Extreme Grooming

Just a quicky ... I had to share this with you. Apparently, people with lots of time on their hands and no sense of shame get together for extreme grooming contests.

Ever wanted to see a poodle trimmed and painted like a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle? Here's your chance: http://www.peoplepets.com/photos/strange/extreme-grooming/1

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Getting Your Dog Used to Baby Noises

Jenny brought home a funny CD today. It's called Preparing Fido, and it's a collection of baby sounds that you're supposed to play for your dogs so they get used to the noises.

It has some wonderful tracks, such as "Crying Baby", "Cooing Baby", and my personal favorite "Breathing, Grunting and Squeaking Baby".

So, we played some tracks for Biz and Bax, today. They couldn't have cared less. Jenny and I, on the other hand, were traumatized. "Screaming Baby" could not have ended soon enough, and the same goes for the ruthless, 13 minute epic "Keeping You Up Baby (variety track)".

Well, at least the dogs are prepared. ........Read more of this post!

Baxter Chews up Jenny's Flip Flops

When we first got Biscuit, we expected her to do normal dog things. You know, play fetch and tug-of-war, beg for food at the dinner table, and of course chew up shoes. In truth, we became convinced Biscuit was more cat than dog, as she did none of these.

Well, Baxter is all dog, and he's not afraid to show it. Not long after we got him, he chewed up one of Jenny's favorite pairs of Havaianas flip flops. As much as she was upset, it was somewhat comforting to see one of our dogs do something, well, dog-like.

Now that they are commonplace, these kinds of shenanigans have ceased to be amusing. But, then he does something cute, and we forgive him.

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Baxter Gets Sprayed By a Skunk

Oy vey, this one was a doozy.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I think his skunk smell is finally all gone. It’s been over two months, and until recently you could still smell it on his face. And when he got wet? Forget about it.

Our neighbors used to tell us a story about when their dog got skunked. It was probably a decade ago, and they still remember every horrific moment. Hearing the story, I prayed we would never have to go through it ourselves.

Fate is a cruel mistress.

It was a full moon (I swear). We were up late visiting with friends, and I was taking the dogs out for their last potty around midnight. The moon was so bright that I left the porch lights off so I could enjoy the eerie glow.

As I opened our bedroom door, I saw a dark form scurrying across the deck. So did Baxter, and he was off instantly at a sprint.

Jenny and I both screamed bloody murder at him, but he was in hot pursuit. We both knew instantly what was happening and that it would end badly.

The actually spraying took place just out of sight, and I rushed around a corner to see Baxter standing still, completely stunned. I never saw the skunk again as it scooted under the gate.

Baxter turned towards me with neon yellow liquid dripping from his face.

I picked him up, cautiously, to survey the damage. He had been hit on the left side of the face, taking the brunt of it below the eye and around the ear. I turned on the hose and rinsed off the excess goo.

Neon yellow? Seriously? What kind of creature squirts noxious, neon yellow syrup from its nether regions? That’s straight from a comic book, and has no place in the natural world.

Jenny scooped up Bax in an old towel and held him until I returned from CVS with the makings for a skunk bath. Keep in mind, she was smelling this all with a hyper-sensitive pregnant nose.

An internet search had revealed this recipe, developed by Popular Science in 1995, for getting rid of skunk smell:

• 1/4 cup baking soda
• 1 quart hydrogen peroxide
• 1 tsp dish soap

Skunk is, conveniently, neither water- nor oil-soluble. Apparently, the above mixture blasts the stuff with oxygen molecules making it water soluble.

I haven’t yet mentioned the smell, but do I really have to? It makes your eyes water and your stomach turn. The only thing I have to add is that, up close, it smells somewhat like really strong garlic. And not in an appetizing, Mario Batali sort of way.

Baxter was calm, still stunned, as we (reluctantly) brought him into the house for a bath. We doused him in the magic mixture, hoping against hope that it would perform a miracle.

It does work, but by this time the smell is everywhere. Even keeping all the doors and windows closed won’t stop it from seeping in. On the other hand, one’s sense of smell has the uncanny ability to get accustomed to a certain level of stank.

After about two hours of madness, we were able to go to sleep in relative normalcy. We had become somewhat accustomed to the smell, and we were exhausted.

The next day, we did the special bath again. And, over the next couple of weeks, Baxter’s parfum faded naturally. It took many weeks to completely go away.

We have a new policy with nighttime walks now: never without a leash, even in the backyard. It’s just not worth getting sprayed again. Plus, we have raccoons and possums, too. They don’t spray ... they claw and bite, which is probably worse. So, we follow the leash rule.

Like so many Baxter episodes, we survived and we’re the wiser for it. But, I truly hope we don’t have to repeat it. ........Read more of this post!

Dogs Love Fish Oil Pills

We learned this somewhat by accident. A couple years back, Biscuit had some worrisome results from two consecutive blood and urine tests. The numbers were related to kidney function, and all of a sudden we were afraid she was in the early stages of renal failure.

One of the supplements I started giving her was Omega 3, or fish oil. At first I would snip the little gelcap open, and squirt the oil on her dinner. Eventually, I realized she would just eat the thing whole

Baxter took an interest, and now he's nuts about them, too. My vet said it's good for them, even at the 1000mg human dose. So, why not?

Back to the kidney thing ... We had been feeding Biscuit one of those dehydrated chicken strips every morning. I feel guilty just typing that. We cut those out, and her next blood test came back totally normal.

I can't say for certain the elevated kidney numbers were related to the chicken treats, but I can tell you she's never eating those again.

Anyway, normal fish oil pills are fine, or you could grab dog-specific omega 3 gel caps.

Just don't smell their breath for a little while after they eat them.

Salmon sushi photo by adactio.
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Baxter Ruins a Perfectly Good Grooming

Baxter got his sutures out today. Yea! He's been wearing a sweatshirt to protect them for two weeks. We've washed it a couple times, but you can still imagine how he and the sweatshirt smell.

He's really worked up a funk over the last couple of weeks, not to mention the lingering skunk. So, this morning we dropped him and Biscuit off at Pride n' Joy for a clip and bath.

I just picked them up and brought them home, and we went out back for a quick potty. Baxter proceeded to have violent diarrhea. The groomer must have stressed him out, which I totally understand.

However, as I watch him take care of his nasty business, I can't help but think of the $35 shampoo and blow dry he's currently ruining. His cute little butt was so white and clean. For about 10 minutes.

Oy vey. Get out the hose. ........Read more of this post!

Baxter Takes a Hike

We decided to take Baxter on a hike near our house, despite quite a bit of anxiety. There are lots of other dogs on these trails, so we knew this would be a test for our little tooth-monger. But, Bax really loves his exercise, so we decided to give it a try.

He did very well, save for one incident. And that really wasn't his fault.

As we were rounding a corner, a woman and her unleashed dog came bounding upon us. Her big, curly terrier ran towards me to say hi. I'm sure his intentions were good, but Baxter was not willing to take that chance.

As the dog got closer to me, Baxter entered protective mode. Luckily, I had his leash pretty tight. Also, I had him on my right side, and the dog was approaching my left.

Baxter suddenly lunged across my body, and I just barely stopped him by sticking my left leg out. In the nick of time, I protected this poor, unsuspecting stranger from the full wrath of the Bax-man. With Baxter sprawled across my leg and thirsty for blood, I got an eyeful of what Baxter had in mind for his new friend. Here's a recreation of what I saw:


Teeth. And lots of them. Baxter lunged, mouth open, towards the target. He strained against the leash to get closer, but I held tight.

So many teeth for a little dog! And he ain't afraid to use 'em. ........Read more of this post!

The Best Dog Leash

If you ask me, the Aspen Pet Walkabout is the best dog leash on the market. We have two, one for each doggy. We’ve had Biscuit’s for over 6 years, and it’s still working perfectly. When we got Bax, we grabbed another Aspen leash.

It’s got all the basic functions, including optional lock. Most importantly, it has an ergonomic trigger for quickly clamping the brakes on another Bax Attack.

Countless ankles have been spared, and many a neighbor dog has escaped a visit from Mr. Toothy by our trusty Aspen Walkabouts. Click the pic for more deets:
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The Saga of the Palm Nut: The Finale

(In case you missed it, read Part I and Part II first)

When I picked Baxter up after 24 hours hooked up to an IV, he, of course, had charmed the staff at Szanto Vet. He was a model patient, they told us.

Our discharge instructions included a schedule of antibiotics, digestive aids and pain killers. But, the most important directive was to keep him away from the 4" opening in his abdomen and the 8 metal staples that were keeping it closed.

(this pic is kinda gnarly ... click to see it bigger, if you dare)

Seriously, how nasty is that wound? Metal staples? Oy vey.

So, to keep him from biting the sutures, we put an Elizabethan collar, or E-Collar, on him.


This worked pretty well, but Baxter again applied his superior skills of problem solving. He realized he could reach the wound better with his back paws. Jenny returned from work after the first day we left him alone, and he had managed to scratch up his sutures, nearly tearing one of them out.

There was blood. And pus. (Excuse me while I dry heave)

Back to the vet for a clean up and a pow-wow about our bandaging strategy going forward. Adding a shirt and booties to his feet created extra defense from his roving back paw.

This worked well, and two weeks later the staples came out. He was good as new, and ready for his next adventure!! We could only hope this would never happen again. Wrong!!!

fin

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The Saga of the Palm Nut: Part II

Part II of III

(If you missed it, read Part I here)

Three or four weeks had passed since Baxter went on his palm nut binge when he began vomiting up yellowish white foam once or twice a day.

We weren't sure what was up and thought he might be getting too hungry. The foamy puking continued for a few days.

One night after we fed the dogs dinner as usual, Baxter threw everything up just a few minutes later. He immediately went to his water bowl for a drink. A few minutes after that, he threw up the water.

In a space of 10 minutes, he puked three more times. It was really a mess. It seemed like nothing was getting through, and we decided he needed medical attention.

I called the vet but they were just about to close. After discussing it, Jenny and I decided he couldn't wait. Hello emergency vet!


We described his symptoms to the vet and his palm nut binge weeks earlier. She decided to do a test where he drinks liquid that shows up on an x-ray. If there was a blockage, they would see the liquid stop at a given point. She promised to call us in a few hours with the initial results.

Around 1am the vet called to explain that the liquid stopped before exiting the stomach. She was pretty sure there was a blockage. We had two options: surgery or wait-and-see. It seemed critical, so we gave the go-ahead for immediate gastrointestinal surgery. He would be ready for pickup in the morning.

After sleeping fitfully, I drove to the Animal Emergency Center around 7am to pick up our little patient. Before leaving, they presented me with The Nut.


As suspected, the nut had lodged itself at the exit of the stomach. For weeks, it had jostled around in there (making him puke foamy stuff) until it finally got stuck.

Bax was awake but sluggish as I transported him to our normal vet for 24 hours of monitoring. He would stay on an IV overnight, and we looked forward to picking him up the following afternoon.

... Finish up with Part III: The Finale
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The Saga of the Palm Nut: Part I

Part I of III

In light of Baxter's most recent gastrointestinal adventure, I figured it was time to tell the story of his first surgery.

Up to now, the Saga of the Palm Nut was the feather in Bad Dog Baxter's cap. It was the jewel in his crown, and his shining moment of glory.

Bax's previous coup de grace cost him two nights in the hospital plus two weeks of recovery. It cost us upwards of $3000.

It all starts with a beautiful queen palm tree (like this one) that resides in our backyard.


Queen palms bear fruit annually, producing hundreds upon hundreds of 'nuts' about the size of a large grape.

It takes a parrot -- the only animal on earth that eats them -- an hour to gnaw off the thin layer of fleshy fruit. What's left is a fibrous and inedible pit which the parrot, in its unfailing wisdom, discards.

As our palm starting dropping its fruit, we knew we had to watch the Bax-man. Until I could clean them all up, Jenny and I vowed not to let him out back unsupervised.

This worked perfectly until one fateful Wednesday when our cleaning lady let Biscuit and Baxter run out back for a few minutes.

Baxter had his opportunity.

Jenny and I returned from work, and Baxter greeted us by vomiting up a truly impressive mass of stomach stew. We counted no less than 15 nuts in the barf. We were stunned by his gluttony.

For days, he passed more nuts out the other end. Each time Jenny and I would call it out. "Eighteen!" Jenny would exclaim returning from a walk. "Twenty!" after the next one.

After a few days, the count stood at twenty-one. We were impressed to say the least. Explaining to Manuela what had happen, she swore he had been outside for less than ten minutes. He's like a canine Kobayashi.

As far as we could tell, the worst was over. Baxter acted healthy, and we moved on. But we would soon learn the Saga had just begun.



... Continue to Part II

Palm tree photo credits: mriley58 and Dale331
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Baxter in a Cartoon

My mother-in-law gets a real kick out of Baxter. She's seems to have forgiven him for biting her last year -- that's a story for another day.

She mailed me this cartoon the other day. I thought it was appropriate. He seems willing to, and quite enthusiastic about, eating just about anything.

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Recovery Update

The little man is recovering well, thus far. He's eating with fervor and doesn't seem too uncomfortable. At times, he wanders around aimlessly, stopping to stare blankly at something. Heavy painkillers will do that to you.

Here's a pic of Biz welcoming her brother back home:


After his last surgery, we figured out the best way to keep him from bothering his sutures. We taped baby socks on his feet after he figured out he could scratch his wound with his back feet. The E-Collar keeps his mouth away from it, and the sweatshirt provides one last line of defense.

This is how Bax rolls these days, in full recovery regalia:

Yeah, he's stylin'. ........Read more of this post!

Baxter Discharged from the Vet Today

After about 36 hours in the "hospital," Baxter's coming home from the vet this evening. We're looking forward to seeing him. Not looking forward, however, to dressing his wound, applying various ointments and giving him doses of pain meds and antibiotics multiple times each day.

The sutures stay in for two weeks, so we have to keep a close eye on him until they come out. Last time he managed to get to his wound with his back paw and nearly tore on several metal staples. Yeah, gross. I cringe every time I think about it.

That's the latest on his current situation. Next week, I'll finally publish the story of his first big trip to the emergency vet. ........Read more of this post!

News Flash: Baxter is Back at the Emergency Vet

In a development that defies all logic, Baxter has landed himself back at the emergency vet. Maybe it's an attempt to punish mom and dad for taking a vacation, or maybe it's just Baxter being Baxter. In either case, he's okay and recovering from his second abdominal surgery in less than six months.

I'll write the full story soon. In short, he found and ate three pork baby back ribs that were in the garbage. My folks realized soon after and rushed him to AEC. The vet opened him up and were able to remove all the bone shards and fragments from his stomach.

He's expected to come home tomorrow and make a full recovery in time. Oy vey!!!!

Here's a pic from Szanto after we transferred him from the emergency vet:

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