It's been a busy weekend around here. Fear of rain kept us moving at a fast pace, but God smiled big and bright with sunny skies and not so windy weather. One week left to get stuff seriously done before we get stalled with travel for two weeks. It's kind of a now or never thing.

Garden still isn't tilled but we are hoping BIL can come up with is tractor and tiller to do the garden, the construction area in the front yard and one other little spot. Then I can throw all those plants in the ground that I have been buying. Alec did get his rhubarb planted-we now have four nice hills. Herbs are waiting along with the start of the strawberry patch.

Little picture heavy but here's a recap of the weekend.

Trellis' up by the barn, beds ready to plant. Not sure what goes in there this year but we do have an other clematis for the right side, lamb's ears is in the lower box of the left one. The theme color this year will be red and white. So Salvia? White vinca?
The FENCE!!! Wee haa!!! It's up on both sides of Chateau Quack(I'm told I'm getting a special sign made to such). No more barking dogs on in the front yard.

Just a reminder, that's what it looked like last fall before the snow flew. Alec is now getting the inside ready for the shipment of ducklings coming soon.

And this is from inside the yard. The dog, er uh, duckaloo's, are perfect for the ducks to lay in, next, etc. The dogs never use them so rather then waste them we gave it a try. To the left, the front of Chateau Quack. Hoping this next week we can get the small retaining wall up in front, steps to the door and then the small ramps for the ducks to walk into it. Yes some staining needs to be done as well as some cleaning of the recycled old antique windows and doors. But heck, it's up and functional!

And now, some duck photos. The Cayugas first. Cool aren't they? Big too. Actually, this drake and two other's are for sale. I am keeping a trio for now. I'm open for trading, bartering or out right--please take them! I have too many drakes. All the duck's wings got clipped before they went out to the yard for the spring. Oh and the color of these, only gets better as they age.

Okay, this is hard to tell but take a look at these two khaki drakes. Notice anything? The one on the left is a normal drake, two years old. The one on the right, same age, but is an apricot dilute. Unusual mutation that occurs in the breed. Neither of these guys are available, but I do have another normal drake, three years old, who is available.
And we can't have duck photos with out our beloved Commander Cody. One of his left side....
And one of his right. He's quite the man of the flock and hoping he's in better condition this summer for another shot at the county poultry show.
And last but not least, I've resorted to xpens for the flower gardens. Or at least until the Lily of the Valley blooms and the hostas are up and established. Seems collies like to lay there. I have enough beds along the house to use about 5 xpens-thank goodness I'm not using them for anything else right now!

Well that's part of the weekend projects. Also cleaned carpets, ran tons of errands, and lots of dog grooming. I don't care what others do but I refuse to have my dogs look moth eaten and be seen with tufts of hair coming out every where. The blower has been getting lots of use around here. And the bird's nests are going to be full of nice downy dog fluff this spring.

OH-shout out to Rus, Sherilyn and Bekka!! Congrats on their newest champion, the king of reserves, Ransom!

Later gators....

C

Nick Nack

Deb stopped by and dropped of his official photo this weekend. Can you say he's just a little naked? Other then that, he's a pretty nice looking boy. And yes, he's growing hair back and fast.

Later gators....
C

Holy Carp! Did you see this???

Seriously! I had a front row seat to this last night. Sitting in the lazy boy, watching the news and WOW, BANG, BRIGHT LIGHTS! This was seriously the coolest thing I think I've seen! Can I use enough exclamation points??? Nope!

This is why I have huge open windows, this is why we live where we live and this is why I'm a night owl.

Here's at least one link, more to follow or just do your own search for more.

http://www.kcrg.com/news/local/90902899.html

Later gators....
C

Last week's weather

David ran across this on the local tv station website. Pretty cool! The silver bins in the video are about 1 1/2 miles south of our house on the main hwy. Actually the way he's pointing the camera, just over the rise, past some trees, is our house. So this was very close or as David put it--thank GOD I told Alec to get his butt in the house when I did.

http://www.kcrg.com/younews/90054982.html

later gators...
C

Is it me or is it just one of those days?

Some people creep me out. I've been getting weird spam emails that I can only guess come from someone passing on my email address out of spite. Honestly, do people not have lives of their owns or work or something other then find ways to harass people?

Or the dogs? What is up with them right now? I had to have a come to Jesus meeting with one of the young boys tonight. Regardless of what others do, doesn't make it right and he learned that tonight-don't push the alpha or you get a short obedience lesson instead of dinner. rrrrrrr....It's now yes ma'am, where would you like me to sit and wait-patiently? To which all the other dogs were sitting and pointing paws at him-heehee, he got in trouble.

Or that I have a klepto pomeranian? Trying to give meds to a dog and she keeps stealing everything I lay one the floor. Syringe, spoon, scissors, it's never ending. Then I have to chase her to get them back! How can 5 lbs of fluff be so flustering?

Or how about another snapper turtle in the bog down in the pasture. I know what this weekend's project will be to trap that and relocate it.

Or Clairee is being watched for a concussion. Today she was harassing Alec and he was playing with Moose on the teeter-who by the way is an awesome teeter dog. Anyway, as she went to grab his shorts in a collie nip, she came around the end of the teeter as Moose was bring the end down-klunk. And well, she was a little dazed to say the least and went in the house for some down time.

Or or or or.....ugh! I'm counting to 10, watching Glee, having a cup of tea and Moose, Fred, Phoebe, Tuli, Marg and I are going to bed!

Later gators....
C

Old souls

Ever heard the saying about someone being an “old soul”? Well, I live with one. And last weekend, dear old David spent time with a good friend of ours and passed the test, so to speak and is now invited to a join in on a Saturday tradition of trading stories, jokes and the like.

Bob is an old AKC and state inspector. He’s been there, done that and is a wealth of information on all things dogs. David went over Friday for coffee and cigars. See Saturday is when all the old dudes from the nursing home come over(Bob’s 84) and most can’t smoke. Seems David pasted muster and was invited back on Saturday. This guy once ran a hunting kennel with over 100 dogs! He has records, pictures, files, you name it, he’s got it. I love talking to him but glad I didn’t go with David—he came home smelling like a smoke shop. And had a very big grin to go right along with it.

More adventures of my Old Soul later.

Later gators…
C

……….11 days and counting till we road trip it! Rather be up top my armpits in garden soil then dog grooming. I am so not ready.

Live, love, laugh

Can't you hear the chuckle and laugh that goes with that?? You all know who I am talking about.

I got an email today that said.....

…..remember life is short, break the rules, forgive quickly, kiss slowly, love truly, laugh uncontrollably, And never regret anything that made you smile!

For you my dear friend, the herding ring might be knee deep in do-do right now, but what can you do but fall flat on your back and make muck angels in it!

Later gators....
C

Shampoo debates

Okay, so a few comments later and I've got some more to add on the whole shampoo debate. No not really, but I guess I did fail to mention a few keys points--thank you to Penni for mentioning them to me. I always learn something and it's important that we share our views.

First off bathing-yes, for many of us, bathing is a weekly ritual. I think something needs to be said for the way in which a dog lives, will attribute to that. The surfaces they are one, the climate and their daily dose of exercise. Also remembering what a dog's coat is designed for makes a difference. Some breeds need a lot of TLC, while many need very little. For example, Pongo the Puli. He has a very musty smell, but it's due to the nature of his coat and the cording. It takes him up wards of 8-10 hours to dry after a bath, making it very hard to justify a full bath each week. A toy breed like a lhasa or maltese, weekly bathing and oiling of the coat to keep it flat, supple, and long, plus putting them in papers, is a must.

My dogs get lots of grass in the summer, snow in the winter and rain in between to refresh their coats. A good roll by each in the mornings is not unheard of. Standing or running in the rain followed by a towel off before they come in. Now a plunge in the creek does ask for a quick bath just because pond smell is not something I like to sleep with. We also will put a dog on the table and with a little listerine and water, mist them down and blow out their coat every other week.

Might I also add the diet can play a big roll in skin and hair condition. I won't go into it much but cheap kibble diets not only make for larger clean up but the condition of your dog can be very apparent by their coat condition. This being a big issue with my 4-H kids-they ask how to make their dog look better and before we talk grooming, we talk diet.

Next--some products are good and some are bad. Penni mentioned that Pantene is used by a lot of toy dog people. And this is the product that my friend who did research in college on, is one of the worst ones for human hair. It does coat the hair shaft with waxes and such, making it ideal for keeping a long coat manageable. But overall, it is one of the products that she had way down on her list of products good to use. And yes, many human grooming products-mouses, gels, hair sprays, are used on show dogs, and those should always be washed off the dog, immediately following a show. Again, we get back to the fact that humans will wash them out daily and reapply.

Isle of Dog, yes, I do know personally of one dog having a reaction to it. What this might offer is a good place to note that not every product is good for every dog. I use two of their products, had good luck with them and recommend them. BUT if you dog has a reaction, then don't use it, but also don't bash the entire line, as someone else might love it. Test it out first is what I always say. I can say the very same thing about another line of dog products, won't touch them, yet a show friend swears by them.

Lastly, ph. Just a little fictious, yes, but in fact due to the very nature of the beast, dogs and humans do have different skin and hair types that usually require different products. Most of the time what I get is that someone went out and bought a cheap bottle of human shampoo and the dogs coat now looks dull and dingy. First off, rinse, rinse, rinse, rinse. and rinse again. Most dog products are designed to be easily rinsed. The normal John Q public, doesn't realize that you will need to be extra vilgilant on that point. 2nd off, remember, we humans are washing ourselves daily, head to toe. Your animal isn't. Also they ingest it when they lick themselves. Internal reactions can and do happen. Key here, be careful about what you use. The product should be gentle to the skin, rinses well and check to see what it's warnings are-if you don't rinse well, they can get sick other ways then just a skin rash.

Oh I love these forums!!! More input please, I'm always open to suggestions and love a differing view.

Later gators...
C

Way back when-muddy feet?

Okay, I realized that I forgot to clue everyone in on the muddy feet blog a while back. Unfortunately, no one won. Here's a recap:

EmmyLou Who, who supposedly doesn't get dirty?

Jazper the rough and tough griff

Bear-who finally figured out that dirt is fun.

And last but not least, the resident evil blue dog, Lace.

Sherilyn-you were partially right, ID'ing your dogs but missed on the other two.

Let's see what I can come up with next?

Later gators...

C

The next best thing-shampoo or not to shampoo

Okay, since I can actually sit upright, figured that rather then watching more tv, I would type.

Each and every year, the students start asking questions about keeping their dog clean. How often should I wash them? What should I wash them with? Or is it okay to use my mom's expensive shampoo on them? Oh and they get more interesting as the class goes on.

Here's my take on some common misnomers about dog shampoo.

Cheaper is not better. Walmart, Target, or the dollar stores cheap shampoos are just that, cheap. Many are watered down, contact products that dry out the skin or in some cases-yes I read this some where, they are just colored and scented versions of human products.

Human products are not ph balanced and made for dogs or cats skin types. Your mother's expensive redkin product, just because it's expensive, is not created for your dog's hair, but you mother's.

So what do you use? Go through my cabinet and it's a nightmare. \

First off I have products from the vet-specialty items for specific skin conditions. I think it's always important to have an iodine shampoo handy, especially for cleaning up a dog after it's had stitches out, had bandages on or has some sort of skin issue. We use the same one for the horses and the dogs. My old horse gets rain rot each spring, the clydes get scratch from all the creek water and Pete and Merlot-yeah every now and then they roll in something that makes them itch.

Then there's the show shampoos.

When you have dogs that love mud, muck, clay and horse goodies, well they get stains. Whitening shampoos are great for that. And this is one of the few times that I will state that a Horse product works great for dogs-Cowboy Magic. But over the years Alec and I have tried so many different products that white the whites but don't dull the other colors. #1 Professional whitening, White Lightening and Crystal White Enzyme Shampoos are bought by the gallon. We've even gone to using the Crystal White on the clydesdale's feathers!

We do have a few shampoos that help to draw out a specific color-Black Star White, formerly Wahl's black shampoo for the blue and black dogs helps their color to pop. Frankie gets a little Red/Brown conditioner if he's starting to sunbleach-it's got UV filters in it too to help keep him from washing out. Most of these will have some sort of light reflecting technology that helps the color pop.

But everyday use, oh there are sooo many out there. I love Plush Puppy products but never can find the vendor at the shows to get a gallon or two of shampoo. I've also got stuff over the years out of raffle baskets, show samples or in the mail. Right now-Clean Start from Chris Christenson is great for getting just gunk out of coat. I also love the Isle of Dogs Puppy shampoo. Or I even just use the #1 Professionals Whitening. All rinse clean, smell great and are good the dogs coats.

So did that help? Don't by grocery store or cheap brands. Hello, even some of the stuff at Petsmart or Petco or where ever are not that great for your dogs.

Oh forgot--how often? Granted we humans have a thing for hygiene and love to shower ever day. Our dogs though, are designed to go the distance between baths. Granted some breeds do need to be attended to more regularly-toys, long haired dogs, those that can mat. The majority though, as long as you brush weekly, wipe with a damp towel afterwards, will stay clean and fresh. I usually bath the non-show dogs, well, no more then every couple of months. If it's mud I'm battling, I might not bath, but rinse off in the shower, then mist with a conditioning spray(Isle of Dog Repair diluted). I do bath more regularly for those blowing coat and that's just to get the dead coat out and help promote new coat growth.

There you go, my suggestions on the whole shampoo subject---anyone got anything else they prefer or use instead? I love to learn about new products!

Later gators....
C

Why can't it a weekend all week long?

Got the agility equipment out-Moose is tickled pink and has been running the dog walk non-stop.
Fix broken agility equipment-teeter had a piece that was not right, so off to the hardware store to get the parts.
Make new agility equipment-since I was at the hardware store, why not? So we now have a puppy size pause table and a 16" table! All that needs to be done is the painting. Dogs are now playing king of the table. Boards have been found to make a contact plank for 4-H as well as the start of a new A-frame and contact trainer.
Weed flower beds-well once you start with one, might as well keep going. Bloodroot is blooming along with Dutchman's Britches. Hostas are peaking up and the bleeding heart and columbine are now safely covered with cages to prevent dogs from laying on them
Move rhubard-ducks like it too much. Now I have three hills!!
Rearrange duck yard. Take down fence, open up soon-to-be pond area. Now I have extra kennel panels for the kennel!
Sleep in-oh what a joy. Unfortunately after next weekend, sleeping in won't be an option for a long time.
Get sick at the end of the weekend--yeap, not sure if it's flu, food poisoning or just something random. I hate being sick. But I'm a good sick person :)

Later gators....
C

Are you prepared?

Wishing there was some way to do the music from the Wizard of Oz where she sees the witch riding her bike in the tornado-da da ta da ta da……..

Let’s talk severe weather and for those up here in Tornado Alley, just plain old preparedness. This week is National Severe Weather week and the schools are doing tornado drills, the sirens will be tested as well as the radio and tv stations running their emergency broadcasting stuff.
Might I add that this is none too soon for us. They’ve been running flood insurance commercials since before the first of the year. The forecasters have been revising this and that and the other predictions. But it’s official at our place with Monday night's craziness.

We’ve been rearranging stuff upstairs and downstairs which in turn means that nothing is where it should be. Monday night we are watching the skies, have the tv on listening to the weather man spout off about the current severe storm to hit the area. FYI-the roller cloud was amazing-Meredith’s new little camera is really getting some good shots. I'm still trying to figure out how to download the photos though.

Anyway, David is feeding horses and notices the hay going sideways in several directions, then it starts to funnel up. He hears it before it hits-thank God. Gets to the house, can’t get the door open the wind is so strong and when he finally gets in the sound is unlike anything I have ever heard. I actually feared that the windows in the bedroom weren’t going to hold. Afterwards, we started picking up the pieces and hearing hammer noises from the neighbors, we determine that it was indeed what they call a microburst. Yeah yeah, my “weather spotters” that took the training last year are finally getting to use their new words. Winds were 60-70 mph, lifted part of the roof off Chateau Quack, took my agility equipment across the yard, and the mulch in the back yard is now in the center of the yard.

Damage reports from Alburnett due to Monday’s little storm are just some poles snapped, Hiawatha had flying objects-a trampoline into a garage and some minor electrical outages.

So now tuning into Tuesday night, we work with the ducks a little. We had a few bands that needed removing, eggs to collect, duckaloo to relocate-back to it’s original location(it got moved across the yard Monday night) and fence to fix. Alec is then wandering around and thinking that maybe, just maybe, we should think about getting the downstairs ready in case we need to head there if the sirens go off. So we spend about ½ hour hauling crates down, rearranging and making up Tornado Central in the basement. The kid thinks ahead as the line of storms really started forming about 6ish to the west of us.

Side note—are you ready for a disaster with your pets? Go to the Red Cross and check out their list of what you should have ready. As for us-we try to have an unopened bag of dog food, several gallons of water(usually store bottled water), canned food, meds for those on meds and collars with id’s and leashes attached. Many of my dogs don’t wear collars on a daily basis, so those are hanging ready to grab. Downstairs, we have an extra set of crates set up with name tags on them. A list describing each dog and a photo are also in a folder in both the emergency bag as well as tacked on the side of one of the crates.

Back to the regularly schedule chaos. Storms start to build last night. Then the infamous “hook echo” forms. For those unfamiliar with Midwest meterology, that means a radar indicated funnel cloud. FYI-funnel clouds turn into tornados when they hit the ground. From that point, tornados are classified into levels-F1 through F5, with some additional separation in each category, all based on the wind speeds and destruction. The tornado that hit the Parkersburg area two years ago was an F5-worst of the worst.

We get the Ms downstairs with her side kicks-Bug, Clairee, Lace and Tosie. She’s got her book, the tv on and a grilled cheese sandwich. Yes during this all we were attempting to eat dinner, or gulp it down.

Wall clouds are visable. Updrafts are cool, storm is moving NE. Palo/Shellsburg area is reporting some nasty stuff and then the infamous sirens go off. Now there is a slight joke going on around our home about the sirens. First off Alburnett-noon and 6pm, the sirens go off. But the emergency siren is just 1/4m up the road. So the joke-hum, is it dinner, supper or tornado? We have the drill down-dogs in the basement, Ms under the stairs with her sidekicks and we, but of course, upstairs or out in the yard watching. It’s a family tradition, just ask about my dad and grandfather watching the weather on the hill.

We get some awesome scud clouds that skim the barn, some wicked wind and pictures of the rotation north of us. Ends up the “hook echo”, was 4 miles north this time around. If you remember last year, the actual F1 tornado that hit Alburnett, was just 1 mile north of us. Never turns into a tornado this time around, but we did get a few photos of the wall cloud and the possible funnel as it was skipping past Central City.

After all is said and done, we get just a little wind damage with a few things ending up in the hay field. The stop sign at the highway is at a 90 degree angle and my old agility tunnel is a mile up the road. But that’s not the end of it, the line is still forming along the front and it’s not past us yet. About 9ish, it’s raining buckets and barrels. Heavy down pours. Heehee, a couple misfits were out in the yard for their last potty run of the night and got caught in it. They actually were having fun. But wet dogs, ick.

Overall, this in one reason I love Iowa . What is the saying, if you don’t like the weather, wait 10 mins? It changes at the drop of a pin. It gets the blood pumping, the heart racing and the brain thinking. The lightening is awesome, though trashed more answering machines then I care to mention. Wind, well, that I can do without, that is until I get the shutters on the bedroom windows next week. Thunder-I sleep through it.

Weather radio in hand, emergency kits ready, plans made and eyes to the skies.

Later gators…
C

The next best thing-more poop patrol

Okay staying on the same wavelength with poop, now on to puppies. Talked to a lot of breeders over the years and well, we all have that stash of newspapers, spent hours on our hands and knees scrubbing yesterday’s news off the floor and have bags of garbage to prove we have puppies.

I do use papers under the whelping pads for extra absorbency. It also gives the mom something to due-shred papers, while I’m tearing up sheets and boiling water-ha. But that’s it. I have a 30 gal tub full of papers, it’ll last me years and I have stopped accepting papers from people.

First off, we live out in timbuktoo. That means no rural garbage pick up. I hate burning-it’s not good for the environment and it’s a lazy person’s way to dispose of garbage. We recycle, a lot. So what to do with those waste papers? I do have a compost pile for the horses and we will dump the puppy papers in there, but over the course of 10 weeks, that’s a lot of papers. Instead, we decided a couple of years ago to do a litter pan. What a brilliant idea!

As soon as the pups move to the xpen at about 3 weeks, I lay down a remenent of vinyl floor. Throw down some whelping pads and introduce the litter pan. There are tons of things you can use – commercial recycled paper pellets, actual litter or what I prefer and since we have the stuff handy for the horses-wood shavings and alfalfa pellets.

I’m super concerned about the pups eating the recycled pellets-expanding, choking etc. Actual cat litter is also not a great thing for them to eat either. But the wood shavings/alfalfa mix is great. First the wood shavings can track through out the house. I live with that considering the hubby and his coat of hay he comes in with after chores. The wood shavings have a clean smell and can be thrown out in the field, the floor beds or on the driveway when used up. The alfalfa pellets absorb the odor, can be eaten and cause no harm and degrade very nicely. The other reason, I can send a bagging home of shavings and pellets, the new owners can spread it out in the yard where they want the pup to piddle and it helps in house breaking. And they don’t have to clean it up, it just degrades into the yard. Alfalfa meal is used as an organic fertilizer on yards anyway.

As far as the device for the litter pan, I’ve tried several. Made my own box, commercial puppy litter pan or the best one for me is a plastic pan used under rabbit cages. It’s the right height for short stubby legs, big enough that the pup can get in and turn around. Holds enough product that I don’t have clean it out hourly and it’s easy to clean and disinfect between litters and storage. I haven’t had any chewing on it, some sleeping in it and the only going concern is that the boys walk in and start peeing before they actually are in the pan—that’s simple logistics and typical boy behavior. I do put a few newspapers around the edge of the pan, just for those cases.

So here's my question, what has everyone else done or used that works?

Later gators....
C

The next best thing-pooper picker uppers

Obedience classes are gearing up and it’s time for that question that I always get asked—what would you suggest? Or even better is someone coming up to me with the latest and greatest gadget and not having a clue as to the real or even correct use of it. So figured I’ll get a head start and do a plug for a few dog essentials that are the must haves in my house.

Let’s start with the basics and well, the most important—poop picker uppers.

Yes the raw deal folks. We all have to go out and clean up after the dogs. Granted some times of the year are better then others, such as dry days vs after a rain. Don’t you just love winter storms, they clean the slate until it all melts then you have a “waste” land of wonder.
Check my jacket pockets, grooming smock, jeans, shorts, you name it, I must have a bagging of some sort in them all. Usually that is. There are always those times when you use the last one and upon walking the dog from the grooming area, to the vehicle to get a new supply, the dog says-Wait-I have to go – NOW!

We have super duty pooper scoopers at home. Carries a lot but remember, your shoulder and arm will get tired if it gets too heavy. We’ve also run across a new scraper replacement as we all know that those get lost or destroyed first. You all know that hacking at frozen poo ruins those chinsy little things too quickly. Anyway, Lowe’s has in the garden area an industrial scraper, well it’s actually an edger tool but it works and looks the same.

If you're a serious pooper picker upper, then you know those rakes are a joke, the claw/jaws things just make a mess., so just stick with the good old standby. I have the one that's yellow with a green handle but I have my eye on one of those neat colored aluminum ones-maybe in purple or blue?

Okay, so how about those baggies. The plastic shopping bags are great, sort of. Can’t wad more then one in your pocket, they do leak and don’t tie all the way shut. I like the cheap sandwich bags, not the Ziploc ones. Super cheap. That is until you have to walk Ruff Ruff and need four of them. So then you go to the rolls of poop bags. Great stuff and have some cute holders for them. That is until, as Kim experienced, the dogs get into the bag with several 100 bag rolls and trash the RV with them. But then you just separate them and use the cute little baggie bags that someone made for the CorgiAid auction.

I guess that Bekka had a product that Kim and Kathy really liked all Mutt Mitts. Heavy duty, and very good capacity(isn’t that a sign of a dog owner-we talk about poop in the “capacity” term). But expensive.

There are biodegradable ones-watch out that they don’t get wet. The moment you go to pick up something, they will have achieved their ½ life and your hand ends up, well, time to disinfect and sanitize.

One little hint for those traveling with dogs. This is kind of like a Martha Stewartish thing. Keep a plastic coffee can in the car. When stopping and cleaning up after your dog on the road, just deposit the filled baggie in the coffee can, pop on the lid and keep on going. The neat thing is the can keeps the smell from invading the car, the coffee itself-as there is usually some remenant in the bottom of it, also helps to down play the smell. Easy breezy solution.

Later gators...
C

Happy Easter to all!

Okay, so this is just a little late in the day, but hoping all of you out in blogger land have had a great weekend. The weather out here has been for the most part great. And I must say, God's been holding out hand this week with all that's been going on.

As noted in a previous post, Lace had us a little worried. Okay, more then a little worried. I've never had to deal with a closed pyometra and let me tell you, not something I want to deal with ever again. Here's the facts-on Thursday when Alec took her in, her white blood count as over 4500. Eeeks! As many who have dealt with this know, it's so important to know your dogs and read their moods. Lace was so stoic about it that we only noticed very subtell signs that something was off. After the emergency spay a couple hours later, which she came through with flying colors, she was being sub-q'd with 500 cc's of fluids every couple of hours. Doc tells me later, she had gone septic and it was touch and go for a day. With all those fluids, she was just plain leaking. On Friday we went over to try to get her to eat-no go. We offered fresh pet, chicken livers, yogurst, canned food, and the only three bites she took were the grilled garlic chicken I had packed for bait for the show. So she spent another night at Doc's. BTW, her count was 3800 in the am.

On this note, I must add that I think I have the best vet around. We do have an awesome emergency clinic in town. Big time-ortho, eye, cardiac, etc on staff. I've used them a couple of times and it's well worth the price. But having a good personal relationship with your regular vet is a must. She was taking the weekend off for the holiday, had no plans of being in town, but yet, she made a point of coming in Saturday AM, checking on Lace, doing another panel and calling Alec to tell him what was up with his dog. That's above and beyond the call of duty.

So the blood panel, almost normal by Saturday morning. We of course are in Dewitt for the weekend with the show, but David's manning the fort. Doc calls and says, come get her. Ms Stoic as they call her down there, just wants to go home to eat. Upon arriving home with David, she inhaled a full bowl of hamburger and rice. That's all it took. AND....Doc calls me at 8:00pm Saturday to find out how she's doing. Again, dedication. And instructs me to call her in the am with an update. She gets a medal of honor for this.

Upon arriving home today, we can say that she's almost back to her perky self. Eating good, eyes are clearing up and right now I am hearing a heated discussion coming from downstairs about Alec's chair not being a communal chair and that Lace needed to move her needy butt over to the bed. Yeap, she's back!

Oh and the show, Ruff Ruff took BOB again today. Petey, well, surprise surprise--took WB/BOW for 2 points. Many thanks to Kim for jumping in when I pointed and said--you need to take Pete back in for BOB. This on top of the fact that the poor puppy just went into her first season on Saturday night and was a little wired. Thanks Kim!!! Nick-nack, he moved up to BOB and the judge actually pulled him and Ruff out together before pointing at Ruff! Talk about tickled, he'll have his time to shine in the ring in the near future.

On the way home-almost flat tire. Aired up, back to Camp Gibson, load up, head home. Did I mention that I put out my back in the morning and the advil was wearing off? Yeah, I've been on and off the heating pad and ice packs since I got home. Tire--pulled in the drive way and sssshhhhhh-nail. Tire goes flat in drive way. God was definately guiding us along on the way home.

Now, it's quiet time. No shows, no major things to work on for a couple of months. Well that's not true. Garden, 4-H obedience starts, working on the garage, front yard seeding, etc etc etc. But it's all home stuff for awhile and I'm good for that.

So, don't eat too much candy, leave the ears on the chocolate rabbit and hoping the that blessings of Easter fill your whole life through.

Later gators....
C

And then there was one?? nope-NONE!

What a week. Some times you just want to crawl back under the covers.

Let's start out with a semi crappy show weekend. Not only did I have the start of feeling under the weather, but the weather was, well under the weather. Nick managed to get one more point for his championship, leaving him in the infamous one point club. Made some great new friends, helped out a lot in other breed rings and Alec is now venturing into the hound ring with some whippets to show this summer.

David got sick on Tuesday. He's just the greatest sick person-not. To which he was so pleasant to share with me. Yuck. And on my 40th birthday too. We won't even start to discuss that as those that know me realize I never celebrate it, encourage others to totally forget about it, otherwise, something bad happens. And it did.

Alec's special girl is not well. She started looking a little off Wednesday and first thing Thursday Lace ended up at Doc's. Unfortunately the diagnosis was not good-closed pyometra. Emergency spay. Still not good. She's lost about 10 lbs, not eating, big time meds, low temp and white count-I won't even say what that was. Three days at Doc's and lots of TLC. Luckily she's turned the corner and blood count is close to normal, temps normal and she got to come home today. Ate a bowl of hamburger and rice once she got home and David's playing nurse the rest of the weekend......because we are at a dog show.

So I mentioned my lovely little Nicky was needing one point to finish? Nope, not anymore!!!! Today Nick took WD and BOW to finish his championship. The road to that was long-well not long in the show ring but long in paperwork. Canadian registration mess, then you have to wait on AKC and it wasn't until he was 2 that he actually made it in the ring. One show, then off for months. Once Alec got a chance to handle him, it was lickity split for those points to pile up. I'm so happy for his mom, Deb, his other mother, Sheryl and the fact that I can now be called his other mother. I have a sweet spot for him and he's pretty special to me. Can't wait to see where this takes us now.

And...the long dry spell was broken and Ruff Ruff took BOB. Not a bad day at the dog show, eh? Oh forgot---PIE!!! Ummm, this show is the home of the pies. I had a piece early on to make sure I had some.

But now we are back at Camp Gibson, playing a little Wii and having a great time with great friends. So I guess the crappy week ended pretty darn well.

Later gators....
C