Heart Like a Dog

The Good, the Bad, and the Oh My God of living with dogs!

Poor Punkin….Day Two Hundred, Sixty One

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My poor punkin doesn’t feel well.

I don't feel well.

Last night he vomited.  I am going to spare you the details.

Oh don’t get me wrong, there are many funny, and gross comments racing through my mind, but I want you all to keep reading. 🙂

Hubby said his tummy felt tight when he rubbed it; but he took his treats like normal.

This morning he really didn’t want to get out of bed; so I felt his nose.   It was cold and moist.  I revved him up with “Who wants some chicken necks?”  He got out of bed.

Poor punkin couldn’t hold down his chicken necks.  Luckily for me, mom was on the scene (I was already at work) so I didn’t have to clean it up this time. 🙂

I called the vet as soon as I heard he’d been sick again.

The vet called back this afternoon.  Imagine what she said.

“Don’t feed him. He can have a little bit of water and 20 mg of Pepcid AC.  If he doesn’t vomit again, you can give him some bland food tomorrow and slowly increase until he is back to full meals.”

I have one question about this….

Throw-up WHAT?  If he doesn’t eat anything, how will I know whether he can hold it down or not?

I pressured her into letting me give him a tablespoon of cooked chicken and a tablespoon of rice.

For a 90 pound dog.  A lab.  Yeah right.

Which brings me to that eternal question.  If a dog vomits outside and no-one sees him, does he still get his normal meals?

Of course he does!

If he had vomited outside and I didn’t know it, I would feed him his normal meal, right?

I cooked up a pound of beef, about a quarter of a pound of chicken breast and threw is some rice I’d been saving for soup.

This is the dog’s equivalent of the BRAT (Bananas, Rice, Applesauce and Toast) diet you feed your kids when they have an upset tummy.

I gave him one cup for dinner.  If he holds this down then tomorrow morning I will give him two cups; and two cups for dinner.  Saturday (if he is still keeping everything down) I will feed him two cups in the morning and his raw  meal at night.

Some days I really wish they could talk and tell me what’s wrong.

Creatures of Habit….Day Two Hundred, Sixty

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Dogs are such creatures of habit.

Every night around 9:00 pm, hubby and I have a snack.  We extended this habit to Sampson and to Delilah when she joined our pack.

It immediately became clear that the dogs must be separated when treats were around.  I handed Sampson his treat and Delilah hers.  Delilah swallowed hers and then took Sampson’s right out of his mouth.  He and I both stood there for a second in complete and utter shock.  Then I walked over to Delilah and wrestled the treat from her mouth and handed it back to Sampson.

This did not phase Delilah in the least, she went right back to Sampson and again took the treat from his mouth.  I was furious and determined.  I went right back to Delilah and re-wrestled her for the treat.  At which point I grabbed her collar to prevent her from repeating her faux paw.

In retrospect, I realize how ignorant I was to 1) assume that she would act the same way Sampson did and 2) take for granted that she wouldn’t bite my hand off for taking food away from her.

Sampson was the dog I nurtured from puppyhood.  I wanted to make sure he was raised in the appropriate way, we always hand fed him, we played with him and his treats, we played with his feet all to make sure he was a well-natured, well-mannered dog.  In my naiveness it never dawned on me that all dogs are not raised by responsible pet owners.

Delilah was my first-hand experience of a dog that didn’t have a caring owner.

Flash forward to present day.

I am reminded beginning about 8:45 pm by Delilah that snack time is approaching.  She does this by walking up to me and staring at me; sometimes she barks, but I stand my ground!  Not a moment before 9:00, because if I do then she will expect it and before I know it, snack time will be before dinner. 🙂

I can stare her into submission.

Delilah thinks she’s won the lottery at snack time, she runs to the pantry, jumping and leaping for joy, almost tripping you or knocking you down to win the prize.  This happens every single night.

Most nights I give Sampson his treat first and he runs off to the bedroom, snack in mouth.  If for some reason the bedroom door is shut, then he comes back and looks at me and I go and open the door for him.

Delilah runs into the living room with her treat and inhales there.  Once she has finished her treat she goes into the bedroom and waits for Sampson to move so she can inspect the bed for crumbs and clean up after him like the good mama dog that she is.

Last night Sampson headed off for the bedroom and then turned around and came back.  Hubby said, “What’s the matter big boy?”

And it dawned on me, the cat was on the bed.  If the cat is on the bed before him, Sampson will NOT get on the bed.  If Bob jumps up on the bed while Sampson is sleeping, then it is ok but not vice versa.

Help me mama, help help me mama, help me mama , help help me mama, help me mama yeah, get him offa the bed.

I reminded Sampson he is a 90 pound dog and Bob weighs 10 pounds dripping wet as I walked past him into the bedroom.  Luckily Bob was already on his way out to see what all the fuss was about.

Silly dog.

Versatile Blogger….Day Two Hundred, Fifty Nine

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Wow!  Our  friend over at 2BrownDawgs awarded us with the Versatile Blogger Award!    Thank you dear friend, we are honored to accept this award.

There are four simple rules:

Post a link to the person who gave you the award.

Tell your readers seven random things about yourself.

Award 15 newly discovered blogs.

Send them a note letting them know you nominated them.

Here goes…

1)  Sometimes it takes me a really long time to figure things out.  The first time I received this award I didn’t know 15 bloggers.  I didn’t know about having links to other bloggers on your web page (blogrolls), or about gaining exposure for your blog by commenting on other people’s blogs.  The first time I had a ping back in my comments, I deleted it as spam. 🙁  I spent that first day (after being bestowed the award) frantically looking for blogs I could give the award to.  If you were one who received this award from me back then, please don’t be offended; I found a lot of great blogs that day. 

2)  Because of the experience with the first award, I am proud to say every day I make it a point to read a blog I have never read before; and comment on it.  I have found some really neat blogs because of this.

3)  My greatest desire is to have the money to build a sanctuary for animals; similar to the one at Glen Highland Farms.  Mine would not be breed specific, instead we would take dogs, cats, horses and other domestic animals.   There would be a large training facility for dogs including rings for agility, areas for dock diving and loads of hiking trails.  Under-privileged children would come on school vacations to live in the country and experience caring for and loving an animal.  The facility would be open to all animal lovers to come and enjoy.  There would be a large Bed and Breakfast, for those who long for traditional comfort as well as cabins for those who crave the more rustic life.  This would be a place where all who came would enjoy the beauty of nature and the type of soul healing that only comes from the privilege of loving an animal.  I would run this with my daughter Lynn, whose love for animals inspires me.

4)  The dogs have formal names, the names I use (just like your mama did) when they get in trouble.  They also have nicknames.  Sampson has a myriad of nicknames some of them include “Buddy,” “Bubba,” “Puppy,” “My Baby,” “Big Boy,” “Pooter,”  “Monkey Face” but the one I use the most (that he does answer to) is “Punkin.”  His formal name is Sampson Aragorn Stone.  Yes, he is named from a Lord of the Rings character; yes it was my decision and I would have named him Aragorn if Chet hadn’t put his foot down.  

Delilah only has two nicknames “Sweet Pea” and “Pretty Girl” although sometimes I do call her “Baby Girl.”  Her full name is Delilah Rose Stone.  Her middle name was supposed to be Arwen (yes, yes I know) but somehow it just didn’t fit.  I call her my second-hand rose, because someone tossed this beauty aside.

5)  I love to read, and I read very fast.  I finished the last Harry Potter book (The Deathly Hallows) in 27 hours; and that included sleeping, eating and cleaning my house.  When I set my mind to it (and have the down time) I can finish a book off in less than a day and retain it enough to discuss in-depth.  Which is why I traditionally don’t like to read the book before the movie, because I sit there and say, “That didn’t happen.”

6)  I am very competitive.  I call second place, “The First Loser.”  I do try to be gracious whether winning or (gasp) losing, but winning is the ultimate goal for me.  This probably makes me sound very petty, but I must be honest with you and expose the good things about me as well as the not-so-good.

7)  I now know of at least 15 blogs deserving of this award, but because some of you have already received this award, I am passing it off to nine others.  They may have received this award in the past, but if they have I am not aware of it.

So without further ado, and in no particular order here are my nominees for the Versatile Blogger Award:

Life at Golden Pines – I recently found this blog and just fell in love with it; I love the way she writes and found myself scrolling back through previous posts just to catch up. 

Peaceful Dog – I fell in love with picture of the brindle colored dog in the header and just kept reading.

That Mutt – I’ve seen a variety of topics on this blog, all interesting and very well written.

A Boston Photo Blog – I found this blog on Freshly Pressed, the post was a tribute to her dogs (which is what initially attracted me) but I like her style.

Bullfrogs and Bulldogs – Another Freshly Pressed find, a city girl relocates to the country and seems to love the life.  Her blog is about all her experiences in the country.

thecvillean – I found Big Al on a comment on someone’s blog (sorry I can’t remember who) and his name intrigued me so I clicked on him.  He writes about different subjects but they are always interesting.

Life with Sophie – Patty found me somehow and left a comment, so I checked out her blog.  She does a lot of agility and flyball with her Sophie.  Come on, it’s a blog about a lab; how can you not love it?

Tart to Heart – Another one of my Freshly Pressed finds, this lady is a killer baker!  Her recipes rock (I have tried two so far) and her food pictures look awesome!

The Single Cell – This gal writes about everything, you never know what her topic will be, but you can bet it will make you think!

My Reality Show – This is one of my newer finds, the first post I read was about women wearing the same outfits and the feelings this invokes.  The next posts were about her Lila, who she adopted from the local Humane Society. 

I hope you get the opportunity to check out some of my favorite blogs, if you do pop on back and let me know what you think.

Thanks again to our friend at 2 Brown Dawgs, we appreciate you thinking of us!

Happy reading.

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