But, I am writing about dogs a whole lot, huh? Argo had surgery again yesterday to remove a lump that may or may not be a tumor. It takes 14 days for the biopsy results. I swear, if someone invented a process for getting instant biopsy results, I would pay three times the amount just to avoid the wait, and I'm a pretty frugal person. The other lumps he's had have just been tested with a needle biopsy, but this one just looked wrong and the vet said it would be best to remove it. Basically, if it is something, even if they don't get all of it, getting the big part out could limit the spread … [Read more...]
Archives for December 2008
And out come the wolves. . .
Howling Hill recommended that I read Cesar Milan's books on dog training to help with Stella, and it was a fantastic suggestion. All the Dog Whisperer stuff has been so hyped, and I tend to be skeptical of anyone who is selling posters of themselves, but I actually really like where he's coming from, and just making some subtle changes in my mindset has made a huge difference with Stella. I am the pack leader. I. Am. The. Pack. Leader. And as crazy as it sounds, when I think that and look at Stella, she pays attention. We've also been taking long walks, and I simply expect her to walk … [Read more...]
Who Are The People In Your Neighborhood? – The Garden Gnome Edition
Stella comes with some fun habits. She won't do her business while attached to leash, but she won't necessarily come in when called. We don't have a fenced in yard, so this makes things tricky. She was doing better with it, but then the storm door swung shut and scared her and now coming in through the door at all is a tough sell.The other night she took off and ran through The Crap Garden next door, and it reminded me that I should tell you about The Crap Garden.The Crap Garden is carved out of the land behind our next door neighbor's house (even though they do not own said land). It's … [Read more...]
The Goal for Next Weekend
I am keeping things simple. My goal for next weekend is that no one from this household will go to any emergency room of any kind. And yes, I am knocking on wood about it. Last weekend I ended up in the ER for my turkey burned hand. This weekend, I went to run errands on Saturday and came home to find J out in the yard with the dogs. He said he'd been worried about Argo because he was acting funny. Argo was sluggish and crabby and kept making a hacking noise, but then when J brought him outside, he acted fairly normal. I decided that Argo just missed me and missed getting individual … [Read more...]
Stella!
Argo the Wonderdog has a a trusty sidekick. Two Sundays ago, the woman who trains Argo at the kennel called saying, "Please tell me you didn't get another dog." One of the kennel's clients had to work too much and needed a new home for her 13 month old German Shepherd. We hadn't gotten another dog, so Argo and I went out to the kennel that afternoon to meet Luna. They seemed to get along well, although it was hard to tell because Argo insisted on making sure that some part of his body was touching my leg at all given times (I have mentioned that Argo and I are sickeningly codependent, … [Read more...]