The Old Folks Home

[Arielle]

HAPPY NEW YEAR !!!

 

[KnobbyOaks]

HAPPY NEW YEAR !!!

x2 !!!

 

[wolftracks]

Happy New Year everyone! Took me a while to catch up. I have been "neglecting" the computer for the last couple of days.

For everyone who said a little prayer for my shelties, it worked! Thank you so much for the kind thoughts and words. Laddie is back to his old self and I had the lump on his side checked out when we were at the vet's office on Friday. Nothing but a fat deposit! (months of worrying, should have gotten the courage up to have it checked long ago) Skip has taken a little longer to get on the mend but with his heart condition I am not totally surprised about that. He actually ate a good amount yesterday. I got some canned food to try to get him to eat and he finally ate some. He is on three medications for his heart but it seems to be helping. We may not get another year with him, but at least he is feeling much better. Sydney (the new puppy) has decided his favorite toy is the older dogs and tries to get them to play with him. Laddie just stands there looking at me while the puppy is jumping on him with a look on his face that says "could you please do something about this?" Blondie will just growl at him and Sid will back up. Skip just runs away. Pretty funny to watch the dynamics between the old dogs and the puppy. We took Sid out to the barn yesterday for the first time. He was so scared of all the new stuff. I am hoping that I can train him to be my barn buddy as he grows.
OK keeping all my fingers and toes

for SCG and me today! We entered the lottery to see if we could win a chance at day passes to the Wave in April. Sooooooooooooooo hoping one of our entries gets picked!

Glad your dogs are alright. I had 2 Shelties 30 years ago. Lad and Ebony. They were Tris. My Lad was actually Show Off Sean Too. Eb was Midnight's Ebony Lass. They were sweet little dogs. Something I use especial;ly on the older dogs is ACV. They don't get that old dog smell to thier skin and coats and they stay pretty spry in their old age.

Just got back from my daughter's. My grand daughter and I went over NYE night and stayed. I blew it. I'm a lightweight with booze, so I had 1 White Russian and after one sip of champagne at midnight I fell asleep with my glass in my hand. Yep! Slept soak in champagne. I really know how to party. Didn't help I was exhausted when I got there. I got home to the puppies and not one pee spot or poop on the paper. There was 2 pieces of food and some water and 2 very wiggly pups. They held it the WHOLE TIME!!!! They looked so relieved to get outside. That's pretty darn good for 8 wk old pups, but I feel bad they had to wait for me to come home. They more than made up for it since I walked in the door. They did eat more, but weren't starving, but I'm going to need to do cleanup in the yard.

 

[Arielle]

Well the day came sooner than I expected. Barron has gone to play with his mother. . . . .

.and I was a blubbering sentimental teary eyed sniffling client for the vet. I laid BeBe on the towel for the vet and was thankful this vet LIKES the owner to be present as it makes it easier for the dog. GOtta love this vet. DH promised he could still get a hole dug . I met a wonderful man,BOb, in the office, he sat down to talk to me. He's had lots of dogs, and we agreed it never gets easier. He said he gets half way home and needs to pull over . . . . I feel exhausted. I had prepared my kids last night, one is upset, and the other is pretending he is not . One will go to the grave to say goodbye and I know the other will not. We have been this route 2 times already in recent years. THey are already talking about puppies again, as I have put them off many times.I tell them after all my dogs are gone I will might consider a puppy. I will need to bring my other dog to the body so he understands BeBe won't be grumping at him anymore.

Cynthia-- did you find the rhyme?

 

[ronott1]

Well the day came sooner than I expected. Barron has gone to play with his mother. . . . .

.and I was a blubbering sentimental teary eyed sniffling client for the vet. I laid BeBe on the towel for the vet and was thankful this vet LIKES the owner to be present as it makes it easier for the dog. GOtta love this vet. DH promised he could still get a hole dug . I met a wonderful man,BOb, in the office, he sat down to talk to me. He's had lots of dogs, and we agreed it never gets easier. He said he gets half way home and needs to pull over . . . . I feel exhausted. I had prepared my kids last night, one is upset, and the other is pretending he is not . One will go to the grave to say goodbye and I know the other will not. We have been this route 2 times already in recent years. THey are already talking about puppies again, as I have put them off many times.I tell them after all my dogs are gone I will might consider a puppy. I will need to bring my other dog to the body so he understands BeBe won't be grumping at him anymore.

Cynthia-- did you find the rhyme?

I am sorry you lost your Dog.

 

[KnobbyOaks]

So sorry, Arielle, I know it's a really hard thing to have to do but it is life, all living things.

My first experience with this was my 13 year old poodle. She had cancer and I kept her as long as I could. I held her head while they administered the drug and she quietly stared into my eyes while she died. She was calm and I was so glad I had been there with her. I told the vet to just dispose of her as normal. On the way home, I started crying, crying so hard that I couldn't even see to drive. Pulled off the freeway and called them back. I said, "Do you still have my dog?" They said, "yes." I said, "Well, I want her cremated and I want her back." That was the best decision I have ever made. From then on I was calm and comfortable with these decisions. I now have 3 boxes of ashes in my closet, LOL. Each were handled the same way. I didn't bury them because I didn't want to leave them in somebody else's backyard. Good thing, now I have 10 lovely acres and it will be my last home so probably this summer I will find a nice place and create my little pet cemetery. Eventually, it will have chickens in it too, I'm sure.

 

[sourland]

Arielle,

, I understand.

 

[Arielle]

Thanks ROn and Knobby Oaks--it's been a tough day. During the fall he was starting to loose control of his hind legs. A dog that gave everything to guard his fence line. Bothe knees needed replacing some years ago-- we did that. Healed beautifully, the sugeeon did many hunting dogs, so I felt comfortable with the method and he could go back to work after 2 months of r&r on a leash only. HE was a brilliant dog-- super smart, loved his family, poked his nose at the vets resident cat but would not go to the other client in the office but let the vet look him over. Let them lift him onto the scale, and let me pick him up enough to lay him down on his side as he just couldn't do it himself. At 80# I was afraid I would drop him but he trusted that I wouldn't. He taught me not to yell. Just tell him what I wanted and he would do it after a moment of thought. Brilliant like his mother. A thinker. ANd always on duty. That's a rottie for you.

All my dogs are buried here. THe pet cemetary is down in the woods. ANd the extra special are near the house. I've never put markers on therm, guess it is because I know where they are. I, too, hope to never leave here and leave them behind. I've been preparing for today since early NOvember-- still not enough time. Just ANgel left. HE's a sweetie, tail stub wiggles as fast as he can; the more I yell at him the more he wiggles, so different from his brother. He is a bright and cheerful dog. Now to remove one more crate and make it available for the chickens.

 

[Arielle]

THanks sourland. Thanks.

 

[wolftracks]

Thanks ROn and Knobby Oaks--it's been a tough day. During the fall he was starting to loose control of his hind legs. A dog that gave everything to guard his fence line. Bothe knees needed replacing some years ago-- we did that. Healed beautifully, the sugeeon did many hunting dogs, so I felt comfortable with the method and he could go back to work after 2 months of r&r on a leash only. HE was a brilliant dog-- super smart, loved his family, poked his nose at the vets resident cat but would not go to the other client in the office but let the vet look him over. Let them lift him onto the scale, and let me pick him up enough to lay him down on his side as he just couldn't do it himself. At 80# I was afraid I would drop him but he trusted that I wouldn't. He taught me not to yell. Just tell him what I wanted and he would do it after a moment of thought. Brilliant like his mother. A thinker. ANd always on duty. That's a rottie for you.

All my dogs are buried here. THe pet cemetary is down in the woods. ANd the extra special are near the house. I've never put markers on therm, guess it is because I know where they are. I, too, hope to never leave here and leave them behind. I've been preparing for today since early NOvember-- still not enough time. Just ANgel left. HE's a sweetie, tail stub wiggles as fast as he can; the more I yell at him the more he wiggles, so different from his brother. He is a bright and cheerful dog. Now to remove one more crate and make it available for the chickens.

I'm so sorry about your dog. It doesn't get any easier does it? My Cane Corse was an anniversary present from my husband. She's 7 now and I'm hoping she'll be woth me for a .long time, but seems like we've both aged a lot since he died. I lost my Toy Poodle female a couple of months after he died and we were still trying to find my male who chased our van when we went to check on him at my husband's friend's house while we were moving here. Never found him. I lost one of the first chickens we bought at this house, somehwew between NYE and this morning. She was my favorite Game in appearance and it's going to be weird to not see her out in the yard. Not sure how old she was when I got her, but she was looking like she was aging for a while now. I also have a Dusty, the ding a ling.She's 2 1/2 now. I want my own place with land, so when Isis goes, she'll always be with me. I've hated that with all the dogs I have owned, that I had to leave any of them behind when I had to move,

for you and your family. Hope the kids are able to deal with this and I think a puppy is a great idea.