After Lilly’s recent wellness exam with her new veterinarian, I had to refill her prescription for chlomipramine, which is an anti-depressant she takes for her fears. We had been paying about $25 for 100 pills. She takes 2 a day. BUT, when I went to pick up her prescription after a meeting last week, the invoice at the new hospital shocked me. …
Lilly agrees that Happiness is a Warm Puppy … even when that puppy is much, much bigger than you. …
I want to tell you about a horrible, horrible pet essay that is causing a flood of complaints. The essay,
…
I was away at college when my
family euthanized my childhood dog (Brandy, a cocker). They drew straws over
the holidays freshman year to decide who would tell me. I spent the following three years
sans canine companionship, but I swore someone – by golly – was getting me a dog
for graduation. My then-boyfriend, now-husband, obliged and in the spring of
1990, I adopted my first dog as an adult at the age of 22. She was a young
Dalmatian I named Penelope
Grace, and she provided lifelong adventures of both the veterinary and
behavioral variety.
…
It’s been a tough week here, with my mom in cardiac ICU, after she blacked out, fell, hit her head, couldn’t stop throwing up and later in the ER went into V-tach (a scary and deadly heart rhythm) several times Tuesday. They had to zap her two seperate times to save her. So, I’ve been working as much as I can and running up and down the mountain to the hospital. It may take me a while to catch up with life, so don’t worry if we don’t post for a few days. …
I don’t watch much TV news, so I cannot say if this as been on local channels, but apparently a 20-year-old woman taped her boyfriend’s dog (Rex) upside down to the refrigerator with his paws bound with ponytail holders on Tuesday. Full story. But, basically reports say she was mad that the dog bit her and that her boyfriend would not get rid of the dog, so she taped him up. Rex is being cared for at the Humane Society of Boulder Valley, where we adopted Lilly. They’re asking for donations to help with …
Here’s another little 30-second video I shot and tried to edit. It shows Lilly doing her SHAKE and OTHER HAND trick. Whichever hand she gives me first is SHAKE, which makes the other one OTHER HAND. I did not teach this as right-left thing. You also get to see her worried, round head … when Ginko comes into the room behind me. …
Through Twitter, I’m finding all kinds of interesting dog-related news items. Once in a while I’ll share. For example, there are reports of these energy-efficient, compact fluorescent light bulbs freaking dogs out. I guess it’s either flickering or a high-pitched noise. So, if you happen to hear about any dogs suddenly flipping out, be sure…
Last week, veterinary blogger Dolittler posted a piece entitled “Top 10 Pet Owner Excuses for Aggression in Dogs.” And,
while I understand the tone and intent, it made me feel really sad
because so many aggressive dogs are actually fearful dogs, who need help. I also noted
in my comment to her post that I felt terribly unwanted as a
veterinary client. It wasn’t so much what Dr. Patty Khuly wrote, but
some of the comments took blame and derision to a level I did not expect. For
example: …
Longtime readers know that Lilly and I often take little trips off the mountain for Mommy & Lil dates. We run errands. We take walks in town on busy paths. We share patio lunches at our favorite local restaurants that allow pups to dine outside. Now that the weather is warmer, we try to get out at least once a week. Even with spring barely underway here in the Rocky Mountains, we see more and more people and dogs out during our adventures — much more so than in the winter. Recently, a couple of things have really started to …
