Interesting Smells of Spring

If only I could catch the squirrel who plays all over this bench!

I can tell the deer have been here for a nibble.

Isn't it amazing they did not eat the flowers?

I think I will track those deer.

Hooray for Friday!

Wordless Wednesday

(Pssst - lets go!!)

Mom's Bracket

Mom works with a basketball expert who always gets an office pool together for the National Basketball Championship. She has been studying some of the teams and has decided to toss a coin for her picks but we won't tell the expert this tidbit of information. Tonight's picks are Miss.Valley over W. Kentucky and Iona over BYU.    

 Who do you think will win tonight?

Daylight Savings is Definitely Not for Dogs

I don't want to get out of bed.  It is still dark outside and it is MONDAY!!!

This is too early! Dad tomorrow morning take us outside after the sun comes up!

What A Week!

Last week was  medical education week at our house. We have never heard of "Happy Tail", have you? Happy Tail occurs when a dog with a long wagging tail beats it on everything causing trauma to the tail. The tail tip is usually the place of injury. Some tail tips split and others are severely bruised which can lead to tail tip necrosis if not given a chance to heal. Tail tip necrosis results in removing the injured part of the tail which of course starts the cycle all over again. Most of the time the tail is completely docked to remedy the condition.

Betsy injured her tail and we just happened to notice blood on her tail tip. The tip of her tail is bruised and hopefully will heal with taking an antibiotic treatment. There is no way to keep her from wagging that tail!  I thought her tail tip had turned black however our vet thinks it is just bruised. We are praying that 10 days (2/day) of Cephalexin 500 MG will help keep the bacteria away.

Betsy is a happy girl and constantly wags her tail.

The next medical education was on canine pedal furunculosis - a deep tissue pyoderma. Phoebe has some sort of boil lesions on her feet that will not heal. Some short haired breeds are predisposed to this condition. Canine pedal furunculosis manifests as a single to multiple lesions firm to fluctuant on the feet usually in the interdigital areas. This is usually caused by a persistent autoimmune disorder. Our vet and I have decided to initially treat with 3 weeks of Semplicef, biopsy, and go from there. If this is an actual autoimmune response then treatment will be life long. Our goal will be to get it under control and then decide on a preventative maintnenance.

The lesion is not a paw pad - it is a huge fiber cystic hard ball between the paw pads. This is on the bottom of the front foot.

This one is on the back foot. The other back foot has a smaller one.

Phoebe will take this antibiotic for 3 weeks and then a decision will be made on other treatment options.  

The good news is that prognosis is good to fair.  Lifelong medical therapy may be needed to maintain remission.  I always say it could be worse.

Have a great Monday!

Saturday Evening

Mom feels guilty when she and dad run errands  and we have to stay home. She might feel very guilty today because she went to an antique show and sale. That's okay because we get to go on those fun evening walks through the woods.

It was light when we started the walk, however dark came upon us rather quickly.

Hang on Dad!

Our cat (lower right side of photo) will always walk the two miles with us.

Hey Mom are you back there?

On the way home dark catches up with us.

Finally home!

Patiently waiting for Dad to take the Sibes inside, unleash them and give them water before he helps mom get the rest of us inside.

With a little cold snap this weekend we were not too worried about those poisonous snakes.  Sadly to say this will probably be our last walk in the woods  until next winter after hunting season is over. Temperatures will get to warm this week and next month is turkey season.

I am sure mom will take us on extra adventures Sunday.

Ruff Wear

Our package arrived and we now have three more of the  Knot - a - Leash dog leads.

I like the Ruff Wear Knot-a- Leash because it is strong and rugged. The locking carabiner clip ensures the occasional escape will not happen.The traditional clip on most leashes will on occasion allow the collar ring to slip right through and we have an AWOL dog on the run. Nina has used one for almost 2 years and it has held up well and still looks great.  

Another feature that I love is the thick handle that I can hold securely in my hand.  I stopped using the flat traditional leads when I almost had my ring finger detached from my hand after the flat cord wrapped around the finger when one of the girls decided to chase a deer. 

The handle is padded and thick.  This will not wrap around my fingers.

Myshka wanted to be our model today so here here she is modeling one of our new leads.

HAPPY FRIDAY!