What you looking at?

seriously, no pictures

What part of that didn't you understand?

I won't stand for this

Mom, please!!!!

all right, just one.











Mole gave me a bit of a scare last week; he couldn't seem to stand up or lay down without being in pain. Poor guy would yelp and fuss and whine. And while he is a chihuahua, there is nothing wimpy about this boy. He is as stoic as they come.

A trip to the vet and some new x-rays revealed a progression of his disease along with some more vertebrae being affected. Notice, the lack of collar? Well, the deterioration is now most severe in his neck, making a collar (and use of a leash) not a very good idea. My poor old man is getting old and it's showing in some pretty painful ways. We are going to try to keep him comfortable for as long as possible. My boy means everything to me and I can't imagine a world without him in it. He is truly my heart dog.

The Peas

These two are always cuddled up together. Instead of calling them my "kids" I've resorted to calling them my "peas"

They often sleep in the strangest of positions

But they are always together, always touching.

I think it's just the sweetest thing in the whole world. It makes even my frost-bitten heart melt.

Now what did I do with the other one? I swear there were three here at one point. . .

Poor Pocket

It's been a long time since I've posted. Partly due to the fact that nothing super interesting has been going on with us lately and partly due to the fact the my computer had been at a stand up desk for awhile and standing and typing a post after a long day of work was just too much sometimes.

Since the last time I posted, the dogs and I have been sitting around doing a whole lot of nothing. And I think that we are all the better for it. Last summer was crazy busy with classes and with sniper being around and I think that we all deserved a break. The kids really seemed to enjoy the quiet walks around the neighborhood and the "sleeping in" on our days off. I really enjoyed saving some money on gas and having afternoons/evenings free.

Things have been really crazy this past month and our lives have turned upside-down again. . .but now that it's over and we are getting settled again, I think that things will be even better than before. But getting back to "settled" can be a bit of a challenge and my dogs don't like change to begin with, so I think that we are going to have a few challenges in the next month or so.

The first challenge is getting our place set up in a way that is comfortable for the kids. We've already had one accident with poor pocket misjudging the spacing between two objects and falling in between while trying to jump the distance. Pocket came running holding up her back right leg and screaming like crazy. Luckily she didn't bite me while I tried to examine her! She had full range of motion in that leg and no obvious sore spots and no bones protruding. I figured it was just a sprain and gave her some pain meds and put her to bed. She woke up seeming normal today. She is using her leg most of the time, but still picks it up if she wants to run around. I'll give her some meds the next few days and she should be completely healed soon. Poor Pocket!

Abby, Abby, Abby. . . Why? Why? Why?

Sometimes I think back to the day I brought Abby home and wonder what my life would've been like if I made a different decision. I don't spend a lot of time thinking about that because I have so much else to worry about with Abby actually being here. Now that Abby is finally past the majority of the behavioral issues, she has decided to start experimenting with medical issues. For a recap of some of Abby's medical issues, you can read here, or here, or here, or here, or here, or here. And while looking for those I realized that there have been a few other things that haven't been blogged about - probably because they stress me out too much to think about.

This latest medical adventure is a do-over of sorts. Abby didn't give me enough stress with the first tumor we found in her mouth, so she decided to grow a second one. I was less than thrilled. This one was at least a bit easier to remove as it was in the front of her mouth where she no longer has any teeth. A few minutes with a laser and she looks as good as new.

Or at least as good as any 7 year old over-bred dog can look. Poor Abby looks so silly as she recovers!  In general she seems to be doing much better this time after surgery. Her personality seems to be intact, although she is a bit more whinny and demanding. She doesn't seem to be having the same side effects from the drugs that she had last time either. Abby is still eating this time too - a great sign considering how long she was on her hunger strike the last time. She doesn't seem to be in much pain and I think that in another few days we can stop the pain meds all together.

Thinking about all the medical issues that Abby has faced, and will continue to face as she gets older, makes me even more thankful for the fun times that we share. Two days before her surgery, Abby was in another agility fun match. She can't do as much because her back and elbows bother her, but she still looks like she is enjoying herself. And at the end of the video, when she is looking up at me with that tail wag, I think back to the day I brought her home and know I am so lucky that I am allowed to share my life with such a wonderful dog.

Almost Like Having No Dogs At All

Going from four dogs back down to three makes it seem like I don't have any dogs at all. I've had four dogs on and off for the past three years and sniper was by far the most challenging one. Not that he was a difficult dog, but he was 80 pounds and young and energetic. He is the antithesis to my other ones. Even though he got along great with the kids, I still had to keep an eye on them for safety reasons. And he needed different amounts of exercise and training. For the past 6 months my life revolved entirely around him and the kids. And with him gone and I only have the three old, sluggish, grumps I suddenly have a ton of free time to do some of the things that I've wanted to do for a while. I'm getting out for dinner with friends and I'm able to go to the movies mid-day. I've recently re-learned how to ride a bike. I can make plans without worrying how me being away will affect the group. Don't get me wrong, my kids are still pretty demanding. They need walks and lots of potty breaks. They need individual lap time and they can only handle being alone for 4 hours at most. But those four hours are worry-free and relaxing. I really miss sniper and have been seeing him every chance I get, but it's nice having a calm and quiet household again. The dogs seem to like it too.