Author Archives: f2x

Grumpy Grace

Things got worse, so I took Grace to the vet. They took poop and blood samples, charged me over $300, sent me home with some antibiotics and a bag of prescription dog food that my dog absolutely refuses to eat. Grace is basically acting like a petulant teenager on a hunger strike.

I mean, yeah, she’s getting older, but the blood test shows that she’s actually in pretty good shape. The vet did find some sort of imbalance in her poo, and that’s why she’s on antibiotics, but there’s nothing that is physically wrong with her to explain her brooding behavior.

It would seem my dog is just resentfully bored.

I ordered her a bottle of St. John’s Wort, and we’re taking more hikes at Caesar Creek.

Update: 9/16/2019

We had to go back to the vet today. Grace developed a really bad limp. She seemed fine when I left for work this morning, but when I got home she was noticeably tender in her right front leg.

I got her in to see the vet and now the suspected prognosis is not good. With all that’s been going on in the recent history, the pieces are starting to fall into place. We may be dealing with an aggressive osteosarcoma, and there’s not really a whole lot that can be done about that. She has another appointment for x-rays in the morning, and the vet sent home some pain meds to get Grace through the night.

It looks like I’ll be the one taking the St. John’s Wort now.

I’ll keep you posted.

Update: 9/17/2019

Grace is on tramadol and gabapentin right now. The limp is gone, but now she won’t stop with the lengthy spells of rapid, heavy breathing, and she seems very distressed about something.

OK, so some “good” news. The x-ray ruled out osteosarcoma. Turns out she has a bone spur on her shoulder, not cancer. They still need more x-rays because there’s something up with the lungs, liver, and spleen. The vet is stumped, I’m exhausted, and none of this is making sense. After the additional x-rays tomorrow, I’m being referred to a veterinary interni$t for a consultation.

Grace still doesn’t want to eat that kibble the vet sent home, but if I mix it with some chopped up chicken, she’ll eat the chicken and a few bits of the kibble sneak in there. That’s the other good news: She’s eating again.

So while it’s a relief to know it’s not “bone cancer”, we’re not out of the woods just yet. I’ll keep posting updates as I learn more.

Kudos

Well this sucks. I couldn’t use any of the jokes I got this week as they already exist in the archives. Thanks anyway Glenn and George. If you would like to take a crack at submitting a joke we have not used already, I encourage you to try out the submission page or send jokes to flush2x@gmail.com.

Pax,

-f2x

My Baby Girl is Getting Older

Grace’s date of birth was on December 7, 2010. While not quite nine years old yet, age has started to catch up with her. She’s having trouble with stairs, she doesn’t like going outside as much, and she doesn’t get very excited about too many things anymore. Even getting her to eat her food has been more challenging of late.

The other day I noticed her chin had developed a few gray hairs that starkly contrasted against the rest of her jet black coat. Of course Labradores are only expected to live between nine and fourteen years, and while she’s had a pretty full life, I still hate the thought of my little girl entering senescence.

When I decided to get a dog, I had this idea in my head of what I wanted that dog to be. I wanted a female black lab who was obedient, friendly, loving, and loyale. Grace checked all of those boxes and more. She turned out exactly the way I wanted. She’s easy to love, and dare I say, Grace has more friends than I.

I remember one little girl telling me how she liked my dog more than her family’s dog. When I asked why, she explained, “Because your dog doesn’t bite”. And to that I’ll add that Grace has never hurt another living thing. She’s a gentle soul with so much love. I’m so lucky to have her in my life.

But now I’m watching her get older, and there’s nothing I can do. She seems comfortable enough, but her behavior has changed. Her “get up and go” is now preterit. She gives me the whale eye when I walk past her as she’s lying on the couch. I’m having to face the fact that Grace is getting older.

And it scares me.

Kudos

Once again I just want to give a shout out to thank George for emailing me jokes. Some of them ended up in this week’s lineup. Also a reminder that our submission page is still open for business, or you can use an email like George does by sending jokes to flush2x@gmail.com.

Curiosity kills boredom. Nothing can kill curiosity.

Pax,

-f2x