Furry faces
Wet noses
Sloppy kisses
Wagging butts
Dirty beards
Ready to play
Ready to love
Ready for love
Tag: Pets
I Can’t Stress This Enough…
BECAUSE IT’S TRUE!
OMG Vet Care Is As Bad As Human Care Now…Poor Abby!
Okay, so usually I love my dog’s vet. He’s really smart. He’s really patient with this “helicopter mom” and he doesn’t charge outrageous prices.
We took Abby in at 6 am today to be spayed and much to our surprise and dismay they told us to call around noon for an update (not the surprising part) and that we could pick her up between 3 and 4 pm…SURPRISE!
Now I know Zoey is 12 years old, and I know the times they are a changing, but same day surgery for a dog hysterectomy…especially a dog Abby’s size! Really? Wow!
So, I called around noon, after neurotically watching the clock all morning. You see, normally I would not worry about this type of surgery for a dog. It’s all very routine. But remember, Abby has sub aortic stenosis so I stay in a constant state of worry about her health and well being…”helicopter mom”.
At 3:30 pm we went to pick her up. It was a nightmare. First, there was someone new at the desk. He didn’t quite seem to know what he was doing and generally I’m okay with that if someone is new in their position. You’ve gotta cut people some slack sometimes. But he went to get Abby before he checked me out. So she comes out, completely zoned out of her little doggie mind, glassy eyed and walking like a drunk sailor only to lay down in the lobby.
While I am paying, my husband (who thankfully was home from work today and came with me) was gently trying to get her to respond. She was passed out! After finally getting me checked out correctly, he forgot post op instructions and pain meds (I had to ask for both), “New Guy” comes over to help my husband get Abby up.
He brings over a padded sling and puts it around her…RIGHT OVER HER INCISION. Well that woke her up long enough to growl and show her teeth. Poor thing! After calming her down again, my husband and I took over…this was clearly going to be a do it yourself job!
I stood over Abby and thrusted one paw in front of the other ever so slowly and ever so gently and basically walked for my dog all the way to the car. Ridiculous! Should they really be letting her come home in that condition?
Getting her in the car was a challenge but getting her back out once we got home…WOW! It took us 20 minutes to get her to agree to get out and then I had to walk for her again paw after paw, stopping several times so she could rest, until we were able to get her flopped on her bed in the family room.
She’s passed out now and I hope she is comfortable but the incision looks raw, as any new incision would and she’s clearly going to have some problems with pain as she begins to wake up.
It’s going to be a long night! Normally she sleeps upstairs in the bedroom with us but I don’t see that happening tonight. My guess is that I’ll be flopped on our lumpy couch all night with one ear open, making sure she is still breathing and not licking her incision…”helicopter mom”.
I feel a flare up of my disease headed my way once I know she is truly recovering. But I’ll do just about anything for my dogs…”helicopter mom”!
OYE!
Why Old English Sheepdogs (OES) You Ask?
I get asked a lot why I have this breed and what drew me to them. The easy answer is my husband. He had one when we met. His name was Bailey (the dog…not my husband) and I might have fallen in love with him before I did my husband.
By the time Bailey died, my husband and I were married. I had the honor of living with Bailey for several years before his death. When he died, the house, as often becomes when a beloved pet leaves, was eerily quiet. And we did what people do…debated if we should get another dog and if so when and what kind.
My husband felt like we should get a mutt from a shelter. I understood his point but I could not get Bailey’s personality out of my head or my heart.
So, I did what I do…research. I had not been a dog person growing up. Bailey was my first dog and my husband had him well trained by the time I met him. I hadn’t realized there were so many breeds or so many different breed characteristics. But every time I thought about getting a different breed, I felt like something wouldn’t be quite right for us.
Eventually when time eased the wounds of losing Bailey, we contacted a reputable OES breeder. Fortunately she lived near us because good OES breeders are hard to find. So, we went to see her. She had six….yes that’s right, six Old English Sheepdogs at the time and all of them were currently or had been show dogs. She interviewed us as if we were adopting one of her children. She watched how we interacted with her dogs with a careful eye. Much to our relief, she put us on the wait list for a puppy.
Not long after that, Zoey entered our lives.
When I got sick with sarcoidosis and had to quit work, Zoey and I found ourselves joined at the hip. We did everything together and she was so happy to finally have someone home with her all day. She rescued me from a dark time in the early days of my diagnosis. She gave me purpose and a reason to keep moving.
But then my husband realized that at 11 years of age, Zoey was getting old and I would likely be devastated when she died. This was when he decided that we needed another dog now!
Abby enters the picture in 2014.
Now the three of us do everything together and I’ve been saved again.
I love Old English Sheepdogs because they are all about their families. They are smart dogs. They are incredibly loyal and they are hilariously funny. They are loving and sweet and on a bad day, there is nothing like hug from an Old English Sheepdog. It’s truly enough to turn your day around.
Yes, they are a lot of work. Keeping their coat mat free and clean is a daily chore and sometimes the grooming is back breaking. It’s a labor of love.
Sure, I spend a lot of time cleaning and sure, my vacuum has been to the shop for repairs a few times because of daily rug cleaning. And, yes I have a lint brush at the ready every time I leave my house. But these are small hardships in comparison to the love my girls give so freely.
They love everyone they meet and no one is a stranger to my dogs. They make instant friends everywhere they go!
So, why Old English Sheepdogs you ask? Because they are the closet thing to heaven on Earth. They are as near to perfection as a dog will ever be.
Pals!
Perhaps there is no better friend than the one you can create mischief with…
Double trouble is twice the fun!
Inspiration From Unusual Places…
This might seem strange, especially if you are not an animal lover like I am, but as I was walking the dogs this morning, a thought occurred to me that when we are open to it, we will receive inspiration in unusual places.
Some who regularly read my blog may remember that my puppy, Abby, has a serious heart condition called sub aortic stenosis. In simple terms, she has scarring around the aorta that isn’t supposed to be there. This reduces the ability for her heart to pump blood properly to the rest of her body. She is at risk of a sudden death. She has to be on beta blockers.
So anyway, when I walked the dogs this morning, I was watching my little Abby as she lifted her head toward the sun, soaking it in, and sticking her nose out to enjoy all the weird things dogs love to smell in the windy air. She was happy. She was joyous and she was full of life.
This is when inspiration hit me and is yet another thing my dogs are teaching me. Abby lives her life like nothing is wrong with her. She doesn’t acknowledge her condition in the least. She runs, she plays, she explores. She does all the wonderfully goofy things that a young dog should do.
I want to be like Abby. Despite my sarcoidosis, I just want to live my life like nothing is wrong with me. I want to put it in the background and play and laugh and love and live. Watching Abby enjoy her walk this morning was incredibly inspirational. Who would have thought a dog could set such an example but there it was, so plain to see, because I was open and willing to receive the message.
We can find inspiration all around us, if we allow ourselves to see it. This morning, it came from my dog and I am so grateful for the reminder that I don’t have to be confined by my disease or defined by it. I don’t have to let it rule me. I’m in charge. This is my life.
Watching her take such simple pleasure in her walk this morning, without a care in the world, reminded me that I have choices. I can spend all my time worrying about my disease, which direction it will go and how I am feeling every given moment or I can accept what I can’t change and focus on what I do have control over…my own attitude. I can let go of what isn’t mine anyway and live today…here and now.
This About Sums It Up!
If only we were as kind to each other as we are to our pets!
Something to think about…
Nothing Better Can Be Said About A Dog’s Love
In my case it was two dogs…
The never questioning unconditional love these two beautiful creatures offer is the very best medicine for whatever ails me. Their unwavering desire to live joyfully in the moment is a reminder to me of what is truly important…this moment…now. It is all we are ever really promised.
Our furry friends have much to teach us!
Meet “Haystac’s Southern Belle” And The Breeding Questions Continue…
It’s hard to believe that our little girl is almost a year old. Her first birthday is February 2nd. We had her officially registered with the AKC a few weeks ago. Her formal name is “Haystac’s Southern Belle”. “Haystac” is her kennel name so her pedigree can be tracked. We just call her Abby which is the name we gave her as a pup.
Getting her registered is the first step toward getting Abby ready to breed. But, we hit a road block that we may or may not be able to overcome. During a visit to the vet yesterday for a routine matter, I had the doctor listen to our sweet Southern Belle’s heart. He continues to hear a murmur that we had hoped she would out grow. Her parents and grandparents are OFA cleared for heart defects so whatever is going on with Abby is not an inherited condition.
It’s likely that this is a benign murmur and will not have a negative impact on the length or quality of her life. For this, we are very grateful. But, in order to breed her, we are going to have to have the murmur further evaluated and this will require an echocardiogram from a doggie cardiologist.
We have an appointment with a veterinary specialist on Monday. The specialist will have to determine if her heart is otherwise healthy and if the increased blood flow to the heart would or would not have a negative impact on her health during pregnancy. Regardless of breeding, we want to make sure that she has no other heart issues of concern.
I have to admit that if we are unable to breed her, which may or may not be the likely outcome, a part of me will be quite sad. Over the past few months as she has grown, I became very open to the thought of breeding her and I was getting a little excited about the idea of a house full of cute little pups to help her care for. It was something that was going to give me purpose but more than that, I think Abby would be a wonderful mother.
Who knows, maybe she still will be. We don’t have all the information yet but one thing is for sure, we will not put our darling southern belle’s health at risk under any circumstances. No matter what happens, we can and will still provide her with a wonderful life.
I may just have to grieve never becoming a grandma but even if that happens, I’ll get over it.
Abby…The Wrong Dog…For The Right People
Abby, our nine month old has come into her first “season”. Yes that’s right, while women might say things like “ladies days” or “that time of month”, a female dog….I mean dam…goes into “season”.
This is our virgin experience with a dam entering her first “season”. Zoey, our 12 year old girl was fixed before she had the pleasure of this experience and before that we had male dogs. So this evening when we got the brushes out, prepared for the at least weekly back breaking task of pulling a brush through an Old English Sheepdog’s fur, we were concerned to notice that Abby had some bloody discharge.
Due to our ignorance on the delicate topic of our dog’s “coming of age”, we quickly dialed our breeder’s number and much to our relief, she answered on the second ring. After providing us soothing, reassuring advice that we are not actually terrible pet parents for not knowing what to do for Abby, our conversation turned to breeding, a topic we have been pondering for awhile. (https://sarcoidsoldier.wordpress.com/2014/11/01/to-breed-or-not-to-breed-that-is-the-question/)
Our breeder is an expert on all things Old English Sheepdog. And when I say this, I am not kidding. She has dogs who have won best in breed at the prestigious Westminster Dog Show. She co-owns show dogs all over the country. Breeders like these are very special because their goal, beyond winning, is to keep the breed thriving and healthy.
We’ve never had an interest in showing a dog so our breeder likes us because she needs good loving homes for pups that don’t end up being show quality…the “loser” dogs as we affectionately call them. She prefers to give her dogs, no matter their “station”, to people who already have experience caring for the breed because they are a tremendous amount of work. Owning one is a true labor of love.
Abby came from a litter of 8 pups…five male and three female. We really didn’t care which one we got and fully expected to get a “loser.”
Our goal in getting a second dog was simple…to ease the transition of my one day losing Zoey….something I remain in denial will ever happen! We also thought it would be fun to add a new family member to our little clan.
Last night in our chat with the breeder, she informed us that we actually took home a different dog than the one chosen for us. We were supposed to get a smaller female who was not show quality, one that was specifically temperament tested for a home with an older dog, but the woman who is the primary owner of Abby’s mother, a co-owner with our breeder, gave us the wrong dog!
And much to our surprise, we also learned that Abby was not only the wrong dog for us but was also the pick of the litter. She was supposed to go to a home in New Jersey and become a show dog. What a different life she would have had!
We shouldn’t be surprised though…I mean look at her. She’s beautiful!
She might have been the wrong dog but she was given to the right people and she will have a wonderful life with us. We couldn’t be happier to have her as part of our tribe.
Sarcoidosis Soldier 