Easy ears

The ear meds at home were easy-peasy. I think her struggle was more the strangers at the vet than issues with ear discomfort, so, yay for us. I can also degrease her now.

Not sure why she has boxer face there. Not that there's anything wrong with that. On a boxer.

Better bendy collie face!

And Kate continues to change her sleeping spot. Freaking me out a little. Kate doesn't change. Not her thing. Makes me wonder if she's OK. Hearing things? Uncomfortable? Just aging dog weirdness? She seems OK otherwise. It's just odd.

Kate on a bench 'cause that's what she does.

Also, if you have some spare water we could sure use it!

Moving on up

Kate has always been somewhat of a shadow to Bella. She has really thought of Bella as the bee’s knees since day one. As they age, though? Clingy! 

Background Kate…  

Has turned into Growth Kate  

New rule: must be touching Bella while bully sticking! Check! 

And, the dog who is so into her routines has decided that she kind of likes sleeping on Bella’s bed now, too. I am not sure why Kate has decided now is the time to end her 8.5 year rut. It’s cute, but also a bit troublesome. Kate’s Rainman routine has made it easy to control the spay incontinence. She hasn’t had an accident in ages and is well controlled by meds, but it does also put my anal retentive mind at ease knowing she is always sleeping on her pee-padded bed. Now? 

 The Great Wanderer. 

Bella does not find it as amusing  

Really just going to let her lie right there?  

She stayed right there all night. She will occasionally come up for a cuddle or a panic if she hears something weird, but only lasts about ten minutes before deciding she needs to get back to her spot. She just hunkered right on down. All please with herself, too. I guess she likes the view.

Best. Face. Ever.

Will they be like this from now on?

Ugh. Bella has never been a fan of the vet. The dog who will willingly make out with everyone she meets has been suspicious of lab-coated folks since she was a baby. This time, though? Oh man. This was the first time she has been back since her lump removal surgery and it was beyond just I-don't-want-to-be-here. Just full-blown panic. Normally, she has ants in her pants and clearly would rather be doing something else, but can be talked into standing still long enough with food. This time she wasn't having any of it. Took three of us to hold her long enough to get an ear swab. It was like trying to wrangle a buffalo.

She will be 11 in February and in those almost 11 years I have never had to clean her ears or have her anal glands done and now we had to do both. Heiny glands were "really full" and she has a bit of a yeast infection going on in her right ear. Her new lump is just another fatty one, so yay for that.

The tech was talking to me about her ear drops. Six drops in each ear? She's going to hate me for the next ten days. When they brought her out she looked like her head had been dunked in oil. They probably went through a whole bottle trying to get six drops to actually go in her ear. I'm glad I didn't waste time bathing her last week. She is bringing the Jheri curl back! I picture the dogs beds in the house having little grease spots like the couches in Coming To America.

Eleven years and no dental yet, though. The whites are still pearly!

Change and the wrong kind of growth

So much going on. I know we are only a week in, but so far 2014 is already kicking 2013's ass. As a general rule, I try to avoid career-limiting behavior like talking about my job on the interwebs, so I will just say, wow and yay! I am not normally a fan of change. I may have mentioned that. That is one of the things that Kate and I have in common, we are both prone to bouts of "Uh-oh, fifteen minutes to Wapner!" So the fact that sooooo much is going on and I don't have hives must mean we are in a "meant to happen" phase. I am very big on gut feelings. Whenever I have a big decision to make I do a ton of research, I make lists, I go over pros and cons, etc. But, in the end, it's really about a gut feeling. I know I have put the time and thought in so if I still feel weird about it I figure that's just some clue that it's not the right time, place, situation, whatever. When I don't feel weird about something it is just plain awesome! Right now, there is so much going on and I just feel calm, settled. It's odd to not be worried about anything. I hope it lasts for a bit.

Bella is off to the vet this afternoon for the six-month old lady check. She has one new lump to have looked at and has been really itchy. I am thinking that it is environmental. I have been having unusual sinus stuff going on, too. Lack of rain, me thinks. We have been so dry. The whole state is just...dusty.

I am not looking forward to seeing her, weight, though. They are both so fat right now. Kate was the heaviest she has ever been. Which is weird for a dog that has historically been hard to keep weight on. Bella is normally 33-34, I would not be shocked if she is 37. I guess that is part of getting old, too, yeah? It started back in March when they got sick while being boarded. I put them on kelp to help them get some weight back on and I guess I kept them on it too long. I have been unable to get them back down again. They are both eating less than a cup a day. Do we have to start counting kibbles?

Perhaps. 

Snow shoes

The longest hair on her body.

Makes no sense, yes? Why would her foot hair be of a braid-able length? Sort of a waste in CA. 

And, no, I will not trim it. :)

She can't wait for me to go back to work, either

Two more days, Kate, two more days.

A great start

We went up to Sunol Regional Wilderness for the usual New Year’s Day trek.

I really wish the rest of the bay area would get on board with the East Bay parks leash rules. Off leash,  if under control, in all undeveloped areas. Unless otherwise posted, of course - wetlands, bird breeding grounds, etc. We always meet such well behaved dogs. In such a large area that also has cattle, coyotes, squirrels, etc., you do need to actually, you know, train your dog or spend many hours chasing it. Also, because of the size of the parks, there is no social or spacial pressure. No forced interaction. Everybody just keeps moving. I think it is very sad that the simple act of being off leash is a novelty to so many dogs. Freedom should be the rule, not the exception.

People, cows, and dogs. And no one died.

It was just an amazing day. So much clearer over there than on the bay side. Low-60’s had everyone comfortable. Warm enough that no jackets required and cool enough that no miserable dogs.  

Except, perhaps when asked to pose.  

Or leave the cow shit alone  

And, hey, that goes for coyote shit, too.  

How about we just take all shit off the menu?  

I guess their priorities change as they age, too.

I hope you all enjoyed your holidays.
Let's hope this year is a bit smoother than the last one!

More vacation

Greetings from high atop the lovely Fremont!  

Wish you were here!  

Possibly to protect us!  

‘Cause ... you know ... East Bay! 

Bella’s Raider Nation look  

And a kinglet, just because it was the only so-so bird pic of the whole morning.

Those little faces

Gah! Could you not just bite that little face right off?  

Sometime I can’t believe how much I lucked out.

I think we lucked out in the coat department, too. It just keeps getting crazier and crazier. I suspect if she were rough coated she would have that woolly mammoth hanging down to her knees thing going on by now.  

Still short, just….backwards. Less aerodynamic .  

And then the other face. She kills me when she tries to act like a collie.

We know better, don’t we?  

We are not even half way through vacay and I am already over it. I HATE time off to just stay home. That whole “stay-cation” thing is just dumb. Most folks would be thrilled to have 12 days off. Not me. Not without a plan. I don’t travel over the holidays because a) I don’t like boarding the dogs when they are crazy-busy over there and b) because they are crazy-busy you need to make reservation in, like, July. My place of employment can never seem to decide sooner than 2 days before what actual days we will have off. Knowing six months ahead is just not going to happen.

 So, I polished off all my Dexter episodes, been running every day, taking the East Bay Parks tour since dogs are not allowed off leash in the commie South Bay in which we live, and trying not to eat 5000 calories a day out of boredom. 

This is from my run this morning. This is the main marsh at Coyote Hills RP. Marsh. Yes, as in should be filled with water and migrating birds.

 Not a damn drop!  

Holy moly, are we dry. Driest year on record, I think. 

Even though we are dry, it is still grazing time in the parks. Not much for the cattle to eat, but apparently enough for them to….you know…  

Second only to sheep poop!

Blend

 

It's about baby making time for these little guys. Lots of yelling and showing off and sparing.

 

5 grams of tough guy.

 

 

 Anna's Hummingbird - backyard

 

 

You're in my sun

 

With age comes the desire to bask. I am not quite there yet. She is, though.

 

 

Sun on all sides 

 

Content to watch the kids at the park. From a distance, of course.

 

 

Still, there are some things that one cannot resist

 

 



Winter is here

 

And, yes, I know we live in California. And, yes, I know we have no right to complain about “cold.” 

27°F, though? That’s a complain-able temp even for here. Of course, that’s only at 6 AM. Sure. It’ll be 50-something soon enough. I actually like it like that. Cold enough in the morning that the natives say inside and we have the park to ourselves. Warm enough during the day to not be miserable. And, no snow. At least not the involuntary kind. I can drive to it soon enough if the mood strikes. It rarely does. Thinking about it, I haven’t seen snow in years. As someone who grew up in IL and spent 10 years in NH, that’s weird. Maybe a Tahoe run this winter. 

Kate should be used to it. Maybe been near the bay too long? She’s a mountain girl. Well, foothills anyway. She came from Murphys, CA. You know Murphys? On the way to Stanislaus National Forest, just beyond Glory Hole Recreation Area. 

Damn, that makes me laugh every time I see it. 

One would think a place called Glory Hole Recreation Area would be *IN* the bay area, yes? 

Poor Kate. 

The desert dog likes it even less. During sleepy time, anyway. Loves to be HOT at night now. 

 

The more blankets the better. I concur. 

She could stop aging any time now. That would be good. Fingers crossed that we have years left together, but she is starting to show that she is not a young-un’ anymore. I love it and hate it at the same time. Nothing beats an old dog. They’re just so…comfortable. However, being reminded that this will not be here forever totally sucks…

 

I think Kate will live for another ten years.

Just to be annoying.

Lost in the bokeh

Who gets bored tugging?

This one, apparently. She looks like she’d rather be at the dentist.

 

 

Not this one, though

 

 

Always have time for the tugging

 

 

I found the first appearance of this particular disc in the pic archives. It was July 2004. It’s almost the same age as Bella. Go Ruff Wear! Other than needing a shower it is in great shape. Nary a stitch out of place. Even with nine years of being smashed into the ground because someone has decided the correct way to pick up a disc is in the middle. Middle. She will catch it normally, put it down, then mush it into the ground while trying to pick it up in the center. Frisbee taco.

 

 

That could be why this happens?

 

 

I don’t know how she walks in a straight line.