Rantings of a Creole Princess

Winter. Dogs. Bacteria. Kidney Failure. No.

Wednesday afternoon Jaru was laying on the sofa sleeping.  He got up and immediately had an accident on the floor without warning.  Dude has been house trained since he was 3 months old.  

Upon further inspection, there was blood in his urine.  Panicked, I called his doctor and they told me to bring him in with a urine sample.  When we got there, they tested his urine and found a high amount of two types of bacteria.  He was well on his way to kidney failure.  Turns out, the bacteria was on his feet, between his toes.  As far was we can figure...it's because of how wet this winter has been.  That, coupled with the salt the people our HOA hires uses, ended up being a very bad combination.  We all know Jaru is OCD so he's cleaning his feet constantly by licking them.  Well...dude was ingesting bad bacteria and it was feeling mighty warm and comfy and multiplying big time.

So...he's on antibiotics and we have to wipe his feet super well with baby wipes whenever he comes inside from a walk.  First thing in the morning and before he goes to bed at night, we have to wipe his feet with these:  Mal-A-Ket Medicated Wipes

Oh...and he's on pain meds for his hips.  *sigh*

He's feeling much better but still in a bit of pain.  He's sleeping an awful lot but he's stopped drinking enormous amounts of water.  In two weeks his urine has to be checked again to see if the bad bacteria is still there.  

To those of you with doggies...if the winter has been especially wet by you and there is a lot of salt on the ground to melt snow that isn't pet friendly...please pay attention to if your dog is drinking an excessive amount of water and needs to go out more frequently.  Consider using baby wipes to wipe your doggy's feet.  Prior to this we always used a dry towel.  

I can't imagine a scenario where he'd gone into kidney failure.  I am not equipped for what that would have meant.

This winter has been different.  

*sigh*

Sam's Yams Big Boyz Sweet Potato Dog Treats

Looking for a stocking stuffer for your pooch?  Check out Jaru's new FAVORITE snack!  Sam's Yams Big Boyz Sweet Potato Dog Treats, 1-Pound Bag

Little Woman, Big Dog

I posted this picture last night on FB and a friend wrote, "Little woman, big dog."  LOL!  That cracked me up because it could totally be the title to the story of my life.

I'm looking at this big dog now while he's sprawled out on his bad snoring, smelling all tea tree oil good from his grooming on Saturday and I'm worried about him on a long road trip.  We decided to rent a vehicle to take the drive so he'll have enough room to spread out because yall know he has issues.  My truck is a mid-size SUV and The Robinator drives a big pickup truck without a cover on the bed so we decided to rent a big SUV so this beast is comfortable.  

I swear...the things we do for our pets.

We have a prescription for Dramamine in the event he starts having issues on the ride but hope to not have to use any.  The doctor said if we wanted to...we could give him 1 mg per pound of Benadryl and that would make him kinda sleepy for the ride.

Hmmmmmmmmm...

We'll see.

Have YOU ever taken a road trip with a dog?  Any tips?

Dear Pet Owners:

Do you talk to your pets?  Not like giving them commands and whatnot...but talk to them.  

(I'm watching Frasier and he just told Eddie all his problems.  Eddie hid his head between the sofa pillows.  ROFL!)

Sleep Interrupted

Around 4:00am this morning we all jumped up to the sound of a loud thump.

We turned on lights and Scooby Doo Jaru was trying to detangle himself from the damn curtains which USED TO hang around the window behind him.

Seriously.

Turns out dude got into his sleep so tough...he got wrapped up somehow in the curtains.  

#Undone

Our sweet girl's life and story of survival touched so many. Cards, books and flowers have been arriving since she left us. We just opened a handwritten card from her doctor which included Lucy's paw print.

Thank you all for your kind words, texts, calls, messages, etc.  Sorry I've been missing in action.  I'll be back directly.  Just had to step over a few shards lightly.

Diamond Sky Lucy Has Left Us

The Robinator and I took Lucy to the doctor today and returned home...without her.

Sometimes...

...Jaru just looks so peaceful sleeping in my spot on the sofa that I consider not making him move.

The Queen Bee

How's Lucy doing is a question I get via email, text, private message and phone calls. People just think about her out the blue and ask how she is doing and send well wishes. 

Well...this is what she is doing currently. Posted up outside chilling. She's not getting better but we like to think her health is declining far less than the doctors predicted because we are taking extra awesome care of her. She's still a pain in the tookus but that's always been her. LOL! She is who she is.

And she sends her love.

Tagg Pet Tracker

Obviously I don't love my dogs enough to keep track of how much exercise they are getting adn to know their whereabouts at all times.  o_0  Would YOU buy this and pay the monthly monitoring fee?

Tagg Pet Tracker

Dear Brian Patrick Flynn:

Way to make my dogs hate me.

Caring for an Elderly Handicapped Dog...

...is not for the faint at heart nor the fickle.

This is how Lucy has to be now. Constantly in a diaper duct-taped to her. Seriously...duct-taped. She has no control at all over her bowels and it's wearing us thin. She can't help it but honestly...that's the last thing you're thinking about when you're cleaning up shit in your home.

SERIOUSLY.

You have to TRULY love an elderly, handicapped dog.

What to do for a sick dog?

We have two sick doggies at 13700.  They both have upset tummies and we don't know what's wrong.  We have plans to call the manufacturer of their food tomorrow and their doctor just in case their upset tummies haven't subsided.  

I've replaced their water with lemon-lime Gatorade and made a big batch of chicken and white rice.  I baked 4 chicken breasts in the oven at 350 degrees for an hour and cooked 4 cups of white rice.  

I diced the chicken up and added it to the white rice with a bit organic chicken broth mixing well.

I fed them the same amount as their regular food and will keep feeding them this until their feces is more solid.  Then I'll mix half of this with half of their food until it's all gone.

These dogs need jobs.

What do you feed your dog when they are sick?

 

Sharing is Caring

She kicked him off immediately after this picture.    Lucy = Honey Badger

Scandal: Who is the MOLE?????

I'm sitting here after taking my second shower of the morning.  I didn't plan on taking two showers mind you...but it became necessary.

*sigh*

Lucy Report

It's LUCY's Big Day!!!!!

Portrait of Lucy

We're so hoping our girl is a candidate for the stem cell therapy!  Thursday can't come sooner!

Stem Cell Therapy for Dogs!

The Robinator and the doggies were outside yesterday chilling when I got a text message from onefromphilly.

"See if World News Tonight applies to Lucy.  ABC."

We went inside and turned on the television and watched the following segment:

New Stem Cell Treatment Heals Arthritic Dogs

Then we asked Mr. Google about it and I burst into tears when I saw these videos:

Doggie before treatment:  https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=489106004472698&set=vb.100001199082039&type=2&theater 

30 days after treatment:  https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=489107264472572&set=vb.100001199082039&type=2&theater

NOW RUNNING!  https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=500209670037132&set=vb.100001443117501&type=2&theater

We used the vet locator on this site to find a clinic which does the therapy in our area:  http://www.medivet-america.com/vetlocator.html

We called the clinic in Purcellville, VA immediately and left a message because it was after hours.  This morning...I was so excited, I called them again first thing and got to speak directly with Dr. Tommy L. Walker, DVM, MS.

Dr. Walker did as all doctors do and made no promises.  He told me to get her most recent x-rays and blood work together and bring her in.  There will be a determination of whether or not she is a candidate once he's examined her.

Her appointment is Thursday, April 18th.  We will be there early.  

Please God...let this work out for her.  Please.

 

Lucy-fur...*sigh*

 

We're starting to have "the conversation" about Lucy.

She can't do much now at all.  We have to carry her up and down the stairs and in and out the house to use the bathroom.  She no longer gets walks.  She's gaining weight because she gets no exercise.

She sleeps all day and pretty much stays in one spot until she decides she wants water and drags herself over to her water bowl.  When it's time to take her to bed...waking her up is a mess.  *sigh*

When she sits up, however, she's alert.  She seems to understand everything.  She barks and growls at noises outside even though she doesn't get up from where she is.  Watching her TRY to walk is heartbreaking.

She's on good drugs so we're certain she's not in pain.  She gets and gives hugs daily still.

Except for no use of her back legs...she's perfectly fine.

But we have to start thinking about her mental state and what this is doing to her.  Her quality of life has certainly diminished even as we are doing all we can to make her comfortable and happy.

I'm not ready to seriously think about things changing but Robby says we have to think about it because we love her.

What do YOU think?

Why does he need ALL.THOSE.BONES?????????

Da hell?

At 3:16am Lucy jumped from her bed to Jaru's bed.  He yelped and jumped up so I jumped up and turned on the light.

Lucy was turning herself around and around in his bed and he was looking at her like...DUDE...WTF?

Robby jumped up and was all confused like...HUH?  HUH?

Then Lucy got comfortable in Jaru's bed and laid down like she was about to go back to sleep.

I'm looking from her to him and back again and then Robby tells Jaru to get in her bed.

Jaru looks at him and then me...then back to Lucy and goes over to get in her bed.

But you can tell he's pissed.

Hell...I get it.  I was pissed too.

Everybody got up mad this morning except her.

She's content.

SIP:  DEBIL DOG.

Any of your dogs get up in the middle of the night doing something crazy?

Orthopedic Pet Bed

Somebody got a new orthopedic bed for downstairs because she can no longer get on the sofa without help so when we're not home...she's uncomfy on the floor.

Do YOUR doggies have more than one bed?

 

Refinishing a Leather Sofa

A few months ago Jaru started this weird scratching crap.  Like...he would start and couldn't stop.  No matter where he was or what he was doing.

Even if he was sleeping.

On the leather sofa.

One morning we came down and noticed the first hole in the damn sofa seat cushion.  Soon there were three holes and then...as many as five on two cushions.

Damn sofa looked like it was on a rickety porch down in Memphis somewhere hustling and flowing.

No biggie since I've been SLOWLY looking for a new one right?

WRONG.

Damn dog hasn't stopped scratching so I spend a crap load of money on a NEW Thomasville reclining leather sofa and let him scratch that one up too?

Um...yeah...no.

So what to do?

I scoured the internet for solutions and seriously...nothing seemed like it was going to be a good enough solution so I went to ABBA Upholstery in Gaithersburg.  They sold me a leather hide as close to the color of the leather on the sofa as possible seeing as though it's a 10-year old sofa.  Then they took my old cushion covers and remade the covers down to the velcro on the back of them.  SO.AWESOME!!!!!!!!!

Initially they said it would take 2 weeks but 2 weeks was Friday and I didn't get them until today.  We've been living on the sofa using a blanket for all this time and BAAAAAAAABY!  We were soooooooooooo happy today when we put them on!  GO.US!

So yeah...moral of the story is...there probably isn't a refinishing product that you'll like either if you're anything like me.  The new cushion covers ended up costing us $425 but that's way cheaper than how much it would cost to replace the entire damn sofa running the risk of the damn dog scratching another hole in a BRAND.NEW.SOFA.  

I'm good with the slight discoloration until his azz stops scratching or until we just wear out the new pebbled cushions and make it all smooth and worn.  LOL!  $425 WELL spent in my opinion!  GO ME!  GO US!  13700 ROCKS!

What would YOU have done? 

Now come on now...

Elderly Dog Hardwood Floors

Problem:  Lucy is breaking our hearts.  She can't walk on the hardwood floors anymore.  We bought shoes, which she hates, so we tried to figure out something else.

Solution:  A bunch of runners all over the areas she uses regularly.  MAJOR eyesore but hey...it's Lucy-fer.  We gotta do what we gotta do.

When I put the first one down, she walk on it, got to the end of it and flopped down as if to say...Okay...now we're gettin somewhere!  Put the other ones down STAT!  PLEASE AND THANK YOU!

So we did as we were told.

I tried to take a picture of her walking down them but she wasn't in the mood.  JARU on the other hand...

His azz is prancing like Naomi 'round here.

We put runners all the way to the front steps and in the family room from the area rug to her bowl and from the area rug to Jaru's bowl cuz she drinks Jaru's water and always has.  We don't know what that's about and we smartly decided to not inquire about it either.  LOL!

Long story short...the next time you visit 13700...don't be side eyeing all the rugs.  Just know it's for Lucy-fer.

LOL!

Caring for an Elderly Dog - Lucy the Boxer

Lucy is probably around 13 years old.  When we adopted her 8 years ago...they speculated she was around 5 years old.  As yall know...she had been very abused with significant damage to her back legs and her spine.

But Lucy is strong...like me.

Her age is showing big time and she moves slower, barks more cuz she can't hear and gets startled when she does hear something, sees less cuz her eyes are all cloudy, runs less because she seriously can't move much on the hardwood floors.

One day last week she was slowly making her way up the stairs and we heard her tumble.  We rushed to check on her but she got up...shook it off and kept it moving.

Scared the shit outta us.

We got her some socks and boots by Ruffwear Grip Trex Boots for Dogs and they helped her out by keeping her from sliding but they started rubbing on her little legs too much and irritating her.  She actually walked up to me while wearing them and held up her paw whimpering so I took them off her.

Over the holiday weekend...she's been getting worse.  Eating less, moving less...just...not really herself so I called her doctors this morning and took her on in.  I put her boots only on her back paws and picked her up and put her in the truck driving slowly.

Our vets are pretty awesome and the tech took one look at Lucy and put a mat in her exam room so she wouldn't slip.

And then the exam began.

They flipped her on her right side to check her left legs and she was fine.  When they flipped her on her left side to check her right legs however?  My baby girl was in obvious pain once the doctor manipulated her legs to mimic motion.

Then they checked her teeth and she has a pretty bad abscess on a back tooth that you can't see unless you were looking for it.  So her hard food by Canine Caviar has been hurting her to eat.

And yall...I lost it.

And I ain't no crying chick.

I'm sniffling and blinking and shit trying to keep it all in but that proved to be impossible.  I couldn't get out my questions, the tech handed me tissue and they patiently waited until I collected myself while Lucy lumbered over to check on me and hug me and I lost it even more.

I was just so hurt that she's been in pain and we didn't know because she doesn't show pain.  See...with all of the abuse she suffered before she came to us...she learned how to keep it reigned tight.  

Like me Lord...like me.

So she's currently having a massage and a tea tree oil bath.  I have a bag of meds and instructions to soften her food until the absess goes down so we can extract the tooth.  And...they say once they go in...they might see other teeth which need to be removed as well and they might as well do them all at once.  We're going to do it, of course, because we just want her final time with us to be as pain free as possible.

The tech slipped me a brochure when I was about to leave and it was information on coming up with a plan for when she leaves us.  I folded it up and put in my bag choosing to let Robby be the one to read it and be the informed one cuz I can't.

This shit is hard man.  They just want to love you and be with you ya know?  Pets are just LOVE.

Yall know we won't be worth a plug nickel when time's up right?

Right.

Yall gonna have to come see 'bout us.

Sheesh...

Old Dog Farts

Lucy has farts so bad they smell like sulfuric acid.

As far as I know I've never smelled sulfuric acid but I'm certain it smells like what's coming out of her butt.

She will seriously clear a room.

And then look at you like something is wrong with YOU for rolling out.

Pet owners...any of you have older dogs?  Yall have same issue?

Convo at 13700

CreoleInDC: a butterfly just scared the crap out of jaru

CreoleInDC: *sigh*

Friend: ain't worth a damn.

Friend:  ROFL!

CreoleInDC: He in the house on the sofa now.

CreoleInDC: Trying to calm the fug down.

Friend: LMAO!!!!!!

CreoleInDC: Breathing like it was a close call.

Friend: omg that made me laugh out loud

CreoleInDC: I swear that dog ain't ish.

Friend: hahahahahah

Boxers, Canidae and Canine Caviar

We buy Jaru and Lucy's food from a doggie health food store.  Hey...if I'm funny about our food you should already know I'd be funny about their food too.

I went out to pick up a bag the other day and found that their food, Canidae, was off the shelves.  I panicked and rushed to the counter.  When I told the young lady what was wrong she said, "Oh...you're one of the Canidae people."  and proceeded to inform me that Canidae did a voluntary recall of their dry food because the plant they were manufacturing it in had salmonella in it.  None was found in their food, however, they didn't want to take a chance and pulled all the food.  Since they were already in the process of building their own plant...they're waiting until they can move into it before they start producing more of their food.

What does that mean to me?  I.AM.ASSED.OUT.

UGH!

Boxers are well known to have extremely sensitive tummies and changing their main food source can have disastrous affects.  And well...we all know our two are special so yeah...I wasn't trying to have two sick runny poop dogs on our hands for two weeks.

So we had to research other foods on the fly (me in truck on iPad on phone with The Robinator) which were similar to Canidae and decided to go with the Canine Caviar.  Of course the bag was damn near half the size of the Canidae bag and more expensive too.  

UGH!!!!!

So I'm at the register frown-T up when an extremely knowledgeable young employee tells me that I should get some raw goat's milk and drizzle it on half the amount of food they would get normally for at least three meals so as to ease their digestive system into accepting it well.  And I'm standing there looking at her like...WHATEVS!  I'M ALREADY SPENDING MORE MONEY THAN I'M USED TO ON THESE PUNK DOGS BECAUSE OF CANIDAE!  I'M NOT BUYING NOT NAINH-AINH OTHER THING!

Later that night as I was drizzling the raw goats milk with probiotics  over their food...I was hoping their stool was gonna be cool and yup...it was.  No funny icky.  They were perfectly fine.  

Hell.

Oh...and Jaru has stopped scratching so much so maybe it's good for his allergies too and Lucy has been walking around here all frisky like a pup even though her legs straight give out still and you try not to laugh cuz really it's not supposed to be funny and only evil people would laugh at the look on her face as it registers on her face that she's sliding again when she thinks she's standing perfectly still.

These dogs are lucky man.  Cuz I could probably buy 100 pounds of something at Sam's for $5.

Humph.

Any of you ever had to change your doggie's food?  Why?  Was the transition difficult?  Have you ever heard of the raw goat's milk thingy?

ShellyDee has me DYING laughing over here!

She said this reminded  her of Jaru and Lucy.  She couldn't decide which one.  LOL!  What do YOU think?  Which of my dog owners would this be?  ROFL!

This could have been Lucy's story!

Well...you know...except for the mansion and the Burberry jacket.

 

Beautiful but chilly!

It's one of those deceptive days.  Gorgeous out but with a chill behind the the breeze that's a bit too chilly.

But I wanted to sit outside so I grabbed a blanket.

My shadow stared at me until I "got" it.

So I had to go up to get HER blanket too.

Damn dogs.

How's the weather out by you?

 

AWESOME.SAUCE!

"More bread please Sir..."

Doggie Wonders

ValentiMe's Day at 13700!

We had to rush the debil dog to the hospital this evening so our V-Day plans changed drastically. 

And she didn't look in the LEAST bit upset for us with her new camouflauged bandages either.  HUMPH.

I love my life.

Diamond Sky Lucy

 

A couple of random pics of our Lucy girl.  She brings me joy.

It's really funny how many people come to 13700 who are scared of dogs and then end up getting one of her hugs and falling in love with her.  In fact...many of you have had the pleasure of a Lucy hug too huh?  Aren't they loving?

My Big Boy!

Thanks to Travel Diva for capturing this pic!  He is just perfect isn't he?

OCD Dog Update

Jaru has taken it upon himself to stop eating breakfast at his usual time of 6:30am.

He now chooses to eat brunch around 11:00am.

The challenge is that Lucy will eat anything she sees unattended so we have to keep Jaru's bowl up until he's ready to eat.

When he's ready to eat he walks into the room all haughty and shit and stares you down like he can speak to you using his mind.

And, as odd as that sounds...it works.

Being a dog's maidservant is very humbling.

ESPECIALLY when he eats, looks at you and shakes his head as if to say...you coulda done better...and walks away.

I can't stand that dog.

What time does YOUR dog eat breakfast?

$1,172.70

I was sitting in my office trying to get over this current bout of writer's block I'm suffering. 

Lucy was in her chair.

She jumped up and down and her back legs splayed out and she yelped a hurt kinda yelp.  Then...she started walking around in circles fast with her back legs giving out every few seconds.

FREAKED.

ME.

OUT!

Lucy is getting old and it shows.  Her hearing is not as it used to be, she can't do the hardwood floors like talking about.  It takes her a bit longer to get up the stairs.

But I can only think of one other time in her life with us that she's yelped in pain.

I called the doctor and told them I was on my way and then I called Robby and told him what was going on.

Once we got there they shuffled us right on into an examination room.  They flipped Lucy on her side and started messing with her legs and she wouldn't let them.  I got on the floor with her and held her face in my hands while I was nose to nose with her and talking to her. 

She got it.  I was there and there was no way I was going to let anyone hurt her.  They were just making sure she was okay.  The doctor and the assistant joked that I was the person who didn't touch hands and yet...I was on the floor with my dog making sure she wasn't scared.

I love my doggies man.

So they did the exam and figured out what was wrong with her.  The doc then did a full inspection of her since she was there.  Doc found that Lucy has a bad tooth that doc thinks needs to come out.

Me:  How much is this going to cost?

Doc:  They'll do an estimate for you.

So they come back with an estimate for an extraction of her tooth.  $1,172.70.

Me:  I'm sorry what?

Assistant:  $1,172.70.

She handed me the paper with the estimate which shows the amount:

Um...yeah...no.

Me:  $1,172.70???????????  To pull a dog's tooth?  Hell...she doesn't eat candy!  I mean sure...she likes peppermints so during Christmas she might get a piece of a candy cane but SERIOUSLY??????

Assistant:  Well...there's a lot that goes into an extraction for a dog.  They have to be put to sleep.

Me:  Does Ambesol work on dogs?

Assistant:  Um...

Me:  Is she in pain?

Assistant:  The doctor says her gums are pretty red which is indicative of an absess.

Me:  So yeah...about that Ambesol...

And I think they think I'm joking.  How in the HELL Lucy's azz gets a bad tooth?  I'm shopping this around.  Of course I want to get it done cuz the thought of her in pain with a toothache just KILLS ME but the kid ain't paying $1,172.70 to get it done.

And I mean that ish.

Oh...wait...they're giving me a discount since they appreciate our business and we have two doggies.

A discount of $40.50.

SIP:  GTFOOHWTBS

THAT IS ALL.

Pulled Groin

Just left the vet with Lucy AKA NAJ.  Why NAJ you ask?  Need A Job!

She's pulled a groin and is in pain.  The treatment calls for pain meds, anti-inflammatory meds, no running or jumping for 6 weeks.

SIP:  Hell...might as well amputate cuz that groin is NEVER gonna heal.

Oh yeah...

Jaru and Lucy love guests.

They TRULY love kids.

If one of them ran out of a room with a kid trembling and scared...

That kid would have to go.

IMMEDIATELY.

That kid's parents would have to go.

IMMEDIATELY.

And it's just that damn simple.

 

Just so ya know.

Scenario...

You have a small dog.

You have a party and one of your guests brings their 9 year old son.

The son goes into the room with your dog.

Your dog comes FLYING out of the room and jumps into your arms.

You ask the kid what happened and he says nothing happened.

His parent asks what happened and he says nothing happened.

They shrug it off and keep it moving like nothing is wrong.

The kid looks like he's all smug and ish keeping a secret.

Your dog is trembling in your arms.

What do you do?

The Gargoyle at 13700

Jaru

I'm adding up Jaru's expenses.

It's not looking good for his bourgie azz.

He might need a kickstarter program.

Humph.

His azz has this now it seems:  Lick Granuloma

See this part?  "It is often considered to be a form of canine obsessive-compulsive disorder..."

Didn't I tell yall FOREVER AGO that his azz has OCD??????????  YALL THOUGHT I WAS JOKING DIDN'T YOU?

*SIGH*

 

 

I think something might be wrong with Lucy...

...cuz she's laying on the floor. You know...like a DOG...instead of posted up on a sofa or a chair. Somebody call somebody quick. This might be bad.

Connected by DROID on Verizon Wireless

Dear Doggie Owners:

Do you let your dog lick you?

Much Calmer Monnie

Jaru and Lucy don't go to kennels when we travel.  A dog sitter or a framily member stays at 13700 with them.  Why?  Lucy has SEVERE separation anxiety and it was determined that the best thing for her when we're traveling is that she doesn't leave her home so her anxiety isn't heightened because she's in HER home. 

Makes sense.

I never take Jaru and Lucy out to get them groomed as I do a pretty good job at home.

Well...I decided I had too much going on to deal with it so I made an appointment for them to get groomed today.

Yeah Boy!

It's about to go down about my GOT-DAMN dogs! This heffa is going to get straight skull drug!