Whoops!

As the messages that run up and down the spine gradually decline the information that the brain sends to the back end about walking and so-on stop getting through and Holly's walking got worse and worse.

Similarly messages from the back end of Holly that are sent to the brain are also not getting through.

This can be good, it can also be bad.

On a positive note one of the first set of messages to stop being transmitted with any reliability was pain. She can't tell and can't feel pain when she grazes her toes or I accidently stand on one, the downside is she doesn't know when she is injured so she is subjected to regular check-ups by me, but as the reward for being poked and prodded is treats she doesn't make too much of a fuss.

The biggest downside, after the walking, is control of the internal plumbing. I think I am lucky that so far she seems to have retained around 95% control of the flow, but what she has lost is the ability to know when she needs to 'go'.

I've got quite good at reading the signs and knowing we need to take a trip round the garden. The problem is when I don't spot the signs, then we have the odd accident in the house. The accidents mortify her, so I try very hard to make sure she doesn't have any. I never scold her for having an accident because she cannot help or control it. I discovered that letting her watch the clean-up helps her morale because she knows all the mess has gone, when I clean up without her there she keeps returning to the spot to check it has been cleaned.

Most of the time the accidents are my fault for not spotting the signs, but sometimes I lay the blame for them at the feet of those inconsiderate people who pinch the wires and cables from railway lines making the trains all run late so I get home later than normal.