Moving Up

My high school was a lovely old building that had at one time been a military academy. The campus was special with a creek running through it and covered bridges spanning the creek.


The auditorium was large with floor to ceiling windows covered with heavy velvet drapes. The floor slanted down toward a raised stage in the front. The seats were velveteen theater type seats arranged in a wide center section, smaller side sections and a balcony.

On the first day of school each year everyone came to the auditorium and the Principal gave the history of the school. Then the bell in the bell tower was rung. I believe it was the only time of the year the bell rang. We would all sing our school song, then start classes.

When we all gathered in the auditorium, seniors sat in the front of the center section, juniors were in the front of the side sections. Sophomores sat in the back of the center section behind the seniors and freshmen sat in the balcony.

There was a day toward the end of the school year that was called 'Moving Up Day'. Toward the end of classes, everyone would assemble in the auditorium. There were some short speeches and some recognition for seniors that had special accomplishments. Then the seniors would file onto the stage.

The juniors would then move into the seats in the front of the center section vacated by the seniors. The sophomores would move into the junior seats, the freshmen would come downstairs into the seats reserved for sophomores and the eighth graders who had been waiting outside in the hall would enter the balcony and take their seats.

Moving Up Day made everyone feel good.


Fudge

Last week we had a Moving Up Day of sorts here at home. The puppies always sleep in their crates at night, two to a crate. Lola and Bailey sleep together. Tess and Norma Jean are roommates and Noah and Sky until recently shared a crate at bedtime. About a month ago, we moved Sky into a private crate in the office. We did it more for noise control than any other reason. He and Noah together would get into barking matches while we tried to sleep.

The older dogs sleep in our bedroom. Samba sleeps either on the bed at my feet or if she gets too hot, she stretches out on the tile in the bathroom.

Samba

Morgan sometimes sleeps on the bed. She also has a wicker basket with a thick pillow. She likes to curl up in her basket, but I must warn everyone, never give a wicker basket to a dog with obsessive compulsive disorder. When she changes position during the night, she turns around about 200 times before settling down again. The wicker squeaks and groans with every turn. No one can sleep through that noise. Even Robert who sleeps through everything wakes up at the constant sound of that wicker squeaking. We usually end up calling her onto the bed with us.

Monty sometimes sleeps in the chair, but he usually stretches out on the floor at the foot of the bed on one of his dog beds. Tsar sleeps on the sofa, but he gets hot and sometimes prefers to sleep in the hall near the front door. The tile is much cooler for him.

Tsar

Fudge has his house. He runs inside when we first enter the room. Then he gets on the bed for awhile, but he winds up back in his house.

Fudge

Lucy had a little fabric basket with a cushion that she slept in for years. The main reason we didn't allow the pups in the bedroom was because Lucy was so fragile. She only weighed 11 pounds and she was unsteady on her feet because of arthritis. We were afraid that one of them would knock her over or step on her.

Last Tuesday we invited Sky to move up into the bedroom with us. He was happy to be with the big dogs, but he didn't know exactly where he belonged. He roamed around for a couple hours, then I got up and found him a dog blanket. I put it on the floor next to my side of the bed. He curled up on it and slept through the night.

In the morning he started dragging his blanket out of the room with him. I took it and tossed it on the floor. When Rob got up he picked up the blanket and not knowing whose it was, threw it on Lucy's little basket.

When we went to bed that night Sky saw his blanket on Lucy's bed, so he squeezed his 60 pound body into Lucy's basket designed for a twelve pound dog and slept there all night. He has slept in that basket all week. This weekend we will find Sky a basket that fits.

Hair and Teeth

Rob often teases me that we have a standing weekly appointment with our veterinarian. He's only half teasing, and he's only half wrong. Four weeks ago Sky had his dental appointment to fix the tooth he chipped.


Morgan

The following week Samba and Morgan each had a sore toe that turned out to be staph infections. Don't ask me how they managed to get the same infection in the same toe at the same time. They did it. A couple days later Fudge got an ear infection, but I treated it myself and I'm happy to report that both toes and the ear are all healed.

Last week we had the situation with Lucy. This week it was time for Sky to have a recheck on his tooth to make sure the repair worked. I found a tiny spot on one of Fudge's teeth, so he went, too. Sky's tooth looks perfect. The bonding agent is set and he's back to normal. We will always have to be careful what he chews on. He can't have hard toys or bones that might damage the enamel.


Sky

The spot on Fudge's tooth was a mystery. Dr B decided to poke at it with a probe. He warned that if it was bad Fudge would jump and be most unhappy. We held him tightly while the doctor probed and Fudge was a really good boy. He stood still and although he whimpered once, he didn't move. The spot is an enamel lesion, a little nick in the enamel. We have to keep it clean and it shouldn't give him any trouble.

We've been getting the dogs clipped short over the past few weeks. They're more comfortable in this hot weather and much easier to keep clean and smelling fresh. Morgan, Samba,Bailey, Fudge and Sky are done. This week it was the 'Silly Sisters' turn. Tess and Norma Jean went leaping and spinning into the grooming shop looking dirty and shaggy. They came out looking sleek and trim and smelling so much better.


Tess


Tess was a little embarrassed by her short haircut and stayed close to me instead of playing with the others. That didn't last long. After dinner and a short nap she was ready to play and run with the pack.

Norma Jean on the other hand wasted no time getting dirty. First she paddled in the water bowl, then ran around the yard to get her feet nice and muddy brown, then rolled in some weeds to get back that doggy odor. That's my girl !!


Norma Jean


Here they are waiting to go inside. Check out the dirty feet on Norma Jean.



Monty loves when the girls go to the groomer. They come back smelling nice and he follows them around and lays his head on their backs. He thinks they look great.


Monty

We have one more grooming appointment this week for Lola and Noah. Then we let the hair grow and start all over again. So far we have no vet appointments scheduled for this week. That doesn't necessarily mean we won't wind up with one. With a pack of eleven active dogs we never know what's coming next.

Becoming Seaworthy

The mail lady left this box on our porch. I knew what was inside, but our fuzzy friends were in for a surprise.



Our friend J has invited some of the Water Dogs to come out on the boat and go swimming with Splash and Gracie. Being water dogs, they should be able to swim, but they've never been around large bodies of water like a lake or an ocean, so I felt we needed to take proper precautions and follow good boat safety rules. I ordered a couple of life jackets.



These large orange items attracted a lot of attention.



What do you think they are?



Do you think they're big chew toys?



I asked for a volunteer to model. None came forward, so I drafted Fudge.



What a handsome boy.



Samba tried one on before her haircut.



Morgan had to model, too.



Samba had a very short haircut, much shorter than usual, due to her new habit of rolling in a patch of burrs.



We had to postpone our visit to the lake last week for several reasons. Samba and Morgan each had infections in their toes. Fudge had an ear infection and then Lucy got sick. We will reschedule soon. When we go we will be ready with our safety vests. Now, don't forget the towels.

For Lucy

This morning we said good-bye to Lucy.



She has been suffering with liver disease for several years and in February when her bloodwork came back we knew her time was limited.



Wednesday she rapidly started going downhill. She had diarrhea and refused to eat, even her favorites. On Thursday she stopped drinking.



She became weak and a bit disoriented. When we spoke to her, it didn't always register.



Yesterday her vet put her on IV fluids to re-hydrate her and attempted to interest her in food. If it worked, we would bring her home for the weekend to say our good-byes.



This morning she was still not eating or drinking and still had diarrhea. We made the awful decision that had to be made. Rob, Morgan and I drove to the clinic to be with her. Rob held her as Dr. Nicki administered the injection. She was gone quickly. Then Morgan got to see, sniff her and say good-bye.



She was a very little dog with a very big presence and the house seems much too quiet.

Memories

When my sweet Bentley died, I was overcome with sadness. A short time later I found this in an issue of Best Friends Magazine. It helped me then and I have sent copies of it to several friends who lost their dogs.

Again

by Grace Clement

A fat little puppy sits in a pen.

He's looking at you.
You're looking at him.
You reach down and pick him up.
He sure is a cute little pup.

He licks your face with his little pink tongue.
Oh what the heck, you'll take this one.
You have no idea, no way to know,
How deep this bond would someday grow.

A tired old dog lies on the floor.
His body is weak; he can't rise anymore.
You look in his eyes. There is absolute trust.
You pick up the phone and do what you must.

Then you lie down beside your tired old friend.
Think of the years and don't want it to end.
With tears in your eyes, you stroke his beautiful head.
You know that never again will he sleep by your bed.

For fourteen years, you have shared so much love.
It's now time to send him to Heaven above.
You lie there with your old dog on the floor,
and silently wait for the knock on the door.

The vet comes in, his face full of compassion.
He gives you a moment, he knows it's your last one.
It takes only a minute: it's a gentle painless way.
In a moment like this, there is nothing to say.

There is one more thing that can help you get by.
To ease the pain and help the tears dry.
You never want to go through such pain again.
But you find yourself looking for a new little friend.

A fat little puppy sits in a pen.
He's looking at you.
You're looking at him.
You remember the love; you remember the laughter.
And just for a moment the pain doesn't matter.
As you reach down into the pen,
There is no doubt it's worth doing again.
It will take some time, but now you know
How deep a love can someday grow.

Our Lucy is not doing well. Last week she was eating well and running around the yard. The night before last she developed diarrhea and stopped eating. She is still not eating, is unsteady on her feet and has a detached, haunted look about her eyes. We had been warned that this was the way her disease would progress. We've been expecting it, but that doesn't make it any easier. The next 24 hours will be critical.
It's a time for memories.

Too Darn Hot

It is way too hot!!!!! Today the temperature here was 97 degrees and the humidity was somewhere near 1800 %. I fed everyone and took them out at 5:45 AM and then I scooped the yard. I don't usually scoop that early, because I'm only partially awake and am not focusing well that early, but it was already in the eighties and I knew I wouldn't do it later.

I thought I might have to think up ways to keep my pack amused indoors, but they had their own solution. Tsar disappeared into the office which is located in the basement. We didn't see him again until dinner time. The pups settled into their crates for long naps with an occasional destruction of a stuffed toy thrown in.


Lucy stretched out on her big pillow located smack in the middle of the kitchen. No one can sneak a snack without her knowing.


Sky found a place near the air conditioning vent for his siesta.


Morgan slept near Rob's chair.


Monty found a spot where he could see the front door. Always on guard.


Samba settled down near Morgan. The two of them are very competitive.


Fudge chose the end of the sofa.


He decided an old guilt would be even more comfortable.

They all slept all day. I forced them all, except Tsar, outside around 11 AM and again around 2PM. I do mean forced. I had to drag Sky and Noah out the door. Everyone ran out for two seconds, then milled around the door. After a nice cool drink they all went back to sleep.

The pups enjoyed popsicles. I hold the stick and they lick or chomp the cold stuff. The big dogs had Frosty Paws. Wow, nothing is as good as ice cream on a hot day.

It never cooled off much. They ate light dinners and went out for a little while. At last call it was still in the mid to high eighties. Everyone really enjoyed their cold strawberry yogurt, then off to bed after a lazy day.

I did a little knitting. Here are some doggy duds I made earlier this year.

These are for a sporty weekend, hiking or attending a game.




These are for everyday activities such as shopping or strolling in the park.








My Mom had a jacket that looked just like this.



These are for parties.






Knitting winter things helps remind me that the heat won't last much longer and soon we can wear pretty knits. I found a tunic pattern for myself and can have fun selecting yarn for that. Playing with yarn and pretty fabrics makes me forget the heat and humidity.