On one of the chat lists I am on, there were comments made about the recent passing of a federal law prohibiting the interstate commerce of primates. Why oh why, when our economy is in the crapper, are our federal legislators making monkeys of themselves? Why should they care about this type of issue at this time?!
Another person on that list expressed the sentiment that I will expand upon here...with the passage of this one, it's going to be mighty difficult for politicians to get to their DC offices if chimps can't travel across state lines!!
Your tax $$ at work (not!)
Gosh - I can't wait to see what federal (or state, or local) travesty our politicians will come up with next to control dog breeders while the economy keeps making that great sucking sound.
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Some Knuckle Dragging Humor
Monday, February 23, 2009
Beta Hams It Up
Little Beta (Isaak/Serena), who lives with Martha in CT, was invited to a photo shoot for a dog products catalog. Martha sent some emails about the experience and has allowed me to post them here. I am so proud that he was such a good little ambassador for Silkens and for Gryffyn's Aeyrie. I get "Beta Stories" and photos regularly, so I get to experience vicariously his antics.
Below is a picture of Beta modeling one of Martha's biothane collar creations. Check out her website to see more of them!
He was so well-behaved and such a hit they ended up asking us to stay for the whole day and using him for three products instead of one. He got to spend the day lying on a luxurious dog bed in the main house, rather than crated like the ‘heathen’ dogs and he even joined us all for lunch. Once he realized what was expected of him was to just lay there (on a fluffy throw, or in front of an ornate dog gate), and get praised for looking at us when we told him to, he was totally into it. He was still posing when the cameras were put away, and we had to remove him from the overstuffed antique couch, where I guess he thought he was staying for the night—which by the way, would have been fine with the owner of the estate!
They got some really nice pictures—cute shots with ears up, as well as very elegant shots with the “Sighthound” gaze. They are going to send me a CD with all the pictures and I’ll post them to the photos section when I get it.
There was an AKC breed judge there who totally fell in love with him and was watching for us to arrive. When she found out a Silken Windhound was coming to the photo shoot, she looked up the breed standards and history and she was duly impressed with Beta.
We had to make a stop at a Borzoi breeder vet on the way to the shoot this am. He has wanted to see Beta since he arrived here in September. When we got there he was in surgery, but ungloved and ungowned to come out and stack Beta and go over him. He was duly impressed, as well.
It was a great day for the little Silken Windhound boy.
The last shot they did on the antique couch was of him lying on a big fur throw the color of a fox/rabbit. Long haired, very realistic. When I brought him into the room and he saw it, his ears went straight up and I thought, "Ut-oh, he's going to kill the product--the very expensive product," but when he felt how comfortable it was to lay on, he just stretched out and lounged.
He had to be carried back and forth through the house all day because of the high polish on the floors, and 'placed' into position so as not to disturb the set-up. Hope he doesn't expect that treatment at home!
I got a call from the photographer's assistant last night thanking me and telling me how much they liked him and what a cooperative model he was. Can't tell him, though, seems like the experience has already gone to his head--I caught him posing on the bed signing autographs for the Berners this am!! LOL!
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Some Recent Successes
The past couple show weekends have been good to us. At the Fort Bend Shows in mid-January J/T was Winners Dog both days (with a Best of Winners on Sunday) and Solo was BOB both days. The joy was dampened a bit by the overworked Astro van's fuel pump dying about a mile from the show site on Sunday. Since my would-be rescuer (my dad) was with me...I was feeling pretty darned stuck! Thanks to a fellow Borzoi-fancier, Krista Hunt, we got back to Dad's house after the van was picked up by AAA. Krista was so kind (thank you thank you THANK YOU!) to drive us across town to northwest Houston from Richmond (south west of Houston).
At the AAWC AKC lure trials the following weekend, J/T was 2nd on Saturday for 1 point and on Sunday won the Open stake and BOB for a 3 point major. We tried running Buster again - but he is still afraid of the other dogs after the collision he experienced the last time out. I guess the boy is going to need some time. At least his brother Wulfie is showing some promise.
At the San Marcos shows just this past weekend, J/T was Winners Dog both days and again Best of Winners on the second day. Solo was Best of Breed both days and also took a Group 2 on Saturday! The girls (Faina and Bugg) didn't fare so well - I had really hoped to get that last 2 singles on Bugg.
I also received word from Sylvia that Sasha (Gryffyn's Aeyrie Sonorus, Solo ex. Duri) was Winners Dog at the Friday RMBC trophy supported entry in Denver. Sasha also won Best Opposite Puppy in Sweepstakes at the RMBC Specialty Show the next day (same as the last RMBC Specialty Sweeps, when he was defeated by sister Nox) and also was Reserve Winners on Monday (to the father of Sassi's litter, Glaze).
Monday, February 16, 2009
Hallelujah!
Thank goodness I at least have somewhere to start after over 6 years of dealing with the chronic fatigue, which in the last year began to include chronic pain. Not to mention an increasing frequency and intensity of migraine headaches.
I went in to the doctor's office Monday a week ago and talked with a new fellow at the clinic. This guy had also helped me when I fell in the yard and twisted my knee and exacerbated the back issues. I liked him then, and I like him even more now!
He requested more blood testing, but chose some panels that had not been done before. He also was not dismissive when I asked for something on Vitamin D after Rebecca had suggested it to me.
He also gave me some sample meds to try for the migraines. Since I had been fighting one since 4 that morning, and it felt like it was trying to come on strong again around 6 that evening, I tried a Treximet. BAD IDEA! It felt like I had set my head on fire!! The back of my head and neck just started to throb with jabbing pain, and my lower jaw started to feel tight. Worst feeling EVER! I rolled up a heating pad and laid my head on it and waited for it to pass - it took almost an hour. I would have just preferred the migraine. When I spoke to the assistant at the clinic Friday about test results, I related my experience to her and he has now called in a scrip for Midrin. Here's hoping it helps on the next migraine event.
Thyroid results are not yet back, but some others are...
- Of the two panels for Vitamin D - one came back low.
- Elevated WBC (white blood cell) count - indicating infection somewhere
- Also, some inflammatory markers indicating autoimmune disease issues came back elevated.
So....today I managed to make an appointment with a rheumatologist. The bad news is that the first appointment available for new patients is March 17 (I took it, of course). The good news - maybe I can get some definitive answers now - hallelujah!!
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Website Redesign - ISWS
Years ago I had done the ISWS (International Silken Windhound Society) web site - and now I have re-done it! A CSS table-less layout with some updated graphics and a more aesthetic appeal. The organization has grown during the past few years adding various programs so we needed to update the navigation a bit and I also added an area for "quick links" at the bottom to expedite finding various forms and policies and other more popular areas of the site. The index page is a different layout than the rest of the site.
I will eventually add more images so that the picture on the index page and the picture at the top right of the other pages will rotate automatically.
Friday, January 30, 2009
Gimme a Break...But Not That Kind!! (Arthur)
Arthur is due to turn 11 years old this coming March. He is pictured to the left at the 2008 LGRA/NOTRA National Race Meet after participating in the Legends program. On Tuesday, Arthur managed to break his left rear leg just below the knee. We have no idea how he managed this feat - whether he ran into something, or slipped on the slick ground (he and half-brother Burni do not go out slowly), or if he managed to hit a hole or uneven spot in the yard just right. But, regardless of how he managed it, he certainly busted himself up.
We were already getting iced in and since Arthur seemed otherwise normal, not shocky, and eating and drinking, we decided to wait until our vet opened in the morning. It ended up being delayed thanks to the ice storm - the clinic didn't open until noon. Arthur laid on the couch and shared bites of cinnamon toast. The University wasn't opening until 1 pm (they later opted to close for the entire day) and Victor had called in and worked from home later in the evening - so we attempted to wait patiently until the time to head for the clinic.
Dr. Lindsley wanted to knock Arthur out to take the x-rays so we left him there (he was not that pleased about it). The report we received later was disheartening - it was bad enough that she asked if I even wanted him woke up from the anesthesia - as she knows how bad it's been for us lately. But, that was not an option. He was too bright and his normal, happy, mama's boy even while hurting. He had broken both the tibia and fibula just below the knee joint. She said this can absolutely only be handled by a specialist and that it was going to involve a lot of pins and plating, and, of course $$. So...off to the next clinic.
The specialist was not as taken aback as our regular vet, but as he said, he works with it every day. He said on a scale of 10, this was a 8.5-9 but that it was certainly fixable. From the x-ray and type of break (very clean & sharp edges) it did not seem to indicate brittle or unhealthy bone at this time. He also did not think that Arthur had blown out the knee or involved ligaments since it was so close to the joint. We went through a health and surgical history - I didn't realize that pretty
much the only things he has seen the vet for since his "toe incident" ages upon ages ago, was for rabies shots and prostate exams, with the exception of a recent trip for a stubborn ear infection. The vet was encouraged by his activity level for his age, and the fact that he was still "up" and acting normally despite the injury (not depressed). He said there was always a possibility that this was cancer related, but it doesn't seem obvious at the moment - and he was optimistic about fixing the leg.
So I just flat told him what I had between my CareCredit and Visa balance and he thought it was doable. Since I haven't heard of bone cancer in Arthur's immediate pedigree, I opted to have them do surgery to repair his leg. I had contemplated amputation, thinking this would be over $5-6K to even attempt repair, but since the estimate was quite a bit under that...I decided to attempt the fix. If for some reason the bone appears unhealthy when they go in, we would discuss amputation.
I picked up Arthur this evening from the clinic. They showed me his post-op x-rays - what a jumble! The fibula (I think that's right - the smaller bone) is actually still broken as it is encased in a mass of muscle. Since, according to the vet, the muscle was all healthy and in good tone, they are leaving it to heal on its own since it is not a weight-bearing bone.
There sure was lots of metal in that x-ray too! If I'd been thinking I would have snapped a shot with my phone. Haven't seen any of the metal yet as it's wrapped up, but I will be changing the wrap tomorrow evening. He was happy to see me, but seemed almost frantic and panting heavily...I was upset because it's the first time that he has really looked....old.
He went for walkies when we got home - he had peed a bit when I was trying to get him out of the van so I figured he needed to empty out before coming in. It was apparently too much because about halfway to the door after taking care of business, he pretty much collapsed into a sit then laid down. Before I got too frantic, he got back up and we made it to the living room. He drank a bunch of water, and then I got worried about that since he was starting to seem tight in the flank, but when I put pressure there, he burped and it faded. I popped a Gas-X into him to make myself
feel better because by this time I was about to stroke out!
He is now ensconced in our bedroom in an expen - we figured that even with the cats present, it would be quieter for him than in a living room full of rowdy girls. At one point when we had left him alone in the living room (the house divas were all in the yard) he climbed on the couch, which is NOT allowed per vet's instructions. He hasn't seemed too excited or perturbed by the cats, even when CC stuck her paw through the bars and tried to touch his face (she's a bit too social). I can tell that he's tired of just lying on his right side, and he gets uncomfortable when he wants to move, and you can see him shifting...and then he'll just sigh and lie back down. He has an antibiotic and some pain meds. I can see the bruising around his hock just underneath the wrap. I am just dumbfounded on how he did this to himself!
His appearance is not enhanced by his military haircut up to his hip and over the left flank. He also has lovely razor rash along his sheath (it looks like a wine birthmark!) and his now overly visible dangly bits also got burned. Lovely. I am stressed and scared and oh so hopeful that he heals well. They did take a sample to send for testing to see if there were any signs of cancer. Fingers crossed.
Our vet is coming Monday for our yearly "rabies roundup". I guess Arthur is getting out of a prostate exam for now! She will check Kal out to see how he's progressing. Hopefully we will just keep on giving him time with no special procedures...maybe he will go through another round of steroids, and that's likely the best we can afford now.
What a gamut of emotions this has been - stressed, frightened, wondering if it will turn to devastation, then a touch of relief. I really feel like I need to find a dark corner, collapse in a heap and just cry for a while.
For now, I will just deal with the new discovery that when he is exhausted...Arthur snores.
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