As you are reading this, I should be winging in the air over the Midwest on my way to Columbus, Ohio for the very first, one of a kind, inaugural extravaganza BlogPaws 2010! I'm so excited to meet so many of you and put names to the faces I've been speaking with over the last year. It's going to be fantastic. And to those who couldn't make it, there will be tons of people talking about Blog Paws on Twitter so you can follow in on the festivities. If you're going, I hope to get the chance to ... Read more »
Daily Life
An ode to O’Malley
Many years ago, at my very first job, I had the good fortune to meet a technician who was also to become a wonderful friend. We were young, both new to our jobs, and flush with the excitement of entering this field. We had new pets: I had Emmett, 2 at the time, and had recently rescued Mulan as a 5 year old. Amber had just adopted an adorable orange fluffball named O'Malley. O'Malley was many things: confident, sassy, a bit of a handful. And by "a bit" I mean "a majorly huge handful." He'd ... Read more »
Prediction is not his strong suit
As we all know, Brody has many talents. Eating, for one. Getting into trouble, absolutely. Jumping up on unsuspecting strangers? Check. Earthquake prediction? Yeah. Not so much. Scientists have long grappled with the question of whether or not animals can predict earthquakes. Dogs have reliably been trained as seizure prediction dogs and diabetic sugar level assistance dogs, but canine seismologists are a bit more of a stretch. Maybe there are animals out there with finely tuned vibration ... Read more »
Patchy the Pirate
This past weekend, I took my daughter to visit my sister in Las Vegas. Brody, Koa and Apollo were left to hold down the fort along with the menfolk. On Friday, I had my phone off for a little bit while we went to see "How to Train Your Dragon"- which, by the way, I highly recommend. We came out of the theater, I turned my phone back on, and saw this: 5 MISSED CALLS: IN-LAWS HUSBAND HUSBAND WORK IN-LAWS and two things popped into my head: 1. This can't be good. 2. ... Read more »
How to train your kid
Brody did a special guest post over at Cole Emmett's blog today. Check it out! ... Read more »
Brody’s Holiday Wishes
The dangers of leaving holiday decorations on the countertop. ... Read more »
Terror at the pet store
Today, on my lunch break, I was browsing my local pet superstore in search of a pair of Easter Bunny ears for Koa (no dice, by the way. I'm open to suggestions for where I might find some at this late hour.) Anyway, I ducked into the loo, and as I shut the stall door I heard a "scritch scritch" noise not unlike someone sweeping the floor. Scritch, scritch. Scritch, scritch. I look under the door. I do not see any feet. Scritch, scritch. Then a rat ran across my feet. ... Read more »
With age comes wisdom (sometimes)
A man and his daughter arrive with the daughter's kitten. The kitten is not feeling well, they tell me. She hasn't eaten for several days. I examine the kitten, who is dehydrated and depressed. Her belly is large and pendulous. "Where did you get her from?" I inquire. The shelter, they tell me as they watch me pull several cc's of straw colored fluid from her abdomen. We talk about FIP, a nasty disease with a very poor prognosis. The young girl, probably 7 or 8, nods solemnly. She knew ... Read more »
My Anaconda Don’t Want None
One of the prices we pay for living in paradise (aside from traffic, cost of living, and all of that manmade stuff) is sharing the land with the lovely rattlesnake. Generally speaking, they aren't too difficult to deal with if you are your average suburbanite- just leave them be. It's not like they're Boomslangs that drop randomly out of trees onto your head (I had nightmares after learning that little factoid); they sun themselves on rocks and other exposed places trying to be left alone. ... Read more »
I want a chicken
You heard me. I totally want a chicken. I blame Dr. Crosby over at AboutVetMed for putting the idea in my head in the first place- I had said something to the effect of, "I don't do birds," and she said, "But what about chickens?" and I had to admit I had never really given the idea much thought because as she correctly surmised, by "birds" I meant "parrots and cockatiels." ... Read more »
Mom of the year strikes again
My son, like all 3 year olds, is a bit of a drama queen. A bump on the noggin is a traumatic head injury. A bruise requires a band-aid, ice, and a popsicle. And on a daily basis, he is mauled, devoured, and eviscerated by the dog. "AUUGGGHHH!" he will scream, an ear-splitting curdle that ricochets around the surrounding hills. "BRODEEEEE'S BIIITING MEEEEEEEEEEEE!" Invariably, this involves Brody doing a little bit of the harmless but annoying mouthing that puppies do when they are still ... Read more »
When Irish eyes are smilin’
Did you know Emmett's original name was Seamus? He was a right red lad, that he was. And each day, Brody looks more and more like him. I wouldn't have chosen that- in fact I was pretty clear I did NOT want that- but now that he's here, I wouldn't have it any other way. And trust me, that little leprechaun is an Irish rogue through and through. So in honor of St. Patrick's Day, I will once again impose upon you with my bad poetry skills. Limericks, of course. Remember, there is no such ... Read more »
New frontiers
Do you know Batman the cancer dog? I didn't either, until today, when I read that he died. This is sad news, but also one that represents a great victory. Batman was diagnosed with an incurable brain tumor in 2008; according to the news article, the same type as that which took Senator Ted Kennedy- a glioblastoma. Average survival time for a human: about one year. The senator survived 15 months. Batman survived 19 months. Needless to say, most pets with a diagnosis of cancer live ... Read more »
The path to hell is paved with good intentions
The local news has been buzzing for the last day with the news of a local woman arrested on suspicion of felony animal neglect. According to the animal control officers on the scene, she had about 60 dogs in a 750 square foot 2 bedroom house. Now here's where it gets fuzzy: this wasn't your typical animal hoarder situation. The woman in this case runs a rescue out of her house, and by all indications was genuinely trying to rehabilitate and adopt out the animals. In fact, the reason animal ... Read more »
Dueling dognose
Husband took out the camera this weekend to submit Kekoa to a family tradition, the fish-eye lens close up. She turned on her "soulful" eyes and readily complied. Brody does not like the competition, if his startled expression is any indication. He continues to be a bit nonplussed at the new addition, but he's getting better. I mean really, who could resist this face? ... Read more »
Mea culpa
You know I don't write on the weekends very often, but given my post on Friday I wanted to make sure to come back and give credit where credit is due. We just got back from Circus Vargas with 2 tired and happy kids. I can't believe how much the show has changed from what I remember! It was more like Cirque du Soleil than the old school three-ring circus, with aerialists, trapeze artists, and unique acts from different corners of the world. Plus popcorn. I didn't miss the animals (obviously) ... Read more »
All the World’s a Circus
“To me, clowns aren't funny. In fact, they're kind of scary. I've wondered where this started and I think it goes back to the time I went to the circus and a clown killed my dad.” -Jack Handy In my post about the Sea World tragedy last week, I mentioned how my friends have pretty much stopped inviting me on any Sea World trips. At least when I decline, I'm nice about it. However, I neglected to mention the e-mail response I sent to the well meaning woman in my mom's group who suggested ... Read more »
You have to hope things happen for a reason
1 month into my career as a vet, a client walked into an exam room with Mulan and tried to get me to euthanize her because she was allergic to fleas. At the time, I thought that sort of thing happened all the time, someone showing up in your hospital with your very favorite breed of pet, needing to give them up. It never happened to me again. I have to believe our paths were meant to cross (especially since my not-so-sentimental colleague at the time might very well have obliged her ... Read more »
