDD) is  the number 1 health issue in the breed.

We have been selecting against disc disease in our breeding program, and have been trying to stay away from it. It is not easy as not much is known about heritability (genetic control) of the disease. However, there is hope and progress is being made. It looks like Scandinavian countries are leaders in this field, and I will write more about it in another post. Another complicating factor is that since our breeding is based on imported dogs, there is usually limited information available to start with. Joeri’s breeder responded to the bad news by writing “We are surprised to hear bad news. The feeling of surprise is intensified through our breeding experience (more than 30 years) – our own dogs showed no back problems”.

Joeri’s recovery has been going really well. He could take small steps on Wednesday evening when he got home.  Now, three days later, he can come out of his crate on his own and can walk to the main entry door. He has a long way to full recovery but so far his progress is quite remarkable. One thing is certain – he is not going to track this fall. We are fortunate that Tommy will be able to assume the role of John’s main tracker.

Joeri, 60 hours after surgery, was not feeling great. This was Thursday morning, and he was much better in the afternoon.

Joeri on Thursday morning.

I am going to write more about IVDD in dachshunds in the near future. This post is dedicated just to Joeri and his surgery. We'll keep you updated on his progress. For those who’d like to read more about disc disease in dogs a good presentation of basic facts is given here. The most comprehensive website about IVDD in dachshunds is at http://www.dodgerslist.com/, where you can order a DVD for just $3.00.

First weekend of gun season was very busy for blood trackers from the Hilltowns.

I have not posted yet all the pics and reports I have in my Inbox, and I apologize for that. This is such a busy time for us, and I really would like to squeeze this post in before I start catching up.
The weekend of November 19-20 was the first weekend of gun season in the Southern Zone of NY. We got a lot of calls, especially on Sunday. The weather has been nice, and a lot of hunters were in the field.

This year Dan Hardin from Greenville is helping us with tracking. You might remember that Dan was the hunter that Tommy found a buck for in the Fox Creek last year. Dan took a DEC exam last August. Now he is a licensed tracker, but he does not have his own dog. Every weekend he takes our Keena out tracking, and yesterday they recovered their first deer together. How exciting! A big thank you to dan for tracking with Keena and for really nice pictures!


Keena with a 6 pointer she found while handled by Dan.



Dan Harding is holding Keena - finally a successful recovery!

Keena on her way back from the recovery is enjoying a ride in the passenger's seat
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John took two calls with Joeri on Sunday and they receovered both deer.

This buck was gut shot and recovered 18 hours after the shot. The trail was around 200 yards, in Berne, NY.

Sunday afternoon - John and Joeri found this nice buck in Esperance, NY. The buck was liver-shot, the trail was 5 hours old.

We also failed to report Joeri's previous recovery on November 16:

On November 16 John and Joeri recovered a liver/stomach shot buck that traveled a long way. Joeri cold tracked for almost two miles, then jumped the deer. In the end the deer had to be put down (Knox, NY).

Tracking wounded bear in the Catskills with two dachshunds, Billy and Joeri

On October 24 John and I went on a bear call that was referred to us through Deer Search. A big bear was shot at 6 PM on October 23 in the Catskills, and according to the bowhunter the bear was liver-shot. We decided to take two dogs with us, Billy and Joeri.

We started to track at 1 PM next day, and this was the steepest and roughest terrain we have ever tracked in. I have just gone through six weeks of physical therapy for the lower back pain, and did not expect to track in such a rocky, ledgy, mountainous terrain (a lesson learned - we should have asked more questions when talked to the hunter on the phone).

We started to track with Billy, who showed us some dry dark blood on the ground and saplings. This part of the track is showed well on a short video, which I took while John was handling Billy.

We started to track with Billy

But after a while Billy took us down the hill and since we were not seeing any signs of the bear, we decided to give Billy some rest, put him back in the car and go back to the starting point with Joeri.

John and I took turns handling him, and Joeri was able to advance the trail further up the hill. We ran out of blood signs fairly quickly, but Joeri was pulling pretty hard while we were climbing the hill. There were so many caves and dens that a wounded bear could crawl into. At one point we encountered what must have been a bear bathroom as there we piles of bear poop all over the place. Some of it was very fresh. Joeri was animated and wanted to go into one cave.

Joeri climbing the rocky hill had a good workout...

... and so did the rest of us

Bears must be using this small area as a toilet.

Joeri was very animated around this den and wanted to crawl there. We were sure that bears were using this den, but had no evidence that "our bear" was there.

I know that dachshunds are not supposed to move like mountain goats but this track underscored the need for sound conformation in the working dachshunds. Joeri who has excellent ground clearance never had any problems with the terrain.

At one point we came across bear vomit full of corn.

We searched the area for 3.5 hours and did not locate the wounded bear that we were tracking. Bears are abundant there and this fact plus the really steep and rough terrain made the tracking difficult. For calls like this a close working dog such as Joeri  was certainly a good choice. He has never showed any hesitation in following the scent and his great conformation allowed him to track for a long time. Both John and I were tired but we knew that even though we did not find the bear we did everything we could.