Oops...

Dear Friends and Family,

We went for Henri's followup with the internist on Tuesday. Henri is doing great. She said, at first, she was worried about the weight but when she felt him....she was really pleased with the weight gain...all muscle. She said she hadn't realized how muscle-wasted he was. She is really happy with his response to treatment.

I was a little disappointed as she outlined the steps ahead of us. I had hoped, we would be tapering the prednisone more quickly but she wants to slow down as we approach the lower doses. He will be on 2.5mg/day for 6-weeks and then I am suppose to checkin with her. She said it can take up to 6-weeks to see if the Crohn's Disease/IBD is going to 'break through' the med regimen. It all makes sense...I just wish it was different.

We had a little hiccup this week which is making Jeff and I feel bad. Jeff had refilled Henri's pill organizer on Saturday and mistakenly allocated out Bella's prednisone pills instead of Henri's. We use 1mg/tablets for Bella and 5mg for Henri. So Henri for a few days was underdosed significantly. I caught it one morning because the pill size seemed strange to me. While Henri was acting normal, he had stopped eating breakfast and was somewhat reluctant at dinner. Ugh!! I called the internist, she suggested we go back to 5mg/day for 1-week and then resume the 2.5mg/day. So while Henri has weathered the hiccup relatively well....his parents are a wreck...we feel terrible. I guess this is the problem when 3 out of 4 creatures in a household are prednisone and all for different reasons. Bella take 0.33mg/day for physiological replacement, Henri is on (now) 5mg/day for immunosuppression, and I am taking 5mg/day as an anti-inflammatory.

On the up side, Henri is super busy making up for lost time. His favorite toy, "The Loopie", has been everywhere. He is launching it to new heights....the coffee table, dining table, toilet, bathtub, fire place, etc. And while he is not usually a barker...he is when his favorite toy is stuck. Busy little guy!

Well....that is the latest. For local folks, we will be at the Seattle Kennel Club dog show on Saturday with Henri. We will be located in the "Meet the Breed" Westie area. There will be a raffle for the Helping Henri Medical Fund. If you would like to come meet Henri, please visit us.

PS Attached is a photo of Henri with our normal vet, Dr Karen Myhre. Even after all he has been through, he is still want to give her kisses. So sweet!

Thank you!!
Prayers!
Ella