Well my friends and blog readers, things here are…troubling. Yesterday I decided I did not want to eat. Now when a PON doesn’t want to eat, you know you have a real problem. So her highness made an appointment for me to see the vet immediately.

I saw the vet who has LOTS of experience with dogs. The guy who has a great big giant laugh – which can be heard throughout the clinic . He knows her highness well – so he understands what a crazy dog lady she is.

He examined me and didn’t find anything unusual on exam – although he could see that I am wobbly on my feet. I didn’t take a treat from him, mind you, lots of dogs at the vet don’t always want to think about treats. We reviewed my history and my medication list. And of course the first thing he wanted to do was blood work..

It seems that one of the possible long term side effects of my many medications is presenting itself. I have had changes in my liver function. And it has changed noticeably since February when I last had full blood work.

As the vet described, it is high, but in his opinion, not in a critical danger stage. BUT, we do not want it to get worse. So, he gave me some medication for liver support, and he wants me to watch my diet. He also suggested we dial back some of my medication.

Of course, her highness has been reading like mad about my condition. The vet gave me some stimulant for my appetite. Her highness had switched my food back to my old food – as you may recall. The only problem – I’m not crazy about that old food. It has a much lower protein level – which is good for me, but frankly, I no longer find it as yummy as the other stuff that had a much higher protein level. Give me the super rich food – and I’ll eat it. Give me the old food, and I just look at it.

As an aside, her highness has been giving me a liver support supplement (with milk thistle) for probably a year now. We will continue on that.

I should note that I went for a LONG 2.5 km walk with everyone yesterday, and while I wasn’t always at the front of the pack, I kept up and loved it. I played fetch and gleefully tried again to destroy a stuffed toy. I also had brilliant poops (those are her highness’ words, not mine.). I did take my pills because who can refuse pill pockets of ground beef and cottage cheese? I also did eat 3/4 of my supper and all my blueberries. Oh – and treats I would eat.

When Joanie came by to visit yesterday, I ran out to meet her, and every time we go out, I do get a good spurt of energy. So there are times when I am my old self. But it’s obvious at other times that I have a real problem.

So my readers, I really need your positive thoughts and prayers. And if anyone has experience with diets for dogs with liver challenges, please feel free to contact her highness. She would love to hear from you.

Have a good one. Peace and paws up.

We are very much enjoying our company! I don’t even have the time to write much because we are keeping busy. We have gone for some extra long walks – which we LOVE. The photo you see is her highness and the FG having a heart to heart about him coming down from a rock. Of course, he is about to give her a sloppy kiss on the nose – begging to stay up there.

Her highness is still quite concerned about me. I like to go out and I’m eating fairly well – although not with my usual frenzy. I will play fetch, and I got very excited about trying to “operate on” a stuffed toy yesterday. But otherwise, I’m very lethargic and pretty uncoordinated. I wouldn’t be surprised if she tries to get my vet appointment before the 3rd….Please keep me in your thoughts….

Have a good one. Peace and paws up.

Well this is one of those good news/bad news blogs..It’s going to be a mishmash – so get comfortable.

So where to begin. How about some good news. I have surpassed three weeks without a you-know-what. That’s the longest I have gone in months. Which is FANTASTIC. Absolutely fantastic. Her highness thinks it may be because we adjusted my meds. She increased my phenobarb by 1/4 pill twice a day. And that definitely coincides with the longer time between seizures.

But the bad news…You may recall that her highness changed one of my medications to liquid form. And she was putting it on my food. So I didn’t want to eat….So she started just squirting it in my mouth- to get it over with. Well you should SEE the faces I make. I hate it. I mean I HATE it. So medication time has become a dreaded time. I never cared about taking my pills. Now I won’t even take the pill pockets she makes. She tries peanut butter on the roof of my mouth, and I spit out the pill. She has resorted to pushing it into the back of my mouth. Which is not fun for either of us.

On top of that, I have been having lots more side effects from my meds. My rear end doesn’t always go where I want it to. And overall, I look depressed. I just lie around, looking sad. Sure – I’ll happily go for a walk- or play fetch, but something is “off.” My regular vet is off until January 3, and her highness booked an appointment for that day. Her highness is very worried about me. And it’s funny, if someone saw me trotting down the street, they probably wouldn’t notice anything. But she notices….Hopefully this is all medication related- and not something more serious….

OK – enough of that. Let’s switch to some good news. We have company arriving today!!! Her highness’ sister and her significant other are coming from Newfoundland! Now he has never stayed here – so we have been instructed to be on our best behavior. Good luck with that. They will be with us until January 2nd.

And speaking of behavior… we got ourselves in some hot water. Good thing Santa has come and gone…

Since I wasn’t eating my pill pockets lately, her highness got some dried liver treats – which I love! She crushed them into little pieces and rolled my pill pockets in the liver. That worked a couple of times – but I am now onto her and the hidden pills so I won’t take those either. Anyway, the other morning, she got up and gave me and Einstein our pills first thing – since we had almost slept in until 7 AM! She then went into the bathroom to get dressed so she could take us out for our morning walks.

When she came out of the bathroom, I was the only visible dog. My two amigos were in the kitchen. As her highness approached the kitchen, she spotted it. A bag on the floor. An empty bag. A bag that had been full of 9oz of dried liver treats. SOMEONE took the bag off the counter – and ate all the contents. Her highness immediately suspected Einstein- he is always attempting to counter surf. Or..did the FG grab the bag? Big brother was no help because a Christmas decoration was blocking a clear view to the kitchen.

Her highness quickly googled dried liver treat overload and found some site that said a dog could get liver toxicity. What?! So her next move was to call Animal Emergency. The problem was there was no way of telling who ate it and how much we each ate. The clinic said the bag size wasn’t all that big – so the only problem might be some gastric issues. Won’t THAT be lovely with company coming? I’m not telling who got the bag down, but let’s just say we ALL enjoyed the treat.

Since the liver rolled pill pockets stopped working, yesterday her highness got groceries and made NEW pill pockets for me. With ground beef and cottage cheese. So far, I am QUITE happy to eat those. Her highness just about did a happy dance when I took it. Meanwhile, Einstein looked forlorn because he is still getting the original pill pocket recipe. Wonder if he’ll start protesting too….

Never, ever, EVER a dull moment…

Have a good one. Peace and paws up.

Let me begin by saying Christmas is not about presents. Oh who am I kidding? It is. At least partly.

So we got all excited about seeing what “Santa” left for us. As I mentioned yesterday, we dogs enjoy the unwrapping almost more than the gift. Unless the gift is edible.

Now I know it’s the thought that counts- and it IS. However, Santa had an epic fail with gifts this year. Except for the edibles. Which we are not allowed to unwrap – because let’s face it – a bag of treats would be devoured in no time.

The whole unwrapping thing began with the obligatory photo. Her highness sets us up and puts the gifts in front of us. Well, this year, the FG couldn’t wait to open his. Above you see the first shot. It is followed by the series where the FG makes his move, while her highness is telling him to “leave it,” and Einstein starts barking out his protests.

Santa bought us these super duper expensive Nylabones. They are supposed to look like a bone with meat on it. Now usually we unwrap that kind of thing and start chewing away. Not this time. We had no interest in them whatsoever. Santa also brought us this suction cup thing that supposedly sticks to the floor and it has a ball attached. With a rope. I think the ads must have glued the thing to the floor. Because ours didn’t work. Which meant Einstein WAS interested in that gift so he could attempt to chew through the rope. That toy had to be put away. We got another toy for fetching – and that he also wanted to chew. Another toy confiscated. The last was a hard rubber toy which no one cared about.

Her highness is so sensitive- she felt sorry for Santa with his epic fail. I think the FG sensed her disappointment- so he did chew on the Nylabone. For like 36 seconds.

Luckily Santa also brought us some sweet potato chews. And those were a hit. Of course – they are edible.

Her highness did some visiting yesterday-and so today she has nothing booked. It’s Boxing Day. But everything is closed in Nova Scotia. So all the bargain sales don’t begin until tomorrow- which they call Boxing Day sales. It’s really a misnomer. It should be Post-Boxing Day sales. Doesn’t really matter – we don’t need anything. Definitely no new Nylabones… That gift was almost as “popular” as those hunks of Wood Santa brought one year. No one EVER chewed those either. I think I need to go back to writing my own list next year…

But as I said before, Christmas isn’t all about the gifts. It was really just perfect that we were able to spend our time together. There’s a quote about Christmas not being about what’s under the tree that is important – but who is around it. I hope you are able to continue sharing in that Christmas spirit, right through New Year’s!

Have a good one. Peace and paws up.

Merriest of Christmas greetings to all my hearty blog readers. I hope on this joyful day that you can take a moment to enjoy the peace and love that Christmas is all about.

I also hope that Santa found your home and you were rewarded for your good behavior and good deeds. Shockingly, he somehow again arrived without us hearing him – and left some brightly wrapped packages with our names on them. The packages have all of our names as it is inevitable that we will steal gifts from one another. Or should I say we will “borrow” gifts from one another. No matter what, the unwrapping frenzy will soon begin. We usually enjoy that more than the actual gifts.

Her highness went to church late last night. So it was extra late when we went to bed. But not to worry – we still got her up at 6:30. We had to see if there were gifts for us!

Thanks to all for your lovely comments and Christmas greetings. We are happy that this blog can make you smile from time to time. Even during those times when our behavior is not exactly exemplary!

Please remember that while Christmas does include gifts, each one of us holds special gifts all year round – and we should try to share those with others. Just try to be like a dog – and share that gift of continual joy – through a simple act of kindness. Be good to one another.

And we canines will be good too. At least for today….

Merry Christmas- have a very good one. Peace and paws up.

Christmas Eve. It’s finally here. Tonight we stand guard for some heavy-set bearded guy to wedge his way down our chimney. I have yet to see him. We always fall asleep.

Anyway, instead of writing a list for myself this year, I thought I would write one for her highness. I have to be quick – because I’m not sure what the deadline is. I’ll text it.

Dear Santa;

My human has been a pretty good human, although at times, I do find she can be a bit stingy with treats. Otherwise, I think you can consider her on your Nice list. Since she is owned by 3 canines, I have come up with a list of items she could definitely use:

1. Lint rollers. Lots of them. If your elves make a jumbo size, her highness would appreciate it. We’re talking Costco size times ten.

2. Paper towel. She is forever wiping water off the floor, mud off the floor as well as goobers off cupboard doors. She could use the jumbo size in this as well.

3. New uniform pants. In the event that she needs to leave the house for an emergency, we don’t want to be embarrassed by her appearance. Those pants need to go. That does not need to be jumbo size. Then again- she did eat all that leftover Halloween candy – better make those jumbo too.

4. Windex window cleaner. The French doors are beginning to look like the glass is frosted from our olfactory art. Make that jumbo size as well.

5. Vacuum cleaner bags. That’s a given.

6. Some new “atractibles” to attract our attention during photo shoots. She tries desperately to get us to look at the camera, using a variety of toys- and she also makes enough wild animal sounds that she could do voice overs for a jungle movie. During our Christmas photo shoot (well during one of them) she got so exasperated, she tried fake crying. We looked at her for a split second, but she was too slow to get the shot. And of course when she tried that trick again, we didn’t fall for it. Even though I think she WAS crying by that point.

7. Wine. Jumbo size as well. For those days when we don’t behave. I hope your sleigh is the size of a tractor trailer for that order.

Those items would definitely make her happy. Sure- she would probably like some jewelry too. As long as it has a PON and/or Picard on it.

As for us dogs, Santa- just a couple jumbo size bags of treats. No clothing or educational toys. And no head bands or antlers.

Thanks again for your hard work. It is much appreciated.

Your friend,

Viktor

The FG and I did not make the Christmas photo shoots easy this year. During one session, the FG REFUSED TO LOOK at the camera. And in EVERY shot I look like I am THE most depressed dog on the planet. Meanwhile, Einstein just sits and smiles…Here are some bloopers…

In this one, yours truly shows how I really feel about photos.

Here is one of 200 where I look sad. And the FG will not look at the camera.

Here we have one of the toys her highness was shaking to get us to look at the camera.

This one isn’t too bad – the FG is almost looking at the camera out of the corners of his eyes…

Her highness must have tried for an hour to get a perfect shot. And we were getting loads of treats. But finally…she got this one. And I think it’s probably the best of the whole lot…

Oh the joys of Christmas..

Have a good one. Peace and paws up!

It’s inevitable. And it will probably happen today. Every year at this time. The annual Christmas bath.

This past week, her highness was working on some Christmas wreaths in the garage – and get this – she used our grooming table as a work station. Best use of that table I have ever seen. I was hoping she would keep making wreaths right up until Christmas Day. But no. She finished Friday night. And she put all of her wreath making supplies away. The glue gun has been put in its holster.

While the workshop was busy, we canines were not allowed inside. Glass ornaments and hot glue do not make for a good combination with wild dogs. So we’re glad that’s over – but now it means the torture table has returned to its original purpose.

Chances are, yours truly will be first. She starts with the easiest dog – which is probably not the best idea. It seems she should leave me until last. But I think she likes to get some positive reinforcement early on- so it will motivate her to do the “other two.” Einstein is the worst. So he will actually be second. Because if she left him until last, it would likely never happen.

The FG doesn’t love the brushing part, but he doesn’t mind bathing and he’s ok with the jet engine dryer. And also he’s the quickest to dry.

And you KNOW, after we are all fluffed and puffed, there will be that attempt to get the perfect Christmas photo. She has a back up already if it doesn’t work out. Clearly she has too much time on her hands with this retirement thing.

Well, time to get ready….Personally, I love all the treats….

Have a good one. Peace and paws up.

The other day, her highness had some of the “girls” who live on our road, over for some cupcakes and drinks. It’s a semi-annual holiday thing where they come over to see the Christmas explosion. And as far as we could tell, the drinks were not milk or water.

We canines were sequestered in the bedroom, but everybody was nice enough to come over to us to say hello. Her highness knows that we do not have the best manners when it comes to food. Frankly, if no one was watching, we would attempt to help ourselves. Hence the sequestering.

The next day, there were some leftover sweets and because there are people starving somewhere, her highness could not let those cupcakes go to waste. Need I remind her that she is still sporting the effects of eating a few lbs worth of Halloween candy. From 2016.

Anyway, she got a cup of coffee and took out her cupcake. She sat down to enjoy her treat, when yours truly started scratching, and the barrette I was wearing flopped down into my eyes. She saw my dilemma and got up to help me out. Little did she know I was just making a distraction. Because as she took the barrette from my hair, she turned around and saw the FG with two paws on the counter – licking her cupcake. “Hey”, she shouted “leave that alone!” He glanced at her, took another quick lick and jumped down as she quickly approached. She said “what are you doing eating my cupcake.” As if she expected him to answer. And really, the answer was pretty obvious. It was there. He was hungry. He helped himself. Did she really need to ask?

Yes, my picky Picard is not nearly so picky these days. And he has now added cupcakes to his roster of edibles.

I wonder though, if his name gets added to Santa’s naughty list. And my name gets added for being an accomplice. Looks like Einstein is the only one on the nice list. So far.

Have a good one. Peace and paws up.

Not a whole lot new around here this week. We had some snow – and her highness was leary about the ice underneath- so our exercise was on our own property. We didn’t go walking on the road.

We have two trails on our property that meet at the lake, so we basically do a circle. The FG is always on a leash or long line. Her highness doesn’t feel like chasing him through the woods. Einstein and I are usually off leash. Unless her highness has to be somewhere- then yours truly is put on a leash too. I’m generally trustworthy. Or at least I was until the other day.

It all happened because her highness made a few big mistakes. First she was stopping us every ten feet to take a photo. I have to tell you, the FG and I get bored pretty quickly. I start eating snow, and the FG starts eating branches. The only cooperative one is Einstein. So what else is new? Anyway, after playing pup-arazzi FOREVER, her highness told us it was time to go back to the house. The only problem was that she went clockwise instead of counterclockwise on the trail. And the problem with that is we end up at a certain point where we turn and go home OR we go straight and end up on the neighbors’ property. Well yours truly was tired of photos AND I knew her highness was out of treats. I was in the lead. Her highness shouted to turn right. I know exactly how to go home. And I stopped and then went full tilt straight ahead. Followed by the good dog- Einstein. Her highness must have shouted my name 485 times. “Viktor. Viktor stop. Viktor wait. Viktor treats. Viktor, you’re in trouble. VIK-TOR!!!!” Then the instructions were repeated – and this time she inserted Frodo for Viktor. Neither of us listened. Here she was shouting, racing (as much as she races) through the snow – and the tree limbs which were blocking the trail because they were covered in snow. She was getting pretty snowy as she chased us and held onto the FG’s lead as he pulled to keep up with us. Once we got to the neighbors’ house, I didn’t know what to do. They weren’t home. Of course I stopped to pee on one of their bushes, which gave her highness that window of opportunity to grab me by the collar. Except I didn’t have one on! She had brushed me earlier and had removed it. Still, she could grab ahold of my hair. One of the disadvantages of not being a Doberman. She told me to get home. And I happily trotted along. Down their driveway and onto ours. And back to the house.

Her highness was not impressed and uttered that saying I have heard 4,295 times – “Viktor, you are going to be the death of me.” She’s SO dramatic.

Anyway, I think it’s pretty clear I’m on Santa’s naughty list. I wonder if I should just concede defeat-and give up writing a list. Nah – I might as well still give it a try. I mean what’s the worst that can happen? I don’t get any presents? I’ll just take the FG’s. Just kidding. Maybe.

Her highness did mumble something about making up for my runaway action by trying on “something ” that she got at the Dollar Store. Heaven help me. This CANNOT be good if this is a penance. We’ve done antlers, Santa hats, garland, scarves and elf hats. And I even had a tree on my head. What can possibly be left….we’ll just have to wait and see.

Have a good one. Peace and paws up.

So here you see one of our most recent trio shots. We all know that getting three of us to stay in place and then for ALL of us to look at the camera, is nothing short of a miracle. But this shot is interesting for another reason. Notice anything about the photo? Anything interesting? And don’t feel badly if you don’t see anything. Because it’s pretty hard to make out.

About a month ago, her highness went to one of many Christmas craft fairs that are held in Halifax each year. She likes to buy local and to support local craftspeople.

So she went to the fair and came across a booth selling custom made dog collars. Now truthfully, we need another dog collar in this house like we need a hole in the treat bag. So she resisted the temptation to buy more collars. BUT she bought something else. Something handmade. And it was also seasonal as it was made of a Christmas print. And what did she buy? Bow ties. Three bow ties. A larger one for the FG and medium sized ones for me and a Einstein. They were very cute. And they snap onto your collar. So her highness bought them thinking they would be perfect for our Christmas photo shoot.

So she waited until we had some snow, stuffed her pockets with liver treats, attached our bow ties and took us out to attempt our Christmas greeting photo.

Wrangling us for the photo was the first challenge. The FG was on a leash but Einstein and I were free. If she wasn’t telling me to get my face out of the snow, she was pleading with the FG to look at the camera. She was tossing mittens, waving treats and making all kinds of sounds. I have no idea how many shots it took to get this shot.

But the funny thing- can you even TELL we are wearing those expensive bow ties? I can’t! Sure you can see something there- but do they look like bow ties?! I think not. More money spent on something that could have been better spent on dog treats. At least that’s my opinion.

She did mumble something that we should try this again. Can someone please tell her it’s futile? Bow ties and hairy dogs are not generally good company. Unless the bow ties are HUGE.

Wait. Don’t give her any ideas…

Have a good one. Peace and paws up.