Payton, my recently injured Whippet, is learning to hobble around on three legs with her fourth dragging. The orthopedic surgeon had good things to say about Payton's chances for a partial, if not full, recovery, but it's going to take time. And that's TIME, as in months and months. And maybe some more months. For the next four weeks, we have to keep her quiet, and not allow her to jump off or on the furniture. That feat seems impossible for a dog that's one quarter paralyzed, but before the vet said to restrict her activities, she had already done this several times. So now my sofa has exercise pen "bed rails" and the Wonder Whippet gets lifted on and off when necessary. She thinks this whole arrangement is shitty. I agree.
I also appreciate the way it makes my family room more white trashy. It goes well with the fact that, due to our current house painting situation, all the stuff that belongs on my back porch is stacked in various places in our yard. It looks great next to the agility equipment. But I digress.
Since the original incident happened in the middle of the night, I had traveled to the emergency vet and back while my kids were still sleeping. When they got up, not very long after I fell back asleep, I told them what happened. The Boy had this to say, and he came up with it just about as quickly as it takes to read it:
Boy: Wow! Poor Payton! But really, there are good things and bad things about this.
Me: Really?
Boy: Yes. Because, you know, it's bad, but on the other hand, she won't be stealing our food for a while. And that's good.
And he's totally right. I can't tell you how fantastic it has been to not have to sequester every food item behind a closed door or jammed in the microwave. Since she's been disabled, my purse hasn't been ransacked, and all the cookies I baked are still in the cookie container on the counter. Does it make up for the difficulty of carrying her around and holding her up when she poops? I'm not sure. But I still have all my cookies.
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Although this catastrophic canine injury had the potential to be expensive, it's oddly been pretty affordable. This is good because of all the money we haven't got. I just recently heard about Mission Tuition, which is a way to save for your children's college education while purchasing stuff you would normally buy online. I was impressed to see that they have so many participating merchants, although I was kind of surprised to learn that people shop online at places like Home Depot. For me, Home Depot is a store that you go to when you've completely mucked something up and need to fix it RIGHT NOW. I guess other people actually plan home improvements and order supplies in advance. I wonder what that's like?
Anyway, you can save for college using Mission Tuition through a 529 plan, which I've read about and might kind of understand. If you have kids and your college tuition savings plan is, like mine, "You better get a scholarship," you might want to check this out.
Showing posts with label dogs. Show all posts
Showing posts with label dogs. Show all posts
Friday, March 16, 2012
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
Piece of Sh!t Day
Today started for me at 1:40am after I had been asleep for about an hour. I heard weird noises from the living room. Payton the Wonder Whippet had lost the ability to use her right hind leg. She was fine an hour before and just like that, her world, and ours, has changed. I got her to the emergency vet before 3am. By 4, I knew that she had suffered a Fibrocartilaginous Embolism, and while she may recover some of her mobility, she'll probably no longer be the fastest dog in the house. She spent the day completely stationary, unable to walk without assistance, or even to go to the bathroom without help. Payton is nearly 11, but a young, healthy not-quite-11. Totally crappy. In fact, the situation is so crappy that I accidentally taught The Girl the word "sucks." Damn it.
And then I went to the eye doctor and found out I need bifocals. BIFOCALS.* (I'll be getting "monovision" contacts first, with one eye learning to handle the up close work and one eye doing the distance stuff. I'm sure that will go smoothly. Riiiiighht.) Plus I have to make all these changes in my eye care habits. No more swimming with my contacts in unless I wear goggles (which I hate). No more swimming without goggles period, really. Take omega 3 fatty acids (unless those mess up my bladder, which I guess I'll find out the hard way). Use eye drops. Throw away my disposable contacts after two weeks instead of wearing them until they irritate me (what, that wasn't a good plan?). And here's the best one: spend 15 minutes twice a day with a damp washcloth on my closed eyes. I don't get time to close my eyes for 5 minutes twice a day, so I'm sure this will work out well. On day 1 I managed to do this zero times, so I guess I'll have to build up to it.
I'm hoping there will be some sleep for us tonight, because three hours of broken sleep really doesn't cut it. Tomorrow Payton and I will meet with a specialist who will hopefully teach me exercises to help her recover. And maybe tomorrow will be a better day. Because today totally sucked.**
*First person to make fun of me for being 40 and needing bifocals gets punched in the neck. So does the second person. Third person? Don't press your luck.
**Because I cheated and copied the name of Payton's disorder and pasted it in this entry, it completely effed up the font for the entire page. COULD. NOT. FIX IT. So, that's about right for today.
Payton on a better day.
And then I went to the eye doctor and found out I need bifocals. BIFOCALS.* (I'll be getting "monovision" contacts first, with one eye learning to handle the up close work and one eye doing the distance stuff. I'm sure that will go smoothly. Riiiiighht.) Plus I have to make all these changes in my eye care habits. No more swimming with my contacts in unless I wear goggles (which I hate). No more swimming without goggles period, really. Take omega 3 fatty acids (unless those mess up my bladder, which I guess I'll find out the hard way). Use eye drops. Throw away my disposable contacts after two weeks instead of wearing them until they irritate me (what, that wasn't a good plan?). And here's the best one: spend 15 minutes twice a day with a damp washcloth on my closed eyes. I don't get time to close my eyes for 5 minutes twice a day, so I'm sure this will work out well. On day 1 I managed to do this zero times, so I guess I'll have to build up to it.
I'm hoping there will be some sleep for us tonight, because three hours of broken sleep really doesn't cut it. Tomorrow Payton and I will meet with a specialist who will hopefully teach me exercises to help her recover. And maybe tomorrow will be a better day. Because today totally sucked.**
*First person to make fun of me for being 40 and needing bifocals gets punched in the neck. So does the second person. Third person? Don't press your luck.
**Because I cheated and copied the name of Payton's disorder and pasted it in this entry, it completely effed up the font for the entire page. COULD. NOT. FIX IT. So, that's about right for today.
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Tuesday, February 28, 2012
I'm not sure I'd tell her the truth...
Thanks to Jan Mayr for sharing this amazing picture of Seeker and Gem (who's all grown up now) by Cindy Nodland (and allowing me to have fun with it). Other possible captions include "Is there something caught in my teeth?" and "Does this look odd to you?" Got other ideas? Share them in the comments section!
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Tuesday, January 10, 2012
Why don't I ever get to rest on the couch?
The Girl recently decided to take care of the dogs, and by taking care of the dogs, she apparently meant "pile this resting dog with a blanket and toys while she relaxes in the sun." Payton didn't seem to mind. She slept here for hours.
PS- Look where her back feet are. That dog is crazy flexible. That probably explains how she can leap tall counter tops in a single bound.
Dog people: Click here to shop at Clean Run!
Monday, January 9, 2012
Twisted logic
I was just thinking about how handy it is that I have two dogs that helped clean up the spilled soup in the kitchen, and later the spilled milk in the same kitchen, until it occurred to me that THE DOGS ARE THE ONES SPILLING ALL THE STUFF. I can't be praising them for partially cleaning up their own messes. Although I do praise the children for just that, but that's different. Maybe. Whatever.
Anyway, now I'm off to start mopping.
Anyway, now I'm off to start mopping.
I SMELL SOUP!
(Sorry that I didn't take the time to photoshop out the eye boogies.)
Dog people: Click here to shop at Clean Run!
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Winter has gone to the dogs
We're having rather un-Florida-like weather at the moment. There was frost on things this morning, and tonight's low is 34 degrees. My dogs can't help but notice the change.
Oddly enough, my tiny Papillon, all seven pounds of fluff, doesn't seem to mind the cold. Of course, that's partially because he likes to remain an arm's distance away from me at all times, and I'm sure as hell not hanging around outside right now unless I have to. Still, when I send him out to go potty, he's doing his thing just like every day. He handles the cold like he handles the rain: with one big "Whatever." Papillons are tougher than they look.
Mr. Beagle, Wrigley, is a HUGE wet weather wimp. I'm pretty sure that when he got dumped or lost or whatever it was that caused him to be roaming free without anyone looking for him, he made a beeline for the nearest shelter and said, "Please! Do you have a soft blanket to rest on somewhere that never gets wet? TAKE ME THERE!!!" He actually tolerates the cold better than I would have thought. In cold weather, it's not obvious that he'd prefer to be indoors, but it's suddenly easier to call him inside away from the dogs he chats with in the neighboring backyard.
Oddly enough, my tiny Papillon, all seven pounds of fluff, doesn't seem to mind the cold. Of course, that's partially because he likes to remain an arm's distance away from me at all times, and I'm sure as hell not hanging around outside right now unless I have to. Still, when I send him out to go potty, he's doing his thing just like every day. He handles the cold like he handles the rain: with one big "Whatever." Papillons are tougher than they look.
Is it cold? I hadn't noticed. What are you doing right now? Do you need me to do anything for you? Let me follow you to the bathroom....
Mr. Beagle, Wrigley, is a HUGE wet weather wimp. I'm pretty sure that when he got dumped or lost or whatever it was that caused him to be roaming free without anyone looking for him, he made a beeline for the nearest shelter and said, "Please! Do you have a soft blanket to rest on somewhere that never gets wet? TAKE ME THERE!!!" He actually tolerates the cold better than I would have thought. In cold weather, it's not obvious that he'd prefer to be indoors, but it's suddenly easier to call him inside away from the dogs he chats with in the neighboring backyard.
Oh, dudes, you know I'd love to stay and chat about the weather but my mom's calling and I REALLY have to go. She probably has a biscuit!
But my 10-and-a-half-year-old Whippet, Payton, thinks this whole cold weather thing is RIDICULOUS! She goes out, pees, jumps through the torn porch screen (thanks for that, dog), and starts barking at the backdoor approximately 30 seconds after she going outside. She's half crazy when she comes back in, too. She mopes around in the rain but cold makes her spunky and loud.
Holy crap, people. It's FREEZING in my bathroom! You think it's funny, but if there was no heat in your toilet, you wouldn't be laughing. I'll get you for this. When you aren't looking, I'm going to eat your stuff. Don't think I'm kidding.*
What do your pets think about cold weather?
*She really will eat my stuff. Click here to read about it.
Dog people: Click here to shop at Clean Run!
Wednesday, November 30, 2011
What the Whippet Ate
I spend approximately 35% of my at-home-and-awake time taking stolen food away from my Whippet. Today's steals:
1 Vanilla Special K granola bar
1 bag of airline peanuts
1 wrapper that luckily no longer contained gum
These stolen items were not just sitting around. They were in a purse and a computer bag. Zippers do not defeat the Whippet. Counters do not defeat the Whippet. Children's hands do not defeat the Whippet.
It's maddening.
1 Vanilla Special K granola bar
1 bag of airline peanuts
1 wrapper that luckily no longer contained gum
These stolen items were not just sitting around. They were in a purse and a computer bag. Zippers do not defeat the Whippet. Counters do not defeat the Whippet. Children's hands do not defeat the Whippet.
It's maddening.
Who, me? I have no idea what you're talking about. Hey, is that a cookie?
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Buy your Christmas crap now! HERE!Saturday, November 19, 2011
My second dog post today.
Tonight while playing with Mr. Beagle, this innocent looking 10-and-a-half-year-old Whippet twice JUMPED OVER THE EDGE OF THIS TABLE and landed on the sofa. She's got mad hops.
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Read another post about a dog here.
I think this dog has Asperger's.
Donnie the Doberman Arranges Toys | Dobermans Den:
'via Blog this'
'via Blog this'
And it's very, very awesome. Also, clearly I need to get my dogs more toys. What if my Beagle is some kind of Savant and I've never given him the opportunity to show it? I'm a horrible person.
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Visit www.labelitorloseit.com and use the discount code TIGER for savings on personalized labels that really stick!http://laughingattherain.blogspot.com/2011/02/conversation.html
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
Lazy Dog Days
The Papillon spends all day hurrying around my feet, and resting on the floor or on a chair nearby, waiting for me to need him to do something at a moment's notice. The hounds, well, the hounds have a different outlook on life.
Must be nice.
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Sunday, July 24, 2011
It's good to be home!
Perhaps the most important thing I learned on my recent vacation is that my Papillon doesn’t like to poop away from home.
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Saturday, July 23, 2011
So sorry, fella.
I just walked a dog in the dark and grumpily used a leaf to remove a nugget of poop some jackass dog owner left right on the sidewalk. I grabbed the biggest leaf I could find (didn't want to sully my own potential poop bag, I guess) and struggled to remove the stubborn pile from the walkway. When I finally got it free and brushed it aside, it made an odd clanking sound.
Me: Hmm, Spark. I'm thinking that wasn't poop. Maybe it was a rock. Weird.
Spark: Pant pant pant.... (You didn't think my dog actually talked, did you?)
On my way back by I noticed that the poop/rock had slid into a dimly lit area. Surprise! It was a snail. After getting over feeling horrible, I uprighted him (without the offensive use of the poop-protecting leaf). He seemed OK.
And that's why you should mind your own business while walking your dog.
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Me: Hmm, Spark. I'm thinking that wasn't poop. Maybe it was a rock. Weird.
Spark: Pant pant pant.... (You didn't think my dog actually talked, did you?)
On my way back by I noticed that the poop/rock had slid into a dimly lit area. Surprise! It was a snail. After getting over feeling horrible, I uprighted him (without the offensive use of the poop-protecting leaf). He seemed OK.
And that's why you should mind your own business while walking your dog.
Search Amazon.com for dog training supplies
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