New Clothes!!!

 Karen totally outdid herself with these new clothes!  Thank you so much for your thoughtfulness, time and love!  We are so appreciate of this warm snugly clothes just in time for the winter months : )

 Ori just loves wearin' clothes, can't you tell?

 It fits her nice and snug which is perfect!  

It doesn't twist yet she is fully mobile while we walk!

Ori posin' for the camera : )

Isn't she pretty?

butterfly and jeans

She was 1/2 way to a down when I said "sit" so she paused long enough for a picture : )

Pretty pink stripes on Moo!

my pretty girl in new clothes!

AND this BEAUTIFUL blanket for Miss O

Even the back is pretty!

Totally spoiled and so thankful!  It was a fabulous pick me up!  (And the phone call and conversation from Madeline Ventry was very cool as well!)

So thankful for my girls and now they'll be warm in the cold winter months.  Thank you!!!

Ori: the Interior Destroyer

Last Wednesday, I put both girls in their crates and went to work.  Less than 8 hrs later I came home to Ori running around barking like a banshee and parts of my house, umm, shall we say redecorated?  I must have not latched her crate tightly before I left.  Needless to say, these pictures provide a strong rationale as to why Ori needs to be crated while we're out of the house!

 The laundry basket and all the laundry was on top of the crate when I left that morning

She ransacked Nick's closet and destroyed some boxes and papers

A big picture perspective

Moo, surveying the damage

 This was a stereo remote

 And little black plastic pieces were all over the floor....

She chewed 3 pairs of nick's shoes in the back and carried the trash bag into the living room to destroy

Moral of the story, keep your room clean or ya might get raided by Ori!!!

It's the Little Things....

...that make a difference!

Some days my girls are my little things.  Other days, they are big things that help to make my life more full.  They never cease to amaze me and usually bring a smile to my face.

 I smile when they're snuggling together, almost like they love each other!

 Ori chewing on a radish

Ori knows that I'm messy in the kitchen and I'm prone to drop food that I am preparing onto the floor.  Ori takes advantage of this and often lays under my feet or sitting next to me, ready to spring into action at moments notice.  She also enjoys a good challenge, so new items such as radishes, blue hubbard squash, sweet potatoes, daikon radishes and other veggies are no match for her nimble feet and ready tongue.  She's cute and she cleans up after herself too.  On the rare occasion she gets something she shouldn't have, she's pretty good about leaving something go when my tone of voice gets serious or when I have a trade for her (Ori want a cookie?)

 Ori sampling blue Hubbard squash

 A few nights ago, Ori thought she hit the jackpot when she saw a bag of onions (aka: balls) in the pantry.  She knocked the bag over and grabbed the biggest onion she could find and took it to her bed for closer inspection.  I knew I needed to get it from her, but I was laughing so hard at her large as saucer eyes and playful spirit.  Nick came over to help negotiate a successful trade and we laughed at our little imp!

I realized on Friday, how important it is to make sure both the girls go for rides and get socialization on a regular basis.  I took Ori for some Doggie black friday deals at local pet/farm supplies stores in town and she loved it so much!  We started at Playful Pups where she met Auntie LuAnn and Edison.  She didn't want to leave after hanging around, so we went over to Brand't Farm Supply and ended our trip out at McCrackens.  She really was a well behaved little girl and grew more confident with each stop.

On Saturday I took Ori back to Playful Pups for an open agility class.  She did so well!  She was hesitant and nervous with the pieces initially, but she grew in confidence and by the end of the session she was sequencing a ladder, jump, tire, table and tunnel pretty well for the first hour!  It was cool to watch her confidence and speed pick up.  As soon as we stepped into the ring, it's like basic obedience came flooding back and she was an attentive angel!  

It was interesting to watch people in class with O.  There were 4 other dogs and at least 4 people came up to me asking what happened to O's leg, almost wondering if she would be capable of walking, much less doing agility work. 

There was one piece of equipment that wasn't really an agility piece, but more like a kids toy with ramps made of plastic.  It didn't have good traction and with 1 front leg it was the only piece O was at a real disadvantage with.  She was nervous (and I was too, which definitely showed in our progress), but the trainer at one point as we were working on it asked me "can she climb stairs?"  At which point, I was somewhat amazed this was even a question.  I made the executive decision to not force the bad plastic piece on poor O any more.  We gave it 3 good attempts and it just wasn't safe for her or her confidence.   It was at this point that I realized the importance of story and knowing the pieces to an animals (and a person's) story.  Understanding one's history makes such a difference in how the present and future is addressed.  If this trainer had taken the time to learn just a little bit more about Ori's story, she may have understood just how awesome Ori was doing and why she was initially a little hesitant.  Less than a year ago, Ori was pushing out puppies in a terrible local puppy mill without her basic needs being met, much less a warm bed to sleep in.  And here we were asking Ori to go through tunnels and up slick surfaces.  Who knows what baggage we may have drug up for her?  I am so proud of this little girl and the life, vigor, and excitement she has each and every day!

I learned so much about Ori this weekend and by having another opportunity to work and train with her.  She is nervous initially and may balk at a new piece, but given several attempts she will try anything and figure it out.  Her confidence improves over time (fairly quickly) and she likes the game and speed of the agility.  I also learned that she can be fine with bigger dogs in controlled situations.  She can also be prone to peeing inside when nervous. : (  Food is a good motivator, but a good squeak toy will be an invaluable training toy at certain points in the day.  I can't wait to go again next week so we can show off and show Auntie LuAnn all that she can do (She was off this past Sat!)

Our Moo is a little sweetheart who is learning to love and snuggle in ways I never imagined she would.  She continues to slow down however and is less graceful than she was when we first got her.  We're noticing some stiffness in her gait once in a while and she keeps falling on her head while walking.  She has a cut next to her right ear that I'm cleaning and keeping ointment on.  

She too needs trips and rides, so she's come with me to pick up a movie from red box and we were supposed to have a shopping trip on Saturday, but the shop was closed!  I learned though, that the local consignment shop is pet friendly, so Molly and I will do our shopping date on another day : ) It's neat to watch her little face light up as she realizes she is going for a car ride but Ori is not.  She copilots and loves little scratches behind her ears.

Both girls had baths yesterday after evening walks and the fun events of the day.  Baths aren't anyone's favorite thing in this house, but I do love taking care of them and then toweling them off and blow drying Moo.  She sits there (cookies on the counter being her motivation) and lets me gently blow dry and rub her little frail body until she's dry and fluffy clean.  It's almost like she enjoys the extra comfort and pampering.  Regardless the motivation, I smile as we work.

I've been shopping for the girls for Christmas both in stores and online and I'm loving it.  Ori is the first dog we've had that loves to play with toys so a new world of squeakers and interactive toys has opened up.  I'm finding softer chew treats (Zuke's Z ridges) and other treats to chew that Moo has expressed preference for (like the hooves at the farm store) to spoil Moo with too.

We haven't decorated the house yet and to be honest, I'm not rushing it.  I know Tink's stocking is still in the Christmas box...we have a stocking for Moo, but we don't have one for O and it's just a few details that I don't really want to work through...We'll get there eventually.

It's been a long while since Tink and I did our training classes for pet assisted therapy.  I think I'm ready to endeavor on a new journey with Ori in the same class.  I was afraid that Ori wouldn't listen to me in classes and that it wouldn't go right like it did with Tink.  I know this thought process isn't true and that while O won't be perfect, she is honest and loves to work and have fun.  I watched her eyes light up and she maintained an energy and attention level necessary.  I'm excited to see the bond that we can continue to build as we work and play together.  She's not even 5 yet and the sky is the limit as far as what we can do and where we will go.

Ori's Favorites

Ori LOVES popcorn.  No matter where she is in the house, when she hears and smells the tell tale signs she comes running.  She especially loves kettle corn though.

We found another favorite today, sour cream and onion chips! 

My silly girls isn't as food motivated as Moo (good thing) but she does like to eat!!!

Remembering her Legacy

 

Memorial roses with her beautiful picture

Today marks 1 year that Tink crossed the rainbow bridge.  It seems to hard to believe that a whole year has passed.   Nick bought us roses much like we did for so many months after her passing as a reminder of her life and beauty.

 Up close and personal

I thought it was fitting to have the girls pose with the flowers.  Of course we had to bribe them with cookies so Ori would eat the roses...silly girl.

another pretty pic of the girls

After dinner, Nick and I looked through the scrapbook I'm working on and shared a good cry together...we remembered our drive to Atlanta, how much Tink hated the rain.  She would toss her pretty little head, and stamp her little feet until I gently toweled her off when we came inside.  How she loved to snuggle and loved her mommy more than her daddy (ok, so i had to bring that up, but still : )

While we were walking, Nick and I laughed with Ori and her zest for life.  We think that Tink would have hated Ori, but we think Tink would have been a lot like O when she was younger.  Which also means there might be hope for Crazy Ori to not be quite so crazy as she ages.   Tink was an amazing little girl...she wanted nothing here while as a part of our family.   We had the privilege of caring for her until her last day... she passed in my arms knowing she was loved.  I love you Tinker.

The Destroyer

 Scarf Carnage, 9-2010

So as we all know by now, Ori likes to destroy things.  Sometimes she gets in a mood and seems to go on a rampage looking for things to get herself in trouble with.  A week or so ago, O went on the hunt and after ripping the zipper out of the bed, she went for a scarf she pulled from the closet.  The problem is, when it's something that isn't a big deal to have destroyed, I usually just let her do it.  I don't wear the scarf she destroyed so it was fun to watch her pull the yarn out of the ends of it.  She definitely keeps us laughing (and cleaning!)  This picture doesn't quite do the scene justice.  By the end, yarn was all over the bed and floor (of course my camera battery died before more evidence could be gathered.)

I watched her grapple with destroying a throw pillow (which she knows isn't ok) and an easy "Ori..." caused her to sheepishly turn her head towards me.  She tried one more time and with another "Ori..."  she actually stopped and found some other trouble to get into!  Love my little girl...

Gluttony, the almost deadly sin

Last Sunday, we gave the girls chew snacks which we do fairly regularly around here.  Ori was given a flossie and Molly was given a bully.  Somewhere, fairly early on, the girls switched and I honestly didn't think anything of it.  We kept an eye on them like we usually do.  Ori typically chews and pulls bit by bit and doesn't make big chunks.  Molly likes to make a big part soft and then chew it off.  Well this flossie apparently was really good.  At one point Nick said to me we need to watch Molly she's getting really aggressive with the flossy.  So I went over and looked at it.  She still had most of the 6-7 inch flossie so I said we'll just keep an eye and pull it in a bit.  Well, Molly decided she was going to shove 3 1/2 inches worth of flossy down her throat. 

As you can imagine, she was gagging and foaming and trying to get the flossie back up but trying to get it back down too.  Nick grabbed some gloves and we tried to stick our hands down her through to grab it (we could feel it, but couldn't get a good hold of it.)  We put her in the kitchen as she was gagging up foam.  I called every NEBTR person that I thought could help us out.  (at this point she was still breathing on her own and was acting ok as far as breathing and movements were concerned.  Nick kept moving his hands in front of her face to make sure she was responsive.)  Ginny answered her phone and explained what was going on.  She talked us through and said if we had any concerns to take her to the e-vet.

Moo finally got it down far enough that she stopped gagging.  She laid down on the floor in the living room and Nick hovered over her like a Mama duck.   She wasn't comfortable and she kept sitting up then laying down again.  Finally about 10 minutes after she laid down, we got her up and she walked over to the dining room.  She started to hack it up again.  Nick picked up Ori and Moo proceeded to make a mess.  The flossie FINALLY came back up and Nick yells to me "Pick up the flossie!!"  So I grab the grossest, slimiest flossie every and run it to the trash.  Blah!  Moo instantly felt and acted better (and looked for the flossie to try and shove it back down her throat.)

Part of us really thought we were going to loose Moo over this.  If she stopped breathing there would be no way we could get her to the vet in time.  Fortunately it didn't come to that.  Next time though we'll have hydrogen peroxide handy to aid in the removal of the flossie.

2 morals I learned from this experience:  1) Don't give Molly a flossy and 2) be the 1 to hold the other dog so you don't have to pick up the grossness!

A little bit of this and that...

Molly has continued to "recover" from not feeling well and is doing fabulous!  She's get a great little bounce in her step and seems to be loving the longer walks we've been able to take in the cooler weather.  (the cooler weather we had before fall officially hit-  you figure that one out!)  Her intelligence continues to show through more and more.  Some nights she goes into a crate to sleep, other times she chooses the dog bed next to the bed and other times she jumps up into bed and won't take no for an answer.  She's smart because Ori generally jumps right up into our bed and Molly will choose the dog bed.  Which usually means O gets put in a crate and Moo gets to stay out all night : )

Molly truly makes me smile when she jumps up into bed in the morning and pushes Ori out of the way to snuggle with me.  She has turned into such an affectionate little girl.  It's such a stark contrast to a year ago.  Yet more proof that no matter how old or how long a dog has been in certain conditions, they can still grow and change into the dog they've always wanted to be!

Ori has also been doing quite well.  She gets into mischievous moods and starts grabbing and going for anything she can get her mouth on.  The dog bed in the living room has permanently lost its zipper.  She went for my bath towel the other day and wouldn't let go.  She likes to go under the bed and pull things out we didn't even know were under (to help clean of course, she would never think of destroying anything!)

We had friends over last night who brought their big handsome boxer, Porter.  We met out front for introductions and true to form, Moo wanted to eat him at first and then settled down once we were in the apartment.  True to form, Ori was fine initially, then played submissive and then wanted to kill Porter as the night progressed.  I was getting really stressed about O's behavior.  Towards the end of the night O was in my lap and Porter was on the ground and O was fine until Porter got too close.  He wanted to play and for whatever reason, big dogs that want to play and won't leave her alone, really stress her out.  She's fine with big dogs like Maddie who wander around and leave her alone, but the persistent lets play types really seem to stress her out.  At one point she went over to Porter on her own and everything looked ok, but then he moved his paw to play and his big paw smacked her on the head.... yeah that wasn't as positive as it could have been.  I think over time she would get better with specific dogs.  I'm glad we know her type, because now we can watch out and then work on helping her become more comfortable around them.  I can't say that I completely blame her though.  I wouldn't want a big 'monster' bothering me all the time either. 

Everyone was fine when I was handing out cookies (I was trying to give some positive experiences and I knew no one was food aggressive.)  Poor Porter put 2 cookies on the floor for further inspection and Moo the hoover came over and snatched them up so quickly!  Porter looked at me like "you've got to be kiddin' me!  Can I have another?"  So I gave him 2 more and he ate them without putting them on the ground. 

I really want to get some video footage of Molly doing her sing with me.  Her song list is getting quite long including "You are my sunshine,"  "C is for Cookie," "Do your ears hang low," "Hello my name is Molly," and others I'm sure I can't think of right now.  As soon as she starts singing O comes to the kitchen in a flash knowing she'll reap the benefits of Moo's concert!

Ori is also a shameless seat stealer!  It doesn't matter what side of the couch or who leaves, if you're up, she's in your spot!  Unfortunately she's so cute, we usually just push her over so we can squeeze back in.  We're definitely snuggled up tight all 4 of us on the loveseat.  Good thing we don't have a great dane!

Fall weather

Oh I love the fall!  This cool weather has been a beautiful opportunity for longer walks and watching Ori run around even more like a crazy nut!

We've been calling Ori "squirrely" lately as she loves to pick up acorns, chew them up and spit them out!  Sometimes it's a race to see who can be faster on the draw, O  to grab a nut or me to keep her moving!  She also loves to take off running full tilt down the road and I love watching her love and enjoy life!

Moo is hanging in there, walking, and snuggling with the best of them!  She and O have been snuggly on the couch and the beds lately!  I was brave and left the 2 of them out for 45min while I had a chiropractor appointment on Wednesday morning and when I can home both were on the couch.  I opened the door, 2 heads popped up and then they jumped off to say hi.  I was so proud of them both!  (This is by no means going to be a habit, but I thought I would see for a once in a great while deal.)  They're really good little girls and I love them so : )

Bring on the snuggly down comforter, walking in hoodie with the girls weather!

Moo & O update

 Labor Day Weekend '10

O's foot healed quite nicely and she has been very sound since the surgery.  She continues to love life and manages to get herself into trouble every day.  Unfortunately, we can't help but laugh at most of it.  The 2 commands we need to teach and be consistent with are "leave it" and "drop it."  We'll get there, I'm sure :)

Molly has had 2 real good weeks.  Prior to that she had us both nervous.  About a month ago now we were at the vet having blood work done.  Her appetite and drinking had significantly increased and we couldn't seem to keep her poop under control.  She does not have diabetes but we confirmed that she wasn't regulated in regards to her cushings.  We increased her trilostane to 15mg twice a day and added flagyl to the regime as well.  We're down to 1/2 tab in the evenings and this combo seems to be working well.  We were able to finally get Molly back on her regular home cooked diet which has allowed her to gain just a little bit of weight back.  (she only lost 1/2 lb since Feb but it looks like so much more!)  While she tires more easily, the spark is still in her eye and she seems to still be enjoying life here with us.

Molly and Ori really seem to enjoy each others company which was really exemplified this weekend.  We typically bring 1 bed out by the campfire for the girls.  The first time we brought them both up they typically didn't lay together.  This time however, they snuggled up together more often than not.  Others noticed too and commented on the difference.  Things take time and I was happy to see the gradual change that has been going on with these 2!

Molly, despite her ups and downs, continues to blossom with us.  It's been so neat to watch her personality grow.  She jumps up on our bed on nights that she feels like sleeping up there and pretty much refuses to take "no" for an answer.  She likes her routine and she likes to snuggle more and more.  We've been taking each and every day we have with her as a gift. 

Moo was with us for an entire year on Aug 15th.  We celebrated her 12th birthday on Aug 29th with some yummy treats for the girls and an order of things to chew from onlynaturalpet.com which should be here any day now.  It amazes me where the time goes.  As we watch Molly gracefully slow down I am reminded of Tinker in so many ways.  I try to think of the positives, but I see what is happening and I'm doing my best to treasure the little things like Moo's singing and snuggling and her chewing on bones and playing keep a way from Ori with the Kong.

Molly did lose her bottom left canine tooth this past week, root and all.  The vet has checked her mouth on several occasions (including the last visit we had) so I'm not sure how crazy to get by it.  I know the signs and we're just taking things 1 step at a time.  For now Molly is happy and pain free so we take each day for what it is.  Nick suggested adding more calcium to her diet though.  I think it's a good idea and we'll get it rolling just in case.

This has gotten long!  We had a beautiful time at the cabin and both girls are tired!  Ori was a great snuggler in the evenings under the blankets and she snored beautifully too!  Molly decided to snuggle up under some covers and chew on a bone last night : ) When we came home this evening, everyone got a bath and is shiny clean again.  All the blankets and towels are clean as well and as much as I hate to say it, it looks like we're ready for the week ahead of us : )

Fall is coming and change is in the air!

Over a month?

Where does the time go?  These pics are from my phone from the LAST trip to the cabin we took in JULY with Linds, Jason, Christina, Ben, & Nate.

They really do love each other!

sniffin' around...

my pretty girls 

Linds and I worked hard to get this shot!

Doing exactly what the cabin is for.... a whole lot of sleeping!

Ori Update 8-3-10

Well there's no doubt in my mind that O is a trooper!  While she knows how to make the best of a situation and get pity and extra TLC, she has bounced back today in a way I did not expect.  Now she is on a pain killer and I'm trying to keep her somewhat quiet, but she seems to be feeling good!  She hasn't even been dropping her shoulder when first getting up or moving around.  I'm wondering if this bump was bothering her before it became a bump?  I don't know, but she's moving smoothly and quickly already!

She stinks from when she made a mess of her crate right after surgery but I don't want to bathe her until the stitches are out....I guess a little sponge bath is in order later on... : )

Oh Miss O, we are so glad you're on the mend!

Ori Update 8-2-10

So I took Ori to the vet and ended up leaving her there for what turned into surgery.  There's a new vet at Valley and I really, really like her.  (we took her over there 'cause Dr. Haver is on vacation until the 9th and Valley knows Ori the best.)  She spent lots of time looking Ori over, learning about her and gathering the information she needed.  She was easy to speak with, she listened to me and spoke to me like I knew what I was doing with my little girl!  It was a pleasure working with her today.

O weighs 16.4lbs!  She was such a good girl even with the thermometer and then a needle into the lump.  She drew a sample and looked at it under a slide.  After discussing the options and the route she would take with Ori, I left O and waited hoping not to hear from them later in the afternoon.  No news = good news as we left it.  I would call later in the day to check in.

When I called later in the day, the bump wasn't a puss pocket like we were all hoping.  Which meant the lancing didn't work and O had to be put under for the surgery.   Because of the location she wasn't able to get clean margins (in order to get clean margins O's 2 middle toes would have been removed) but I'll wait for the test results before I worry too much.  Obviously we're really hoping it wasn't a mast cell but we'll see. We'll know what is was when the test results come back Thursday or Friday. 

I picked her up after work this evening and she was the most pathetic little thing.  I went in the back with the vet and O acted all excited 1 minute and then next she was sleeping again with her face pressed again the metal bars, snoring!  Everybody loves her over there and I know they took good care of her.  I picked up the tired little munchkin and she snubbed the vet when she went to say good bye to her!  We have some antibiotics, painkillers, 4 stitches in her paw and a potential cone head if need be : )

She traveled home like and champ and has been here resting the remainder of the evening.  She acted hungry when she came home so I did give her a few bites of cooked ground turkey.  She's kept it down and has been resting on my purple down comforter that Tink used and I use and now O is using when she's recovering.  She reminds me of Tink when she's not feeling well like this and I find myself struggling to call her by her name: Ori!  Hopefully, recovery will be quick and relatively pain free with positive test results later in the week!

Bed Time Routine

We do our best to maintain some semblance of routine around here.  Ori is doing better in so many regards that we can flex that routine around and she is fine (aka: no accidents!)  Evening routine though is pretty standard-- except for 2 nights ago!

Nick took the girls out for bed time potty then came it to give them their bed time snack.  At that point O boogies down the hall and usually jumps up into our bed as if she is staying the entire night.  Molly hangs around the kitchen in hopes of another turkey meatball.  2 nights ago Nick watched Ori run down the hall and take a right towards the crates instead of jumping up into bed.  When we get back to bed, Ori has stolen the crate that Molly usually climbs into to sleep.  Molly goes to go to sleep and is stopped in her tracks.  She looks up at Nick as if to say "hey dad, the brat's in my crate, help me out here!"  She then wandered around the room and kept returning to the crate O was laying in 3 or 4 times.  Ori definitely wasn't moving and Moo didn't know what to do as her routine was now messed up!  At 1 point it looked like Molly was ready to step over Ori into the crate but she decided against it.  Molly finally decided she was jumping up into our bed for some rest since O had stolen her sleeping quarters.  It was a Saturday night so she got to stay!  Moo snuggled up against me and was a good girl all night long!

Ori slept in the crate until 2am (with door hanging wide open!) when Nick got up to use the bathroom.  She jumped up into in his spot and surprised him upon his return : )  2  snuggly little doggies in bed helped me to be 1 happy little girl!

So yeah- for those who think crate training is mean and cruel- I beg you to argue with my 2 who will steal the others crate at night for sleep!  They practically kick me out of the house in the morning to get their kongs and they sleep peacefully all night long in them as needed!  The crates are definitely their dens and they don't mind them at all : )  Of course we always seem to get the best little dogs in the entire world, so maybe that's it!  Regardless, Nick and I had a fabulous laugh at the 2 of them Saturday evening!

Catch Up Time

So between grad school and life lately posting seems to have become more difficult!  I'm going to try and catch up a little bit in possibly a few posts. 

Since the day we came back from the Cabin (July 18th) Moo's been battling diarrhea.  I'll spare the gory details this time but it's included late night clean ups in both the crate and on the carpet : (  We finally think she's slowly on the mend.  Everything's been looking better for the past 2 days.  Turkey and Rice, flagyl, probiotics, slippery elm (between meals) and pumpkin seems to be beginning to do the trick.  She continues to drink plenty of water, her appetite is good, but she is as thin as a rail : (  With all the things that don't seem to agree with her I'm not sure how we're going to put any weight back on her, but we'll see.  1 step at a time.

O's been doing well over here minus a cyst or tumor or growth or something that I notice Saturday evening between the toes on her only front paw.  You've got to be kidding me, but no, it's true.  It seems to be growing too.  I have a vet appt this morning to check and see what it is and what we can do about it.  It's not like she has another front leg she can depend on!  I'm praying that it's "fixable" with no long term side effects.  I'll keep you posted!