Late Spring and Aging Dogs

Spring finally arrived in the Northern Plains!   Actually, we skipped Spring entirely this year and went right to Summer.  Seriously!   Two weeks ago we had high temperatures in the upper 30's and lower 40's.    Less than a week later, it was in the 90's!!   Fortunately, that didn't last too long, and now we're enjoying 70-degree days.  People who don't live here can't understand how we can be dealing with flooding one week and wild fires the next.   While I'm not a climatologist, I think it has to do with the fact that things haven't greened up yet.   The snow melt ran off, we haven't had a good rain and the top soil and brush is tinder dry.   We're supposed to get rain this weekend and that should help a lot.

On the home front, the girls are really starting to show their advanced age; both of them - and in different ways.   Princess (14) is starting to lose interest in life.   She sleeps a LOT and, for the first time ever, isn't eating well.   She seems to be hard of hearing, but it's hard to tell because her hearing has always been very selective!   I notice her trembling a lot - like she's afraid of something - and I can't figure out what  that's about.  The one thing that she really enjoys is going to work with me.   She's not allowed in the building, but she is quite content to spend the day sleeping in the car.  At lunch time I take her out for a walk or we go up to Dairy Queen and get chicken tenders.   She's been going with me most of the Spring, but it's starting to get too warm for her to be in the car all day.   I'll continue to take her with me on cool, overcast days.  

Dee Dee (almost 13) is really struggling with mobility - especially in her back legs.  They just don't work anymore.   Our wonderful neighbor, Mike, built a ramp that she can use to get to the front door.   She was cautious at first, but is starting to get the hang of it and is proud of herself when she can get to the top step without help!   Dee Dee loves to swim so I was eager to see how that would go, now that the weather is nicer.  Last night I took them to Whiskey Creek in Barnesville.   My heart sank when Dee Dee got in the water and wouldn't venture out more than a couple feet.   But a few minutes later, she found her stride - and her confidence - and within a few minutes she was swimming like a champ, going out to retrieve a stick I threw in the water.   She had so much fun and didn't want to leave!    I was soooo happy to see her happy and we'll be making many trips there this summer.  

As difficult as it is to see the girls struggling with the challenges of aging, I am also trying to embrace this stage of their lives and enjoy the time that we have left together.   They are more mellow and cuddly than they used to be, falling asleep on my lap or snuggling in bed in the morning.   I have started to save their hair when I brush them, and I burrow my head deep into their furry bodies to savor the smell.   I love them so, sooo much .... I never want to let them go!

What is wrong with this Picture?

What is wrong with this picture?!?   Only the date!   We are half way through the month of April and haven't seen anything that remotely resembles Spring yet.   And today we're having a major snowstorm.   If the wind picks up a little more (which it is supposed to do overnight) it will officially be a blizzard.   We've had a bunch of them this winter.   Always on a Sunday-Monday.   It's been crazy.   I've heard that there is over six inches of water in the snowpack.   That's a lot.

We've hit 40 degrees just once so far this year, and a major flood is a guarantee at this point.   Just how bad it is will depend on how much more moisture we get and how quickly it warms up, if it ever warms up!

The girls and I have enjoyed a quiet winter for the most part.   Dee Dee has pretty severe arthritis of the lower spine, and has been going to physical therapy (along with chiropractic and accupuncture).   I'm not sure if it's helping.    For the money I've spent, I'd like to think so.    She runs better than she walks.   When she walks, she often drags her back legs.   Steps are impossible unless she gets a running start..   Dee Dee has always been an incredible problem solver and I was so proud of her for figuring that out!   If she is struggling to get up the front steps, she backs up and takes a running start.     

Princess is just getting old and tired.   I think she has some hearing loss, but it's kind of hard to tell since she has always had 'selective hearing'.   She sleeps a lot more than she used to, but is otherwise well.   I've been writing and stamping and trying to deal with a serious case of spring fever by cleaning every room in the house from top to bottom.   There's nothing else to clean - except the garage and the car!   I will get to those as soon as Spring arrives.   We're hoping it's soon!



A Golden Birthday for a Golden Girl

March, 14, 2013

Happy GOLDEN BIRTHDAY to my sweet Princess Isabella!   Well into the senior years of life, you'd never know it to look at her.   She plows through the snow, jumps up on the sofa and even the bed without effort.   Strong willed and feisty, she also has a sweet and gentle side to her.   What joy she has brought into my life!  

Routine

I have always wished I was a little better at spontaniety.  You know ... the 'fly by the seat of your pants' kind of person who can make plans at the last minute (or cancel them) without it causing too much stress.   I'm just not that kind of person.  Never have been.  I like to plan ahead, look forward to major events like vacations and holidays and have all my ducks in a row.   When I take a trip, I have an itinerary, even if I'm going alone.   "Flexibility" to me, means building one rainy day into my schedule so that if we run into inclement weather, I don't completely unravel! 

It turns out that dogs like routine too.   Structure.  Consistency.   Doing the same thing in the same way, day after day.   Of course the seasons bring changes in our day-to-day schedule, but those changes are gradual, and so the transition is pretty seamless.   Dogs don't need a watch to keep track of time like we do, but their circadian rhythm adjusts to the schedule we set for them.  

Some veterinarians recommend once a day feeding, but my dogs have always done well with a small dish of food in the morning, and then a larger meal around 5:30; when I get home from work.   If I forget, Dee Dee  lies by her food bowl.   She doesn't bark or whine or make a fuss; she just lies there quietly until I get the hint.    When I come home from work at night, the girls are at the door to greet me.   That is, assuming I come home at the correct time - which is roughly between 5:20 and 5:50.  If I come home early, as I did this past Monday due to a blizzard, they are somewhat startled to hear the key in the door.

My dogs develop routines very quickly.    If I do something twice in a row, especially if it's something they like, it is now a 'routine' and must be repeated.     The hardest part of the day is when I leave for work in the morning.   They know it's coming.  But they still don't like it.   So we have a  couple of things we do to make mornings a bit more fun.   After they go outside and eat their breakfast, they hang out in the bathroom with me (or just outside the door) while I get ready for work.   I'm usually eating my bowl of cereal at that time, and they get the last bit of milk in the bottom of my bowl.   Don't ask me how that started.  I just know that it is an unchangeable rule at this time.  As soon as they see me tipping the bowl to spoon up my milk, they run to their bowls and wait for me to divide the last little bit between them.  Our other morning ritual is just before I leave, I send them outside to go potty one last time.   While they're outside, I take a couple of beggin' strips and break them into about 14-16 pieces.  I hide these tiny pieces all over the house .... in corners, under chairs, on the shelves of a bookcase, in a kennel, and on the furniture.   When I let them back inside, they go on a tear all over the house to find their treats while I am quietly slipping out the door.   It helps take the sting out of the saddest moment of the day.  

The favorite treat at my house is a Greenie.   The thing I don't understand is how did they figure out that the best treat is also the most expensive?   I guess they have refined taste.   At any rate, Greenies are reserved for Saturday mornings; right after their weekly grooming (which includes the dreaded nail trim).  That's the only time they get them. 

And then, of course, we have a bedtime routine.   I did not set this.   The girls did.   And it's changed over the years.   For years, both of them slept with me.   Then, for a long time, they took turns sleeping with me.   Then, for quite a long time after that, Princess slept with me.   But now neither one of them sleep with me.  Princess developed a 'zero tolerance' policy for me moving in bed.   For a while, she'd start out with me, but as soon as I'd turn slightly, or fluff my pillow, she'd jump down.   Now, she doesn't even give me a chance.   So we have a pretty funny (if you ask me) bedtime routine.   There are two dog beds;  one in the living room and one behind the recliner in the bedroom.   About 8 p.m.  Dee Dee crawls into the bed in the living room and goes to sleep.   Around that same time, Princess stands by the bed, and whines for me to put her on it.  (She used to be able to jump on her own, but not anymore.)   That's where they stay until I get ready to go to bed; about 11:00.   As soon as I pull the covers down, Princess jumps off the bed and goes to the dog bed behind the recliner.   At this point, Dee Dee is still on the other dog bed in the living room.   But as soon as she hears me flip off the light switch, she comes trotting into the bedroom and makes herself a nest from my dirty clothes and the throw pillows that are on the floor.    It's the funniest thing.  She has always loved to sleep on anything that smells like me ...  my coat, towel, clothes, ... you get the picture.   Pretty endearing, if you ask me.

Christmas Greetings!

I am spending this Christmas in Michigan with my brother Tim, missing my girls but getting my corgi 'fix' from Elvis.   He is quite the boy and loves Tim more than life itself.    He also loves gifts - not just his gifts but anyone's gifts.   He sniffs them and pokes at them, trying to figure out what is inside.   It's hilarious.  

He loved the Greenies and jerky he got from Princess and Dee Dee, and they will love their new tennis balls when I get home tomorrow night.   I am so grateful for neighbors who care for them when I'm gone.    Christmas blessings to all!

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  He was with God in the beginning.  Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.  In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind.  The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.  The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Busted!

The day after Thanksgiving (aka Black Friday) is a day for me to STAY HOME!   Not being a crowd person, it often is the day that I put up Christmas decorations.   But Thanksgiving was so early this year that I thought it was too soon to do that.   So I worked on some Christmas gift/favors to share with my rubber stamping friends and take to Christmas dinner at my aunt's house.    After cutting, scoring and taping the sides of the little 'jar' together, I wrapped three Hershey nuggets in Christmas paper and put them inside the jar.  

I was spread out over the living room floor, and eventually needed a bathroom break.   When I came back, this is what I saw!     Dee Dee is my usual troublemaker but this time it was Princess.   Doesn't she look guilty?!?   She knew she was in trouble!    When I said, "Princess!!" - her ears went straight out to the side and she wanted to crawl up in my lap (her refuge of choice!)   It's kind of like spanking a toddler.   They need the swat to help them 'remember' (as my Dad used to say) but when they look at you with a face like this, it's all you can do to keep from laughing.

In Memory of Sadie

Sadie was our next door neighbor; a black lab mix who was the same age as Princess, and a couple years older than Dee Dee.   When Princess was still a puppy, the two of them would chase each other around and around my garage, the path worn bare beneath them.  Princess was the chaser and Sadie was the chasee.  Princess never stood a chance, but it didn't keep her from trying.   They had so much fun.

Then Dee Dee entered our lives and gave everyone a run for their money.   Sadie's gentle lab temperament was put to the test many a time, as Dee Dee fought to be top-dog.   There were a few occasions where Sadie put her in her place, but over time they became great pals.  Dee Dee would run to greet Sadie,  her butt wagging as only a corgi-butt can wag.  She'd jump up and kiss Sadie's face and then roll over in a submissive posture.   I saw that sequence play out hundreds of times and it always intrigued me.

Mike and Gina have a great bay window and nearly every day Sadie would sit there around 5:30 and wait for me to come home.   When she saw my car round the corner, she'd run to the back door and bark.   Gina would let her out, and by the time I pulled into my driveway she was standing on my front porch.   I didn't need an interpreter to understand what she wanted.  "Can the girls come out and play?"   My girls did the same.  I would be in working in some part of the house, and suddenly they would start barking and come looking for me.   I knew 'that bark'.   Sadie was outside and they wanted to go play.

Over the years, we dog-sat when Mike and Gina had to be gone, and those were the only times Sadie wasn't glad to see us.  Her world was upset, and she paced the driveway, waiting for them to come home.  The joy in her eyes was gone, and she didn't want to play.   As soon as Mom and Dad returned, she was back to her old self!

Recent years brought two bouts of Lyme Disease and a steady decline in her health.   On Friday, October 5th, it was time to say goodbye.   A few days before that, we took some final pictures on my front porch.  It is hard to come home and see Mike working in the yard without Sadie by his side.  We miss her. RIP sweet Sadie.