Alrighty Then....

  Mr. PJ, the old dog, has been feeling downright poorly for the past few months.  As matter of fact, I was quite worried and still am.  He had bouts of congestion, aches and pains and fatigue.  My poor old buddy was ailing.  After poking him full of just about every known medication in the world (yes, extreme exaggeration there), he showed no signs of improvement. It was disheartening, to say the least.

  Late this evening after he was all settled in for the night, he suddenly stood up and stared at me.  I talked with him a bit and patted his head.  It did nothing to appease him.  He stood.  He stared.  Well, that was a bit unnerving.  I decided that perhaps he would like a treat.  Since the vet put Mr. PJ on a diet, I looked at my list of fruits and chose a banana.  I ate most of it but gave the dog several chunks.  Then he started eyeing my drink. Well...I checked and, yes, he could have pineapple juice.  My well-meaning intentions did not go over so well, however.  I poured about a tablespoon of the juice into his food bowl and waited.  Mr. PJ loves to eat.  Anything that hits that bowl is his and he quickly devours it.  Anything except pineapple juice, obviously.   He took one lap with his tongue and his head jerked up.  He gave me the oddest look as if to say, "What is that junk?  How can you drink it?"  I giggled, quickly took the bowl away and gave him a treat instead.  That did it.  Mr. PJ promptly walked to the door and waited to go outside.  I obliged but, since it was cold, refused to go down the hill.  He would just have to be satisfied with a short walk.  

  Once we were back inside, the old dog had more energy than I have seen in him for months.  He nudged me to keep walking around inside.  Well, maybe he needed exercise?  So we made loops around the furniture in the living room. This soon turned into a game with him trying to "catch" me.  He would dodge this way and that trying to confuse me.  Goodness!  He has not played in a year!  Then, when he cornered me, he tried to grab the hem of my jacket to play tug-o-war.  Oh, no!  The vet had already banned that game.  I tried to get my jacket back and Mr. PJ did his play barking!  WHAT??  He has not barked (even at strangers) in six months!  This was different!  I tried to calm him by distracting him.  We walked to the kitchen where he hurriedly cleaned the floor of all crumbs and extra cat food.  This, too, was something he has not done in a long time.  In fact, he has not done much of anything for a long, long time.  What was up tonight?  After our interesting playtime, Son took the old dog out for yet another outing.  This time, they went all the way down the hill where Mr. PJ wished to traipse in the marsh.  Thankfully, Son had the foresight to leash the old fellow before beginning the walk so there was no marsh tromping.  A half hour later, they came back inside but Mr. PJ's energy was not expended, as of yet.  More circling the furniture and cleaning the floors.  Afterward, he spied the cat.  He tried to get a good game of chase going with Ms. Nycto but she was having no part of it.  

  All of this is a bit confusing.  One part of me is in hopes that it is a sign that he is finally getting well.  Another, more disturbing side, has a nagging feeling that perhaps he needed one more day of being a puppy.  Hopefully, the first is true and there will be many, many more days of puppy-like feelings.  He and I both so enjoyed our evening....even with the foul-tasting pineapple juice incident!  I will say a little prayer that he is on the mend.

Doggy Bronchitis

  I learn something new every day of my life.  Well, I make it a goal to at least try to learn something new and, usually, life presents the opportunity.  Today's lesson was not one that I would have chosen but reality never gives us the choice at times.  

  For the past few days, the old dog, Mr. PJ, has been feeling poorly.  One night, I noticed that he was gagging and coughing.  Hmmm?  At first, I thought he merely had a slight sinus drip but the poor dog could not rest.  It kept up all night.  Thinking it was a temporary situation, I waited.  Two more nights (and days) of the same coughing and I decided it was time for him to see a doctor.  Once there, the doc gave PJ a thorough checkup and decided he had bronchitis.  Hey...I did not even know dogs could get bronchitis!  So..this was the start of a lesson in health.  The vet asked if I habitually use air fresheners or other sprays around the dog.  Nope.  Do you use heavy cleansers around him.  Nope.  Is he around anybody that smokes?  Nope.  How about exhaust fumes?  Does he stay in the garage?  Nope..I don't have a garage.  The list went on and on until he hit upon something that may have irritated the lungs of Mr. PJ.  Has he walked through any tall grass that may have gone to seed?  Yes!!!  Bam!  Allergies may have triggered the bronchitis!

  Mr. PJ and I hike about the hillside on a thrice daily basis.  It is good exercise for him (and me!) and gives me a much needed break from chores.  Recently, we pushed a bit further than our normal course and made our way through a rather weedy patch.  Mr. PJ thought this was great fun as he was interested in the mice that darted in and out of the grass. Although it excited him, he made no attempt to pounce on any as his pouncing days are far behind him.  He did linger longer than usual in the grass patch.  It never occurred to me that this could be a factor in his overall health.  Duh!  I guess I never realized it because none of our other dogs had allergies. 

  So...I learned several things.  Dogs can get bronchitis, there is a myriad of things that can trigger the stuff and tall grass may be a cause of worry.  Ok, Mr. PJ.  Get well soon and we will reroute our hikes to avoid any potential allergy trails for you.

One Sick Pup!

  Ms. Ez is all dog.  She may think she is human by the way she has always been treated but she is definitely all dog.  As with all dogs, she has a few disgusting habits with one being the nauseating delight of drinking putrid water.  If she finds a puddle, bucket, pond or drain that has foul-smelling liquid, she will definitely take a sip or lap it up until nothing is left.  I reprimand her to no end but it goes in one ear and out the other.  Invariably, with her drinking the nastiness, she falls ill....every time.  Does she learn from the experience?  NOOOO!  Let one stagnant puddle come within her range and she drinks.  She has even gone so far as to sneak behind my back to imbibe in the slop.  Then she...and I pay.

  About four days ago, my brother stopped by the Little Bayou House bright and early in the morning.  While we were talking, Ms. Ez quietly slipped out of sight. Five minutes later, I heard a familiar lapping sound. STOP!  I knew her outside water bowl was empty and she had to have found something nasty!  I was right.  

  Now, she is ill and I am doctoring a dog.  Her tummy is incessantly gurgling and she feels miserable. She refuses to leave my side so most of my day has been spent with a dog sleeping on my foot.  The vet's office will not be open until tomorrow morning so, in the meantime, I do whatever I can to calm the innards of an ailing dog.  Thank goodness for herbs and berries.  What we don't do for our furry friends!

Lots of Little Fish, A Sick Dog and a Terrifying Blanket!

Last night was a night of unbelievably bad sleeping!  Not that I was awake by choice but rather I was up most of the night due to things not so pleasant.  Mark and I had made a trip to the pier late yesterday evening to catch a few fish.  Menhaden (our bait of choice) were everywhere and fish were having a wonderful time catching their fill.  As usual, Ms. Ez, the Bayou Dog, went with us. And, as usual, she ate a number of the small fishy menhaden.  She loves these things!  Raw fish has never been to my liking, personally, so I do not see the allure of her actions.  Still, the wiggly fish seem to delight her..or at least they have in the past.  Perhaps I should say..they still delighted her but not her tummy.  About midnight last night, she got sick.  Violently!  I am really fortunate that the old dog knows to "hold it" until she is outside but those outside breaks kept me hopping all night.

At first, I was a bit bewildered what was happening.  Ms. Ez knows to head to the door when she feels ill and she did just that.  Except things were a bit different this time.  Instead of her leaving her bed behind, the bed went with her!  Let me clarify that her "bed" is not only the normal doggy bed but is layered with three folded blankets.  It is very soft and comfy for an old dog.  Last night when she jumped up to head to the door, her top blanket became tangled on her toenail.  Not good!  Not good indeed!  The poor, old dog who was already feeling strange now had a blanket following her!  Since the blanket was attached to her front paw, she kept stepping on it with her back feet.  This would make her tumble to the floor.  When I first heard this, I had no idea what was happening!  In the pitch blackness of the night, I heard what sounded like a drunk person stumbling in my living room!  I flipped on the light to see a dog stumbling around the room all the while trying not to puke inside the house!  Poor old thing!  Now, I had a choice..open the door and let her drag that blanket down the steps and into the night or try to remove it.  I opted for the removal.  This was going to have to be a quick operation, though, as her heaves were getting stronger by the second!  I grabbed a pair of scissors and snipped a hunk out of the blanket.  Just as I opened the door, she bolted!  Whew!  We made it in time!  That was not the end of the menhaden episode, however.  Thirty-two times I had to fly to open the door for a sick dog!  Between midnight and seven in the morning, I did not even attempt to sleep!  At daybreak, I looked at her and she was sound asleep.  My goodness!  Now that I could not sleep, she was out like a baby!  So, no rest for me!

This evening while on the pier, I mentioned to Mark that Ms. Ez still had a piece of the blanket caught on her toenail.  I had not been able to pull it all the way off because it had actually split the nail and was wedged very tightly.  He reached over and pulled the snippet of rag from her nail with no problems.  Other than a ragged nail, she is none the worse for wear.  Tomorrow, she will get a pedicure!  Me...I am exhausted!  This evening, we made sure that this old dog did not eat any raw fish!