Yay! Blog!
Category: Animals

I made a video in response to the "Sorry, Internet" video seen here:



My response - my Orion, Ripley and Lily not being cute:



Sundry and Dodger did it before me!

I took Lily to the vet today. She had a lump on her lip about 1/3 inch in diameter. It just showed up this week. While at the vet, we noticed her gums were inflamed and rough. So they cut off the lump and took a biopsy of her gums. The lump and biopsy will be sent off to a lab for testing. I'll get the test results late next week.

The vet also looked down her throat because I had noticed her bark's been sounding funny. Her tonsils are inflamed and her windpipe below her larynx is ulcerous. The vet doesn't know what's going on. If antibiotics don't clear it up, the vet wants to give her a shot of steroids.

On top of that, Orion goes to the vet tomorrow to have bloodwork. When I took him 3-4 months ago, the vet found something she was concerned about. Not concerned enough to treat it, but concerned enough for me to bring him in again. I'll get those results next week, too.

I'm too numb from other things in my life to feel the worry. I do hope everything turns out okay, though. I love my babies so much.

The lump on Lily's chest is just a chunk of fat. Nothing to worry about. The vet didn't know what to say about her bark sounding raspy. Lily wouldn't bark so she could hear or even let her look in her mouth. The vet gave me some antibiotics thinking that it might be an infection. If that doesn't clear it up, I'll take her back.

I'm taking Lily to the vet tomorrow. She's had a squishy lump on her chest ever since I got her. I have a ghost of a memory that the vet checked it once and told me not to worry about it unless it changed size or shape. But now I'm second guessing my memory. Maybe I never had the vet look at it.

She is also barking funny. She usually has a strong deep bark, but now it's weak and raspy. I don't know how they'll check that. She doesn't bark often, and I can't make her bark. Plus, she won't sit still for them to look down her throat. She is extremely nervous and wiggly at the vet's office.

I hope it's nothing.

Last week, I got pooped on by a Cedar Waxwing. There were a whole slew of them up in a tree going crazy for some red berries (what I call Barbie Tomatoes). I was stupid to walk under the tree, but whatever. *Poop*

This week, about 50 Cedar Waxwings were found dead a little north of downtown Austin. Apparently, they ate a bunch of Barbie Tomatoes that were fermented. They got drunk and forgot how to keep warm when the temperature dropped (i.e., puff up their feathers and sit in a tree).

Then today, when I got back to work from lunch, there were a whole bunch of them pooping all over the picnic tables behind my building. They were pooping like I've never seen birds poop before!!!!

Watch out for the Cedar Waxwings.

Ripley curled up in the paper bin under my printer. PK got comfortable on the grill.

The new family member, Ripley.

This week being Spring Break, the doggy play day place where I take LilyDawg on workdays was full with boarding dogs, so they weren't having play day. Usually they let Lily come play anyway since she's a regular, but I decided to conduct an experiment. I took long lunches every day to come home and walk her. Here's what I learned:

• Lily did great! She was home from 4-5 hours in the morning and from 5-6 hours in the afternoon. I haven't found any "accidents."
• I didn't do so great. Not that I had any "accidents." I really hated having the commitment of coming home. I crave flexibility, and lunch time wasn't flexible this week.
• Every day, I had something that "crowded" my lunchtime. I was taking lunch from 11:00 to 1:00. Monday, I had a presentation at 1:00, and I needed to be back at 12:30 to prepare causing me to really rush home and rush back. Tuesday at 11:00 leaving time, I was doing research for a possible purchase that needed to be done *that* day and ASAP. Wednesday at 11:00, I was deep into programming some php magic on a new html form and didn't want to stop. Thursday, I had a meeting from 10:00 - 11:00 and was scheduled to have another "brief" meeting afterward. Luckily, it didn't happen, but the anticipation of it stressed me out. Conclusion: A long 11:00 - 1:00 lunch sounds like it would relieve stress, but it just causes more.
• Lily met me at the door with kisses both times I came home each day (lunch and after work). She never does that when I come home from the store or some other small excursion. Nor when I pick her up at day care.
• I'll be glad to have her back in day care next week. I think she'll be happy to see her doggy friends, too. Especially Ramrod the Beagle.