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| The Betta and the Jade; casein tempera on panel; 8" x 10" |
Sandwiched between working on this painting my dog had surgery. He's an old dog - 11.5 times around the sun - but an oh-so-precious soul. He had developed a tumor in his toe that destroyed the claw, allowed for a nasty infection and was growing aggressively. It's gone now. I don't know if they call it a toe-ectomy but you get the idea. He's in pain but not as frustrated now that it's gone. I think it was driving him crazy. We'll find out soon if it's cancer or not. But either way, I've got my dog back - and I plan to treasure every day with him.
10 comments:
My friend has trained me to wag more and bark less!
They do have a way of training us, don't they?
We'll know more Monday when the tests come in and they take the bandage off. But already he seems so much happier :)
As a huge dog lover and supporter of various rescues, I know how much the fur babies mean to us. Hope your baby heals quickly!
The new painting is delightful - and no snow!!!!
Thank you, Jan, for all you do for rescue dogs - such a worthy cause!
Gumby continues to improve. This morning he ran a little and then started hopping on three legs. So it seems he wants to be more active but then gets a reality check and slows down. He's eating well - always a concern after surgery. I've heard that dogs can have trouble with their throats because of the tubing used during anesthesia.
He's a black standard poodle which means he's susceptible to toe cancer - something we just learned a couple of weeks ago doing searches online. Our black standard poodle before Gumby had Addison's Disease and only lived 7 years. That was costly too as he needed daily meds. I love poodles as I grew up with a black miniature. But with pure breeds there are unique issues.
What kinds of dogs do you have, Jan and David? Would love to hear any and all advice on picking a breed - or mixed/unknown breed.
I think poodles are the epitome of grace and beauty but you're right that they do have their own issues. Most poodle rescues tend to deal with cataracts as much as anything though.
Because we live in the country, we had rescued black Lab mixes for over 20 years (for some reason black dogs don't find homes as easily as other colors). But our last Lab male developed severe arthritis and many times had to be carried out to go to the bathroom. I figure I'm about 10 years older than you (based on the other post here)and it was very difficult to carry nearly 100 pounds of dead weight in and out several times a day.
So we adopted a little rescued Maltese who was dear to me but who had no teeth, a class 5 heart murmur and luxating patellas which could not be fixed due to the heart murmur. She passed away much too soon and it took us another couple of years to adopt a little Yorkie mix who bonded with my husband but avoided me. So, at Christmas we got another Maltese mix rescue who likes both of us! Having her has definitely brought the little Yorkie and I closer too so she was a 'good thing'.
As a side note - my real 'heart' dog was a big, white standard poodle mix that I came by in a very unusual way so I have a great love for the poodle breed.
Glad Gumby is using his leg and eating well. May he continue to heal and never be bothered with cancer or any other horrible disease!
Gumby only weighs 35 pounds. I can't imagine carrying a dog that weighs 3 times that in and out to do his business. 'Very difficult' is an understatement! As it is, we have to carry Gumby up and down the stairs for the next 2 weeks. That's quite enough for me. But I hear you - carefully take into account your age and strength when choosing a breed - you may need to carry him/her at times.
Thank you for sharing your experience with dog breeds. It sounds like your Christmas present worked out really well for you. So glad the Yorkie-mix is warming to you now too - that must've been rough.
It's nice to know you're a poodle appreciator. Somehow the breed got a bad rap - maybe they were too popular in the 60's and people were ready for something new. Oddly, everyone seems to want a 'doodle' now. So when I get asked what kind of dog Gumby is (we keep him in a lamb cut), I tell them he's a Poodle-doodle :)
He gets seen at 9 tomorrow morning. I'll keep you posted on his progress.
Thanks again for your kindness and concern!
At the time, I was in top shape as I had a horse and was used to tossing around heavy hay bales. Not only that, but Chancey wasn't down all the time and my DH built a ramp so it was easier to get him outside. I couldn't begin to do it now.
Oh, hope Gumby gets a good report today! Appreciate the updates on his condition.
We have a loanable doberman rottweiler (not blue blood, but he thinks he is), junk yard rescue/bad back leg lap kitty! 90 # of of energy.
Sounds like a sweetheart, David :)
Just to let you all know - Gumby continues to improve but we are still waiting on the test results. I'll be sure to post them in this post's comments as soon as they come in.
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