Taking My Health Seriously

I am, really. Now that I've been going to this new Vet, I've been enjoying my walks twice a day and I'm letting the humans do my exercises a little more. I'm still resistant to having them do the flexion and extension exercises on my back legs, but today I let Aunt Pat do both of my forelegs! Getting plenty of rest is also essential to good health.

I keep hearing on television how diet is supposed to be a big factor in keeping yourself healthy. Sure, we get high quality dog food, but as I'm sure you know, I love to snack. I can't get enough deli turkey with my pills, popcorn, chips, you name it. But, I know I need to cut back on the junk food and eat smarter snacks. I've started pulling carrots out of the garden and eating them. I'll also take them from Aunt Pat when she picks them. I know she's picking them for me anyway.
Yesterday, I decided to try the spinach Aunt Pat has growing in containers on the patio. I helped her plant a fall crop in the garden the other day, and I've been sniffing the containers, so I figured I'd actually taste some. I found a nice looking stalk and pulled it out. I initially chewed it for a minute or two, and then spat it out. It was a little bitter, but I ate most of it. I didn't want to waste it. Once I thought about it, I wondered if it was the dirt that had been trapped on the leaves. So, today, I pulled another stalk of spinach out of the container. I thought if the leaves were smaller, it would be tender and sweet. No such luck. I didn't care for it. I'm not a fan of lettuce, either, so I've left that alone. For now, I'll stick with strawberry plants and carrots. Maybe once the fall crop comes up I'll try it again. We'll see.

More Fun At the Vet

Wow, I'm really beginning to like going to the Vet. I had another appointment with the new Vet yesterday, and it was just as much fun as the last time. I didn't get as many cookies this time, but that's okay. The laser treatment was wonderful, and I did pretty well in the underwater treadmill. I had a little difficulty getting into the treadmill, but I was following the cookie hand, not so much the person holding the cookie. It's still a little disconcerting to have the floor start to walk when I'm not, but I'm a fast learner. I especially enjoyed the whirlpool. I was a little wobbly when I got out, but that's normal. They gave Aunt Pat a notebook with progress notes from our day, and Daddy and Aunt Pat are expected to write notes about my activity and my progress. There's a section with exercises for me to do at home. I love the cookie stretches, but I don't always let the humans do the limb stretches on my rear legs.


I think Chloe is getting a little jealous, though. She's barked and jumped when Aunt Pat put me on the leash, and I thought we'd have to take her with us when we went. Maybe Aunt Pat could take Chloe for a drive somewhere this week. Heck, maybe she could take us both for a ride this week. Maybe she could take us to...the pet store, or out for lunch, or maybe even dinner! We can eat cheap. A simple hamburger, maybe. We're not fussy. We've been good, and we've been very helpful lately. Today we helped her plant our fall crop of spinach. I stood over, and sometimes under her, to make sure the rows were straight. With her balance problems, sometimes Aunt Pat has trouble telling if something is straight. Chloe made a pass afterwards to make sure all the seeds were covered, and to double check the rows.

Busy, Busy

There's a lot of work to be done around the house! The weather's been rather changeable lately, so the humans haven't been able to do as much yard work as they'd like. Plus, the weather changes trigger Aunt Pat's migraines, so she hasn't felt well. So, Chloe and I decided that we needed to pitch in and help.

Chloe heard Aunt Pat talk about needing to transplant some flowers and to dig up some bulbs to move them to the front yard. So, she sniffed around the garden, and dug a few holes so all Aunt Pat had to do was reach in and pull the bulbs out. Unfortunately, Chloe was only right about one spot. Chloe, however, was so insistent, that she dug one of the holes again after Aunt Pat filled it back in. Aunt Pat has left it alone, for now, but there were no bulbs in it. If you ask me, Chloe should have concentrated on digging out the weeds.

I've been working both inside and outside. Aunt Pat and Daddy both went out yesterday, and I saw the pile of papers waiting by the paper shredder. Who needs a shredder when you've got me? Aunt Pat thinks it was me, the chew marks are bigger than Chloe, and she usually goes for Daddy's garbage when both of the humans are out.

Outside, I've taught myself how to pick carrots! I watched Aunt Pat pull a few out of the container she has some in, so I figured she must have stopped because she got dizzy or something. The carrots looked nice and orange, and were a perfect size. I should know, I sniffed and ate one she had in her hand. I thought she wanted to pick more, so I pulled one out. This only works when the ground is wet, though. When I've pulled at the carrot tops when the ground is dry, I end up with a mouthful of carrot tops. Here I'm inspecting some vintage handkerchiefs and cloth napkins Aunt Pat washed and laid in the sun to dry. Some of them got clean, but Aunt Pat agrees with me that some will need to be re-soaked.

I Have a Face That Melts Your Heart

I'm not making that up, or tooting my own horn. Although, I do have that certain...something about me. Daddy took me to the Vet yesterday and one of the Veterinary Assistants said that about me. She didn't say it just so I would behave. They're very kind and caring at our new Vet.
They even sent a sympathy card after they found out Katie died.

Before I go any further, no, we haven't changed Vets. I still see our regular Vet from time to time, and I love everyone there too. However, this Vet specializes in Rehabilitation, Sports Medicine, Acupuncture and Chiropractic. I have arthritis in my hips and knees and I've been limping more of late. Daddy and Aunt Pat want to see if they can relieve some of the pain I'm in. Last month, Aunt Pat took me out there for an evaluation. Boy, they gave me a very thorough examination, and lots of yummy cookies. They said they thought they could help me, and gave us some exercises to do. They're called "cookie stretches" and Aunt Pat and I do them twice a day. Heck, anything with the word "cookie" in it has to be good, right? They gave me a laser treatment which felt so good I fell asleep on the way home. We had to wait to go back, though, because of Katie's illness.

Yesterday was our first treatment day. Daddy took the day off so he could see the place. They started off taking more video of my walking-I do hope they got my good side! Plus, they took some measurements. One of the Veterinary Assistants went with me into a special tub with a treadmill in it. When they started to fill it up with water, I thought it was drinkies all around! After a lick or two, I figured out it wasn't for drinking, especially since it came up to my belly. I had a nice little walk on the treadmill, and then they put me in the whirlpool. That was wonderful. After that, I had a laser treatment.

They showed Daddy some exercises to do at home. The humans need to gently flex and stretch my limbs once a day. I was pretty pooped when we were finished. I fell asleep on the ride home! I was pretty relaxed and happy the rest of the evening. I was a bit stiff and sore today. I snapped at Chloe a couple of times.


Tony's mom brought him over to play for a while, and I even felt like playing briefly. His mom said that he's missed Chloe. Chloe's missed him too. Whenever she sees him outside walking, she'll whine and bark. They had fun running around the back yard.

We Had a Sleepover!!

Our neighbor Tony's people went away for an overnight trip yesterday and they asked Aunt Pat and Daddy to watch him. They went over yesterday afternoon to let him out to do potties, and when Daddy closed their kitchen door so the bugs wouldn't get in, it locked! They didn't have a key, so they couldn't get back inside! Daddy and Aunt Pat searched for an extra key but didn't find one, and the other neighbors didn't have one, so they brought Tony home with them!

Tony is such a nice young man. He's very social, and he and Chloe really hit it off. They had so much fun running around both the yard and the house at full tilt, sniffing each other and wrestling. The only time they stopped was when they had to catch their breath.

Before all the hi jinks started, I made sure I showed him the good spots in the yard. Someone here has to have manners, sheesh! All Chloe wanted to do was play, play, play! Her intentions were sweet, but one must be sure our guest has been properly greeted and knows where to go and what to do. We all wanted him to feel at ease so he wouldn't get homesick.

I'm happy to report that Tony seemed to have a good time! Last night, though, Chloe got upset because she couldn't sleep in Daddy's room with Tony and Daddy. I know she's been sleeping with Daddy more regularly since Katie died, but there was no way that we could have a co-ed slumber party. What would the neighbors think! Plus, I think Tony wanted some guy time alone with Daddy. Playing with us girls is nice, but guys need to be guys.

From Beans to Bugs

Chloe isn't the only dog around here who is concerned with our health and well-being. Sure, she does her perimeter checks a few times a day, and at night, will go outside right after she and the humans have gone to bed just to be certain danger isn't lurking. I'm just as concerned as she is, I'm not as obvious about it as Chloe, and she tends to play a little more than necessary.

There are just some things in the environment that aren't meant to be played with. Take bugs for example, especially bees. The other day Daddy had her in the back yard, when he noticed her nosing around the base of one of our evergreens. He took a closer look, she saw Chloe pushing a yellow jacket. I don't know if she was trying to save it, or play with it. Daddy didn't care to find out, either. He called for Chloe to get away from it. Thankfully, Chloe didn't get stung. Inside the house, Aunt Pat and I have seen her play with flies and spiders until Aunt Pat steps in to kill them, or clean them up once Chloe's done with them.

Mosquitoes are my specialty. They're very pesky and they carry diseases, like heartworm, malaria, and West Nile virus. We've had a lot more of them this year with all the rain, and I've had enough. I don't mess around. When I see one of the little buggers around me, I'll eat it. that's right. I'm just as fast with my mouth as President Obama is with his fly-killing hand. Plus, I'm much cuter than he is.

Walkies Can Be Hazardous To Your Health

Well, not our health so much, since we're on leashes. The leashes keep us close to our humans and lets them move us along if the humans don't want us to dawdle. I think they're afraid that if we sniff too much in one spot, we're going to use it for potties. Not always. Sometimes a girl can't help stopping for a good sniff to see who's left us pee-mail. We can't use computers, so we don't use e-mail, Facebook or Twitter. Dogster is online, but that's a human site masquerading as a dog site. We don't stop Aunt Pat from checking her email...well, sometimes we delay her because we know she'll have more fun getting us a biskee, giving us a tummy rub or taking us outside. Anyway, light poles, street signs and spots in yards are our social networking sites.

Being on leash can be a real drag...or a yank, for our humans that is. Chloe and I get so excited to be out in the sunshine and fresh air, we tend to walk a little quickly. Sometimes too quickly and we'll pull Aunt Pat along. She keeps us under control, but we set a brisk pace. Earlier this week, we were at the end of the street where there is a street sign and a light post. Both of those areas are hotbeds of canine activity and we can get pretty excited when there's a lot of new pee-mails to sniff, er read. Chloe and I had each sniffed around the pole and headed for the street sign. While we walk, Chloe stays on Aunt Pat's left side and I'm on the right. This was no different, except we overshot the sign a little and Aunt Pat walked right into it! Don't worry, she didn't hit it that hard. Aunt Pat wasn't hurt. She was happy none of the neighbors were outside at the time, though. All this and biskees too!

I Got Chips Yesterday!

Oops, Aunt Pat just told me I had a microchip placed yesterday. It's so I can be returned to Daddy and Aunt Pat in case something happens and I get separated from them. I have slipped out of my collar a couple of times, once in the Vet's office with Aunt Pat, and once with Daddy on a walk. I usually stay right by them, but who knows, I may see something I want to chase after and I might not be able to find my way home right away. That's a very scary thought, so I'm glad I have this. But, I thought I was getting real chips! I thought those biskees I got during my visit to the Vet tasted familiar. I was told they were chips. Darn! Guess I'll have to beg Daddy for some the next time he eats them. Aunt Pat put a cool new yellow tag on my collar.

Chloe was a little upset that she didn't get to go with us. She already has a microchip. She was also upset that the neighbors didn't take her golfing with them. Aunt Pat heard Chloe barking in the living room and when she got out there, the only thing Aunt Pat saw was a set of golf clubs in the neighbors driveway. Aunt Pat thinks Chloe was barking at the people who had been around the car and had probably gone into the garage. I'm not so sure about that. Daddy and Aunt Pat like baseball and football, and Aunt Pat will watch a hockey game once in a while, but they aren't golf fans. It's not far-fetched to think Chloe isn't a golf fan either. She's a very discerning canine.