Saturday, October 23, 2010

Day Surgery.....and other medical updates

No, no day surgery for the human occupants of this household, but the youngest doggy member spent yesterday at the vet's having his teeth polished and his nails clipped.


Fortunately it wasn't as bad as we had anticipated and he didn't need to have any teeth extracted. (His breath was so appalling we figured there had to be a rotten tooth back there somewhere!) So it only cost just over $300 instead of just over $600. Phew! I was imagining a conversation along the lines of "yes, Miss R, I know you wanted a DSi for Christmas, but look, hasn't Neo got lovely shiny teeth??? Now go play with your lump of coal."

In other medical news, the blood tests showed that Miss R has a slight iron deficiency which may well account for her constant tiredness, so she's now on iron tablets. To help with absorption, she should also eat plenty of fruit. Hah! Miss R has NEVER eaten fruit.....we heard rumours once that she had eaten watermelon but I think that story is on par with the one about the Loch Ness Monster. I believe it is a sensory issue...she doesn't like the texture so who cares about the taste. Any attempts to get her to eat fruit are met with a staunch (and unwavering) "I don't like(insert type of fruit here) ". Short of prying her lips open and forcing her to chew, I can see no way of increasing her fruit intake. Apparently taking the tablet with a glass of apple juice (the only juice she will even contemplate) is better than nothing, so that's what we'll be doing. 

The GP also took a look at her acne-riddled forehead and put her on antibiotics and a cream to help clear her skin. The rash-like acne has only appeared in the last 6-8 months and - according the hairdresser - is due to her oily hair. (Which I tend to believe as the acne is also all over her back and chest.) Colouring her hair when she's older will help as that tends to dry the hair out. Miss R seems pretty oblivious to the acne, so I didn't want to make it an issue, but the GP said that it would be better to clear it up now before it gets any worse. I don't know quite how I feel about this - on the one hand, I'm happy to do anything to make Miss R's life easier, but on the other hand, I can't help thinking that it's a bit of an over-reaction, given that she's not yet 13. I've canvassed a few opinions from other parents of teenagers - some for, some against - but am still mulling it over.

Well, Miss R is due to be collected from her dance rehearsal - concert is next week - so I'd better be off.

3 comments:

  1. Hmmm. Interesting update this one. Firstly I'm all 'Oooh look at the gorgeous goggie' and then I'm 'Oh yeah, Sapphire avoids fruit like the plague too but veges are a different story' to the acne issue. That's a tough one.

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  2. How did you make Neo smile like that? Pretty handsome.....!

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  3. Theresa, it took about 15 shots but he finally showed his pearly whites!

    Kath, Miss R eats vegies under duress also. She is a really fussy eater - something I said I would never tolerate - and would live on pasta and icecream if she could. Hence the need for iron tablets.
    And yes, Neo is a gorgeous doggie, but such a naughty little thing!

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