Vet Visit

Sweet Goran Kropp. When he didn't come barreling through the back door, into the kitchen with his body being wagged by his tail and sweet eyes looking up at me, I knew something was wrong. I called "all dogs up" twice and still no response. Turning the porch light on, I noticed his head down, his long leopard body curled up, in a tiny, tight ball in the corner of the porch. You're such a good communicator, Kropp.

His nose was dripping and he let out a few sneezes. Lethargic. Sad. Warm. I was scared that he had swallowed something he shouldn't have while out playing with P'tanga under one of his caves. He gasped for air and he was breathing only through his mouth because his nose was stuffed. I explained this to Vet Tech Robin over the phone and she suggested I give Kropp 50 mg (1 mg per pound of body weight) of Benadryl. I ran to Walgreen's, and balled the two pills up in some yummy Havarti Dill cheese. Kropp had a great appetite. I took him into the bedroom and let him sleep comfortably for most of the night. There were two rounds of heavy breathing and vomiting of clear/foamy liquid. He was suddenly uncomfortable, but rested his head again peacefully until 630am. I took him to the vet, ready to spend what ever USD I had to, in order for him to feel better.

Goran Kropp was sweet at the vet's office. Suddenly aware and active, excited about the other dogs. This made me feel good, too. In the room, the vet wanted x-rays and blood work, with no reasoning behind it. She said he had no obstructions, that there was an upper respiratory issue. Why blood work?, I asked. She said she just wanted to be sure. Sure of what? She didn't know. I asked her to treat it as she would any other upper respiratory issue. We walked out with, fluids dripped into his system, antibiotics and pepcid. On the way out the door, Kropp coughed. I let the vet know that that is what he had been doing all night. She touched his throat and said, oh, that is kennel cough. Whew. So simple.

So, thanks be to Radar for infecting this sweet boy. Radar hadn't had symptoms up until today. All dogs are up to date on shots and Kropp had not had much contact with Radar, but there must have been a food or water bowl that got mixed up in the bunch. So far, Soup, Cassius and Fedora are feeling well.

White Out

Here is a photo of the lovely side door that Jordan built. The beautiful walkway and steps were designed by JJ&R Moore. I painted the frame and I'm enjoying its crisp clean look.

Soup 101

Hello, I am Professor Soup. Here at the University of Blunder Hunds, I specialize in teaching dogs how to behave.


This is a photo of me presenting to you, my University

Here I am showing Radar how to walk sweetly on a leash.

Here we go......

After walks, I teach him how to relax.

Radar is an exceptional student. Now, I must admit, my success rate is low. There are four Blunder Hunds currently studying under me, 3 of which have no ability to retain the wisdom I am teaching. Below is an example of what I am talking about.

They are totally out of control. My University is not for every dog. If you are not willing to learn, Frank, there is no need to apply. Thank you and Good Day.

Kruz'n Right Along

I spent some time with "Kruz with a K" Sunday. He's hilarious and strong. Jordan says he has that Sergeant haircut, which is glowing brightly like sun shining on wheat in a Michigan field in this photo. Check out the "V" prominantly shaved, perfectly into his unshaven head.



But with the backbends and twists he does, I say he becomes a yoga instructor. Here he is, tryting out Cobra:



His smile is outrageously adorable. He purses his lips together and does "Matthew, Stephan, & Father" like no one else. Impressive move, Mr.

Slow Fix

Here is the final picture of the [fixed] water pipe before I fill the trench with the North Carolina clay. In the photo, the trench is filled with water due to 3 geysers that erupted during previous attempts to fix the old pipe. The water has been leaking slowly on and off for weeks. After multiple failed attempts to fix the stubborn split, I finally went to Lowes to purchase the proper 160psi rated pipe that it required. I had to pick up 100ft of it, so if the brittle pipe bursts again, I am prepared. Also, a tip from the big men at Little Hardware: Soak the pipe in boiling water before twisting it onto the male adapter. Worked like a charm.

Meet Radar

After spending an evening with this SWEET boy, I didn't like the name Matewa for him. He was nameless for the evening, walking around with Soup and I. I would try a different name here and there, Hilo, Kilo, Tiger (Tiger was neighbor Rob's suggestion), but nothing stuck. I talked to Jordan on the phone and he mention a NZ opinionist, writer and satirist, Te Radar. Te Radar is touring NZ with his documentary,, Eating the Dog, an award winning show, raising funds for Scouts and Guides. Radar it is. For now. Until this sweet boy finds his forever home......

Radar is a loving boy. He gives lots of kisses out and enjoys walks. He knows the command sit and he is great on a leash. He gets excited and loves to play with dogs. LOVES to play with dogs. Him and Kropp were crazy together, and Radar tried his tackle moves on Soup, but Soup wasn't having any of it. Of course, the Dobermann Pinchermanns are not thrilled about the new addition. Cassius sniffed him, but wasn't too sure and Fedora let it be known to Wilmore, she didn't approve. Radar needs a little work on jumping up on people and he is getting used to his crate. We have had no accidents in the house.

During his vet check he was heartworm negetive, treated for fleas and hookworm. The vet said he was about 1 yr old, weighs 52 lbs and overall, a very healthy boy.



Thank you Rhonda, Tim and Lisa at Project Halo for helping me rescue this boy!

Where are my caves??

Luke Alexander

Luke Alexander Daily is HOME! This tough "bundle of love", as Momma Kate calls him, is sweet and beautiful. The first time I met him, he was sitting on his Dad, Scott's, lap letting his 60 pound lab/pitt mix, lick his little head. He was welcomed home Thursday, August 5th, by Momma Kate, Daddy Scott, Big Brother Liam, Big Dog Haley, Medium Dog Fontana and Forever Young Kitty Lexi. The Daily's are great neighbor friends that I met when I moved into 1818 in December of 2008. They are a special team that make me smile and inspire me in many ways. Congratulations Team Daily on the newest addition!

Tear He

Mr. Tear-He Wing-Ate is tearing himself up by eating wings. For real. Not the dog, For Real. No.....seriously, for real.
In attempt to do "at home surgery" on his in-grown toenails with his version of his Dad's Boy Scout knife (the same knife he uses as a home remedy to pop his boils to allow them to drain when he gets stressed and the same knife he used to cut a McDonald's Sausage and Egg Breakfast Burrito in half to share with Racist HR Manager), Mr. Wingate has developed an infection on both his left and right BIG toes. To everyone's surprise, after 10 days of Neosporin, hydro-codeine and klonopin, the infection hadn't cleared up. This could have something to do with his type II diabetes that is out of control, even with insulin shots injected into his dried up blood stream, administered by whichever nurse at Constar is available at the moment his blood sugar his 425. After his blood sugar comes down, he realizes it's too low and eats a jelly filled doughnut to get the levels back to "normal".

After days of limping around the office, Mr. Tear-He decided it was best to have his toe nails surgically removed to ensure something like this would never happen again. Surgery was scheduled for Friday morning and Boss Man was to be back in the office on Tuesday, fully recovered. Well, after surgery and two valiums later, he called to inform us that, because of his 'betes, Doctor's orders are to stay in a recliner, feet raised and hourly Epsom salt soaks necessary for one week. There you have it. For one week, Tear-He will be in his recliner, eating Vienna sausages for breakfast, chicken wings for lunch and doughnuts for dinner, He will check his blood and shoot himself with insulin as needed or not as needed, as he sits in his cold house, AC set to 60 and a window unit set on 50 with an industrial fan blowing directly on his body.....free of in-grown toenails.

Even with the boils, the toe nail surgery, the tape lamb, the insulin shots.....he keeps going. He goes to Bikinis, he goes to Jack-in-the-Box, he goes to Constar. Go Tear-He, Go.

I've decided this post should contain no photos of Mr. Tear-He, however, here is a picture of where he will be the day he gets out of that recliner.

The Dream Time of the Soul

Tuesday, August 3rd, the same day Jordan landed in Auckland, Jesus Christchurch and Invercargill, New Zealand, I ran across a stray dog. Actually, he ran right to Soup and I as we were walking around Wilmo', during our lunchtime stroll. I've seen the dog a time or two before, heard Jordy and some neighbors chat about him and heard he had a boy vs. dog interaction with our little friend, Liam. It was a good one. This Pitt Mix's joyful personality, grabbed my attention. He was strong, happy and playful. "Metewa", a Maori name that means, the dream time of the Soul, was what I called him (thanks to my fancy phone while waiting for advise on what to do with him, I could look up Maori names, in honor of Jordy's arrival to NZ). I immediately called Billy, knowing that he would guide Metewa in the direction of life after stray-dom. He helped out, making calls and talking to his rescue friends. Since he and his wonderful family of 7 (including dogs/not including bird and fish) rescue on an ongoing basis, he has great contacts. I felt confidant that Metewa would see his next "x" amount of years, in a good home. He told me to make some calls to the Humane Society, and later called back saying Metewa's best bet would be for animal control to take him in, as the Humane Society was full. After dialing 311, Officer Brad showed up. We connected immediately and he was more than helpful. Knowing very well that Metewa is high percentage Pitt, and the Animal Control Center will not adopt out Pitts, he entered his breed in the system as Lab Mix. Now Metewa can be adopted :) His adoption number is A787568. I called today and 311 said there is already an interested party, although he is not available for adoption quite yet. I later found out that the "interested party" was me. Bummer. I need to find this sweet boy a home. As long as his vet check goes well, he should be able to meet his forever family, as early as August 7th! Thank you Metewa for coming up to Soup and I for help. (Pictures will be added soon).