I know the star of this blog is Bandit, so: 3 Month update

I recently sent out an email to Bandit's gofundme supporters, but I realize they are only a small drop in the bucket of people who NEED TO KNOW about Bandit's bowel movements. (If conversations at ASA were any indication anyway...) So I'm uploading the email text below for all of you other puppy lovers.

It has been about a month since I last sent an update to Bandit's many funders, caretakers and supporters. With several new donations that have come in, I continue to be humbled by how many people have joined me in this process.

Thank you again for all you have done to support Bandit's ongoing care.

I know some of you want the super-detailed updates, so they follow in all of their glory. Or you can just skip ahead to the photo.

In the last month, Bandit's left, rear leg has regained nerve function down to his knee! He also has at least one nerve reaching all the way down to the top of his toes. He can now stand on four legs, though he primarily uses three for walking. He can still outrun me on just three legs, and can now walk about a mile at a time. In fact, his front half is so strong, any attempt at going potty would give the fiercest breakdancer a run for their money. He simply stands on his front legs and lifts and swings both back legs up and out of the way.

In case your wondering, this is not an effective strategy for keeping urine off his fur. But I'm thinking a new career may be in his future.

As far as urinary incontinence goes, I have found myself frustrated that he seems to have backslid. He used to be able to make it all night dry, and for whatever reason, as he has continued healing, he has gone back to dribbling with the slightest movement. At the end of this email, I will ask all of you to send him healing energy to this area.

Fecal incontinence is significantly better in that he can go at least eight hours. (As always, if you don't want to hear about Bandit's poop, you will have to avoid opening my emails for the indefinite future). The nerves in his colon have been healing from the inside out. This means he can control the process most of the way, but he has no control over that last half-inch or so of colon. Gravity and other muscles take over at that stage. This frustrates HIM endlessly, because he can spend hours trying to finish what he thought he started.

The prognosis is uncertain. His healing has been slower than many other dogs. And yet, he is doing much better than was initially predicted, so I don't think anyone has the answers. His vet told me it is not uncommon to see dogs continue to heal for 6 months after such a severe trauma. When 4-6 weeks pass with no improvements, that's a pretty good indication his body has plateaued. Nerves grow slowly, and on his left side, they were *completely* severed along his spine. The fact that any have grown from that point in his spine to his left toes at all in three months is a testament to the natural healing powers of the body. However, even as the nerves grow, they have to be trained to operate as the original ones did and to take over similar functions. This is where his physical therapist comes in.

Meanwhile, I want to ask all of you who have donated your time, your money and your love to this beloved animal to consider visualizing his healing with me. Something is preventing his urinary tract from working properly. Today, consider saying a prayer, or visualizing him with a dry diaper as he runs around, or imagining light running through his urinary system.

(Writing this kind of makes me want to add flashing lights to his diapers... because that would be pretty fantastic too).

I have attached a photo of a very proud Bandit, who with 10% mommy assistance climbed a ladder of pillows and cushions to get to his favorite look-out on the back of the couch.

I hope we all get to have smiles that big today. And I look forward to the day when he can make it up his pillow mountain all by himself!

Love,

Sandy & Bandit