New Pups and Feelings of Disloyalty

I wonder if other folks who get a new puppy after a beloved dog passes away go through a period where they feel rather disloyal to their deceased dog?  Our Fresca the Wonder Dog passed away in the Spring and Auggie joined our home this pass week.  Call me crazy but I've been on an emotional roller coaster for several days as different little things that Auggie does remind me of Fresca and then I'm hit with waves of sadness as I think of how much I miss my "girl."

Perhaps I should chalk it up to "new puppy mom hormones."  Or maybe it's just all part of the grieving process that pet owners go through who chose to add another animal to their home.  Here's an example.

One of Fresca's favorite toys was this stuffed cow that "moo's."  It is the only thing of hers that I kept after she passed away.

Auggie loves this toy.  He bounces around the living room with it, attacking its ears and horns and happily chomping on its belly.

Auggie has VERY sharp puppy teeth.  I suspect Fresca's cow won't last long if Auggie continues at the pace he has been going with this toy.

So I have a confession to make.  I can't bear the thought of that toy being ripped to shreds.  It's my last physical link to Fresca.  I swiped it from Auggie when he was distracted with another toy and I'm going to put it up where he can't get it.  I still need to be able to give the cow a quick hug on the days when I'm particularly missing my Wonder Dog.

It's been a day of "firsts" for Auggie.  He had his first nail trim and did pretty darn well.  He got his first dog license.  Although, when the clerk asked me if I'd ever registered another dog with the township, I found myself telling her about Fresca and how she had passed away and I almost found myself crying at the counter.  Sheesh.....get a grip!

Auggie also had his first "play date" with his sister, Kinzie and Kinzie's big sister, Sadie.  Wow, Kinzie is no longer acting like a little princess.  She was getting the best of Auggie for the first half of their play date and then the tides turned.  Suddenly Auggie had her number figured out and was a lot more successful in pinning her down and knocking her over.

I'll leave you with this picture of Auggie and I sleeping last night after our show finished up on TV.  The sneaky Commander snapped it while we slept.  We seem to have similar expressions.  Oy!

Waiting on a Westie

In three days, the Commander, myself, and my friend, Judy (along with her dog, Sadie) will be heading up to midstate Pennsylvania to pick up our Westie puppies.  I'll be bringing home our little male puppy and Judy will be bringing home a new little sister for Sadie.

The time has gotten close enough that I'm now setting out things for our little guy.  I've got a little bed set out by the fireplace with a few toys by it.  I must confess that I felt rather guilty setting that bed down in the very same spot where my beloved Fresca's bed had always sat.

I've placed his main crate beside my computer.  I figure since that's where I spend the majority of my time each day, writing and researching, that my little guy can crawl in there to nap and, since the side panel curtain also folds up, he can see me at all times.  I can also shut the computer room door while in there and keep a close eye on him when he's outside the crate.

His dog dishes are in place beside our refrigerator in the same spot where Fresca's dishes used to stand.  I have to keep reminding myself that Fresca understands and approves, looking down from doggy heaven.  After all, it is a great tribute to Fresca the Wonder Dog that her love and companionship was so special to me that it has made me want to have that again with another dog.

The leashes are in place beside the front door, waiting for those walks that our new little one and I will be taking.

Today I'll be heading off to the pet store to pick up puppy food and any last-minute supplies that I don't have on hand.  I'll also be picking up some fleece material from the fabric store and will be sure to handle it quite a bit between now and Saturday so that it will have my scent on it.  That way it should prove comforting to our pup when I place it in his little bed in the crate at night.  (I'll let you know how THAT goes.)

I'll leave you today with a glimpse of my latest desktop wallpaper - a picture of little Spud shopping for pumpkins.  I figure it's the perfect wallpaper for this Fall weather.

Haunted By a Wonder(ful) Dog

If you've been following my blog for awhile, you know that I frequently have mentioned Fresca the Wonder Dog.  Fresca was my "Velcro Puppy."  Fresca joined our family twelve years ago, shortly after our Shetland Sheepdog passed away.  She stuck so close to me that I often found myself tripping over her as I'd turn to go into another room.  She had appointed herself my personal bodyguard and she took her duties seriously.  To that end, she protected me from every person or car that went past our front yard as she darted from living room to guest bedroom, checking their progress through the windows as she tried to hurry them along with fierce barking.  Fresca was a dog with an attitude.  As one trainer told us, "If Fresca was human, she'd have pink hair, a nose ring, and a major attitude."  Yup!

Fresca was a bundle of energy.  She outlived four cats and one canine cousin.  But recently she was diagnosed with serious heart disease.  It was most likely congenital.  With her enlarged heart, it would press against her trachea and constrict her airway, causing her to do some horrible coughing.  Her diagnosis was made in early Spring and I became a regular at the only veterinary heart specialist in the area.  He put her on heart medication and told me that it was incurable but maybe we could slow things down.  We couldn't slow HER down, even with the coughing.

Last Thursday evening, I headed up the stairs to bed and noticed that she was doing more coughing than usual.  As I drifted off to sleep, I thought it was settling down.  It wasn't.  By morning, it was obvious that she was still struggling to breathe.  If I stroked her throat and massaged her neck, she would calm down for a bit but soon would start coughing again....those horrible, racking coughs.  It was time!  The Commander had to take her to the vet to be put to sleep.  I couldn't do it.  I was hysterical.  In fact, I cried so hard that it is only today that I don't feel like I have cracked ribs.

That first day without her, I couldn't even stand to look at any reminders.  I took all of her things and packed them up.  I could give most of them to my daughter for her dogs.  I only kept one thing.....a little stuffed cow toy that had been one of her favorites.  It's sitting in the guestroom on the dresser, looking out the window.

She's been gone for five days now but I still feel her presence everywhere.  When I drive up to the house, I glance at the windows expecting to see her peeking out at me.   If I get ready to go out on errands, I find myself whispering the usual litany under my breath , "I'll be right back.  You guard the house."

Whenever I go up or down stairs, I find myself moving to the side to make room for her.  She would always insist on streaking past me so she could beat me to the top or bottom of the steps.  When I sit in the recliner watching TV, I glance over toward the fireplace and expect to see her napping beside it. There are no more circle of dog toys left around my feet to try to entice me to stop knitting and play instead.  Today I caught myself dozing off and woke with a start, surprised that Fresca hadn't woken me by her usual whining when she'd notice that I'd fallen asleep.  I drop food as I cook and am surprised that now I have to clean the crumbs off the floor because she's not there to gobble things up.

I find myself getting up from the computer and starting to say, "It's ok...Mommy will be right back," but there is no Fresca there.  It's SO quiet.  No barking.  No clattering of nails on the flooring.  No staring at me as the clock gets close to mealtime.

I keep glancing out the kitchen window to see if she is waiting on the back step to come inside after a "potty break."  I make the bed in the mornings and have to catch myself to keep from patting the comforter to give her the signal that it's ok to jump up on the bed for her morning tummy rub.   I pulled off a clump of dog hair fluff from one of the chairs in the living room today and was reluctant to throw it in the trash.

 Last night I went around turning off the lights before heading upstairs to bed and again I found myself whispering to a ghost, "I'm going to bed now.  You have a good night."

I like to think she's up in doggy heaven chasing her cousin, Kaiser and annoying him to no end by squeezing into places that he's way too big to get into.  Or maybe she's gone slumming and located her furry feline siblings...Pug, Miss Daisy, Sgt. Streak, and Smokey.  If so, they're all probably enjoying a rambunctious game of tag right now.

Gosh, I miss her.  She may have been a handful but she was a good and faithful dog.  I'll leave you with several of my favorite blog posts of her antics.  For all of you dog lovers, enjoy! And give your furry ones an extra hug today in memory of Fresca.

Fresca the Wonder Dog Strikes Again

Mush, You Varmints, Mush!

Fresca the Wonder Dog

We had to put our beautiful Fresca, the Wonder Dog to sleep yesterday.  The pain is still too much to blog about it yet.  However, here are a few of her everyday moments captured on YouTube.

We brought my mother home from the nursing home for the day several years ago and Fresca's reaction was   exuberant, to say the least.

Fresca would usually follow me from the dining room table into the kitchen after meals, walking on her hind legs and hoping that I'd drop some food so she'd get a bite.

George was much better at getting her to balance a treat on her nose before eating it.

The Amazing Canine Vacuum

It's Feb. 29....and it only comes around once every 4 years.  I'm taking a break from the tooth drama to celebrate the fact that we might have our own little Leap Year baby in the family today.  My nephew and his wife are at the hospital now working at bringing that little one into the world.  Yay!

In the meantime, I thought I'd do some celebrating closer to home.  You see, this morning as I was up in our bedroom dressing, I noticed Fresca, the Wonder Dog going around the bedroom with her snout to the floor.  She seemed to be working away quite industriously at something.  Yup, she was "vacuuming" our rug by meticulously eating all the little flecks of fiber/dirt that show up on a bone-colored rug.  No wonder my rug always looks so good.  I often find myself wondering why it looks like it doesn't need vacuuming.  Apparently Fresca is my "maid du jour."

While I was marveling at my good fortune, Fresca disappeared from the bedroom and went into the Master Bathroom.  I could hear her snuffling around in there so I went in to check out what was going on.  By golly, she was doing the same thing to our two throw rugs in the bathroom.

How cool is this?  I have a dog who cleans for me?  Now if I could just train her to pick up a dust cloth and polish the furniture, I could have more time to knit.  Happy Leap Year!

Where are the Nitro Pills?

Since Fresca the Wonder Dog's diagnosis of congestive heart failure last week, I've been wrapping my head around the thought of her mortality and the need for daily heart meds the rest of her days.  It's been hard to believe, most days, that this scrappy, feisty little thing could have a problem but I can't deny that her persistent cough has really improved since we started her on the meds.

Today we had the consult with the veterinarian heart specialist.  They had predicted freezing rain overnight and it was pretty foggy and misting this morning so I gave myself plenty of time to go up and over the mountain to this remote vet clinic.  The staff had stressed the fact that I needed to arrive 15 minutes before my appointed time.  I made it there with 15 minutes to spare.

I'd never seen an animal hospital where they had separate waiting rooms for cats and dogs.  I guess most of their clientele have bad tickers so they try to minimize the stress as much as possible.  Luckily, any animals already there were in examining rooms so Fresca and I had the waiting room to ourselves.

She was pretty quiet until she spotted several men approaching the front door.  She must not like the typical "Perry County" look because these fellows personified it, meaning they looked like they had just set their rifles down while out hunting critters and taken a quick side trip to the clinic.  They soon left and we were back to Fresca shaking on my lap.

Suddenly Fresca perked up and gave a low growl.  Pretty soon I heard the clicking of canine nails on the linoleum and a BIG but ancient black Lab bounded around the corner and came right for me.  Now he wasn't acting threatening in any way.  I think he planned to lick me to death.  But Fresca perceived him as a threat and I managed to grab her in mid-launch and mid-snarl while the Lab's owner came around the corner.  The poor old guy (the dog, not the owner) looked like he'd just lost another year off his lifespan as he faced my 15 1/2 pounds of "white death", struggling to have at him.  Wisely, his owner got a better grip on the dog's leash and took him out to her car before heading back in to pay the bill.

We waited some more.  By now we were an hour past our appointment time.  Fresca the Wonder Dog is no chihuahua.  My legs were beginning to get a little tired.  Finally we were brought back into an examining room and the technician said the doctor would be with us soon.

The minutes ticked by.  Another hour came and went.  It wouldn't have been so bad but there was a big sign on the wall that said cellphone use was not allowed because of the sensitive equipment used in the building.  I couldn't even read my Kindle on my iPhone. There are only so many ways to read the canine and feline anatomy charts before you start to go stir-crazy.

Then the doctor arrived.  One blood pressure reading, one EKG, one echocardiogram, one set of xrays, one blood work-up, two sets of new meds, and one exam later, and I was standing at the counter waiting for the receptionist to give me the bill.  She did and, if I'd had some nitro pills, I would have been reaching for them.  I almost had a heart attack myself.  The diagnosis?  Fresca has severe mitrovalve disease, high blood pressure, and Blepharitis of both eyes.  My diagnosis?  Severe poverty.  Oh, no...wait.  I mean, I'll be eating hot dogs and macaroni and cheese until the next payday.  Luckily, I enjoy both.

And that's how I came to find myself at my local pharmacy this afternoon handing over a prescription for one of the heart meds.   The clerk asked me for my insurance card.  I said, "It's for my dog."

"Which dependent is that?"  she asked.

"The white, furry one," I answered.

I'm now on their Super Saver Plan which means we'll get the meds at a very good price.  Since Fresca doesn't know how to write, they've got me down as her "designated human" and I can sign for her meds.  Boy, do I need some chocolate!

You Want Me to Keep HER Calm?

Fresca, the Wonder Dog had to have surgery today to have a big tumor removed from the side of her neck.  Since it was the size of a small potato, you would think it would have slowed her down a tad.  You would think wrong.  We are talking about 17 pounds of pure adrenalin here, folks.  Nothing slows this dog down.

When I took her in to the vet's office this morning, she was her usual "talkative" self.  She was giving everyone in the office a piece of her mind.  Since she had foregone breakfast because of the upcoming operation, she was miffed and I can only guess what she was saying.  Then we had to go through her usual drill of her trying out every chair in the waiting room.  She hops up on a chair, looks around, barks and then jumps down and hops on to the next chair.  Luckily, the only other person and dog in the room had beat a hasty retreat soon after we arrived so we had the entire waiting room to ourselves.

Fresca's vet walked into the room and said, "OK, Wild Child...we're ready for you now."

He looked her over, we consulted for a few minutes and then he told me that he'd be calling around 10 a.m. to give me an update.  If all went well, I could pick her up after 4, depending on how soon she came out of the anesthesia.

I came home and said a quick prayer.  I even asked my Facebook friends to pray for her.  I figured if God cared about sparrows than He must also care about dogs.

My son responded, "Yes, Mom, but Fresca would EAT those sparrows if she could."


Our vet called me as planned to say that all had gone well and the tumor had been removed "fairly easily."  We have to wait for the biopsy results to see if there is anything else we need to know but the results won't be ready for a week or so.  Our vet also threw in a teeth cleaning while she was out.  Yay!  He went on to say that Fresca was already awake and he sounded surprised.  I wasn't.  Frankly, I was surprised that she was knocked out long enough for the surgery.  That dog is a perpetual motion machine.

When I went over to pick her up this afternoon, the nurse gave me her post-op instructions.

1.  I am to feed her lightly and make sure she eats slowly.  (This is the dog who gulps down her meal in 30 seconds flat.)

2.  I am to see that she doesn't jump around.  (This is the dog who can jump on and off a couch faster than I can say "No" AND change direction in mid-leap.)

3.  I am to keep her calm and quiet for 1-2 weeks.  (Sure!)

I started to laugh at this point.  "You have to understand, " I said, "that the words, 'calm' and 'Fresca' do NOT go together in the same language.  And to make matters worse, my son and his family will be arriving next week and she hasn't seen them in a year.  She is going to go ballistic when they arrive.  There's no way that she'll stay calm.  She'll be really excited."

The nurse went into the back to get Fresca and soon I heard the frantic scurry of nails on linoleum coming from the back rooms.  So much for calm, I thought.

"My," the nurse wheezed as she strained to hold Fresca's leash, "she certainly seems anxious to leave here."

I managed to get in a "Thanks" and grab my receipts before Fresca dragged me out the door and over to the car.  I no sooner had the door open than she jumped up on the seat before I could even stoop to assist her.

"Well, girl, looks like it takes more than a tumor to keep a Wonder Dog down," I remarked and we headed for home, with Fresca panting in my ear.

Peter Pan With an Attitude

 I had to take Fresca, the Wonder Dog in to see the vet today yet again.  I'd noticed a small red growth on the side of her neck last month.  At first I had thought it was a tick but after examining it closely, I concluded that it was some type of growth.  It didn't seem to be bothering her so I decided to let it go for a bit and see what happened.  Well, this past week, I noticed that it was getting a little bigger so I made an appointment to have it examined.

Turns out that it was a sebaceous cyst.  The vet examined her and just pinched it off with his fingers, actually in several pieces.  Fresca was a VERY good girl while all this was going on.  The vet explained that these types of cysts are benign and pretty common.  They fill up with a funky fluid and can return unless you remove the actual cyst underneath the skin but he said, unless it bothered me, it wasn't really necessary.  I guess what he pinched off was the fluid-filled sac.  Probably more info than you need, right?

Anyway, all was well until we came back out into the waiting area and face-to-face with a huge German Shepherd.  Right away, Fresca tried to fake him out by giving him some "attitude."  The poor big lout just sat there looking at her as cool as a cucumber and then looked away.  I felt sorry for the little boy who was obviously with the owner.  The kid had a terrified look on his face and his hands over his ears.

"I know, Honey," I said.  "She's small but she's loud.  And she's not behaving very well, is she?"

Fresca eventually settled down but any time the other dog glanced her way, she'd immediately start up again as if to say, "Hey, Bubba!  You lookin' at ME?"  The bigger dog would quickly look away.

One of the secretaries leaned over the counter.  "Is Fresca really 10 years old?  I just can't believe it.  She looks and acts like such a puppy," she exclaimed.

"That's Fresca," I replied.  "Just think of her as Peter Pan with an attitude."

As we left the veterinary office, I glanced back.  The poor kid still had his hands over his ears.  He's probably traumatized for life now anytime he sees a cute little white dog.

But despite the noise and the attitude, I have to say that Fresca the Wonder Dog is still just a little cream puff to me.

Fresca and Mini-Me

Well, the time finally arrived for us to go down to visit with Laura and Jason and meet our new grand-pup.  We also took Fresca, the Wonder Dog down to meet little Sadie Ann for the first time.  Sadie has been wanting another little friend to play with, according to Laura, and has been pestering the cat no end but to no avail.  So we thought that perhaps Fresca could give Sadie some playtime.

Poor Sadie!  About the only thing that she and Fresca have in common is the fact that they both love to eat.  Apart from that, Fresca showed NO inclination to play with this adorable little puppy.  From the moment Fresca arrived and we let her loose in their fenced backyard, she just roamed around, sniffing everything and "marking" the trees (again and again) but when Sadie finally got up the courage to come over and check Fresca out, our dog completely ignored her.

As the day progressed, Sadie got braver and started following Fresca around, occasionally sneaking a sniff here and there but when Fresca would turn around, Sadie would plop down and roll over on her side and "play dead."  Obviously this is NOT a dominant dog.  Fresca would take one look and just walk off.

Now Sadie is a real "love bug" and if you sat down, she would come racing over to get on your lap to give you kisses.  "Grandpa" found this out when he sat on the couch.  He's not much for doggy kisses so they had a little heart to heart talk.

She decided to give Grandpa a little space but she still had to try to have the upper hand, so to speak.  Well, that was a little too much for Fresca the Wonder Dog to take and so Fresca decided to claim a lap for herself as well.

I guess Fresca decided that if Sadie could try to worm her way into the Commander's heart than perhaps Fresca could lay claim to Sadie's "Daddy's" lap.

I decided that I'd better sit down so I could entice Fresca away, which worked and soon Sadie was over by her papa and attempting to imitate his stance.  How cute is that?

But Fresca had made her way over to sit on Laura's lap and that was a little too much for Miss Sadie, who decided that she'd better go investigate who was laying claim to her "Mommy."

Eventually they got tired of the lap game and Sadie fell asleep on a pillow and had to be carried off to bed while Fresca got to stay up with the grownups.

We also celebrated the Commander's birthday while we were down there.  I hadn't checked with Laura to see what they were going to be getting him.

So imagine my surprise when he opened his gift and pulled out the EXACT same gift that I had hidden in my closet to give him tomorrow on his actual birthday.  Oh, dear!  Luckily I have another present in the mail.  I can't remember though where I bought MY set and I didn't keep the receipt.  "That will larn me", as my mom says.

When I looked around and saw everyone falling asleep on the couch, I figured it was time to head on home.  We packed up Fresca and made the drive back to PA.  I guess Sadie will have to look elsewhere for a playmate.  Apparently, Fresca considers herself too grownup for such nonsense.  Dogs, you gotta love 'em.

A Project Begun is Half Done

Are you having a good Memorial Day weekend?  I had high hopes to accomplish quite a bit this weekend but I must confess that I started several things but haven't made a lot of progress on anything.  Perhaps one good reason for that is Fresca the Wonder Dog.  You can see what she does to me, can't you?  How can I resist that pleading little face?  She is always following me around the house, trying to distract me from the task at hand.

She's also good at waking us up early.  At 6 a.m. she was outside our bedroom door whining.  I finally gave up and got up so there I was at 6:30 am., making broccoli salad while Miss Fresca cavorted around by my feet.  Yawn!  I wasn't the only one up early as I noticed our neighbor sitting out on his sunporch.  He must like to commune with nature early in the morning.  He was looking away from our house and that's why I know that he isn't inclined to commune with our weeds.

I had high hopes to cut out the prayer quilt this morning but things just weren't coming together.  I was second-guessing my fabric choices and choice of pattern.  So I was pouring over my quilt books but you know how that goes.....then you can't find the fabric in your stash that will go with the patterns that look promising.  Finally I told the Commander to just go ahead and fire up the grill because we might as well have an early supper.  I wasn't getting anything else done.

I found the "Burgermeister" sitting down on the job when I went out to check on him a half hour later but the hamburgers eventually were cooked and we had a simple but nice Memorial Day meal.  I think we might be heading over to Rita's Italian Ice to top off the meal with a little dessert later in the day.
Back to my prayer quilt story.

While we were eating (why is it that I always get good ideas when there is food involved?) I got an idea in my mind of a quilted prayer shawl design.  After I'd done the dishes, I went back upstairs to my cutting table, rummaged through my stash again, and this time I managed to find several more complimentary fabrics to go with some that I had recently purchased.  I did my rudimentary cuts and now everything is down in my sewing room where I'm hopeful that the design will come together in the stitching.  It's nothing fancy but I think it will look nice and be an encouragement to this parishioner who is hurting.  Not surprisingly after all that, my Project 365 picture for the day is related to the prayer quilt shawl.


 Project 365 - May 31, 2010 (Day 4)

The fabric has been cut and brought down to the sewing room and now we'll see if this project in my head will actually come together into a quilted prayer shawl.

Short and Still Sassy

Today marked an annual ritual - Fresca's Spring trip to the groomer for her summer clip.  Right about this time of year, she fully resembles one of those Chia pets and the house becomes adrift in clumps of white fur.  I try to keep up with it all, I really do!  But no matter how often I vacuum the floors, wipe down the furniture, and brush the dog, I simply can't keep up with the volume of Fresca's coat.

Lately, the Commander has been dropping not-so-subtle hints that it might be time to take Fresca in to be shaved down.  So today was the day.  I was rather dreading the drive over to the groomer with her because she's not exactly the calmest dog in the pack and usually bounces off the insides of the car on the back seat while I drive.  Plus they are still doing major construction on a big chunk of the route I was going to have to take and I knew that this would set her off even more.  She'd take it as a personal affront that heavy equipment would dare try to produce more noise than her.

We got there just fine and the groomer even finished her ahead of schedule (hmmm, maybe they just got tired of listening to her "talking" to them and figured they'd speed up the process).  Back I went and sure enough, as soon as she spotted me, the vocalization reached fever pitch.  One poor Yorkie looked like he didn't know if he should faint or run for cover.  I paid my bill as fast as I could and Fresca dragged me out the door.

As soon as we got back home, she insisted on going out into her backyard area where she pranced about, hoping that one of the neighbor dogs would come out and take notice.  When Fresca has her short clip, she always gets a little more spring in her step (if that's even possible) and even MORE attitude.  Heaven help us all!

In honor of Fresca's grooming, today's free graphic is an old valentine my Mom received years ago.  I love the little dog by the chalkboard, don't you?

Who's Calling Who Geriatric?

My poor baby pup had to make a trip to the emergency veterinary clinic this past weekend. Thursday, if you will recall, she terrorized her regular vet's office but they couldn't find what was wrong with her. On Friday, she still wasn't keeping anything down but the vet suggested just keeping an eye on her over the weekend to see if things calmed down. By Saturday, she hadn't been able to keep food in her stomach since Thursday, was lethargic, and would frequently bite at her side.

One of my friends suggested various possible diagnoses but they just didn't seem to fit. I'd checked her ears....no mites. Checked her body for evidence of fleas....none, zip, nada! Had never seen any evidence of worms in her stools....thank you very much. She just seemed to be in pain and was upchucking in the most inconvenient places. It was time for some drastic action.

We made an appointment with the local emergency vet clinic and headed over there that evening. I covered the back seat in case she got sick again but thank goodness, she didn't. I did keep smelling something and was wondering if she'd had an accident (horrors!). Turns out the poor baby had a bad case of canine gas as part of this malaise. It shouldn't have surprised me. I mean, she IS a member of our family.

The vet quickly got her into an examining room and after some poking and prodding decided to keep her overnight and hook her up to an IV. She was dehydrated for starters. They also wanted to run some tests to check for possible Addison's disease, pancreatitis, blockage, and liver and kidney problems. Thankfully, around 1 a.m., the vet called us to report that her tests had come back ruling out Addison's and the xrays showed no sign of blockage or masses. Liver and kidneys were fine as was the bloodwork. It looked like she had gastro-intestinal flu.

They released her Sunday around suppertime. She came out much more energetically then she had entered. They had to shave her legs to get the IV hooked up. She would NOT let them keep it in one leg so they had to shave the other and she did let them keep it in the other leg. So now she has a semi-poodle clip. It's really amazing to me that a dog that is so fluffy with all that hair has such tiny little legs under all that fur.

What was more amazing (perhaps "shocking" is the better word) was the bill. Man, perhaps we should have looked into pet medical insurance. I wonder if Obama is going to include pets in his universal health care plan? What was even MORE distressing, though, was when I looked at her discharge papers and noticed that they had labeled her at the top of every sheet as a "geriatric canine." WHAT? She's only 8 years old. She has more pep and spunk than many 8 month old dogs I see. My husband pointed to the papers and I hissed, "Don't you DARE read that out loud." Bad enough that she felt like horse hockey. No need to make her feel any worse.

The good news is that today she is much better. She's getting a diet of boiled chicken and rice and she is keeping it all down. Her energy level is rising and she is grinning again. I had to take her back to her regular vet this afternoon for a follow-up and she seems to be on the road to recovery. She was back to terrorizing the waiting room occupants again. Thank goodness she has no clue that the animal professionals consider her to be "geriatric." As for me, I'm a firm believer in the old adage that "you're as young as you feel." Come on, pup! Let's go watch Cloris Leachman kick up her heels on "Dancing with the Stars."