Day with the dogs :)

My Christmas card picture :) Spin actually didn't fight the hat!

I loved his expression in this one!

And a show dog picture since we had the camera out!

I'm Thankful Day 9

Today, I'm thankful for my dog show life. I have met so many people I wouldn't have otherwise had the opportunity to meet. I've been around wonderful dogs. There have been ups and downs, but I wouldn't change it. I've wondered why I still do it many times, and have had a few long-ish breaks, but I always come back. Will I do it forever, who knows, but for now, it is what I do and it makes me happy. There is less of it with school now, but I don't see it changing much in the foreseeable future.

Here are some of the dogs throughout the years.

Bear as a baby

Carlee as a baby

Spin the day after I got him.

Macy Moo

And the dog that has my heart even though he isn't with me anymore, Marlin

What a week!

Oh.em.geeee.

I ended up being awake about 22 hours yesterday. Sadly I ended up at the emergency vet about 10pm with Spin. I went to let him outside around 9 for the last time and he couldn't pee. He was hunching his back and definitely wasn't himself. Having had Dalmatians for about 12 years, I knew he was blocked. Mom agreed with me so off to the emergency clinic we went.

A little backstory. Dals are the only breed to have an automatic high uric acid concentration, which can lead to urate stones. Not all will form stones or block, but blocking has a higher occurrence in males because of the narrow urethra.

Until last night, we had never had a dog block. Spin ended up having emergency surgery around 2 am. One incision at the penis to get the blocked stone out and then another at his bladder to clean it out, as he had a ton more stones.

He was in obvious pain and discomfort last night and I hated seeing him like that. He will now be on a special diet and medicine.

I'll just be glad when he gets to come home in a few days! I miss his antics and talkative ways (he loves to carry on conversations with his people)!

Heavy Heart

Anyone that has been following for any length of time knows that my dogs are a big part of my life.  A couple months ago I posted that our old girl, Marin, had thyroid cancer. Sadly, yesterday she lost her battle. Over the weekend she was starting to show signs of not acting like herself. She wasn't as eager to leave her crate, and she seemed to just not feel well.  Two months ago, we made her the promise that she wouldn't suffer, and yesterday we had to make good on that promise, as hard as it was. 

I still remember being so excited when mom got home from picking her up from her breeder. Dad and I were peeking out of the living room window when she hopped out of the van.  She was a wonderful girl, and gave us 11 amazing years being our pet.  She was truly a gem, and made an incredible impact on the Dalmatian breed from the whelping box.

Until we meet again my sweet girl...

Ah!

Today at the dog show I got a big surprise. Back at the beginning of the year, one of my dear friends was having a litter of Dalmatian puppies and offered me a show puppy. I passed at the time because of the wedding and we just had our whippet litter.

Well she was at the show today and still had the puppy she was originally wanting me to get. I'm pretty sure it was fate. With Marin sick and probably not going to be around much longer, I'm sure it was meant to be that we would both be at the same show. Not that he would replace her, but Dals are my heart breed. So he is now mine. He is mellow and laid back and loves everyone.

Rough Week

This has been a rough week.  Sunday would have been Marlin's 8th birthday.  For those that don't know, Marlin passed away 2.5 years ago after a very quick battle with juvenille renal failure.  He was my heart dog, and it was devastating to lose him so early in his life.

Marlin, July 2006

Yesterday was our consultation with the vet school about Marin's thyroid tumor.  Unfortunately, the oncologist confirmed what we knew, that it is cancer.  Treatment is hard on dogs. Just like people with cancer.  Where the tumor is, there is no way that the surgeon can get it all, it's too vascular.  Typical treatment would be surgery to get as much as possible then full course of radiation, consisting of 19 straight days of have to be put under anesthesia. <--That is what the American Veterinary Medical Association recommends as treatment.

The vet school recommended surgery, then chemo (no mention of radiation).  There are some weird numbers on the bloodwork associated with her pituitary gland, so it could mean it has spread (which we don't know for sure, and is a factor in if we do treatment or not).  The genius's at the vet school wanted to do surgery, then bloodwork, if the number is still off, THEN do an MRI to see if it has spread. Why not do the MRI before surgery?  That is what common sense tells me to do.  They should want to do all of the diagnostic testing before cutting on her.  I've also heard that the vet school here is very cut happy, even if it isn't in the best interest of the patient.  You think? 

So, while some won't agree, we are probably just going to keep her comfortable until it's her time.  Treatment would make her sick.  And we have no idea  She's had 11 wonderful years and is one of the best dogs someone could ask for. I want her to be herself for her entire life, no matter how short or long it may be.  She won't suffer. The first signs of suffering and we'll have a decision to make.  But that goes for any treatment. I don't want her to suffer through treatments either.

Marin, Summer of 2010

A Mish Mash

I have no actual one thought for this post, just a few thrown together.

1. I've been really good eating wise this week.  I hope the scale shows me some love on Monday.
2. Mom has decided to start walking with me after work most days of the week!  Hopefully that will give me the ass kicking, jumpstart that I need.
3. I'm not sure that I'm going to meet a single goal for March, and I'm not stressing about it.
4. Clayton and I have decided not to go on a honeymoon immediately after the wedding.  We have some furniture and appliances to upgrade/purchase first.  But we are planning to do on next spring for our 6 month anniversary.  I was bummed at first, but I'm ok with it now.  It is the smarter thing to do.
5. I only have 30 minutes of work left for today, then mom and I are headed to Raleigh to let the puppies play show dog at the match tonight!  Only my second dog related event since last July...
6. My old girl, Marin, has a thyroid tumor.  I felt it last Sunday, and our vet confirmed what we thought. She's almost 11 and the happiest dog ever.  We are taking her for a consultation with the vet school in a week and a half. 
7. I'm working on a wedding project that is bound to make a few people cry, including myself.

Now to leave you with a couple pictures :)

Kit Kat is becoming the perfect snuggle buddy!

Old girl Marin.  She surely doesn't act 11!

Hard Decision

Ugh, last night I had to make a decision about Blake. His breeder had him at a show over the weekend, and he was ok until Sunday, and was apparently like a different dog. 

I decided that with a marriage and a step-son in my future, I can't consiously risk Blake being freaked out and hurting someone.  So about 30 minutes ago I mailed all of his papers to his breeder with me signing off as owner.  I wrote a little note and put it in there and was in tears.  It was hard to do.  I love the Blakester, but I know that it wouldn't be fair to him to have to be crated when the kid is at our house.  He is wonderful with his people and I hope that she can get him out of whatever it is that is wrong with him, at least so he can be trusted.

I'll miss you Blakester, but I'm sure I'll see you some!

The promised update

I hate when I can't get a feel on the person interviewing me. On my end, I think it went well, but I couldn't get any kind of reaction from her. So we will see if I get a call back for an in person interview.

After the interview, I decided I needed my nails done. It's amazing how much just an hour of me time changed my mood. I'm going to have to start making this a regular thing in my life. 

Now I'm going to relax with the family and play with my puppies.

I'm also super excited about boyfriend time this weekend. I haven't seen him for two whole weeks!

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Be prepared

For lots of puppy pictures either Sunday or Monday.  The babies are finally seeing/hearing and have turned into dogs!  There will be lots of playtime this weekend!

2 more hours until my weekend begins.  Must take my car in for it's state inspection, and I'm going to go ahead and get an oil change/tire rotation while I'm there, so I don't have to make another trip in a month or two.  State inspection is free and so is the tire rotation! 

Then possibly stopping by Kroger to pick up a few things, then relaxation, and some good quality time with boyfriend.  I've been waiting for it all week!

Excitement!

For the first time in about a year, I'm excited about dogs again.  Don't get me wrong, I love the Blakester to death, but my luck hasn't been grand.

First was Brooke--whose front ended up doing weird things when she moved.
Second was Parker--who had an attitude problem and went back to the breeder.
Now there is Blakester--who I'm hoping gets over his attitude problem.

But, I'm not giving up on the Blakester yet.  I still am holding onto a little hope!

That is a lot of heartbreak on top of losing Marlin as such a young dog and having Bear get the infection in his eye. 

I never thought I'd say it, but I'm really excited about our current Whippet litter.  Like really excited.  So excited, that if there are a couple of really nice puppies, I'm thinking of keeping one for myself. 

Either way, mom has decided to hire me for the next couple of years to show the puppy she keeps out of this litter.  This includes the Whippet National in 2013...in Oregon.

Now a sensible person would hop a plane and fly...not us.  Right now we are thinking we will drive. I mean, we'll need crates and dog stuff, cooler, etc.  And it will be nice to not have to rent a vehicle, especially if we take multiple dogs.  And it would be such a pretty drive.  So I mapquested....2700 miles and about 42 hours.  So we could drive it in three days, show, then drive back.  I've never been further west than Illinois, so I'm excited :) 

Big Decisions

I've never been great at making big decisions. Ever.  That is no lie or secret. 

So, Blake doesn't seem to be doing wonderfully with his training with his co-breeder.  He apparently has decided he loves obedience, but still doesn't like having strangers come up and touch him (like he has to tolerate at shows).  The point is that I've, in the next couple months, need to make a decision on Blake.  Don't get me wrong, I love him dearly, and he is great with "his people", but not so much strangers.  But looking into the future, I know that me and boyfriend will get married, possibly by this time next year, which means I would have a step-son.  He is 3 now. I worry about Blake with a toddler unless something drastically changes in his attitude.  I'm going to have to make a decision, and it scares me to make the wrong one. No, I'm not making it today, but I will have to within the next few months.

The babies are growing!

They are getting huge! Fat little pigs is what they are.

A Special Birthday

Today is this guys 3rd birthday!

This is Bear.  He was my first bred-by Great Dane. 

If he thought he could fit on my lap today, he'd surely try! 

He is big and goofy, and to this day still loves to jump.

He was a good showdog, too!

Bear is one of those dogs that really helped me.  He was the dog that helped me get through some very rough times, including Marlin (the Dalmatian) passing away.  If it weren't for Bear, I'm honestly not sure I'd still be showing dogs today.  That is the truth.

He received a huge 5 point major from the bred-by class at just 8 months old (my first major on a dane).  And from there he picked up another 6 points, including 1 more major by the time he was a year old.  Sadly, right after his first birthday, he scratched his eye and got an infection, ending his very short show career, before he could finish his championship.

He now enjoys spending his time with his favorite people at home :)



Over Analyzing Shit.

That is something I do, and need to learn how to stop it.

Yesterday, me and boyfriend had our first arguement of sorts.  Last Friday I showed him the idea for a possible wedding that I told you about here.  To me, he didn't seem as excited as I would have expected.  I sort of let it go.  Yesterday I asked him what he visioned for that day, and he said anything from a church wedding to a gathering at a courthouse.  I took that as he wanted guests there.  Which would match up with his lack of excitement.  So, I said something about how he reacted last Friday.  He said that he liked that idea, too.  I felt like he was just trying to tell me what he thought I wanted to hear.

To make a long story short, we had a small arguement, about something stupid too.  We didn't talk all day.  We were talking yesterday evening, and everything seemed fine.

But I texted him when I was going to bed the usual "I'm heading to bed, sweet dreams, goodnight. I love you". His is usually the same or longer, but all I got was "goodnight, love you".

He always leaves me a voicemail to wake up to, and it didn't seem the same either this morning. 

^^See, I always over analyze crap. And I need to stop....



In other news, we lost a puppy yesterday.  She was the smallest, and was losing weight.  There was nothing wrong with her that could be seen, but it had to be something internal.  She was always cold, no matter what we did to warm her up, and she nursed, and we tube fed her for a day, but she still didn't make it.  Nature can be cruel sometimes.  But at least we have 8 healthy puppies and a healthy momma!

New Family!

Yesterday we welcomed 9 new babies to the family!

Macy, the Whippet, became a mom yesterday to 9 little ones, 5 girls and 4 boys.

Happy Belated Birthday

To this guy!

This is Blake, aka, the Blakester.  He turned 1 yesterday.  He's been spending the last couple months in Michigan with is co-breeder/co-owner being shown.  I miss him bunches.  But I know he's in good hands! 

Happy Birthday, Blakester!