Recently in Animals Category

This is Hubby's birthday present. Isn't she adorable?

Her name is Nina and she is a Miniture St. Bernard/Lab mix. Don't laugh! She definately took after her daddy (the lab) although her brothers look more like the St. Bernard part. Mom was actually a medium dog (guess that is why it was a Mini St. Bernard).

She is all of 7 weeks old and already is pottying outside. She was an outside dog her whole 7 weeks and didn't have a clue how to walk on the tile or the carpet in the house.

We kept her in the bathroom last night and she has this cute little howl when she got lonely or had to go out. She only woke once during the night.

Kermit had many names. Little black white and brown dog - Little Buddy - Goofball - Kermie - Big Head Dog and quite often Dumbass.

He was a great dog but he was dealt a bad hand. Him and his 4 siblings were left by the railroad tracks along with their mom, to fend for themselves just after birth. My inlaws found them and took them home to care for them until they could be passed out to family and friends. Hubby just had to have one of the cute puppies and decided on the "noisy" one. He was always "talking". (The puppy not Hubby) Little did we know that later in life he would also "sing" along with Hubby playing his guitar. Three years ago, Kermit developed DISCOID LUPUS. After three years, he finally got too bad and the prednisone was not working anymore. Hence, the decision to put him down.

Kerm was Hubby's buddy. Most of his nicknames contained the word "Little" but that wasn't really Kerm. He was 70 lbs of Austrailian Shepard mix and quite loveable. He was also quite excitable. He loved to have family over and would greet them at the door with barking and yipping. Yes, at times he barked like a girl. But only when he was REALLY excited to see you.

Kerm was awesome with the grandkids. Kayliln and Kerm would play ball until Kaylin wouldn't want to pick up the slimy ball anymore. She called him, Bowdat.

Bowdat you will be missed!

My kids are grown and out of the house. But the laundry is still there. Not their laundry, but Hubby and my laundry. How two people make so many dirty clothes I will never understand.

I have the wonderful new washer and dryer, that I love alot, but I still am not that fond of doing the laundry.

So I came home from work and found THIS>>>

We "doggy sat" my MIL dog this weekend.

Damn, I thought Kermit the dog was irritating! Buffy is a little fox terrier that is neurotic as any I have ever seen. And for those who have never met Kermit the dog, HE is pretty neurotic.

Buffy paces! And Paces! AND PACES. All the while, you hear her little tags clanging together. Okay, maybe not CLANGING, but when you hear them at 2 am it sure sounds like CLANGING.

And she yaps. Yap Yap Yap Yap Yap! I guess I am just not use to all that little dog stuff.

But she is also a cuddler. I like that part. She sits in your lap or next to you and cuddles. So I guess that makes up for the rest. Almost!

But she went home so there is no more CLANGING! Peace.

This is what gets done!

Ahh!

There is nothing like waking up on a lazy morning. Big lazy dog laying next to you on Hubby's pillow. We are nose to nose.

Then the Big Burp. The stub of a tail wiggles.

It was almost like Hubby but different.

We are "babysitting" my mother-in-laws dog for a few days. Buffy fits in well here. She gets along with Beeker the Cat and Kermit the Dog.

Most of the time.

Kermit loves his toys. Kermit doesn't like to share.

We have a friendly competition going on at our house.

A singing competition.

No, it is not between Hubby and I, cause I can't carry a tune. But that doesn't stop me from singing. It just keeps people from wanting to listen to the radio when I am in the car. But I digress.

Remember Singing/Dancing Santa and Kermit the dog.? Well the cat wants in on the fun.

Okay Gang, I need to know how you would react to this letter I got in the mail today. But I have to give you alittle background here. Okay, alot of background. Bear with me.

Mom brought her new puppy, Tiger, over to meet the family a few days back. By "family" I mean my animals. See, Kermit the dog, is not the friendliest when it comes to "other animals" coming to visit. He wants them to know right off that he is the king of his domain and they will follow his rule. He has to be right in their face all the time making sure that they are not doing ANYTHING he deems inappropriate. Which is EVERYTHING!

But he must be getting old, because it was alot less painful than normal.

Then there is Beeker the cat. He just watches from a distance and has the look, "Geez, not another one!"

Tiger being the baby that he is, listened to all of Kerm's demands and spent most of the time in someones lap or arms. But he had never seen a "cat" before. He was quite intrigued.

Take a look.

Dog Parks are awesome.

We weren't sure whether Kermit would "play fair" or not. He has a little man's complex. Feels the need to make everyone think he is a bad ass, by barking and puffing up. (typical man) But after the initial, "I am mean and going to kick your ass" routine from outside the fence. We ventured inside.

He did much better than I expected. Once he realized that most of the dogs were BIGGER than him he showed his true colors (chicken shit) and hid behind Daddy. Soon he was chasing the ball and even letting the other dogs share his water.

I didn't get any pictures at the park, but this one I did get.

I have to inform you that the "Ball Tree" has died.

What? You might ask is a "Ball Tree"?

To my dog, Kermit, it is a wonderful tree that grows these amazing "SOUR" yellow balls. They are right there for the picking. Hundreds of them. Every year it would bring more yellow balls, to pluck off at his every whim. He would toss them and chew them and then DROOL and slobber as the sour taste tantalized his taste buds.

To us mere mortals, it is a dwarf lemon tree. Now it is dead! After many years of being butchered by an overzealous pruner, aka Hubby, it has finally bit the big one.

Kermit is devastated. See for yourself.

After the Missing Cat thing, I decided to get the animals new id tags for their collars.

Hubby bought one for Beeker, that the lettering was so small you couldn't read the phone number. So I went down to our local PetsMart to get another one. I was going for the small heart shape like the old tag he had but pushed the wrong button and instead got the LARGE heart shape.

Well, you would think the poor cat had an anvil hanging around his neck. He was laying on the floor like he couldn't pick his head up. Hubby says he will probably drowned in the water bowl cause he can't hold his head up. I think he will get use to it eventually, but if not I guess I have another trip to PetsMart for a small heart shaped tag.

We have found the CAT!

After driving around the neighborhood and not finding him, we decided to try walking the neighborhood. Hubby spotted his eyes peering out from under a lawn decoration three doors down from my sons. We called him but he was too scared to come out so we had to lift up the cover and snag him.

We are happy to say that Beeker is back at home. A little worse for wear but home. He just got out of the shower (that was fun) and he is busy licking himself dry. He was extremely dirty and his feet are all torn up but he is alive and I think happy to be home.

Depending on how he does tonight and how the pads of his feet look tomorrow he may or may not get a visit to the vet. The pads of his feet are all scratched up and his back claws (he doesn't have claws on the front) are all shredded. They may have to be professionally cleaned up. We will see.

Thanks for all of those who sent out a kitty prayer for ole Beek. I would bet he is down to about 5 lives now.

I just got a call from a neighbor of E's. Seems Beeker has been hiding out in his attic for the past couple of days. He keeps his trap door open for circulation and Beeker LOVES high places. He saw the flyers we taped everywhere and called the number.

But unfortunately he managed to get Beeker out of the attic and Beeker ran across the street and he hasn't seen him since last evening.

At least we know as of last night he had not become coyote food and was still in the area. E is going to have the guy who spotted him put out some of Beekers cat food to see if he can lure him back. E is also putting out food.

So maybe with all the flyers we may actually see Beeker again.

Keep your fingers crossed.

We spent the morning over in Mesa taping "Lost Cat" flyers to every pole and community mailbox within 5 blocks of my sons house. If someone in the neighbor hood has that "damn cat" they can't miss them. Now whether they want to give him back, now that is a different story. Also put a "LOST CAT" ad in the East Valley Tribune and listed him at the Pets911.com

He is actually just a big ball of zunt. Doesn't do a whole hell of a lot except eat, sleep and shit. But he is MY BALL OF ZUNT and I want him back. So if you live in Mesa and have seen a Big Ball of Zunt that answers to the name of "BEEKER" . . . drop me a line.

Seems we have a lost cat.

My youngest son, E and his wife are watching our dog, Kermit and our cat, Beeker while we are in San Diego.

I get a call on my cell phone this morning . . .
"We can't find the cat!"

Me: "What do you mean you can't find the cat?"

E: "I went to work this morning and B was sleeping and now we can't find the cat"

Me: " Could he have gotten out of the house?"

E: "I don't think so. I let the dogs out this morning but I don't think Beeker got out"

Me: "Have you checked every nook and cranny in the house? He likes to hide in quiet, covered spots to get away from the dogs. Have you checked everywhere?"

E: " I thought so"

Well, that was late morning and as of 6 pm ... still no cat. They have looked and called and checked the neighborhood and NO BEEKER!

If he got out, he does have a collar on with our phone number. We have checked the answering machine but no calls.

Chances are he has found himself a secret hiding place that they don't even know that they have. He is probably sitting there watching them look for him and he will come out when he gets hungry or has to go.

But if anyone has seen a fat gray tabby cat with a shorter than usual tail, call me.

Liko
li.ko
pronunciation: lee-co
function: noun
1. Hawaiian for Bud
2. companion, partner, friend
3. bestest little black dog there ever was

Little Sara

went to doggie heaven on Thursday.

R.I.P. Sweet Sara

No sign of the puppy this morning. I think the neighbors took her in last night. Hubby said she was over playing with them when he got home last night.

What the hell are the neighbors doing out playing with a lost dog at midnight. They are a strange bunch. Not quite as strange as Todd over at Spastik Yak, but the druggie with two kids stay up all night and party with the stereo up so loud the thumping knocks me out of bed, kind of strange.

But at least, I don't have to deal with what to do with the puppy anymore.

Well that is until they wake up at noon to find a puppy in bed with them. Then I am sure it is back out on the streets for her.

More Pics in the extended!

Anyone need a dog.

This littel girl wandered into our front yard this morning.

She seems to want to stick around altho she won't let us get to close to her. After she hid herself behind some garbage cans, Hubby went over to her and she growled for him to stay away.

She wags her tail and acts like she wants to have you pet her but she backs away. I believe that she is still a puppy cause her feet are HUGE. Kinda looks like a german shepard mix? So far I have only managed to get her to smell my hand. I don't think she likes men, cause everytime Hubby gets to close she backs away.

What to do?

UPDATES!
She was just hot and tired!

But I want to take a shower too!

My In-Laws dog, Buffy, hates to miss anything. So quite often she falls asleep with her head up. This is a picture example.

Everyone has seen one of these.

Those cool boats that are stuck inside a bottle. I always wondered how the hell they got in there. I guess they use long tweezers and glue and stuff.

But have you ever seen one of these?

or I should say singing.

I took a video with my digital camera of Kermit singing along with Hubby. Everytime Hubby starts playing his guitar, Kerm comes running from where ever he is to do the sing-a-long. This is an everyday occurence around here. Sometimes louder than others.

Not sure if this will work but right click the link and save. If it doesn't work please let me know in the comments. This is an experiment. :)

But boy does he love to sing.

Sara (see last post) is doing much better. Her blood count is now up to 23 and Mom said she even barked at another dog when she went in to be checked this morning.

Thanks for all the doggy prayers. Mom really appreciated it.

Got a teary call from my Mom this morning. She had taken her dog, Sara,

into the vet to have her teeth cleaned. About an hour later the vet called and said Sara's blood work came back and it was NOT GOOD. "Insert medical word here" was suppose to be about 40 and hers was only 19.

The vet ultrasound man happened to be in the office and they did an ultrasound on her and it showed that her spleen had ruptured. She went in to have an emergency spleen-ectomy (if that is even what it is called)

Sara is now home but still very serious. She is very anemic and very listless. She is not out of the woods yet.

This is my Mom's baby. Say a little doggy prayer for Sara, please.

UPDATE! Test came back and Sara has cancer! :(

Beeker got a new home, today.
It's quite roomy and he seems to enjoy it quite abit.

I wonder what I am going to do with this. It came inside the new cat home.

Poor "Big Head Dog" has Discoid Lupus Erythematosus

His course of treatment is Tetracycline - 3 times a day, Niacinamide - 3 times a day, plus the Temeril P that he is already taking and the Dermcap pill for his skin. Damn! It's a good thing he is so good about having pills shoved down his throat. He sits there and takes it like a man..err dog!

My counter in the kitchen looks like a pharmacy. His basket of drugs is now bigger than my basket of vitamins.

If this doesn't help him, then we move on to bigger and better steroids. Wonder if I will have to have them smuggled in from Mexico.

Something to think about I guess.

But all in all, except for the gross looking nose, he is looking and feeling great. Things are all good.

Kerm is home from the vet.

He has two stitches in the nose and NOT enough "happy drugs" in him to mellow him out. Damn they wore off quick this time.

I asked the vet, "Could you give him another shot just to get him through til the morning."

He laughed.

I said, "No I'm serious!

He just kinda stammered....

"Dude, I am just kidding!", I laughed. Altho I really wasn't.The dog is hyper. I think he has doggie ADD! with extra hyperactivity mixed in.

But he is so loveable anyway.

So now he has "blue whiskers" coming out the end of his nose for the next 10 days. Pathology reports won't be back for about a week.

Think Happy Thoughts!

Kermit the dog has to go into the vet tomorrow morning at 7:30 am. He is going to have a biopsy on his nose.

His poor nose looks like mine does after I have had a week-long cold with a runny nose. It started off as just a loss of pigment on the end of his nose between the nostrils. But now it has progressed to an ulcerated mess. The vet gave me some cortisone cream to put on it twice a day but it hasn't helped.

The vet now wants to take a biopsy to see exactly what it is. Seems he may have Discoid Lupus Erythematosus

The last time he was in and had X-rays, they gave him a "HAPPY" drug that soooo mellowed him out, he had a hard time holding his head up. I hope they can do it that way instead of having to give him anesthesia.

Kerm doesn't like the vet. Go figure.

My cat has discovered "BUBBLES"!

He loves them. Can't quite figure out where they go tho. The best part is about 5 mins after I stop blowing them, he is still doing the quick head jerks thing, sure that he is seeing them out of the corner of his eye.

There are a few more pics on the photoblog.

Beeker (aka Fat Cat) on the left and Liko (aka Little Black Dog) were sharing a cat and dog nap on the big chair in the livingroom.
I covered it with a sheet after I spent the afternoon vacuuming the furniture for the wedding.

Don't you wish everyone could get along this good?

Looks like we are going to have to take Kermit into the vet in the morning.

He is favoring his hind legs and walking like an old man.

I think Liko is walking even better than Kerm today.

Hope it is just a pulled muscle or something less serious. It has been an on again off again thing.

Damn I hate sick animals... they look so pathetic.

Have you ever gotten a flu shot to prevent the flu? And then gotten the flu a few days later?

Well ... Dogs have the same problem.

Last night after we had drifting off to sleep ...

We hear this "God Awful" painful cry of a cat.

Inside the house!

It is OUR cat.

They are NOT invited to the wedding you know.

If I put Liko in the back bedroom before everyone arrived, he wouldn't even know anyone was here. (He is 16 years old and pretty blind and VERY deaf) But since the girls will be getting ready back there he might sense the movement. Then when the door closed on his poor little old ass he would start the sorrowful whining that he does so well. And believe me EVERYONE would hear him.

Kermit on the other hand would want to be the "Belle of the Ball" so to speak. (I guess boys aren't "Belle's" but couldn't come up with a good simile) He would think that the party was for him to have an unlimited supply of "Ball Throwers".

So What to do? .... What to do?

For Christmas my cat got a new toy. It is a yellow bird that is attached to a long elastic string that hangs from a doorway.

We have it hanging from the vent in the hall so that is can not be knocked down.

THE CAT LOVES IT! He plays with it all day.

But you have to know that my cat is usuallly just a lump of zunt.