Well, it seems like it has taken such a long time to set everything up but we're going to get ready in a few minutes to leave for the hospital and the M.R.I.
Part of me is dreading this and yet part of me wants to know what's happening. My DOD has been restless for the past week, no doubt as a result of this unbearable heat and rain forest humidity. There have been several nights when neither of us slept very well, even with air conditioning, but he's breathing easier this morning. I got my good morning tail wag and nose kiss.
Didn't George Bernard Shaw say that no man is an island? I think that the same is true for women. I've been dreading this day and am relieved that a bridge has been built to my island through the support of the members of http://www.gsrne.org/ who will be joining me today.
All this fuss over a dog? Well, yeah....he's my dog and I'm his person. Yes, I love him and I'm glad that I've had the opportunity to do so because it doesn't appear that he had much before he graced my life. Like Mo Chuisle did before him, he's taught me a lot about life. And yes, I keep on learning.
Time to go.
Sharon
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Monday, July 14, 2008
DOD - you're breaking my heart a bit......
DOD,
You and I are patiently waiting for news of whether you will receive an MRI. Lisa came over last night and mentioned that watching you was like watching her darling before she passed on. I'm glad that you're still game to venture around the block once a day, but I am worried about your front paws and will try some of Molly's boots on you today.
I know it's hot and the humidity is too high for your comfort. I hope that you feel better on your bed in the air conditioned comfort of the bedroom. You seem to be sleeping a lot more than usual. Yesterday you didn't want to arise until almost 9 a.m.
Your appetite is failing. I don't know if it's because of the heat or how you feel physically, but I'm going to cook you a sweet potato, some rice and ground beef. Maybe that will pick you up. You know by now that I am the queen of running around trying to put bandages on things while ignoring the inevitable. So what is the inevitable? I wish that you could talk to me and tell me everything that's on your mind.
Your back legs are weak. The Rimadyl seemed to help for a few days, but you also had an upset stomach so we stopped it. You're still wagging your tail, albeit a bit slower now. Does that mean that everything is still okay with us?
I haven't had my daily "lick on the nose" ....wanna give me just one?.....please?
I'm worried about you, my DOD.
Love,
Sharon
You and I are patiently waiting for news of whether you will receive an MRI. Lisa came over last night and mentioned that watching you was like watching her darling before she passed on. I'm glad that you're still game to venture around the block once a day, but I am worried about your front paws and will try some of Molly's boots on you today.
I know it's hot and the humidity is too high for your comfort. I hope that you feel better on your bed in the air conditioned comfort of the bedroom. You seem to be sleeping a lot more than usual. Yesterday you didn't want to arise until almost 9 a.m.
Your appetite is failing. I don't know if it's because of the heat or how you feel physically, but I'm going to cook you a sweet potato, some rice and ground beef. Maybe that will pick you up. You know by now that I am the queen of running around trying to put bandages on things while ignoring the inevitable. So what is the inevitable? I wish that you could talk to me and tell me everything that's on your mind.
Your back legs are weak. The Rimadyl seemed to help for a few days, but you also had an upset stomach so we stopped it. You're still wagging your tail, albeit a bit slower now. Does that mean that everything is still okay with us?
I haven't had my daily "lick on the nose" ....wanna give me just one?.....please?
I'm worried about you, my DOD.
Love,
Sharon
Monday, July 7, 2008
The Update on DOD
Well, here we are some 18mths later. DOD has been tottering around a bit unsteady on his feet and just recently he went down on his front paws. This was a daily occurrence for about a week. Concern about his eyesight and wondering about DM, which afflicts many German Shepherd Dogs, took us to visit his internist on Friday.
While at the internist DOD also had a neurological evaluation. It seems like an MRI is needed to determine whether he has a brain lesion or a disk problem. At this point in life, operations are out of the question, but it would be good to know the path that we will travel together so that I may prepare the provisions we need to take with us.
This is never an easy process for me...the process of wondering when we'll part. Last night I dreamed that we were coming out of the doctor's office and that a car pulled up, a woman opened the door and he jumped right in. Off they sped. Well, DOD can't jump onto or into anything anymore. What happened? Was it my subconscious fears at work? Was it an indication of a swift and painless (for him) departure?
With August coming I do have apprehensions, as historically that seems to be one of the times of the year when many pets leave for the Rainbow Bridge. I simply don't know.....
Sharon - DOD's person
While at the internist DOD also had a neurological evaluation. It seems like an MRI is needed to determine whether he has a brain lesion or a disk problem. At this point in life, operations are out of the question, but it would be good to know the path that we will travel together so that I may prepare the provisions we need to take with us.
This is never an easy process for me...the process of wondering when we'll part. Last night I dreamed that we were coming out of the doctor's office and that a car pulled up, a woman opened the door and he jumped right in. Off they sped. Well, DOD can't jump onto or into anything anymore. What happened? Was it my subconscious fears at work? Was it an indication of a swift and painless (for him) departure?
With August coming I do have apprehensions, as historically that seems to be one of the times of the year when many pets leave for the Rainbow Bridge. I simply don't know.....
Sharon - DOD's person
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
The Journey by Crystal Ward Kent
When you bring a pet into your life, you begin a journey - a journey that will bring you more love and devotion than you have ever known, yet also test your strength and courage If you allow, the journey will teach you many things, about life, about yourself, and most of all, about love. You will come away changed forever,for one soul cannot touch another without leaving its mark.
Along the way, you will learn much about savoring life's simple pleasures - jumping in leaves, snoozing in the sun, the joys of puddles, and even the satisfaction of a good scratch behind the ears. If you spend much time outside, you will be taught how to truly experience every element, for no rock, leaf, or log will go unexamined, no rustling bush will be overlooked, and even the very air will be inhaled, pondered, and noted as being full of valuable information. Your pace may be slower - except when heading home to the food dish - but you will become a better naturalist, having been taught by an expert in the field. Too many times we hike on automatic pilot, our goal being to complete the trail rather than enjoy the journey. We miss the details - the colorful mushrooms on the rotting log, the honeycomb in the old maple snag, the hawk feather caught on a twig.
Once we walk as a dog does, we discover a whole new world. We stop; we browse the landscape, we kick over leaves, peek in tree holes, look up, down, all around. And we learn what any dog knows: that nature has created a marvelously complex world that is full of surprises, that each cycle of the seasons bring ever changing wonders, each day an essence all its own. Even from indoors you will find yourself more attuned to the world around you. You will find yourself watching summer insects collecting on a screen. (How bizarre they are! How many kinds there are!), or noting the flick and flash of fireflies through the dark. You will stop to observe the swirling dance of windblown leaves, or sniff the air after a rain. It does not matter that there is no objective in this; the point is in the doing, in not letting life's most important details slip by.
You will find yourself doing silly things that your pet-less friends might not understand: spending thirty minutes in the grocery aisle looking for the cat food brand your feline must have, buying dog birthday treats, or driving around the block an extra time because your pet enjoys the ride. You will roll in the snow, wrestle with chewie toys, bounce little rubber balls till your eyes cross, and even run around the house trailing your bathrobe tie - with a cat in hot pursuit - all in the name of love. Your house will become muddier and hairier.
You will wear less dark clothing and buy more lint rollers. You may find dog biscuits in your pocket or purse, and feel the need to explain that an old plastic shopping bag adorns your living room rug because your cat loves the crinkly sound. You will learn the true measure of love - the steadfast, undying kind that says, "It doesn't matter where we are or what we do, or how life treats us as long as we are together." Respect this always. It is the most precious gift any living soul can give another. You will not find it often among the human race.
And you will learn humility. The look in my dog's eyes often made me feel ashamed. Such joy and love at my presence. She saw not some flawed human who could be cross and stubborn, moody or rude, but only her wonderful companion. Or maybe she saw those things and dismissed them as mere human foibles, not worth considering, and so chose to love me anyway. If you pay attention and learn well, when the journey is done, you will be not just a better person, but the person your pet always knew you to be - the one they were proud to call beloved friend.
I must caution you that this journey is not without pain. Like all paths of true love, the pain is part of loving. For as surely as the sun sets, one day your dear animal companion will follow a trail you cannot yet go down. And you will have to find the strength and love to let them go. A pet's time on earth is far too short - especially for those that love them. We borrow them, really, just for awhile, and during these brief years they are generous enough to give us all their love, every inch of their spirit and heart, until one day there is nothing left.
The cat that only yesterday was a kitten is all too soon old and frail and sleeping in the sun. The young pup of boundless energy wakes up stiff and lame, the muzzle now gray. Deep down we somehow always knew that this journey would end.
We knew that if we gave our hearts they would be broken. But give them we must for it is all they ask in return. When the time comes, and the road curves ahead to a place we cannot see, we give one final gift and let them run on ahead - young and whole once more. "Godspeed, good friend," we say, until our journey comes full circle and our paths cross again.
Along the way, you will learn much about savoring life's simple pleasures - jumping in leaves, snoozing in the sun, the joys of puddles, and even the satisfaction of a good scratch behind the ears. If you spend much time outside, you will be taught how to truly experience every element, for no rock, leaf, or log will go unexamined, no rustling bush will be overlooked, and even the very air will be inhaled, pondered, and noted as being full of valuable information. Your pace may be slower - except when heading home to the food dish - but you will become a better naturalist, having been taught by an expert in the field. Too many times we hike on automatic pilot, our goal being to complete the trail rather than enjoy the journey. We miss the details - the colorful mushrooms on the rotting log, the honeycomb in the old maple snag, the hawk feather caught on a twig.
Once we walk as a dog does, we discover a whole new world. We stop; we browse the landscape, we kick over leaves, peek in tree holes, look up, down, all around. And we learn what any dog knows: that nature has created a marvelously complex world that is full of surprises, that each cycle of the seasons bring ever changing wonders, each day an essence all its own. Even from indoors you will find yourself more attuned to the world around you. You will find yourself watching summer insects collecting on a screen. (How bizarre they are! How many kinds there are!), or noting the flick and flash of fireflies through the dark. You will stop to observe the swirling dance of windblown leaves, or sniff the air after a rain. It does not matter that there is no objective in this; the point is in the doing, in not letting life's most important details slip by.
You will find yourself doing silly things that your pet-less friends might not understand: spending thirty minutes in the grocery aisle looking for the cat food brand your feline must have, buying dog birthday treats, or driving around the block an extra time because your pet enjoys the ride. You will roll in the snow, wrestle with chewie toys, bounce little rubber balls till your eyes cross, and even run around the house trailing your bathrobe tie - with a cat in hot pursuit - all in the name of love. Your house will become muddier and hairier.
You will wear less dark clothing and buy more lint rollers. You may find dog biscuits in your pocket or purse, and feel the need to explain that an old plastic shopping bag adorns your living room rug because your cat loves the crinkly sound. You will learn the true measure of love - the steadfast, undying kind that says, "It doesn't matter where we are or what we do, or how life treats us as long as we are together." Respect this always. It is the most precious gift any living soul can give another. You will not find it often among the human race.
And you will learn humility. The look in my dog's eyes often made me feel ashamed. Such joy and love at my presence. She saw not some flawed human who could be cross and stubborn, moody or rude, but only her wonderful companion. Or maybe she saw those things and dismissed them as mere human foibles, not worth considering, and so chose to love me anyway. If you pay attention and learn well, when the journey is done, you will be not just a better person, but the person your pet always knew you to be - the one they were proud to call beloved friend.
I must caution you that this journey is not without pain. Like all paths of true love, the pain is part of loving. For as surely as the sun sets, one day your dear animal companion will follow a trail you cannot yet go down. And you will have to find the strength and love to let them go. A pet's time on earth is far too short - especially for those that love them. We borrow them, really, just for awhile, and during these brief years they are generous enough to give us all their love, every inch of their spirit and heart, until one day there is nothing left.
The cat that only yesterday was a kitten is all too soon old and frail and sleeping in the sun. The young pup of boundless energy wakes up stiff and lame, the muzzle now gray. Deep down we somehow always knew that this journey would end.
We knew that if we gave our hearts they would be broken. But give them we must for it is all they ask in return. When the time comes, and the road curves ahead to a place we cannot see, we give one final gift and let them run on ahead - young and whole once more. "Godspeed, good friend," we say, until our journey comes full circle and our paths cross again.
Friday, July 6, 2007
Why do rescue work?
The Starfish... Making a Difference
An old man walked up to a shore littered with thousands of starfish, beached and dying after a storm.
A young man was picking them up and flipping them back into the ocean.
"Why do you bother" the old man scoffed."You're not saving enough to make a difference"
The young man picked up another starfish and sent it spinning back to the water."Made a difference to that one" he said.
An old man walked up to a shore littered with thousands of starfish, beached and dying after a storm.
A young man was picking them up and flipping them back into the ocean.
"Why do you bother" the old man scoffed."You're not saving enough to make a difference"
The young man picked up another starfish and sent it spinning back to the water."Made a difference to that one" he said.
Wednesday, March 7, 2007
DOD - what's happening with you?
Since my return last week, DOD has slowed down. He's still eating, but not with his usual gusto and he's no longer the first one up in the morning. On Monday Susan gave him bath and a massage, which he seemed to enjoy immensely. He even got his toes done!
He doesn't seem to be ill, just lethargic...spending a lot of time sleeping....but ready to go for his car rides.
I'm a bit concerned. Something is amiss. It's almost like he's in a form of "doggy Alzheimers" with the fog that surrounds it. I'm going to call Dianne today to see if she will check him out before I leave for Canada.
I've got to go up to look at possibilities for a new home for our move in June. Part of my rationale is to find a place where we can walk together by a river. DOD loves the Concord River. On our walk Sunday he headed right for the river where we checked out all of the animal tracks on the river bed and scanned the sky for birds. Unfortunately, all of the ducks are still on vacation in warmer climes, so we didn't get to run and chase any ducks.
Ever since my experience with Molly, I tend to get a bit panicky when things aren't perfect. I'm going to call the vet as soon as they open and make an appointment. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that this is just something minor.
He doesn't seem to be ill, just lethargic...spending a lot of time sleeping....but ready to go for his car rides.
I'm a bit concerned. Something is amiss. It's almost like he's in a form of "doggy Alzheimers" with the fog that surrounds it. I'm going to call Dianne today to see if she will check him out before I leave for Canada.
I've got to go up to look at possibilities for a new home for our move in June. Part of my rationale is to find a place where we can walk together by a river. DOD loves the Concord River. On our walk Sunday he headed right for the river where we checked out all of the animal tracks on the river bed and scanned the sky for birds. Unfortunately, all of the ducks are still on vacation in warmer climes, so we didn't get to run and chase any ducks.
Ever since my experience with Molly, I tend to get a bit panicky when things aren't perfect. I'm going to call the vet as soon as they open and make an appointment. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that this is just something minor.
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
Hello again, DOD
Sunday evening I returned home after 10 days away from DOD. He seemed happy to see me in his DOD way - the tail wagged at 1/4 time. I've got to wonder what he was like in his prime.
DOD seemed to weather well during our time apart. He promptly deposited himself on his bed beside mine and soon was dreaming of whatever DODs dream. The next morning I was awakened by a wet kiss on my nose (which was intended to remind me that it was time for breakfast)so I arose and we fell into our old routine again.
He seems quite content to take our daily walks and chase the ball 6 times before returning to the comfort of his bed. I'm glad to have him sleeping by my feet as I click, click away on the computer keyboard.
It's good to see you again DOD. I told you not to worry when I left because I'd come home to you again....and that's exactly what I did.
DOD seemed to weather well during our time apart. He promptly deposited himself on his bed beside mine and soon was dreaming of whatever DODs dream. The next morning I was awakened by a wet kiss on my nose (which was intended to remind me that it was time for breakfast)so I arose and we fell into our old routine again.
He seems quite content to take our daily walks and chase the ball 6 times before returning to the comfort of his bed. I'm glad to have him sleeping by my feet as I click, click away on the computer keyboard.
It's good to see you again DOD. I told you not to worry when I left because I'd come home to you again....and that's exactly what I did.
Sharon
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
