Raven, January 3, 2012

I had every intention of wishing everyone a Happy New Year and recouting our adventureous move to Florida, as you can see from the above December date. However, we now find that course has been altered by our beautiful, senior poodle, Raven.

This photo was taken in July on our front porch while Raven and Cooper cooled off escaping the hot Florida sun. He looks great, doesn't he? To our dismay, that was then. Now...

We wanted to share this latest adventure with all his animal and human friends. It's not an "oh happy days" story, yet one we are obligated to share.

Raven has had difficulty with his hind end for almost a year, to the point that it was getting more difficult to jump up on furniture and our bed, which he LOVES to do. This October we decided to take him for some physical therapy. He has never been diagnosed with joint problems, but becasue of his age he was thought to have a little arthritis. An occassional rimadyl usually calmed his discomfort. We found a vet that we love who does PT, using a cold laser, massage and water therapy. Raven began his treatments in early November and for a few weeks really enjoyed his sessions and seemed better. By mid December it was evident that he wasn't improving and actually getting worse. We discontinued the therapy, hoping to return at a later date. December 15th. x-rays were taken of his back and it was determined his issues lay in the thoracic area of his spine and not the lumbar area. We then began a regiment of prednesone and tramadol for pain. He continued downward and we were referred to a neurologist for further evaluation. Raven was seen on Friday, the 30th, for a consult, blood work and a urinalysis. It was recommended we wean Raven off his present meds to get a clearer view of where his pain was located. On Sunday Raven started urinating blood and was put on an antibiotic and showed some improvement. However, later that day he began pacing and panting in real discomfort. We gave him pain medication, and I administered acupuncture. Within three hours he began to calm down. He returned on Monday to the neurologist for further evaluation. His blood work showed an increase in red and white blood cells and the urinalisis was also showing signs of problems. Many recommendations were made. We decided to do an abdominal ultrasound. Within the hour Raven had been scanned and a bladder mass was indentified. We abandoned all further neurological tests and were given an appointment with an oncologist for the next morning. Dawn broke and we awoke to the horrible sight of a dog that had lost his spirit. Laying with head down and hard breathing plus no strength to rise up, Raven seemed not of this world. Keep in mind, this all through the eyes of two people that had been crying all night, with their spirits broken. His dad leashed him up, nearly carrying him outside, and to his surprise, Raven woke up and began to yank his dad around the yard and bark at the little "yapper" across the street. He also barked at me to receive a treat from his cookie jar. In our dpression we were too quick to resign ourselves to the inevitable. Many lessons are to be learned by this , yet no time, off to the oncologist. Raven, as we've known him, arrived to entertain, love and lick all the staff, as he relished in the attention from all. What a guy! The oncologist was amazing in her demeanor and explanation of options. We have chosen the least invasive and most comfortable course to follow, based, primarily, on his age and our own beliefs.
We received many details to ponder along with many different possible expectations. John and I are comfortable in our decisions and appreciate what we've learned about the animal friends, that the the Good Lord has loaned us for a "breif time". The "purest" form of Love is exemplified by these creatures that live their lives to ask one question of us. " Did I do good, did I. Huh Huh; did I???"

We are blessed with such a "Dream Team": our family vet, Dr. Ann Silverness; our neurologist, Dr. Jeff Clarke, and our oncologist, Dr. Tracy LaDue.

And, of course, We thank God, for rewarding us all with such a joyous responsibility.

We will report regularly on this blog to keep all his friends updated on his journey. Please keep us all in your prayers, as you are in ours.

A Brief Woof Pause

"Hi, remember me? I'm Cooper. Raven, Max, Mom and Dad are very busy packing boxes. We are moving our doggie houses to a new home. We will be back soon with lots of new stories and Mom will tell you about some of her acupuncture 'best friends.' So for now from all of us, WOOF, Woof, & woof!"

Can You Guess What This Is?| Dog Humor

One of our favorite friends, Kathy sent us this when she visited Ireland last year. The photo is entitled, "Poodles," by Murdo MacLeod. I wonder if their 'woof' has an Irish lilt to it??

Our Dog Hero, Brutus | Dog Heroics

Raven: "This is a great story about a super heroic dog that some of our dog friends sent us on Mom's cyber space thingy. Cooper says he wants to be just like him when he grows up......ha, that'll be the day!"

"Meet, Brutus a military K9 at McChord. He's huge - part Boxer and part British Bull Mastiff and tops the scales at 200 lbs. His handler took the picture. Brutus is running toward me because he knows I have some Milk Bone treats, so he's slobbering away! I had to duck around a tree just before he got to me in case he couldn't stop, but he did.

Brutus won the Congressional Medal of Honor last year from his tour in Iraq. His handler and four other soldiers were taken hostage by insurgents. Brutus and his handler communicate by sign language and he gave Brutus the signal that meant 'go away but come back and find me.'

The Iraqis paid no attention to Brutus. He came back later and quietly tore the throat out of one guard at one door and another guard at anothe door. He then jumped against one of the doors repeatedly (the guys were being held in an old warehouse) until it opened. He went in and untied his handler and they all escaped.

He's the first K9 to receive this honor. If he knows you're ok, he's a big old lug and wants to sit in your lap. He also enjoys the company of cats."

Hope you found this interesting? You can never hear enough stories about animal intelligence and their bonding with us humans!

Hugging A Baby, Doggie Style | Dog Humor

Instructions for properly hugging a baby
(from a dog's point of view)

1. First, uh, find a baby.

2. Second, be sure that the object you found was indeed a baby, by empolying classic sniffing techniques.

3. Next, you will need to flatten the baby before actually beginning the hugging process.

4. Ah, the 'paw slide'.....simply slide paws around baby and prepare for possible close-up.

5. Finally, if a camera is present, you will need to execute the difficult and patented "hug, smile, and lean' so as to achieve the best photo quality.

NOW THAT'S DOG LOVE!
*Internet source unknow.

A Dog's Ten Commandments| Dog Love

"Good day to all you wonderful humans, and any of my little furry dog buddies out there who can read.

Since I am the wise old man of my pak, I thought it was my duty (I could have said, responsibility, but Mom didn't think I could spell it) to share some thoughts with you on how we dogs like to be treated.

I promise to get back to more fun stuff, but hey once in awhile a dogs got to say what a dogs got to say. Know what I mean? It's the yin and yang of life. Some days are filled with cookies, long walks and sunshine, other days are waiting by the window for hours for Mom and Dad to come home.

By the way, I didn't write these commandments (although I could have.) Mom received them on her cyber thingy and read them to me.

Please read on (polite too, aren't I?)

Oodles of licks to you and have a woof of a day"!


A Dog's Ten Commandments:

1. My life is likely to last 10-15 years. Any separation from you is likely to be painful.

2. Give me time to understand what you want of me.

3. Place your trust in me. It is crucial for my well-being,

4. Don't be angry with me for long and don't lock me up as punishment. You have your work, your friends, your entertainment, but I have only you.

5. Talk to me. Even if I don't understand your words, I do understand your voice when speaking to me.

6. Be aware that however you treat me, I will never forget it. But, I will forgive you.

7. Before you hit me, before you strike me, remember that I could hurt you, and yet, I choose not to bite you.

8. Before you scold me for being lazy or uncooperative, ask yourself if something might be bothering me. Perhaps I'm not getting the right food? Maybe, I have been in the sun too long, or my heart might be getting old and weak.

9. Please take care of me when I grow old. You too, will grow old. I promise not to leave your side when you do.

10. On the ultimate difficult journey, go with me please. Never say you can't bear to watch. Don't make me face this alone. Everything is easier for me if you are there, because I love you so.

Enjoy and love your pets. They are a gift from God, please treat them as such!

The Dog Jumped Over the Moon | Dog Lovers

"Hey diddle diddle the cat and the fiddle, woof, woof, woof and the little dog laughed to see such a woof, woof, woof, and the phish ran away with the poon! Woof, woof, woof."

"Cooooper, you are basting my wheels, dude. I am trying to catch some zzzzzzzzzzzz's!"

"Sorry, Rave, but cept I'm stoked today. Mom gave me some of her sgetti, and it was scumdilly ump!"

" You act like a blond poodle some time, Coop. Chill out. Max is zoned too. Remeber he just had seventeen teeth pulled. Have you already forgotten that? I don't why you have to be so happy all the time anyway! You can be so annoying!"

"HEY, you guyes, sssstttooop the yakking. OOOOOOOOOHHHHH, yowl, my mouth hurts.!"

"Max, s-l-easy, we'll talk lower. S'ok, buddy we got you covered. If any UPS trucks come by or any of those loud bacon cruiser roll by we'll let em know whose the scrappers are!"

"Shanks."

"Rave, why is Max talking so weird. He sounds like he's having a bad hair day?"

"Why do I have to explain everything to you? Man, I didn't ask for a baby brother. What was Mom thinking? Ok, bubble head LISTEN UP........MAX GOT 17 TEETH PULLED OUR OF HIS HEAD. IT HURTS. HE CAN'T OPEN HIS MOUTH TO EAT! So how's he's gonna talk clearly? GOT IT?"

"Sanks for plaining it to me, Big R. 'Zippudy do dah, zippy yeah, my, oh my, what a wunderful day. Penty of shine comin my way, zippudy do day......"

"SHADDUP!"

"Oh, I'm goin tell Mom! She said no baf words from you, R!"

"Do that and I rip your throat out, you little mutt! Spoons on the couch, I gotta go get a kool drink. I get so thirsty yelling at you all the time."

"Whats a guy have to do around here to have a little fun. Livin with you old guys is a draaaaggggg! Mary had a little dog, little dog, woof, woof, woof as snow!"