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Fauna (Fawna) is still down. It has been over a week. It is below zero outside again. The llama house is warm though. When it gets really cold both the propane and the kerosene kick on, but most of the time just the kerosene needed. The wind is whipping around and the snow is drifting. It is the dead of winter out there. We had fauna in the sling twice today with encouraging results. She is still just too damn uncoordinated to stand up and walk. She has the muscles. The hypotheria seems to create a neurological disorder. The brain gets frozen or something. Our llama mentor agrees. I have built my muscles lifting and exercising her. My biceps are burning right now. Perhaps I have discovered a new fitness system. So much for a laugh though. I think the situation is pretty grim.
The good news is that the two laptops I had that weren't working... are now. The Compaq Armada 1750 cadaver my dad gave me is up and running. That is the fastest machine in the house now!!. It has occured to me that I have not bought a new computer in many years. There has been no need to. The machines are not getting that much faster... the bloatware is certainly getting bloater. But the win 98 machin, the win 95 laptop and the win 2000 laptop are all fine for doing what I do. I should probably reformat the win 95 machine for linux. It will be useful for many more years with a decent OS. Besides, I need to get back using linux so I don't forget stuff.
I start school again this weekend. Work has agreed to pay for a Graduate Certificate in Organizational Finance. It can turn into a Masters of Science in Strategic Finance. It is all online through University of Maryland (www.UMUC.edu). I have to take a couple of remedial classes in accounting and economics before the core coursework. Work is not interested in paying for a PhD. So for now, I will be working on a second Masters Degree. I can't believe that more folks don't take advantage of tuition assistance. I did what I said I would do. I took a year off from school. TV is a vaste wasteland. A man just can't sit around.
I overheated the stove and chimney today. That was exciting. The wind kicked up at about the same time as all the fuel was hot enough to go hog wild. It was a case of classic thermal runaway. The hotter the fire the greater the draft. The greater the draft the hotter the fire. I got the stove pipe up to about 650 degrees.. WoWweee. If it was night time it would have been glowing. It definately scared me a bit.
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Good one Marv. I will be adding a feedback tool to the blogger soon... be forewarned.
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Fauna is marginally better. Bonnie is sick and in bed and it is nearly impossible to get water or meds into her by yourself. Bonnie has dragged herself out to help work with fauna. I just hope bonnie doesn't get sicker to help the llama that may have to be put down. I exercised her legs a bit and forced some water and meds in. Despite the cold temperature (below zero again) the llama house is warm. I need another 5 gallons of kerosene. Life is harsh in Berkshire. Wood and coal heats the house, propane and kerosene heats the llamahouse. Tomorrow, I will get her back in the sling and give her the "Siberian llama workout". She hates those. She is kicking a lot more. In fact, tonight she started kicking me with her back legs... "Oh what a beautiful thing" She didn't spit at me today but she thought about it before work this morning. I have every reason to think she will recover. However, I have lived this situation before. She may have to be put down.
"Plan for the worst and hope for the best". Onward and upward the next thing will be glorious.
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Fawna (Fauna) is not getting worse and we see improvement. We spent a lot of time and energy working with her yesterday. Her legs are stronger and we had her up in the sling for 20 minutes or more. She has kicked me and now I have to be on my guard more... She seems to know where to kick.
It is frustrating, guilt-causing, tiring, time consuming to have a sick llama.
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Fawna is not showing any more improvement. We are stuck. I am unsure of what to do next. We need more advice and we are seeking it. The choices get grimmer and simpler as time moves forward. She has shown small incremental improvement up to now. She still cannot stand up. She ate and drank today. We exercised her legs. What do you do? She is alive, alert and hates being immobile.
I went to calling hours for a coworker's (Kermit Kirby) wife yesterday. She died quite suddenly over the weekend. She was 57 yrs old.
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The sling for Fauna came yesterday. We managed to get her to support her own weight for about five minutes or so. She drank almost 2 gallons of water yesterday. The Vet called and we had a parasite fecces exam done.. she found some tape worm but that would not have made her this sick. We gave her some meds for the tape worm as well as a powerful analgesic. We have more doses to give her today. She almost got up on her own.. her front legs are doing ok.. but she is still weak in the back. She ate like a pig yesterday and she seems to be getting better. We have to keep getting her up. She is still in great danger and everyday she is not up creates greater health risks for her such as blood clots and the like.
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Fawna is better but she has not yet stood up. I was out there at 2 am and again this morning at 6 am. We are going to call the vet today to see if we are doing things right.
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Fawna is doing better. But she is still not standing up. She almost made it up about an hour ago. Bonnie and I have pushed more fluids in her. She is definitely getting more alert and has more energy. It takes two people to administer the fluids. One to hold her neck and the other to gently slip the baster into her mouth and get her to drink.
Here are the tools, a turkey baster, fluorescent lantern and a thermos. We have been using warm water with a pinch of sugar and a pinch of salt. She ate some grain as well. I expect her to be standing today or tomorrow at this rate.
Here is a photo of fawna today. She allowed the media in, but decided to appear in a sicker-than-normal-look pose. You can not see the plastic strips that cover the doorway. The strips allow the the light in, but they also hold the heat inside the llamahouse. It was well over 50 degrees in the llamahouse when I took this photo. I reminded Bonnie that she had told me she wanted to be a vet when she was a kid. In our case, here, I find the challenge stimulating. These llamas are very sensitive animals. To see her (fawn) become more trusting of us when she is sick is inspirational. Gentle does it with these kids.
