Another Weekend Ends

~Cissy~

Another weekend has come to an end.  Our friend from Pennsylvania came for a couple of days, and we could not have enjoyed her visit any more.  At the moment, "Sid" is dog-less, and she said that she needed a "dog-fix" --so where is a better place to come than our house?  The dogs absolutely adore "Sid,"  Even Charlie put his babysitting duties with the kitten aside for her visit.  He is crazy about Sid, and even goes as far as sleeping with Sid at night.

Todd made me proud by (again) remembering his manners and more than once came to Sid for attention.  

Our friend may have come for a dog-fix, but I had something else in mind for her visit.  On Saturday we were off to West Virginia to an Apple Festival.  It was day of apples...

Apples of just about every kind -- Some varieties I'd not heard of.  

and many, many more waiting to be picked.  We chatted with someone from the orchard, and he told us that for every tree that he picks an apple from, he takes a bite from one apple. That's a lot of bites!

And if you wanted something besides apples, there were lots of varieties of pumpkins to choose. These "warty pumpkins" were interesting.

You could even "smooch da pooch" to help a local rescue.

It was a good day spent with a good friend.  The good energy from the weekend must have rubbed off on Dusty, who is definitely feeling better. His appetite seems stable, and he's up and around more.

~Dusty with Bella in the background~

Buddy lost his appetite a few days ago.  Nothing I could give him, could get him to take as much as a nibble.  So I cooked ground beef, and added a couple of scrambled eggs and pasta, topped with cheese for good measure.  It worked, and he's eaten the last two meals.  But he's turning his nose up at kibble or anything dog-food.  I'm trying to stay positive that Buddy is at least eating, and I just hope we can figure this out sooner rather than later.

~Buddy, feeling a little better~

Charlie the Helper!

This has to be the week that technology is against me.  Something happened to my cell phone. It was able to be resurrected, but I have lost all my new contact information, texts and photos since I'd gotten the phone because they'd not been saved.  My phone is now set up to not let that happen again.

~Cissy~

Then my dishwasher stopped working.  I'd seen it coming because the lights on the control panel seemed to be going off and on at random times even if it wasn't running. Then it just stopped running. Of course the dishwasher was totally full when this happened.  To some, not having a dishwasher is not a big deal.  But I can never remember a time when I liked washing dishes.  Fortunately I had help because...

Charlie was more than happy to help with the "pre-wash."    

Once Charlie and I were done in the kitchen, he helped again by keeping an eye on Apple.

What would I do without Charlie?  What would Apple do without Charlie?

I'm glad we don't have to find out!  

~Bella~

On the Mend--I think!

On Friday morning I said good-bye to our three little kittens who have found new homes.  It was a good and learning experience, and I've no regrets in volunteering to take them in.  I was a bit surprised when I was asked if I could take another little one.  She was found on the Appalachian Trail (a marked hiking trail in the eastern United States extending between Georgia and Maine) by a hiker who was followed by her for more than a mile.  The hiker turned this little girl who has wounds from head to tail, into the rescue.  "Appalachia" (Apple for short) is a friendly little kitten, who was previously spayed -- So at some time in her short life, she belonged to someone.  How "Apple" ended up on a remote part of a hiking trail is anyone's guess.

Of course Charlie is overseeing her recovery,

and the other dogs are snickering at her having to wear a "cone of shame."

~Apple, feeling better today~

While Charlie is taking care of the kitten, I'm taking care of Buddy and Dusty.  At the vet, Buddy had x-rays that thankfully showed nothing. So, we're trying a few things with his diet (you may be right Tammy!) to see if it'll help.

On the flip-side is Dusty.  He has a large tumor on his back leg, and the plan at the vet originally was to do a biopsy.  But our vet thinks that its gotten infected.  So, we've put him on several medications to help with the pain we think he's having and the infection.  The medication may be making him sleepy, but he seems to feel better today.

I hope we are headed in the right direction 

 ...and on the mend! 

Contagious!

~View from our front porch this morning~

Back after a week away, and I wish I could say we were away on a fun trip.  But actually, I've not been feeling well for almost a week.  I'll admit that I don't make the best sick person.  I've come home from work, worn out and just fallen into bed but not before I complain, moan and groan.  The dogs are sympathetic, but even they just got to the point where they ignored me, except when it was dinner time.

~Cissy~

Not feeling well must be contagious.  Buddy (below) has also not been feeling well the past couple of weeks. He's getting sick after eating.  You name it, I've tried everything from changing his food, to the bowl height, and medication.  None of it seems to make a difference -- He still gets sick, and there's no rhyme or reason for it and no way to predict that he will or won't. When his regular vet wasn't working, we saw a new vet that is just starting her veterinary career. I have to admit, that I felt that she was no help.  So, I've made an appointment for our regular vet to see Buddy on Saturday.

What was I saying about being contagious?  Our new comer Dusty isn't feeling well today either.  I've no idea what it could be.  He was just fine yesterday, but today he's refusing food, and won't get up.  Thinking that it could be pain from overdoing it yesterday, I've given him pain pills today in hopes that he'll feel better by tomorrow. He also has a vet appointment on Saturday.

~Dusty~

Todd is totally oblivious to everything that's going on inside.  This morning he didn't come when called for breakfast -- He was much too busy running around the yard barking at the gangs of delinquent deer and rabbits that are trespassing on his turf!

Wet Dogs!

This morning we woke to much needed rain.  Outside with the dogs on our first walk, no birds were singing and even the cicadas were quiet.

There was only the sound of the rain falling as everything seemed to quietly be soaking it all up. Everything feels a bit fresher, and the trees and grass are looking a little greener this afternoon.

Of course the dogs have been wet all day.   

As a result, its been a day that I've been reminded more than once that there is nothing more affectionate than a wet dog.

There is also nothing found in a bottle or spray that smells like one either.

But all dog-owners know that there are things that do come in a bottle that will help get rid of it.

Thank-goodness!

~Sheba, left and Bella~

***As a remembrance of September 11th, here's a tribute to Bretagne who at 16 years old is the last known living search and rescue dog who worked at Ground Zero. To thank her for her service, Bretagne was treated to "a dog's best day" in  New York City   --Click here for her tribute--

Weekend and Friends

Labor Day may mark the unofficial end of summer, but we've had a sun-soaked humid weekend that has felt more like the middle of it. If Todd wasn't inside laying on the cool vents, he stayed in the shade outside.

I decided to pick the pears off our tree, even though I think it may be a little early for them. But because my nemesis, the dreaded brown-marmorated stink-bug who ruined them all last year is starting to arrive, I decided to pick them with Sheba's help.

I've got them in brown bags to ripen in hopes we'll get to enjoy them as much as Sheba and Josh have been the last few weeks.

While we were at home, two of the kittens were spending their long weekend at a local store in hopes of finding a new home for them.

Left behind was the tiger kitten that is the adopted sister. If a cat can be lonely, this little left-behinder really let it be known with her crying that she was.

As you know, Charlie loves the kittens, and tried to be friends with her.  But as you can see in the video below, she really didn't want to make any new friends.   She wanted her old one.

This afternoon she got her wish when the two little vacationers were returned, and two friends were reunited.

A pretty good weekend for all of us.  I hope yours was too! 

-Josh-

What Really Matters

I will start this post by saying that I am totally devoted to my current vet that has seen our dogs for more years than I can remember.  But for Sunny who is stressed by a car ride and all that a vet visit entails, I decided to try a vet that would come to the house. After several recommendations, we met our new vet. It went really well, and I couldn't be happier with how they handled Sunny, and he immediately liked the mobile vet, which spoke volumes.

~Sunny likes the new-vet more than the camera~

Since the vet was here, I decided to have George seen as well.  When George arrived here in April, because of his being overweight, he struggled on the few stairs and to get up. With daily walks, changing his diet, I've had high hopes that George was slimming down -- Because he looked to me like he was.  He seems happier, and he's up and around much more than he was.

~Josh and George~

So, of course I was anxious to put George onto the scale and feel that proud moment as his owner that he's lost weight.  According to their scales, he's lost two pounds.  Proud moment gone.  But George was happy and relaxed during the entire exam, and let "mobile vet" do a pedicure. I guess that's what really matters.    

~George, still happy afterwards~ 

Todd thinks that what really matters is that he didn't have to be seen.   

The Three H's

With the doctor that I work for in the hospital recovering from surgery, I'm only working one day this week.  It's a good chance to catch up on a few things and do my annual pilgrimage out of my county to "the city" for an appointment.

~Reston, Virginia~

With that behind me, at the start of September and the three H's, hazy, hot and humid returning for a summer encore, we're going to be a little lazy and just pace ourselves.

~Lexi~

I think Todd agrees....  

As does Dusty, who continues to get along wonderfully with his new pack-mates!