Practically perfect…even at Hallowe’en

Let’s ponder OldDogBlogs “Practically perfect” from March 13, 2024 and “Brazen” from December 8, 2023. Essentially, let’s just add them together and see what comes out....  

Hallowe’en is a Fall favourite at my house - spooky decorations, multiple costumes for each different gathering that day, and mini chocolate bars to hand out to trick-or-treaters.  Whether young human or old canine, everyone in my family loves Hallowe’en and candy treats.  Charly’s patience for human error expands that day.  Simultaneously, her brazen behaviour is enhanced.  She’s ready…to steal, search out, or snatch any item with chocolate content. 

 A few years ago, this stealth paid off when my daughter’s chubby clumsy child hands held too many mini chocolate bars.  They all spilled to the floor, and Charly – ever vigilant – seized the moment.  She gobbled down one KitKat bar, and had a second in her mouth by the time I could respond.  I pried the wrapper and some wafer hanging around her clenched teeth, but part of the second one went down the hatch too.  We were experienced by that point in knowing how much chocolate was too much for our stout dog, and did not concern ourselves!  It then became a science lesson for my little Grade Oner:  what’s our hypothesis about plastic wrap and dog stomach acid?  We made observations.  In about a day and a half, the experiment ended.  Contrary to predictions, the poo was practically perfect…and so was the wrapper!  

 

Happy summer, readers!  Rejoin OldDogBlog in Fall 2024.

Sunny days

  With an old dog, there are highs and lows.  For Charly, usually these are determined by her health rather than events, outings, or runs in fun places.  Bouts of good health are highs, and infection or illness are lows.  For the past few months, Charly has been in a high.  Our vet prescribed a new medication to assist with her arthritis, and she hasn’t had an infection for quite a while.  Thus, sometimes she goes farther on walks – albeit just a few metres, and she has a bit more spunk.  

But, the next low lurks around a corner.  In the past, it comes suddenly, or with gravity.  I thought a low was looming a week ago.  I was working from home, and Charly had been sunning herself on the deck.  I went to close the door after a while, and didn’t see her. I checked each of her four beds on the main floor of the house.  No dog.  I searched other less popular areas on the main floor.  Still no dog.  She couldn’t have gone upstairs, could she have?  No dog upstairs.  She didn’t go downstairs, did she?  No dog downstairs.  There was only one other place.  I ran outside into the backyard.  I found her staring at the backyard gate with soil circling her mouth.  After sunning herself on the deck, Charly had decided to venture down the outdoor stairs by herself…likely to lay in a grassy patch (specially planted for her) and eat some dirt (not meant for her).  She hasn’t tried the stairs in over a year, but I suspect she had been feeling a little spry in her high lately, and so she took them.  Then, tiring of the yard, she took the path to the backyard gate.  She stood there…either hoping it would open or sending me telepathic messages to open it, so she could get back into the house without having to go back up those outdoor stairs!  That evening, I noticed Charly was extremely slow and stumbled a bit.  I think she mustn’t have made it down those outdoor stairs without some tripping or slipping, but there was no lasting injury.  We had narrowly missed a loathsome low…and for now, happily, the high continues. 

Infections (and injections)

  With age, Charly battles more infections and for longer.  This is particularly so with urinary tract infections and bladder crystals.  Like other dogs, Charly complains little about pain.  Her behaviour may hint at infection, but it is never obvious.  Sometimes her incontinence may be due to infection, but there will be few or no other indicators.  We have learned to regularly take samples of her urine to be tested just to ensure it’s “clear”.  

Regular testing began a year ago after we discovered that she had a urinary tract infection – a bad one that we had not noticed developing.  And, x-rays revealed crystals in her bladder.  She had demonstrated lower energy, and smelly urine.  Otherwise, there were no other signs.  The testing revealed a very terrible bacteria that is resistant to many antibiotics.  The one prescribed was extremely expensive – it drained her account.  The vet assistant gave me a tutorial on subcutaneous injections that were to be administered twice per day, 12 hours apart, for 14 days.  I set alarms.  With the promise of a few urinary-friendly-kibble at the end, Charly participated willingly for about 11 days.  Then, she didn’t.  I had to slightly restrain her body with my legs, and inject small doses in multiple sites to complete the task.  No amount of kibble convinced her this was a good idea.  Finally it was over – as were culinary delights.  

 

Ever since that bout of antibiotics, Charly’s human food intake is extremely curtailed – no more leftover mac ‘n cheese in the pot after my daughter’s lunch thermos is filled every Wednesday.  For posterity and because her big brown eyes turn a ragged-edge wrench into my heart, she still is allowed to lick the empty pot – that seems to satisfy her!  The day Charly doesn’t crowd me in the kitchen…waiting…hoping that I err in pouring some edible treat (read: anything), is the day only the ghost of my old dog remains.

Silently in sync

 

 Although Charly is completely deaf, she and I communicate masterfully.  Am sure routines help us predict what each other wants or will do…having gauged each other’s expectations over the years.  I know she loves a good-morning-hug in “her” room / my closet.  I know she needs a belly rub every single day.  I know her tummy is rumbly in the morning…she will vocalize to hurry the serving of breakfast.  I know she likes to have a biscuit a few seconds before I leave for work as a good-bye gesture.  She knows to have a post-breakfast-lie-down while my tea steeps before our walk.  She knows to wait inside the garage even if the door is open, until I have my runners tied.  She knows that she can ignore me for a few minutes to scout out packages with interesting contents before I am free from laces.  She knows to stay close enough for me to easily clip on her collar and my waist leash.  We move in unison – yes, partially because we are physically tied together!  But also because we’ve danced this dance so many times.  (Yes, both of us are well-trained). 

Rugs…who needs them?!

  I dreamt of having large beautiful rugs in my home – the plush, light-coloured ones that make a room look open and warm…sitting or lying on a thick rug with fluffy pillows, and reading a book.  But, with a black and white (and used-to-be brown) dog who is non-hypoallergenic, I have settled for small rugs at entries and exits to wipe our feet on, and which all can be put in the washer and dryer.  Then, we moved, and my dream came true…for a while.

At the time of our last move, we no longer had to worry about spills by our small child, leaks from her body, or marker marks from her colouring off pages.  The dog too was older, no longer running in mud, and was calmer.  It was time to try a real rug.  I furnished our sitting room with an off-white shag rug.  It reminded me of the ‘70s (except it was only on the floor, not the walls).  It was luxurious.  It was so clean.  It was so soft.  Until…it wasn’t.  The child wasn’t leaking anymore, but the dog started to at times.  The dog was less active, but that meant she lay on the road or sidewalk, or in the dirt more often.  The rug developed a grey hue where the dog slept on it…the same spot every day…multiple times a day.  The hue deepened into a stain.  The stain darkened.  Then, a yellow spot appeared near the stain…and wouldn’t entirely come out.  Then, another yellow spot.  Paul, the carpet cleaner, used his fancy orange products, but even he could not keep up with the grey, the dark grey, and the yellow….  So, there shall not be any more large light lush rugs, and I’m back to dreaming.

Happy mother's day dog-moms!

  Here is a poem my daughter recently wrote about Charly...

I remember when you were still a puppy and I was small

You were so gentle, licking food off my legs

And letting me use your teeth as an xylophone.

Why were you so gentle?

 

I remember when we would make pancakes 

You would be whining for your share

We reluctantly gave you a piece.

But, why were you never full?

 

I remember when you ate the turkey

The only time you were full

We wrestled the bird out of your mouth.

Did you ever think you could get away with your crime?

 

I remember when you began to grow old

You walked slow short distances

Stairs were but a distant memory.

How will we tell when you are about to leave us?

Searching for the “golden ticket” – phrase from Raold Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

  It has been five and a half years since Charly ate four bricks of chocolate, and then multiple rounds of charcoal to expel the toxins from her system (see OldDogBlog “Brazen” on December 8, 2023).  And in those five and a half years, she continues her quest to conquer and consume any cacao prize.  She needs no promise of a chocolate factory tour…she cares not for fame or money.  She simply must eat chocolate.  She must. 

Our family orders most of our required non-perishable items.  They accumulate in the garage, and as Charly waits for me to tie my shoes or don my rain gear for our next walk, she sniffs, prods, choses, and then tears.  I’ve stopped wagging my finger in front of her dismissive eyes.  Her sheer delight at ripping into delivery packages that host various forms of cacao, force me to let her have those moments…albeit monitored moments.  Then, outer box or plastic strewn about, I snatch away the prize.  She stands among tattered three centimetre squared-ish pieces of the chocolate-housing-exterior, and stares at me with disdain.  She found and opened it after all.  As a dog led by her stomach’s yearnings, she will never stop searching for her “golden ticket”.