We lost our precious Selena in 2020 but we also celebrate 5 year anniversary of Rocky and Selena’s Gotcha Day
5 years ago, Mommy met these two at a vet in North Raleigh , NC. Getting both dogs in the car was like a game of round robin as one jumped in, the other jumped out. The harness/seat belts didn’t fit so Rocky spent the ride home trying to climb in Mommy’s lap and Selena roamed everywhere she could cram her tiny little body in.
Happy Gotcha Day, Rocky! Mommy loves you.
Well, Rocky is outside, lying in the grass enjoying the sunshine. I’d post a photo of him, but I can’t leave the breakfast table. “Why?” you ask.
Because of where Selena prefers to sleep this Lazy Saturday.
WTF.
Hi everyone! This month for Bacon’s Show and Tell we are going to highlight the funniest gift we have been given and the story behind it.
So for show and tell, this is Mommy’s favorite blanket. It was a funny gift from a good friend. Someone who shares Mommy’s affinity for Disney animation. If you’re a fan of Disney, or have children who love Disney, you may recognize Perry the Platypus from Phineas and Ferb. “Agent P” is Mommy’s favorite character and this blanket makes me smile.
We put it on the recliner. First, to protect the upholstery from Rocky and Selena. Second, because Perry the Platypus stares out at me from the chair every day. Plus, it’s actually a very comfy, soft, plush blanket to curl up in.
Gives me the giggles when I look at it, even when I’m feeling down. And who doesn’t love that?
Poor Rocky is miserable. And itchy. So Itchy. Mommy is beyond sad and frustrated by it. What can be causing it??? At first, we thought, “fleas.” Mommy thought she saw one on Selena. But they’re both on Frontline and last month vet gave them. Nexguard oral treatment too, just in case. Mommy thoroughly cleaned the house, their bedding, her bedding, blankets, pillows, toys, the works. Even the yard was treated with an extra dose. Still, Rocky itches.
Mommy gives him a bath weekly, with a gentle, soothing, oatmeal shampoo. He’s unhappy about it at the time, but it does provide some temporary relief. As does a dose of Benedryl with his food, and an anti-itch spray. Still, Rocky itches.
We’re calling vet tomorrow to rule out any and all infestation. Mommy’s fairly certain it’s got to be environmental or food-based, because Selena doesn’t itch. But Mommy isn’t Vet, and Vet can run tests to be sure. And hopefully provide longer lasting relief while we figure this out!
Poor Rocky! Now Mommy is wondering about all the ingredients in his food and treats. I’ve still got some of Deita’s prescription canned food in the cupboard. I think we need to take everything we can out of his diet, start from the I/d diet and work our way out. See if it clears up. Right now Mommy has it in her head that maybe he’s allergic to brewer’s yeast. It’s in a lot of commercial dry food and treats. And Mommy remembers starting to give Rocky an allergy supplement awhile ago, but it seemed to make it worse so we stopped and it improved again. The first ingredient in that supplement was brewers yeast. It’s worth a shot right? And cutting out processed foods for the time being doesn’t hurt anything.
So that’s what we’ll do
1. Call Vet on Monday, get Rocky some relief, confirm it’s not an infestation or infection and get Vet’s buy-in on the allergy-free diet plan.
2. Cut out all processed food and treats for a few weeks. Nothing with yeast or wheat.
3. Salmon, chicken, potatoes, pumpkin, sweet potatoes, peas and carrots, simple ingredients only. Maybe Vet has a good recipe?
Cross your paws for Rocky. Let’s hope and pray Mommy figures this puzzle out soon. Poor buddy. 😟
And now, because Mommy doesn’t want to end on a sad note, here’s a gratuitous photo. Mommy’s friend, Scott, captioned this. Cuteness factor:10!
Cut… paste
Welcome to my world
(Rocky is not allowed on top of the chair like that, by the way. It’s a never-ending power play between Rocky and Mommy. And yes, that high-pitched yip you hear in the background is Selena, from her favorite guarding bench in another room)
This is Mommy’s day. All day. Every day. How have they not lost their voices by now?
But there’s hope. Trainer stopped by for another lesson today.
Hope #1: Both dogs quickly settled in their sofas after Trainer arrived. It only took two tries for him to be able to enter the house without being bombarded with dogs.
Hope #2: Rocky did not try to bite Trainer at all. Not once!
Hope #3: Today’s lesson included a refresher for Mommy on “When dogs attack!”. Some of the warning signs are obvious, but others Mommy did not know about.
Hope #4: We will be starting reactivity training at next week’s lesson. Hopefully Miss D’s old pal, Nettie the Scottie, will be our willing “calm dog approaching” so Trainer can teach Mommy what she needs to do. Then later we’ll start attending regular group lessons with other dogs, many of whom Trainer tells us are much worse than these two. I believe it. After all, we have first-hand experience with “much worse” thanks to Miss D.
Hope #5: Trainer and Mommy practiced a few rounds of “Who’s at the door?” That’s where Trainer exits the house, pretends to leave, then comes up and knocks or rings the doorbell, Mommy greets and lets him in. Both dogs did as they were told, just as we’ve been training them to do. There was some initial excitement from Selena (actually, Selena maintained a moderate level of excitement throughout the visit) but they calmed quickly to the point where Trainer could enter and even pet them.
Conclusion:
Training is going well, all things considered. Rocky & Selena both are smart schnauzers and eager to please, if somewhat anxious/reactive to strangers (dogs and humans alike). We’ll get there!
Oh and one interesting development. Selena was so anxious/excited when Trainer first arrived that she pooped in her chair. When Mommy sent her back to her chair, Selena ate the poop before settling in. Never seen that happen before. Is that normal?
Selena escaped last week.
Don’t let her fool you. She may look adorable, sweet, and tiny, but Selena is far from innocent. She is an Instigator, a Troublemaker with a capital T.
Who, me?
While three of the four sides of the backyard are fenced with 6-foot wood picket fencing, the fourth side is simple wire fencing. Two-thirds of that wire fencing is still good. That’s the section installed by the neighbor behind us. The final third of the wire fencing was sloppily installed by the previous owner, as part of the contract when Mommy bought the place ten years ago. How long it’s been breached is anyone’s guess. Miss D was not an escape artist.
But Selena noticed the hole immediately. Mommy has spent the last month in denial. Procrastinating and pretending neither Selena nor Rocky would want to wander. No, not these two sweet innocents!
But sure enough, the other night Mommy was getting dolled up for dinner out with friends. She let Selena and Rocky out into the back yard, told herself, “They’ll be fine. They haven’t tried to escape once. I don’t have to watch them every minute,” and went back inside to finish getting dressed.
Five minutes later, Mommy calls the dogs in. Here comes Rocky! … Where’s Selena? … WHERE’S SELENA?! …
Mommy could hear her tags jingle-jangle, but she was nowhere to be found. She took her opportunity and escaped through that back fence! SELENA!!!!! SELENA!!!!
Mommy was in a panic! Have you ever tried to find a tiny black dog, at night, in a muddy wooded area, while wearing dress slacks? Finally, Selena came bouncing back into sight, no shame, no remorse. So, happy ending?
Almost. For a truly happy ending, Mommy had to pay a visit to the local hardware store.
New wire fence for the win! Oh, and the glow-in-the-dark dog collars should arrive next week.
Selena – 1, Mommy – 2
Merry Christmas! So, Selena and Rocky got their first bit of mail! Mommy’s good friends sent us some Loot! LootPets to be exact! Selena got a space-y t-shirt while Rocky got a new collar and a spaceship tag to match.
They also got a “FireFly” food dish, which was perfect timing, because the grandpawents needed a second food dish for when we come visiting. And they also got some freeze-dried beef liver treats. Yummy! Lotsa Loot!
Selena and Rocky also got some new squeaky toys from Mommy’s friends. Yay! They are now their new favorite toys. One is a bear that is filled with knotted rope instead of being filled with polyfiber. Very tough and perfect for two dogs who fight over their toys. Plus Mommy found some tennis balls with squeakers in them. They’re balls and they squeak! Selena’s mind is blown! It’s just so gosh-darn EXCITING!
We spent Christmas Eve and Christmas Day visiting the grandpawents. Rocky especially enjoyed the stairs. He’d run up them then bounce down them really fast. And repeat!
It’s been five years since we’ve had a dog who could climb stairs and who wasn’t terrified of them. It was fun to watch and the sound of Rocky racing down the stairs made Mommy smile.
Selena followed him a couple of times, but didn’t seem as enamored by the stairs as Rocky was. Granted, she’s smaller and the stairs were more of a climb for her than they were for Rocky. She did invite herself onto every available lap in the room. Whether the owner of said lap invited her up or not!
We humans also enjoyed playing with the dogs and their new toys, throwing them across the room and watching the two dogs fight over who brings which toy back. Most of the time both dogs brought the same toy back, fighting over it the entire way. So cute! Everyone enjoyed watching these two play.
On Christmas Day, the humans went to see the new Star Wars movie. The dogs stayed at the grandpawents house and only had one minor (though large) accident while we were out. I think Rocky probably panicked and did… well, what panicked dogs do. At least he chose an obvious and open area which was easy to clean and didn’t damage any rugs or carpets.
Now we’re back home and both dogs seem relieved to be somewhere familiar. After about half an hour running around and re-familiarizing themselves with everything (it’s Mommy’s bed! There’s the water bowl! My pillow! The crate! The other water bowl! Yay!) they are now zonked out on the sofa next to Mommy.
On a side note: Interestingly, Rocky was wearing his harness/seat belt when we left the grandpawents place, but was not wearing it when we arrived home. Hmmmmmmmm….. how’d he do that?!
Miss D lost her battle with cancer this morning. She went peacefully and in Mommy’s arms. Thank you all for your kind words and wishes.
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