as her little body is filling up with fluids due to CHF and she has a hard time settling down for longer. SO I wonder if there is anything I cn do to make it better for her...
Even if she peed all over the house, I would not mind, part of owning older bully, I expect it.

they have been a God send for my Roxy, who is not incontinent, but she will go in the house if I'm not right there to let her out. She now chooses to go on the pads I have spread out for her rather than my carpet.

Skip is the one who told me about them. I have the link if you don't know about them.


I don't rescue animals because I want to feel better about myself, or morally superior to anyone. The best part of my life with animals is the humility they teach and the humanity the foster.
Jon Katz "Soul of a Dog"

at least she is able to get up to go to the door...much better than my old gal who wets her bed most every night...I just have several small reversible bath rugs (about 20-24" long) that I pick up at discount stores like Ross or TJ Maxx ($5-$6) and one goes in her Perla bed, one underneath to catch the runover...and her bedding gets washed at least once a day, plus I take her out ~3hrs when I'm home. Its not easy but we do what we must. I'm sure she knows she's well-loved.

lots of options out there. Ikea even has some inexpensive platform beds. Google "Platform Beds" to find lots of choices.

Hope things improve. So sorry about all you are going through.


I don't rescue animals because I want to feel better about myself, or morally superior to anyone. The best part of my life with animals is the humility they teach and the humanity the foster.
Jon Katz "Soul of a Dog"

put your mattress and box springs on the floor. The drop from my bed is about 24 inches. I have a step at the foot of the bed that Roxy uses to climb up.

You could put cinder blocks and boards all around the mattress and box springs to make a ledge/step.

There are platform beds too. We are going to get one of those for our Sonoma house. I like this Beam Bed.




I don't rescue animals because I want to feel better about myself, or morally superior to anyone. The best part of my life with animals is the humility they teach and the humanity the foster.
Jon Katz "Soul of a Dog"

find something similar that will work. I know "I" would feel it if one of ours climbed over me! Ooomph!lol Sounds like Chester doesn't need bars in his life. Poor baby. I hope he's better tonight. Kiss Lily-gurl for me.
Hugs,
Maggie

Maggie, Moze, Ollie,
...and always Schubert

We're strong, but not that strong. Work or figuring out what to do to get them well is just that, work. Most important is to get them well and healing. And I hope to get as much time as possible with Lily that is free of suffering and full of happiness for her. That is difficult knowing what we're up against. But we're not giving up. At times I cannot bare to think about it, but I stay positive, for her and for us.
Thanks for your support.

my heart is breaking for you and your girl, as far as guards for the bed, you can get them at walmart too, I had them for my grandson and now for my greatgrandson, they work wonderfully, you can but a couple of them , Celine had a great idea, good luck

slept on the mattress only. It won't stop him from jumping on/off but the distance will be much safer for him. We also covered or tipped all the furniture so that the dog didn't have access when we weren't watching him or we weren't home.

Bernata, I know what you guys are going through. It is emotionally exhausting, my heart breaks for you.

Lynn King CPDT

this would work for a while...

my suggestion is to take your bed apart and put the mattress on the floor. Not esthetically pleasing but still very comfortable and NO worries about Chester re-injuring himself until he has a chance to fully heal. Not permanent either. I am so sorry you are having such serious issues with your babies.

Cathy
when she first came home

.

Chester for some reason will bark his head off in crate, but will sleep like a baby without moving when next to me. He has a bit of separation anxiety from times when he was in shelter, I suppose. He never before got up at night, as a matter of fact, as Lily got older, she always wanted water, woke up, was a bit restless, he on other hand slept like a baby, never even moving. So we were amazed he's done it. What I may try is Celine's solution and if he still prefers to patrol house at night, he will have to sleep in doggie bed in the living room with one of us and Lily, it's just that that crazy dog then wants to climb on the mattress and Lily will not come on it at all, as there is not enough space. And we are trying to give her a lot of love and cuddles and provide her with stress-free environment

Her son didn't need it anymore. But you can get them anywhere that sells baby stuff (Babies R Us, Walmart, Sears, etc.) You can also probably order them on eBay. I don't recall them being super expensive when I was shopping for new ones.

half asleep reading fast. ANother blow up mattress? lol I know what you mean...I couldn't be married to someone not as devoted as I am to the Hooch Man.

I will get them asap.

we are taking turns, so one of us sleeps with her and one of us sleeps with Chester. Person sleeping with Lily barely gets any sleep, so those nights with Chester are supposed to be "restful" as he normally sleeps like a log. This was completely unexpected jump. I know how you feel Michelle, and I tell you, it is great we have energy to do it and great spouses who support us and do it with us. I am so lucky my husband feels the same way i do about my babies. I could not do it without him.

it's pretty comfy actually...I'm so sorry...praying for both babies.

he is a rescue and freaks out when crated, he will bark himself silly if I locked him up, he just wants to be with us. I do not mind it, I think normally he is quite safe, I just do not know what got into him, I suspect he saw little light under the door (my husband left light on for Lily to see at night water and door easier), so Chester might have assumed it's breakfast time. Just do not know. And normally I would have reacted but I was so exhausted...I probably slept 10 hrs in the whole week, so i finally got to sleep in bed and missed his jump. Now I wish I did not sleep so hard

It might be too much work to jump off. And you'll probably feel him trying to climb over so you can grab him in time.

It might be too much work to jump off. And you'll probably feel him trying to climb over so you can grab him in time.

I will give it a try...it is worth it. Thanks Celine.

how I would handle jumping, as much as I love to cuddle with my two, Ollie had a sprain last year, and I fixed up a "posh" crate situation right by my bed so I could put my hand down by her to check on her. At least when we were in bed, I could know she wasn't going to jump or hurt herself. At other times, we just made sure we played with her on the floor so she didn't jump on the sofa or ottoman. I am praying the medication helps the staph, and that he will adjust to whatever situation you decide on to keep him safe. As always, your sweet little girl is in my thoughts and prayers. Try to sleep when you can. They need a rested mommy too.
Hugs,
Maggie

Maggie, Moze, Ollie,
...and always Schubert

I like Celine's suggestions... I really don't know how you would keep him from jumping up, short of a crate. I just don't have experience with that. Why won't he sleep in a crate? Does he get stressed out? Claustrophobic? Poor guy...

You are such a loving mom and you are doing all the right things. Try and stay calm and positive because they can read you like a book.

You have been dealt so much... you need a break. Sending you lots of love.


Website ::: Blog ::: It's Not Over 'Til It's Grover
All photos and designs above copyright Salty Grapes Photography.

but I am so sorry that your babies aren't feeling well, and I'm hoping someone has some advice for you.

OK, first. Take a deep breath. You are taking excellent care of your babies. I know, easier said than done!

As for keeping Chester in bed, here's what I did for Stella. I'm totally paranoid now that she is blind that she will roll over or just walk off our bed. So I got a used baby barrier, the type that you slip under the mattress so toddlers don't fall out of bed. You could put one on "Chester's side" and one at the foot of the bed (or move your bed against the wall and use just the one at the foot. I'm assuming that you would definitely feel him climb over you.

I stick a bunch of pillows in the gap between the head of the bed and the barrier. If she moves she will hit either the pillows or the barrier but won't fall. This will also allow you to get a good night's sleep.

my old german sheperd momo never slept in a crate always on the bed.. by the time he hit 12 , he could barely walk, but sometimes he would forget this and try to jump off of the bed...

1. slept on just the mattress on the floor, he was able to get on and off.

2. we even took extra precaution and took 2 of seat cushions off the couch and made an extra "step" next to our bed (on 2 sides- so dog could choose) on the floor. this way, it was nice and wide, firm enough for him to step down on and comfortable enough for him to sleep on it next to us if he didnt want to get on bed.

3. we had to make him wear a collar at night with a couple of jingle bells, this way it would wake us up if he had to go out or do something unusual that we had to help him with.

4. started waking up 15-20 mins sooner then the dog would usually wake up.. this way, i could control when to get him up and go out to pee in the morning.

5. made sure that there was plush enough carpet near all jumping areas, off the bed, off of the couch, hallway.. hardwood became a major enemy when you have dogs with walking issues.

it was tough, but anything is worth it for the love of our life , right? good luck... sorry, i feel your pain.