The hot wire question...

I sprung Chaucer from the vet yesterday.  Under the effects of cortisone he is relatively asymptomatic and desperately wants to play ball.  He simply couldn't understand me when I told him he needed to take it easy.  The fractures are in the bony protrusions (from the spondylosis) and are small however the compression of the disks is significant.  Vet says maybe 6 months for total fusion if he can manage not to injure himself again.  He's limited to level ground only (although the 3 steps to the bed were okay-ed if I make sure he takes them slow).  And NO jumping!  He still runs the risk of causing permanent damage at this point.  Eeep!

We talked about his activities and agree that the repetitive action that likely lead to this condition/injury is fence-jumping.  That is...not that he jumps fences but that he jumps up and down at the fence due to our proximity to the street and the random strangers that reach over the fence to pet the cute dog.  A problem I have long lamented.  The vet suggested I use a hot wire to train the dog not to jump.  I'm not understanding how this will help since it's the humans on the other side of the fence that are instigating the behavior.  I thought about electrifying the whole fence but something tells me I might open myself up to lawsuits from the community in that event.  Not that it wouldn't be personally satisfying  >:}

I will have to accompany the dogs outside at all times now.  Probably with Chaucer on lead for at least the next few weeks.  I'm thinking of rigging some sort of tether and harness that will allow him to go out in the yard but not make it all the way to the fence.  I'm afraid that he will still leap against the halter though for bikes and skateboards and really fun things like that so not until I can be sure of the fusion.  What seems more reasonable at the moment (unfortunately) is moving some place with a private yard.  Ugh! 

Aw hell...

Chaucer was a little slow on Wednesday night, spent Thursday in a crate while I was at work, even slower when I got home. Friday he yipped when Stormy bumped into him on the way out in the morning so another day in a crate. When I got home he was roaching noticeably and would follow me only to flop down against my legs and tremble. Rushed him to the vet and his core muscles were so tight the vet couldn't evaluate him. At that point I started praying for a stomach problem and pretending I had never heard of back problems in corgis. They gave him a steroid and kept him overnight.


Lots of emergencies today so they didn't call me until they were closed...apparently not concerned about giving him back anytime soon. X-rays showed significant spondylosis with signs of previous and current fractures. Turns our L4/5 and L5/6 are very bad and the disk spaces significantly narrowed. Somehow he's fractured them again and according to the vet our best hope is that they will fuse. He's walking but they told me that he could easily paralyze himself if he's too active at this point. Shit! Have you met my dog?!! I'll start working on telling the sun not to shine 'cause that will be easier than getting The Dude to not play. Good thing his likes his crate.

I won't know more until Monday afternoon but they gave him a stronger steroid for the pain and are keeping him through the weekend. Blood tests will tell us what kind of pain meds he will best tolerate for the rest of his life. I don't know how bad this really is since I've not seen the x-rays and I don't know what the long-term prognosis really is because it all depends on how these fractures heal. Very scared at the moment. No matter how you slice it, a fractured spine on a long dog turns my stomach.

On top of that I had to help host a baby shower today. Thank god for good friends who know when not to ask questions and just hug.

Stick with me...I'll get to the point

I love the Biography channel. Unfortunately it's not part of my regular dish package. It is one of the free previews this month though so I'm making the most of it. I also love ghost stories and apparently Saturdays on Bio are all about ghost shows. Sweet!


So anyway "Haunted History" is sort of cheesy. The narrator actually played the Devil in a short-lived TV show called "Brimstone" that I watched in high school which I think is a nice touch. The episode I'm watching is about hauntings at sea. So of course they've got this scruffy Norwegian-sailor looking guy telling stories on the dock. He leans in to start telling the story of The Flying Dutchman all spooky-like and he reaches down to scratch the head of his loyal... .. Pembroke...WTF?!? Not that I was taking the show all that seriously to begin with but now I'm laughing my ass off. I mean sure, they are compact and would probably be more than happy to dispatch rats on a ship but really...a Pembroke? Spooookkyy.....


At the end of the show this salty fellow picks up his Corgi (who is grinning from ear to ear BTW), nods to the camera "No one really believes in ghosts," and turns and vanishes, Pem and all. Again with the laughter...God I love this station!

A very happy birthday to my Mommers!!

That's right December 3rd is the natal anniversary of my dearest mum.

Happy Birthday Mom!

Sad but true

Courtesy of my friend at NOAA

(no he didn't make it)

Next time more blood!

Yeah I know it's a week early but I was at a great Halloween party last night.  I loved Zombieland so much I decided to go as a freshly reanimated zombie this year.  I had a great time with the special effects make-up.

The neck wound was tons of fun to make.  It took hours of prep time but it was worth it.  I had to pour the majority of the blood on my clothes around 10am and wait for it to dry.  Not on me of course, I hung it in the laundry room and hit the really wet spots with a hair dryer.  I started on the latex about four hours before the party.  Once all the pieces were ready it all went together really fast though.  I love the bruise and abrasion make-up it was totally great.

I totally want to do this one again!!!

Fire update

Reports this morning are far less inflammatory, if you'll forgive the pun.  Over 700 combined acres burned and only one home lost (which had been vacant for several months).  Local news reports 4 air tankers and 7 helicopters plus 50 engine crews on the ground total.  They really pulled out the stops on this one.  Had the wind been blowing from the other direction this could have been a major disaster.  THANK YOU EVERYONE!!!  Hug a firefighter.

Ring of Fire

So it HAD occured to me just what a death trap this valley could be with just the two major exits. Today a small window into that possibility. Not truely serious at this time but with a fire buring at each end of the valley one starts thinking...



Around I think 10 or so this morning it occured to me that the sun coming in my office window was remarkably red. Upon walking outside I quickly determined there was a fire IN Ashland. This is a photo "borrowed" from the Mail Tridune's web site as my office is under that cloud of smoke near the right margin of the picture. The fire is buring into the hills (away from town) but at last count was >50 acres and 6+ homes destroyed. Two helicopters and one retardant plane plus ground support fully involved. For those of you keeping track, that's the southern exit to the valley.



Then I find out that RoxyAnn is burning here in Medford. I took this picture with my cell phone on my way home. There appeared to be several spot fires south along the ridge but I couldn't get them in the shot. The planes were focusing on the larger blaze and people had just stopped in the regular lanes of traffic to watch them. Idiots!!! Anyway there is/was a substation under all that smoke and after my time at BPA I wonder if that's where it started. Hot dry air can do amazing things with high voltage lines. Add smoke particulates from the southern fire and Zappo! Man-made lightening.


Once again it's nice to be on the same grid as a major hospital...I'm one of the last to lose power. My house is about a mile away from this one, again, under the smoke *cough*. Not quite the northern exit to the valley but it does inspire images of clogged roads and fiery death.


A little levity in everything though...there are opportunistic ice cream trucks all over my neighborhood so you can grab a quick popsicle while you watch the fire! I must say it is a little unnerving to see all that smoke and hear "The Entertainer" plinking away in the distance.

The PERFECT tomato

I am not a tomato lover. They look delicious but the taste has always been below expectation. But the slurping, yummy noises my parents make over their fresh tomatoes keeps me trying. Over the last several years I've been trying to work tomatoes into my diet in combination with other things I like. Sort of conditioning myself to like them. This year I am even growing some myself. So far they are better than the ones you typically find in the store but I'm still working on the taste thing.

Well last week I found a heirloom variety in the organic section of Safeway of all places that knocks me on my butt...

I did a web search for the organic farm and came up with a name. They are Cherokee Purples. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cherokee_purple I don't know that my picture really does the color justice but they almost truly purple on the inside.

This is a tomato I can eat on it's own! Mom and dad, please order seeds and share with Katie in return for starts. I can pick up young plants on my annual Morel trip!

Clean Dogs and New Blogs

Mom has finally started her own blog!

http://wolfruncardis.blogspot.com/

Given her gift for story telling I'm very excited to see what's to come.

The weather cooled down just a bit today and so I braved the afternoon heat to wash the dogs. They are always so depressed when I first lift them up on the table but then so darn proud of themselves after getting puffed up by the dryer.

Random Facts:

I'm really love little-known facts and while looking up

this date in history I discovered a few great tid-bits.

On this date in...

1866: Tennessee is the first state to ratify the 14th amendment

(not the first state I think of when it comes to civil liberties but good-on-ya)

1816: The survivors of the Medusa are rescued after 17 days

(remember that painting of the mostly naked, half dead people on a raft by Gericault?)

1553: Lady Jane Grey is deposed as Queen of England

at the age of 15 after a rule of only 9 days

(one of my favorite stories of the backward British monarchy)

Bandon BOB

Ch. Wolfrun Canterbury Tales

Judge: Mrs. Lesley E Hiltz

July 4th, 2009

The photographer obviously tweaked the contrast a little too much. I KNOW my dog isn't that white even on his cleanest days but I'll take it.

Squinting at Mirrhi with his tongue hanging out...yup, that's my dog!

Monkey Underwear

I think I need to get me some of those...

Have a great weekend everyone! I'm outta here!

Spring Storms

We've been having thunderstorms for the last two weeks and fairly intense rain at times. There was a good one Friday night so I thought I'd try out my camera's ability to catch lightening.

I was very happy as I sat on my porch sheltered from the rain to have not been a ticket holder for the opening nights of the Britt and Shakespeare festivals' outdoor theaters. Sure Los Lonely Boys would be fun but not on a bald hillside with no cover and all that electricity on stage. ACK!

Chaucer's New Skill

Yeah, his hips aren't the greatest but sometimes I simply can't help but indulge him. Today he found an old frisbee in the toy basket. Suddenly he loves that thing!

Blue boy's got jump

He was really proud of himself but his feet kept getting caught up in the ring while he was prancing back to me. Smarty came up with a solution though...he learned to flip it over his head on the return trip.

Other things in the air

I'm deviating from the usual dog discussions today. As I sit here sniffing and coughing despite my Allegra D (the D is very important, trust me) I thought some of you might find this interesting. As most of you know I coordinate pharmaceutical research trials for the doctor I work for. Some of those trials are for allergies. That means we need to know what's floating around in the air day-to-day. Well here you go folks...

The photos are a little grainy as I took them with my cell phone through the eye of the microscope but under 40x magnification this is what is making us all sneeze. These were actually taken some weeks ago, there's far more grass out there now. The "Mickey Mouse" looking fellows are tree pollen, conifers mostly, while the oval ones are grasses. The speckledy bits are dust, mold, and other things I don't count because in the Rogue Valley they are constantly present in allergenic levels. I do find some fun things from time to time, bits of wing or a leg slapped off a passing insect like this little guy...remember this is under 40x magnification, that is more pollen beside him, so he got their by floating...

Just thought you might all like to know what you're really breathing out there.

Have a great day and don't forget to change your furnace filters!

Beautiful morning!

It is a lovely morning here and since I'm about through my first cup of coffee its time to start getting ready to putter outside a bit. I finally got around to loading some of the photos from the new camera. We have a pair of Canada geese that have moved in to the pond outside my office. I get there around 7:30 and all week they've been happily gliding around honking little taunts at the red wing blackbirds and stomping down their nesting site. This year I hope they stick around to raise their babies. Last year construction forced them to relocate three days after hatching. Environmental impact from a Buddhist temple of all things!

Birthday Girl!

Happy 8th birthday to my Stormy-Bella-Fancy

a.k.a. C-Myste Nightingale!

Olympus Stylus 7000

I got a new camera!!!

I have wanted one for a long time but have not been able to come up with a good excuse to justify the expense. HA! Well I finally found it...air miles! Yep, since I'm not headed out of the country anytime soon I cashed in a few miles for a spiffy new camera.

I was losing the light by the time the battery was fully charged and my models were more interested in eating grass than looking at the camera. Still, I got a few descent shots in. I have hardly touched most of the features but I really like the on-board photo editing!

Pater Familius

(Papa Bil and Lil' Brandy)

I got an unfortunate call from mom yesterday. Bilbo has had a cough for months now and yesterday they discovered the cause. He has a tumor "the size of a large egg" on his heart that is restricting his lungs and causing mild fluid build-up. It's something like doggie CHF from what mom told me. The vet was rather grim in my opinion considering Bil's in no pain from it and no one knows how long it's been there or how fast it's growing.

Of course he's just as goofy as ever and all comfort measures will be taken when/if they are necessary but it's a sad revelation.

We all get a little crazy sometimes...