A Special Day for Zen & Me

7 Comments

Gotcha Days are always special and we celebrate them at our house twice a year. But Zen actually had two different Gotcha Days; and today is the second anniversary of the second one……

July 22nd, 2022, was the day that Zen came home (from his original home) to stay with me for good.

During the time between his first Gotcha Day of May 14th, 2022, and this second one, my poor Zen puppy spent many days hiding in a corner of our kitchen while his “HuDaddy” battled his dementia demons. Thankfully, he also spent even more days safe in the care of his breeder/Grandpa, his birth mama, auntie, and three cousins (as well as his Grandpa’s sister, daughter, and friends). Sam’s demons made my poor boy so nervous. And they made me fearful of a repeat of Bogie’s last day on earth. And when Sam was admitted to the hospital that last time, “Grandpa” once again took Zen home with him so I could get the house in order while also visiting Sam as much as possible.

As a four-month-old puppy, Zen at first was a little nervous being here again. After his Grandpa left to go home that afternoon, Zen spent nearly half an hour looking for him. And each time we went to the back door, Zen would first go to the front door hoping to see Grandpa walk through it. And he nervously looked around for signs of the demons for a few days before he finally felt completely safe.

Two years later, my boy is still and always will be my anchor on stormy seas, my sunshine every day, my pot-o-gold on this side of the rainbow, my leprechaun, and my soul-dog-in-training (Ducky’s protégé).

Reunited

3 Comments

And it feels so good! 🎶

Zoey, my brother, and I took a drive up to Zoey’s and Zen’s Grandpa’s house on Sunday morning to spend some time visiting with him and our Golden family before bringing Zen home from his “vacation.”

When I texted him to say we were about to leave, Chuck texted me back teasingly saying that Zen had overheard him telling one of his pups that “Zen is going home today” and promptly jumped into the golf cart and ran away. 🤣🤣 (Doug read me the text while I was driving. I don’t read and drive.)

We humans had a nice visit while we watched Zen and Zoey play with their moms, and their older cousins/siblings.

Once we were home and back in the house after stretching our legs in the back yard, Zen and Zoey shared a sweet moment of “so happy you’re/I’m home!”

Since that moment, the three of us have spent countless happy moments together. Zoey and I missed our boy so much while she was healing from her surgery two weeks ago! Zen was probably having too much fun with his Grandpa, mama, auntie, and three cousins to miss us very much (though Chuck did say he spent most of that first afternoon looking for me once I left to come home).

I’m just happy to have my boy home again! And grateful to have such a wonderful friend in the pups’ breeder (and “Grandpa”)! He always takes such good care of all three of us when we need his help! I couldn’t ask for a better friend/other brother!!

So much for “Wordless Wednesday”! In this case I guess I should call it “Wordy Wednesday”!

WP Daily Prompt – What are you passionate about?

06/15/202306/15/20235 Comments

In just two words … my dogs. I am passionate about their welfare, their health, and their happiness. I am passionate about giving them the best life I can afford.

I am passionate about giving them as much unconditional love as they give me. They are sweet, loving, goofy, fun, loyal, and sometimes frustrating teenagers. They are my best friends as well as my “fur-babies” and I am their “mama”.

They are both Heaven-sent, picked out for me by my canine soulmate who earned her angel wings and joined her older sisters and younger brothers in Heaven in February of last year.

These two current pups didn’t know their human “daddy” – hubby’s dementia had already mostly robbed me of the man I married by the time Zen came to live with us at 8 weeks of age. The shell of that man made my poor puppy nervous at times, so he spent a lot of time with his breeder. When hubby was admitted to the hospital, I spent time getting the house cleaned up – when I wasn’t at the hospital with hubby – and then I brought Zen home with me for good. Zoey was born less than a month before hubby passed (peacefully in his sleep at the hospital, thankfully). She came to live with Zen and me in mid-November. And life has been somewhat chaotic and exhausting at times ever since – but always filled with love.

I was just as passionate about my furry angels before they each got their own angel wings. At times it was exhausting dividing my time between them and their human “daddy”; but I always tried to do my best and was always rewarded with their unconditional love.

It devastated hubby and me each time we had to say good-bye to one of the pups. And that devastation – especially the loss of Bogie, an 11-month-old Golden Retriever who got his angel wings due to a traumatic accident – is what finally catapulted poor hubby into the final stages of his dementia. The last one to leave was my soulmate, Ducky, a Cardigan Corgi/Black Lab mix who I adopted from the shelter in 2012. It is Ducky who picked out these two for me, with help from her “baby brother”. Bogie is genetically related to both Zen and Zoey, so he was a natural helper. Ducky knew me better than I knew myself at the time. And she knew exactly what I needed insofar as my next furry earth angels. She visits me quite frequently with their help. (So does Bogie.)

Since this is Thursday – and I am thankful for all the pups I’ve had/now have in my life – I decided this daily prompt from WordPress was perfect for today’s blog hop post.

Happiness is Having a Great Doctor

06/06/20236 Comments

Remember when I told you “Be Careful What You Wish For” last week? Well, if you’re interested in looking back, you can read (or re-read) it here.

The good news is all in the post title. I absolutely adore my GP/family doctor. Sam did, too, even when his dementia took over at times. I had my semi-annual checkup yesterday (delayed a couple of months due to scheduling difficulties). To make a long story short, all but one element of the pre-visit bloodwork came back much improved over each of the last three years‘ results. That element was my T4 thyroid level. The level that most affects the body’s metabolism. And that one element is the one that most likely caused my dizziness episode. So, Doc reduced my thyroid medication dosage and will re-check the T4 in October prior to my annual Medicare exam. She said at one point “I can tell you’ve been getting exercise because your cholesterol levels are perfect!” I told her that it’s impossible to not exercise when you have two young, super-active Golden Retrievers that own you. She smiled because she has one of her own.

Anyway, that having been said, my big boy is feeling much better now that he’s on Day 7 of his post-neuter healing period. Since the vet wants me to keep him as calm as possible to avoid injury to the incision, I’ve been giving him VetriScience’s Composure calming chews twice a day. They do a really good job of settling him down when nothing else works, so I’m glad I haven’t had to use the Gaba/Traz pills they gave me for “just in case” last week. Meanwhile, when he needs to go outside to relieve himself, I clip two leashes to his harness and use the handle on the harness itself as well if I have to hold on tight. I can’t risk him yanking the leashes out of my hand. So, before I take him outside now I make sure the one neighbor and his dog – and the neighborhood feral cat – are not outside and where Zen can see them. Then I pray they won’t show up while we are out. (Believe me I’ve tried numerous times to work something out with this neighbor in the past; all to no avail.)

While Zoey is at their Grandpa’s house, Zen is blessing me with some short snuggle times in the morning. ❤️🐾❤️ And, speaking of Zoey, she’s having a great time! Her older sister, Skye (same mama dog, different daddy), is her favorite playmate. They are best buddies. And she gets to sleep on Grandpa’s bed every. single. night. And Grandpa makes sure she gets kisses from Zen and me several times during the day. I don’t have to remind him…he does it automatically just as he does with his own five “babies”.

Happy Heavenly Birthday Callie

11 Comments

Callie was my/our very first Golden Retriever. She was born 19 years ago today. She was a sweet, loving, and very independent puppy and adult.

Even at four months old she was teaching me about being a good dog mom. She was the first born in her litter, and from the time she opened her eyes – according to her breeder – she helped her mama stop and settle squabbles among her littermates.

When we added Shadow to our little family six months after we’d brought Callie home, Callie appointed herself Shadow’s surrogate mama, protector, best friend, teacher, and big sister. Callie sensed, correctly, that Shadow was a somewhat “needy” girl right from the start. And from day one, the girls forged a bond between them that would later transcend time and space.

Callie & Shadow’s First Christmas (2004)

When we added Ducky to the family in 2012, Callie taught Ducky how to be a dog, how to be a member of our family; and she intervened in the many squabbles between Shadow and Ducky. She also taught Ducky all she would need to know about getting along with Shadow once it was just the two of them. I think she might have warned Ducky of ghostly discipline, too, if she didn’t treat Shadow right. 🤣

Callie was my and hubby’s dear friend, our ambassador for her breed. And she owned and loved us equally, neither of us was her favorite “parent.” I will never forget her as long as I have my wits about me. She was our girl. And she was Shadow’s and Ducky’s older sister and best friend. And she taught Ducky well how to protect Shadow and be her true friend and sister.

So I’ll end this post by saying “Happy Birthday” to my dear Callie. The girl who started my love of Golden Retrievers, the girl who picked Radar and Bogie for Sam and me after Shadow joined her at the Rainbow Bridge.

Introducing Zoey

19 Comments

Zen has a new sibling. I’ll be writing more about her in the days to come, but for now here she is …

Don’t bother looking at that horrible picture of me! Look at my little girl! Isn’t she precious?!

To look at that sweet little face, you would think she and Zen were litter mates. All that cream-colored, wavy fur around her face! And the smudge muzzle! Be still my heart! But they are actually first cousins – their mothers are full sisters – and in fact Zoey is Bogie’s half sister (same mother, different father).

When we went to meet little Zoey about a week ago, I had my brother take a family picture of Zen, Zoey and me.

I’ll be posting more photos soon – when I have better ones to share – and hopefully Zen won’t mind sharing me with his little sister/cousin.

Stay Tuned, Part 2

23 Comments

Introducing Zen-Bogie 💚💚🐾🐾🍀🍀

So by now you have figured out that the “project to enhance our lives” was adding a puppy to the family again.

Our little Zen is not “just any puppy”. He is a very special puppy, for a few reasons:

1. He was chosen for us by Bogie and Ducky.

2. He was born on St. Patrick’s Day, like his dog mama.

3. Zen is Bogie’s baby cousin by birth. Zen’s mama, Sunny, and Bogie’s mama, Bailey, are full sisters.

He is a very sweet little boy, and so far living up to his name. Although quite active and curious, he is a calm little guy. He slept through a couple of his hu-daddy’s dementia-induced tantrums already. And wasn’t at all fazed by one during which he was awake. He just went right on being curious about his environment of the moment. Hopefully he’ll continue to be unfazed.

Since we only brought him home yesterday, we all still have much learning about each other to do yet. I will be posting more about our little leprechaun as the days and weeks go by.

💚💚🐾🐾🍀🍀

Introducing Ducky’s Baby Brother

32 Comments

Bogie – think Humphrey Bogart – Oakes. Our little guy was born on Saturday, February 6th, along with his 12 siblings – exactly one week before Ducky’s 9th birthday. ❤️

We met this little cutie-pie when he was only three weeks old, and he and his 12 siblings were still barely moving far from Mama Bailey. Bailey channeled our sweet Callie that day to let us know that Callie, Shadow and Radar would approve of whichever puppy we picked out.

One week later this little guy picked us out. While his siblings left my side in their playpen to go to Bailey for a drink at her milk bar, Bogie stayed with me and crawled on my legs and gave me sweet, tiny puppy kisses when I held him up to my face. Then I handed him to hubby and he made himself comfy in hubby’s arm.

It’s a good thing Bogie picked us because we would have had a hard time choosing one and saying no to the others! All of Bailey’s puppies are beautiful, just like their mama.

When we went back to see Bogie two weeks later, he had grown so much! And he was having a blast exploring his surroundings. And he loved hanging around hubby.

Bogie at 6 Weeks

We brought Bogie home on Saturday. And Ducky was curious but jealous. The green-gilled monster is controlling her inside the house right now, so we have to be really careful about their interactions. 😢 Outside in the yard, Ducky pretty much ignores Bogie. He tries to follow her, but he’s still a little slow for that. 😉 It’s just going to take some time for Ducky to adjust. She was jealous of Shadow, too, sometimes.

I wasn’t really expecting Ducky to become Bogie’s surrogate mama – like Callie did with Shadow – but I was hoping she would be more accepting of her baby brother. I suspect that as he grows and matures – and doesn’t require nearly as much of our attention – that she will begin to accept him. He is such a happy, sweet little guy and used to other dogs that he doesn’t recognize yet that Ducky doesn’t want to be bothered with him.

Curiosity

Radar’s New Purpose

12 Comments

Each dog has a purpose. Isn’t that what the book and movie said? Radar’s purpose with us was to help us all heal from the loss of his sisters and to fill empty spaces in our lives….

Hubby keeps asking “when are we getting another Golden?” I keep saying “when the right one comes along.” Right now my heart still hurts from the sudden loss of this sweet boy….

Ducky needs a new playmate, another brother, companion, friend. And I’m seriously open to getting her one. In fact, I promised her that we would get her another one. WHEN Callie, Shadow, and Radar find us the right one. I’m sure they will at some point. Hopefully sooner rather than later.

I miss all my furry angels. They were each special to me for different reasons. But this boy?

I have to admit that there was something extra special about him. Maybe because he was the latest one. Maybe because Ducky accepted him so easily. Maybe because despite whatever he went through in his “previous life”, he was still trusting of humans, loving, and easy-going. Maybe all those things plus some I haven’t thought of yet. Whatever the reason – or reasons – he was the perfect fit for all three of us and we miss him every minute of every day.

We’ve gotten back into our old routine of not having a set routine, and gotten comfortable with it; but I would gladly give up the old routine if it meant having Radar here with us, happy and on his way to being healthy. But that’s not going to happen.

We will always miss Radar, just as we will always miss Kissy, Callie, and Shadow. There’s an emptiness in our little corner of the world that he was filling while he was with us.

Now it’s up to Radar to help his sisters find us another boy to welcome into our home and hearts. His new purpose is to send us a new boy to pick up where he left off. Not to replace him (because no other dog ever could), but to carry on his mission.

Sleepy Sunday

10/20/201910 Comments

Such a sweet sight – you can’t really see Ducky’s face because her head is right next to Radar’s back.

We had a stressful day yesterday. After two full days of almost perfect behavior around her Uncle Doug, yesterday Ducky was grumpy and vociferous all day. Yet, she didn’t take it out on Radar like she used to do to poor Shadow at times. She even let him chew on her Nylabones. She never let Shadow do that.

Anyway, her loud grumpiness made hubby grumpier, and his louder grumpiness made me “testy“. Not a good day. My brother – bless him! – stayed in my office most of the day working on my computer. Smart man!!

Anyway, Ducky woke hubby and me before 5 am this morning – barking, crying, and whining – not really surprising considering she doesn’t like being closed in her crate, especially if I’m not nearby. But she had slept quietly in her crate all of the two nights before. I came out to the living room to calm her down, but five minutes later she was complaining again. So I grabbed my pillows and a blanket and came out to sleep on the couch. But even opening the crate didn’t settle the little princess. And I just gave up on the idea of going back to sleep. I got dressed, grabbed my jacket and the flashlight, and took her out to the back yard. She did her business and we came back inside. But she still wouldn’t settle down. And Radar started getting “antsy” in his crate, so I opened his crate too. Then we all made two more trips out to the yard (about ten minutes apart).

Finally! Peace and quiet, and an end to Ducky’s earlier restlessness. I was – of course – wide awake after three trips out to the sloppy, rain-saturated, back yard; but my dogs settled down in close proximity to each other. It was when I looked up from my reading – I was catching up on some blog posts – that I saw the image I captured in the first photo. Now look at them.

And here I sit, still over-tired, groggy, and on my second cup of coffee. I’m going to have to keep a watchful eye on Ducky today. Normally she’s not grumpy, just demanding. If she’s back to her normal self today, I won’t worry; but if she’s grumpy again, I’ll call the vet tomorrow morning. When this little girl is grumpy, it’s normally something physical making her that way. And hubby’s impatience doesn’t help, either. Maybe she just needs more “Mom and Me” time.

Oh well, the sun is trying to come out from between the clouds, so maybe we’ll have a brighter day. Happy Sunday Everyone!

in my heart 4ever

Lovingly Dedicated To All My Furry Kids

Category: Life Is Better With Dogs