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Monday, October 31, 2016

Squeezy cuddly photos

Charcoal, the huge, stayed with us a few weekends ago. I'm sharing these photos that I think capture his huge-osity.

They all hang out very nicely and make the cabin so cozy!


We also taught him to snuggle on the couch:


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Huge! He is huge!




And Starbuck taught him how to act boneless:




Booger! Iz cute!




I am a fan of compression-based affection:


It's the amazing two-headed dog!


The hole where Booger's tumor had burst kept getting bigger and got horribly infected, so the vet debulked the tumor again. Booger is an old pro at this by now. She can even jump on the couch in her cone:


Friday, October 21, 2016

Why hello, winter!

While running errands during lunchtime yesterday, I noticed that the Chena was freezing up, so I parked and got out of the car. It was making very dramatic noises as chunks of new ice moved and collided!


Freezeup selfie!


Frost on a fence pole!


Later that afternoon, it started to snow! Yaaaaaaay for snow! When I got home, as expected, the ladies were super duper happy and did a crazy dance of joy!






Roo kept saying, "Roooooooooooo!" So I tried to get her to "Roo" for the camera. But as soon as I stood still she took it as a sign to come to me for petting and loving.


"Roooo?" "Roooooo!"

Thursday, October 20, 2016

Sweet Elderly Ladies preparing to turn in for the night

Sweet elderly ladies. Whenever taking care of them makes me feel tired, sad, or frustrated, I remind myself that it's all a blessing. Not everyone is so lucky to have elderly dogs, or the ability to care for them.

Autumn lies on the bed until DL and I gently climb in on either side of her. We pat her goodnight, and then... she skedaddles to her own doggy bed!


Booger has never slept with me, but she still shoves her face into our faces in the mornings with a big ol' smile! :)


Starbuckerooooooo comes upstairs sometimes to visit, but only sleeps upstairs when Autumn has an episode of lameness or seizure-ish symptoms. Then she'll lie with us until Autumn is better, before returning to her beloved couch.

Ooooooooooh coooooooowwwwwwwwwcccchhhhh...

(And that is a stain from a flavored rawhide there, not a turd smear. Ugh. I need to get those "clear-basted" rawhides from now on.)

Monday, October 17, 2016

Climate change notes, and cancer care

1) Fairbanks used to be known for warm, dry summers and cold, deep, still winters with moderate amounts of dry snow.

Now we have rain all summer, milder temperatures in winter, very little snow, and much more wind.

I'm okay with most of the changes except for the lack of snow. I hate not having snow. :(

2) Booger can't have her tumor removed any more. The 5th time was the least successful. He never could, even prior times, get it all, but this time there was so much remaining it hardly seemed worth the pain to Booger. Also, the skin was getting so thin and stretched and laced with scar tissue after all of the surgeries, the vet said there was almost nothing left to close a further incision with. We did flirt with the idea of amputation. It's really rare to do on an old dog, but the vet said she'd likely recover well, and she was in such good shape otherwise it seemed a shame to let one leg end her life. We even planned to fit her with a doggy prosthetic, to minimize the impact damage that would be done to the opposite shoulder were she to spend life as a tripod. She's also a happy! Happy! Happy dog who would take it in stride. However, even as the conversation proceeded, tumors started growing higher up her leg, and the next time the vet saw her, he nixed the plan. He said, there wouldn't be enough stump left to fit a prosthetic well, and he wouldn't amputate above the elbow on an old lady, no matter how strong and bouncy said old lady is.

Thus, we are allowing Booger's tumors to take their course now.

The original one is growing huge, and multiplying. The skin is stretched and thin. Parts have gotten abraded during walks:




But fortunately, the abrasions do heal! It's not like the skin is completely dead and raw. We got Extra Large size dog booties and cut off the ends. Leg warmer, like the 80's! They work a charm!


For Booger's part, she is still bouncing around like a lamb. So she's going to keep on truckin'! She still enjoys long-ish (5 mile) walks, especially now that the weather is getting colder! :)

Friday, October 14, 2016

Shweetie

Autumn, my schweetie. At 17, she's showing signs of actual senility now, and it takes us an hour to walk two miles. But she can still jump on the couch, which is the most important thing!

Monday, October 10, 2016

Happy 93rd Birthday, Howard Luke!

Happy 93rd birthday, Howard Luke!

This invitation makes me giggle:


Howard greeting his friends:


Quite a crowd had gathered, though it was the middle of a weekday!


Tuesday, October 4, 2016

Cooler weather settling in

I finally learned where these giant leaves come from: Cottonwood saplings!


We are no longer getting our feet and paws wet!


Ice is nice, and it's futile to avoid rutile:


Booger still smiles and bounces around like a puppy, despite the ever-growing tumor that gives her a noticeable limp. She is definitely the queen of Positive Attitude:


Starbuck and DL:


Autumn can no longer join us on longer weekend walks. She walks just a short, relatively flat 2-miler with Booger, Starbuck, and me, then we drop her off at home and trade her for DL. I sincerely hope that neighbors see us both before and after the switcheroo and think that Autumn and DL are the same shape-shifting creature. :)

"HOOOOOOLD me!"


Hangin' with my WOLF!