The Cycle of Pet Ownership

Shortly after I write my last blog entry, our GSD, Abby, took a turn for the worse.  The vet had taken her off antibiotics without doing a followup x-ray and within 3.5 days she was back in respiratory distress.  We got authorization then to see a specialist but by that time she was in congestive heart failure.  The vet didn't really know why she went into congestive heart failure.  Speculation brought up several scenarios for a cause but there seemed no avenue to determine the actual cause of the pneumonia turned congestive heart failure. Although the vet specialist seemed to want us to euthanize Abby once her cardiac status was determined, we requested that they drain the fluid around her heart to relieve the compression and have them look for tumors which they didn't find.  There really was no explanation to be had.  The vet specialist said it was likely hemangiosarcoma, a form of extremely aggressive cancer that attacks the blood vessels typically involving the spleen but also the heart, liver, lungs and other areas.  Within 3 days Abby was back to the earlier acute respiratory distress so, with encouragement from our vet, we had Abby euthanized.  Putting down any animal is tough, but putting down a dog that you love, that doesn't understand why you can't make them better, or what you're about to do to  them, well, that is pretty gut wrenching stuff. When you're unable to make them better, to help them, to act in any manner that has a positive outcome, it is extremely difficult to cope. And when you have to say goodbye to another living being, especially when its premature, you always feel robbed, for them and for yourself. I believe that you give a piece of yourself to those you love (human, dogs, whatever), and when they die they take that with them, a piece of you via the bonds of love. The emptiness we feel is intense after that kind of loss. We do our best to grieve and carry on. And with the case of dog owners, at least with me, for a split second I wonder why on earth I continue to willingly put myself through this cycle of introduction, attachment, love and loss with each new dog that I adopt.  But then I try to imagine living a life that isn't shared with dogs and, well, that doesn't seem like a life I'd enjoy very much. And so I cry and try to remember the good: the safe, secure, happy, loving home I was able to provide to a discarded/abused dog and the pure, simple, joyous companionship and love they shared in return.  Abby is not the first dog that I've grieved over and she likely won't be my last, but she sure does have a special place in my heart and in my memories.  What a special girl.  How much I adored her.  How very much I miss her.

And then we begin the process of filling out adoption applications to get pre-approved for our next rescue dog.  One with an entirely different story, different personality, different needs, different gifts but still with that same eventual offering of unconditional love and companionship and such appreciation for a soft bed, a bowl of food, good care and the love and security our pack offers in return.

I just wish they lived longer.

Thank Heaven for the Little Creatures

As I was laying in bed this morning, thinking of the Christmas Day ahead of me, I intentionally tried to focus on the things I appreciate. This year is very difficult for me as it's the first time that I've not been able to see my dear family members: my son, mother, and brother, as I moved across the country this past summer and, for the first time in my 40 years, I'm not in Madison, WI at all for the holidays. It's easy to get depressed and just want to sleep all day, or over eat, or equally non-productive activities, none of which solve my problem of missing my loved ones. So today I decided to just think of the things that I have that I do appreciate, those things that bring me happiness in the here and now. This is a good exercise for me, with my Year of Happiness right around the corner. Laying there, I felt the warm soft fur of Bosley against my feet. Pure bliss. I am so thankful for these little (and not so little) creatures that are a part of my family. My dogs are a huge joy in my life. To hold them, pet them, smell them, play with them, to talk to and, yes, even confide in them at times is a very great pleasure of mine. The love I share with my pets is something I treasure. Their love is innocent, simple, and unconditional. They often help put things in perspective for me when things feel overly complex. And, when I'm sad, or feeling particularly lonely, they need only lick my face, wag their tails (or their entire rear-end in Bosley's case), or paw playfully at me to bring a smile back to my face. And today, all he needed to do, was sleep quietly at the foot of the bed cuddled up by my feet.

Meet Abby

This is Abby. We adopted Abby a couple months ago from Camp Wolfgang, which is a couple hours drive from where we live. While we were looking at a bunch of other dogs, Abby followed Jason around from inside her kennel, staring at him intently and kissing his hand when he was close enough. We didn't find a dog that first visit, but our second visit we asked to see Abby specifically and we didn't even need to look at another dog. We took her home that day. She'd apparently never been an indoor dog, as she was confused when we let her in the house. It took some convincing for her to get up on the bed or the couch. But now the loveseat is her favorite place to lounge, and she takes up the whole thing as big as she is. She was super skinny when we got her and her hair was coming out in clumps. She's been recently treated for heartworm and that's tough on a dog. She's gained nearly 10 pounds now and you can no longer see her ribs. Her coats looks nice, full and shiny now. She's very sweet and calm. She gets along very well with Ruby, and sometimes we think she is treating Ruby like she's her puppy. Ruby is afraid to play with Abby but who can blame the little girl...she doesn't want to become one of Abby's squeaky toys! Abby and Bosley are still struggling with one another for the alpha position. They still growl at one another at times (usually resource related) and won't let the other be ahead of them on walks, but for the most part we're one big happy family. Abby is definitely smitten with her "dad" and you'll always find her in the same room as him when he's home. She's starting to warm up to me now though too. She likes sleeping on the couch, visiting "dad" while he's taking a dump (captive audience?), and going for walks (she's 100% on alert and on guard). She doesn't really have anything she dislikes, except being locked in the guest bath. She tried to dig herself out of the room the last time we left her in there (highlights of that repair will be a future entry). She isn't completely house trained, but she doesn't have any accidents when we're at home. She really tries to please us and she's a smart girl. I'm hoping to start running with her soon. I'll definitely feel safe with her at night by myself. We've been talking about getting a doggy door so we don't have to get up at night to let them out. Jason asked, "If we got a doggy door big enough for Abby, what would prevent a person from coming into the house through it?" I said, "Abby." He said, "Good point."

Meet Bosley

This is Bosley. We adopted him from a Cocker Rescue organization in Wisconsin several months after adopting Ruby. He was rescued from a Missouri puppy mill (via petfinder.com) and he's got some serious psychological scars. Bosley was pretty much a train wreck when we first adopted him. He was afraid of everything, including ceiling fans, doors, TVs, tile floors, dog dishes, anything with a cord, and knives, yes, he'd run away from us when we had a knife in our hand. Sad, huh? If you moved furniture, or placed something new, like a delivery box, in a room, he'd be so afraid that he'd run into the bathroom and hide behind the toilet. Seriously! We lovingly call him our cowardly lion...he sort of looks like a lion with all his buff colored fur. Jason says he's too pretty to be a boy...the Farrah Fawcett of dogs. Bos loves Ruby and actually protected her from one of the big shepherds we met at Camp Wolfgang where we adopted Abby. Since Abby moved in, Bosley has become much more assertive. He even growls and charges the Roomba. It's pretty funny. Bosley loves his "mom" (me), walks, rawhides (he chews them all night long), and is a really good eater. He doesn't like loud noises, the Roomba, or anything changed in his environment. He is a little furnace and loved the cold weather of Wisconsin, but was having some issues with Austin heat, so we keep his hair short now. He's very thankful, but freaked a bit the first time he felt rain on his back without all that hair. He is very much a nocturnal creature and drives me a bit nuts with the number of times he wants to go outside while I'm sleeping. But I love him dearly in spite of his quirks.

Meet Ruby

This is Ruby (snuggled up with her "dad"). She's a Beagle. We adopted Ruby a couple years ago from a kill shelter in Wisconsin a few hours drive from where we lived. We found her sad story on Petfinder.com. She was found out in the woods by a hunter with her two little nursing puppies in freezing 10 degree weather. She wasn't even a year old, so she had to have gotten pregnant in her first heat. She was so skinny that her ribs were showing and her pups were nearly as big as she was. When we drove out to see her, everyone at the shelter raved about how sweet she was, even the visiting canine unit sheriff. When we adopted her, there were actual tears shed at the shelter. Ruby wasn't eating and she slept way too much. The vet found she had a severe case of Lyme disease. She was much spunkier and hungrier after treatment. She isn't a typical Beagle though. She isn't the baying, digging, running nut. She is very calm and likes to layout in the sun and sleep, cuddle up with family, go for walks, eat chicken jerky treats, and listen for us to say words she knows. She doesn't like cold weather, rain, wet grass, or being put in a dog crate. She's a bit of a priss, and won't go outside when it's yucky out. At least in Austin there is less of that. But when there is bad weather, Ruby becomes our indoor potty ninja. Puddles are only found hours later when they are cold and well saturated. Thus the crate.

The Dog Lover (aka. The Roomba! sh!t my floor!)

I hoped to make a, well, more positive introduction for my dogs but the occasion is ripe, so here goes! My boyfriend and I adopted 3 rescue dogs, and they're totally adored by us (most of the time). But since the new dog, Abby, was adopted last month, they've decided they're no longer consistently housebroken. Lovely, eh? So today, I had the mostly awesome privilege of coming home from work to Beagle poop in a most new and unexpected situation. This wouldn't be the first time our Beagle, Ruby, pooped in the house, but it's a rare thing. (She likes to slink off into a corner in stealth mode to tinkle whenever she finds an opportunity though). She drops her typical Tootsie Roll stools in the backyard like a good pooch usuall but today was special. Not only was it indoors, it wasn't her typical firm little candy-like dingle berries, it was mushy and BIG...which is relevant for this story. So, I have a German Shepherd too, Abby, and Ruby can't hold a candle to the small horse size dung dropped by Abby. So what do I have to complain about? Well a few weeks ago, we purchased this nifty thing called a Roomba!, a robot vacuum. I programmed it to vacuum the house daily while we're away at work. Starting to get the idea? Yes, the dog pooped first, and then the robot started on it's daily quest, but this time, instead of cleaning my tile floor, it pushed... pulled... smeared and otherwise evenly dispersed Ruby's mushy poop all over the living room tile floor. I knew at the time I would eventually find the humor in this...but just not at that particular moment. After about an hour scrubbing the floor, it seems a bit less catastrophic here in the Menagerie Mind. After dinner, I tackle cleaning the Roomba! Lucky me. Oh, the joys of pet ownership!