Puppies

[glenn kangiser]

My new puppy, Spike is growing.



He's he only dog I have ever seen who can walk around the chairs in the living room and climb up in my lap with his eyes closed so he won't have to wake up.

[MountainDon]

Not too much of a puppy anymore... 

[glenn kangiser]

He is the only one who doesn't know that.

[StinkerBell]

He looks like Petie from the little Rascals......

[Homegrown Tomatoes]

Stink, you got it right on the rat "terrors" part.  My grandma had one that just died last year, but I'll never forget when that dog was a pup.  She used to attack your hands the second you walked in the door, more so if you had gloves on.  I had scars on my knuckles for years from that goofy dog.  She learned not to mess with me after I was taking care of the farm while Grandpa was in the hospital one time.  My mom was spending the nights there, too, but she still had to go into work at 4:30 in the morning, and since Foxy dog seemed to be behaving herself that morning, Mom let her loose in the  house for a few minutes before she was going to leave for work.  All I know is I awoke to that crazy dog standing on my chest and biting the fire out of my nose!  Seeing as I wasn't fully concious, I just grabbed the little gremlin and threw her.  She didn't bite me anymore.  But boy was she grouchy when she got older! 

[StinkerBell]

Our terrors are called Ricky and Lucy. Should be Pepe Le PU and Barbie. Cause the little boy farts all the time and the girl is dumb as rocks.

[glenn kangiser]

I'm so proud of Spikey-- He just went out and did a poopoo on demand.  Now I don't have to worry.

[Homegrown Tomatoes]

Our terrors are called Ricky and Lucy. Should be Pepe Le PU and Barbie. Cause the little boy farts all the time and the girl is dumb as rocks.

Maybe it's not too late to change their names...   
On the up side, my Grandma's neighbor across the street has a rat terrier named Bud, and he's a really good little dog.  I'm not sure he's full-blood terror, though... he's a little bigger than a lot of them.

[Redoverfarm]

That didn't take long did it.  Might be an isolated incident so I would still read the paper on the floor for a while.

[glenn kangiser]

He's pretty good -- hasn't had an accident since he was confused with company and odd dogs here.

[Redoverfarm]

Glenn I think I found Spikes Daddy.



Dog For Sale

Free to good home.

Excellent guard dog.

Owner cannot afford to feed him anymore,
as there are no more thieves, murderers,
or molesters left in the neighborhood
for him to eat.

Most of them knew him as 'Holy Shit.'

[StinkerBell]

That is a rhino disguised as a dog......

[MountainDon]

I wonder of she (on the left) has any trouble getting boy friends?

[StinkerBell]

The amount of poop that  dog would generate......

[Redoverfarm]

Glenn I think I found Spikes Daddy.



Dog For Sale

Free to good home.

Excellent guard dog.

Owner cannot afford to feed him anymore,
as there are no more thieves, murderers,
or molesters left in the neighborhood
for him to eat.

Most of them knew him as 'Holy Shit.'

This was the complete ad.

[glenn kangiser]

Somebody got the full grown version.  Spike won't get that big, but same family.

[glenn kangiser]

My puppy - Spike -- sleeping behind my chair -- may have to change his name to little gassy.

The better the dog food we feed him, the worse he gets.  He is fun though - probably 40 to 50 lbs now - just a guess.

[glenn kangiser]

Spike has a eyelid condition common in American Bulldogs.  They are too big and the lower ones have the lashes rolled in against the eye scratching the cornea.   Too much inbreeding I guess. 

Before anybody says anything, No -- I don't have that problem myself.

Anyway  -- I took him in for surgery Tuesday morning - got him back in the afternoon --

They had to take a crescent shaped piece of skin - Meat?  from under both eyes and from the top too.

Want to see?  WARNING  Fairly graphic.  (P/C term for gross.)

https://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d184/glennkangiser/P1010255.jpg

That pulls the eyelashes out and away from the eye.  His left one - looking at him was worst -- scratching a bit - it could possibly cause blindness and does cause irritation and matter needing to be cleaned out each day.  The Doc said it was not possible to tell right away if he got it corrected totally but it looks pretty good.  Swelling should go down in a few days - collar off in a week and stitches out in 2 weeks.

[CREATIVE1]

That's why I always get mutts.  If breeders were more responsible, purebred dogs would be fine.  But my last mutt, an 85 pound shepherd
mix, outlived all the fancy rottweilers in the neighborhood by years.  My present dog, a lab/ maybe american eskimo mix named Snapdragon (born Year of the Dragon, is mouthy, girl so named after a flower), gets a "wow, prettiest dog I ever saw" from everyone who sees her.  And of course, there's the "cost" factor.  And the "rescue" factor too.  Dog #1 was dumped in the road in front of our house, dog #2 was born in a crack house, and we were home #4 in her first twelve weeks.

Hope Spike lives a long and happy life after he heals from the surgery.  Dogs rule (even if you don't want them to).

[Homegrown Tomatoes]

I agree that mutts are the best pets.  Both of our dogs are fairly purebred (not totally sure about Grover, but he certainly looks full-blood beardie.)  Grover is the world's best kids' dog, and generally just a great dog, but something I've discovered is that just as Shepherds are prone to hip displacement and Beagles to cancer, Beardies are prone to epilepsy... other than that, he is a wonderful dog, but it is painful to watch him have a really bad seizure, and the vet has told me that the medicine for the seizures could (and most likely would) do more harm than good and shorten his lifespan.  Our little dog is miniature spitz... my mom has raised them for years and I haven't known of one that didn't have some sort of neurosis or issue.  They can be really smart, but seems like the smarter ones are also a little catlike... they tend to be fear biters and only bond with one or two at the most people.  They are good watch dogs, though.  Ornery seems bent and determined to escape, dig, and destroy.  He likes the kids, but is really too high strung to be a good kids' dog.  I will not ever own another mini-spitz after Ornery is gone.  I have a soft spot for big, shaggy, goofy dogs that like everyone... I don't have the patience to deal with a dog that is spastic and nervous... that's what cats are for, and they're entertaining about it, but dogs are supposed to be loyal and friendly and protective of their own.  I would have another beardie in a heartbeat, but would prefer it be mixed with something else for his own sake.

[glenn kangiser]

I also usually get mutts and wouldn't have paid for Spike (unless I knew what a great dog he would be), but Suzy -my mutt, found him when we were prospecting.  He had a 3 inch bullet wound on his left shoulder - he climbed up in my lap after I petted him a bit so we rescued him and a friend familiar with dogs told me what he was and the common problems.  The hips could be a later problem.  He was an estimated 4 months old when we found him and I think he had been dumped by a breeder.  Couldn't make any money off him with his problems - ticks -- eyes infected nearly shut.  Carla (ex CHP and animal -horse dog- expert) said white trash breeders do this sort of thing.  3 more giant ones - probably his family were dumped at the same time.  He was scared to death and by himself in the bushes after getting shot.

He has a super good personality and Sassy really likes him too so since we weren't out anything to get him, Carla  said it would be good to get his eyes fixed.  We agreed.

[CREATIVE1]

All hail to the dog rescuers of the world.  Most of my friends have dogs that had a rough start. 

I don't know if this would help your dog with seizures, but for my cat who also had them (recently died at 20) a B vitamin supplement was recommended and seemed to help.

[Homegrown Tomatoes]

Since we moved back to OK, Grover hasn't had a single seizure that I've seen, though he had several bad ones in the months before we moved from WI.  He was rescued from the pound, and I didn't know what he was when I got him... he was probably not more than ten weeks old at the time.  I went back one time just to see what critters they had, about four years after I first got Grover, and there was a dog there that was obviously related to him, also a puppy.  It looked and acted so much like him it killed me to leave him there.  I wondered if the breeder was culling out the dogs with epilepsy maybe?  Funny thing was that when Grover was a pup, the pound had him labelled as 'Schnauzer mix' because they didn't know what he was... he was still pretty small and black, and they assumed that must be what he was... I remember when I got him to the truck that day and started looking at his puppy teeth and his big feet and really wondering what I'd gotten myself into... I was afraid he was an Irish Wolfhound or something equally humongous, and I was living in a college apartment at the time.  Turns out he is the best inside dog I've ever had, other than the fact he sheds like crazy in the spring, which is not his fault.  Even if he weighs 70 lbs, he is a great inside dog.  Now, more than a decade later, I wouldn't trade him for the world... don't think a better natured animal ever lived.  It was when I took him to the vet the first time that he told me what he thought he was... and he told me that there was someone who periodically left beardie pups at the Stillwater pound, so he pretty much assumed that Grover is purebred.  To look at him, he looks it, the big hairy lug.

I may try the vitamin b... I know for his skin issues (he sometimes gets hotspots) tea tree oil and dog food with fish in it seems to help a lot.  I'm almost wondering if it was a vitamin D deficiency, though, living in the cold north, that made his seizures worse up there?

[CREATIVE1]

Don't know about that, being from Florida.  But I have another couple of interesting stories.

My shepherd started developing cataracts--couldn't catch balls or sticks and would bark at us when we came home and then say "oops."
I did some research and put him on about 2,000 mg of Vitamin C per day.  Cataracts disappeared!  Eyes bright and shiny!  Catching balls like a champ!  Kept him on this for the next five years, about 250 mg/day, and he could see great until the end.

We also ran into ear hematomas so bad that he had several surgeries and wore that awful cone for an entire summer.  Finally one of the surgeries caused what they said was permanent nerve damage on one side of his face.  He couldn't blink the eye independently and couldn't be hand fed treats anymore because he had lost fine control. His entire face on that side hung down.

When they started talking about cutting off his ears (!!!!) enough was enough.  I gave him coenzyme Q10 and Vitamin K.  Nerve damage gone in two weeks, no more hematomas.

A good source for nutritional information, also selling products (mine are on Evo) is http://www.naturapet.com/tools/

Snapdragon says, the best way for my owner to lose weight is to share, oatmeal, apples, potatoes,cheese, romaine lettuce, berries .......................

[CREATIVE1]

While I was posting my last reply, this email was delivered to me.  Seems like I'm meant to share it.

A  Dog's Purpose (from a 6-year-old)

Being a veterinarian, I had been called to examine a ten-year-old
Irish Wolfhound named Belker. The dog's owners Ron, his wife, Lisa,
and their little boy, Shane, were all very attached to Belker, and
they were hoping for a miracle.

I examined Belker and found he was dying of cancer.
I told the family we couldn't do anything for Belker, and offered to
perform the euthanasia procedure for the old dog in their home.

As we made arrangements, Ron and Lisa told me they thought it would
be good for six-year-old Shane to observe the procedure.

They felt as though Shane might learn something from the experience.

The next day, I felt the familiar catch in my throat as Belker's
family surrounded him. Shane seemed so calm, petting the old dog for
the last time, that I wondered If he understood what was going on.
Within a few minutes, Belker slipped peacefully away.

The little boy seemed to accept Belker's transition without any
difficulty or confusion. We sat together for a while after Belker's
death, wondering aloud about the sad fact that animal lives are
shorter than human lives. Shane, who had been listening quietly,
piped up, 'I know why.'

Startled, we all turned to him. What came out of his mouth next
stunned me. I'd never heard a more comforting explanation.

He said, 'People are born so that they can learn how to live a good
life -- like loving everybody all the time and being nice, right?'
The six-year-old continued, 'Well, dogs already know how to do that, so
they don't have to stay as long.'

Live simply.
Love generously.
Care deeply
Speak kindly.

Remember, if a dog was the teacher you would learn things like:

When loved ones come home, always run to greet them.
Never pass up the opportunity to go for a joyride.   
Allow the experience of fresh air and the wind in your face to be
pure ecstasy.
Take naps.
Stretch before rising.
Run, romp, and play daily.
Thrive on attention and let people touch you.
Avoid biting when a simple growl will do.
On warm days, stop to lie on your back on the grass.
On hot days, drink lots of water and lie under a shady tree.
When you're happy, dance around and wag your entire body.
Delight in the simple joy of a long walk.
Eat with gusto and enthusiasm. Stop when you have had enough.
Be loyal. Never pretend to be something you're not.
If what you want lies buried, dig until you find it.
When someone is having a bad day, be silent, sit close by and nuzzle
them gently.
Be always grateful for each new day
Today, I wish you a day of ordinary miracles: May joy dance in your
soul, may love fill your heart and may peace reign in your home.