Crate Rest Day 2...Off to the Farm

Hi Everett,
Marshal had a tough second day in the crate. It is still raining, so our morning walk was abbreviated simply because I didn't want to risk him slipping. Odd, you say, worrying about a dog slipping on a wet sidewalk/road/grassy yard, etc? Remember, this is the same young pup who, while standing still on a hardwood floor, can suddenly send both front legs in opposite directions, greeting the wooden surface with his face in the blink of an eye. I think his coordination is catching up with his lanky frame, but yes, I was worried about slippage, so our walk was very short.

The pups ate, then all of them reluctantly retired to their respective crates, and I left them for the day. I went to the farm, to help my sister Nina collect more of her harvest, and do general chores. The photo above is four kinds of beans, and just a few raspberries. We collected over a quart of berries, with full branches holding on to more that will be ripe for picking in just a few hours. We also filled two (three?) 5 gallon buckets with yellow squash, acorn squash, and one full bucket of pickle cucumbers. The pumpkins are not yet ready for picking, but I took lots of photos of those too--here is one with Dixie donating her head to put the pumpkin in the right scale:

These pumpkins are white, or yellow(?), at maturity...Dixie however will be white for life. Such a cute little lab! She just turned a year old, so she wasn't at the farm last time you were there Eve.

So Nin and I only picked for a few hours, then did some other outdoor things before it started raining again. We headed inside, then out on errands. We went to a neighbor's farm to drop off the overgrown cucumbers for the pigs, who love the extra-large veggies. I didn't take any photos of the pigs devouring the tasty treats, but here is a Jersey x short horn steer, who I HAD to photograph, given his coloring:

Isn't he awesome!! I have virtually no experience with cows of any kind, ESPECIALLY a brindle cow! But I digress.
While we were at this farm, it really started to rain in earnest, so we made our way back to Nina's place. She packed a nice meal for me and I left for the long drive home.

When I arrived at the house, Marshal was clearly ready for some play time. During the day he managed to get through the bottom tray in his crate, pulling up the rug underneath and appeared to methodically unravel each strand of the Berber as far as possible. We went out for our evening spin--yet again in the rain, so again for a shorter hike. Once again inside and toweled off, back into his crate he went, while I made dinner. He ate quietly (he doesn't inhale his dinner like you and Paisle, so I am hopeful we'll keep him at a good weight during this inactive time), but as soon as I removed his bowl and shut the crate door in his face, the protests started. Two rooms away and in the shower, I could still hear him alternating between ear piercing screeches (did Paisle teach him that?) and grown up barking. The volume varied but the message was clear: I WANT OUT!

I gave him one of the full marrow bones, about 7 inches long, fully frozen, complete with small amounts of grisle still attached. I left the kitchen again, to go get dressed, but the bribe did not work--as soon as I was out of sight the crying started again. So here I sit, in his line of vision but not actually IN the kitchen, wondering how we are going to get through the night.

Marshal is now in Paisle's condo--if anyone remembers why I put the smallest dog in the largest crate please let me know--and it easily takes up half the kitchen floor. Reaching either side of the stove is a stretch, while the oven door and both cupboards on each side of it are inaccessible. But, the good news is he can stand, stretch, lay on his side fully extended, and sit without his head touching his barred ceiling. What a small consolation, for such an unhappy dog.

Some folks on the forum to which I belong have sent to me links of rehabilitation clinics in the area. One of them is right next door to where we went to see your oncologist at the U! (for any new readers, Everett lost her cancer battle earlier this year) I still owe Michelle the last photos of your tumor--I started to burn the CD for her but just could not bring myself to look at those awful, awful photos another time, and put it away. If the rehab clinic has the time and space to see Marshal tomorrow--I hope he can swim at their facility at least a few times a week if not daily--then I'll finish the CD for Michelle and drop it off for her. Well, in reality, as soon as the clinic can see Marshal, I will bring the CD with all the photos of your tumor to her, or anyone in Oncology.

It's time for bed. Marshal has barely dented the large bone, but he has hours ahead of him to make progress...I hope he makes it through the night without crying. Tomorrow is a work day and I don't want to spend part of tonight on the floor with him in the kitchen, like I did last night. Come to think of it, now that he is in the condo, I bet there is room in there for me too, should it come to that....
Here's hoping everyone sleeps well (and through) tonight.

Woof Stock Portrait of Paisle

Dear Everett,
Marshal's first full day of confinement and it is raining outside. We've only been for one walk, early this morning in spitting mist, before the real rain started. We've ventured out to pee a few times since then, but no other walks.

Marshal has demolished two beef marrow bones (slices) so far, and accepted a remnant of a third. Paisle managed to wedge her beef bone slice onto her lower jaw, like a big fat bangle. She panicked when she couldn't remove it...okay so I had to maintain a calm disposition while I held her down to work it off, but the second I released her I had myself a really good laugh. Still, lesson learned and I will not give the petite Little Bean another beef marrow slice--she'll get the whole enchilada. Both Ansel and Marshal are big enough that the slices do not pose a lower jaw problem.

Paisle and I went to Woof Stock, today, in Linden Hills. It is an annual, one day, outdoor event for dogs, where vendors line the streets at 43rd and Upton, and we dog people bring the pooches to mingle and buy stuff. There were some events, and an air jump thing for children, but the weather put a damper on the outing. Thankfully, all the vendors had tents!

We visited with specialty dog food makers, portrait people, coffee shops, doggy blanket makers, dog bed designers, toy vendors, and even a few of the local shops where Paisle was welcome to enter. We met a ton of greyhounds (greyhound rescue had a booth), several Great Danes, many pooches of mixed parentage, and a Doodle that was Irish Setter colored (and equally Irish setter energetic!). It took a bit of encouragement to show Paisle there were HOT DOGS in the bottom of a small wading pool (only 7 or 8 inches deep), but as soon as she figured that out, she was in hot dog heaven! I only let her bob for two, in the spirit of sharing.

We met a caricature artist named Adnan Shati. He created the portrait of Paisle above, and I might add, it was the only one in color, AND the only one of a dog we saw him create! By the time she hopped off my lap when he was finished, Adnan's waiting line had grown significantly, and the new people in the queue each had a dog in tow.... Adnan's web site is http://www.idrawacrowd.com/. Here is Adnan, working on Paisle's portrait, while the Litlle Bean sits in my lap. This photo was taken by Paige T, one of the photographers chronicling the whole Woof Stock event:
We also picked up a new toy, for heavy chewers. It's called a Huck, and it floats! It's a Zogo-flex product, made by West Paw Design in Montana. And the packaging says, "At any time, for whatever reason, you no longer need this product, please send it back to us for recycling." Paisle LOVED its erratic bouncing and Marshal set off new volume records in protest that he could not play, so I stuffed it into his crate with him. In that small, confined space he still "chased" it around from one end of the crate to the other. I suspect that does not qualify as 'crate rest,' so I may have to steal it back from him when I give him his dinner tonight.

Marshal's Broken Leg

Dear Everett,
Marshal went to the vet last night. He’s been limping after play time, blading, etc. and slow to get up from a sit…sometimes slow to go in to a sit. Besides, I needed to introduce him to everyone there and drop off his vaccination records.

Marshal broke his leg back in April (mid shaft femoral fracture, meaning his ‘thigh bone’ snapped in the middle as though hit by a car, or got in the way of a heavy foot), and was subsequently surrendered, which is how he ended up with us. It was determined that ‘crate rest’ would be sufficient, and sure enough after a few weeks he started using his leg again (paraphrasing from his records). He has been running and playing since he joined us in July.

Everett, your doctor's office has a new vet, who loved Marhsal. The doctor examined every inch of Marshal’s pelvis and both back legs, before giving the rest of him the once over, and pronounced him in general good health, except the broken leg. We took x-rays (radiographs, to be exact). His left leg is fine, and I am glad they took radiographs of both femurs, to help my untrained eye see the difference. His right femur is still healing! It’s been almost four months, but I guess the added task of growing, as well as healing, elongates the time frame for repair? Not to mention all the activities we do every day!

So the poor thing is confined to crate rest again. I bought several packages of beef marrow bones. I gave him one small slice first (frozen), to see how his stomach handled the marrow, and he made it through the night with no ill effects. To be fair, both Paisle and Ansel received slices too—everyone was very happy.

NO running. NO blading. NO fetch, NO playing with Ansel and Paisle!! He may have walks of one mile or less (must have at least two hours crate rest afterwards) and he can swim all he wants. It’s a little cool now, for lake swimming, but I will cast about for a place to take him nearby. Doc said make sure to bathe him well after being in the water, so we don’t aggravate his allergies. Doc also gave me a brochure for a canine rehab place in Burnsville (they have a small tank with an underwater treadmill—really cool!), but that’s a bit far from home. He doesn’t think the U has a pool, but I’ll call Monday anyway and ask.

So how to keep this active, growing pup entertained in his crate for the next two weeks?? Doc said mind games of any kind are great—the bones are a start and stuffed kongs are freezing as I type.

Lastly, doc thinks due to tail and muzzle, that M’s cross is likely Great Dane. I dunno—I spend a lot of time walking behind my boys and M’s tail looks exactly the same as Ansel’s, though they clearly have different heads. I looked up some Dane pics though, and the heavy feet/leg structure looked VERY familiar…doc thinks M might be between 100 to 110 lbs when he’s done growing. He’s at 62.2lbs now, at 8 months old.

Dinner Out with the Dogs

Hi Eve!

I have found a new source of entertainment for the pups! :-)

This is Jenner with the Crew on her, though all you can see of Marshal is his hip and back where he has shoved himself under her right arm. Marhsal and Ansel are chewing on each other's faces while Paisle is pawing at her. But mauling our guests with happy tails and slobber is not the new source of entertainment (though that was fun too!)...we went out to dinner!

There is a website in town that lists all the restaurants that will allow you to take your pups to dinner with you. One of them is W.A. Frost, in St. Paul, where they welcome dogs on the patio. The outdoor temp hit 72, and Jenner and I had plans for dinner anyway, so I talked her into bringing the dogs along.

We left Ansel at home--he's not quite so outgoing as the pups and I was pretty sure the two dogs would be difficult enough for us to handle. We brought props with us: Paisle's blanket from my sister Koren, some of their favorite toys, and the treat bag (no clicker).

The other patrons did not seem so happy to see us, when we arrived. We were seated in a closed section of the patio, away from any other guests, along a low retaining wall and steps, right next to the kitchen door. I thought it was the perfect table for us. The low wall created a pocket of protection for one dog, with the table on one side and human bookends. The other dog was on my right, putting that pup at the foot of the stairs and in the line of waiter/waitress traffic.

Jenner and I each had a glass of wine (I had a salad too), then dinner, then coffee with dessert. We were there about 2.5 hours.

The wait staff and one of the managers certainly warmed up to us. Most stopped by to say hello to the dogs (we rotated who was in the pocket and who was on the outside), some more than once. A fellow patron recognized Paisle right away when we walked in, from our puppy class. She is Nancy, mother to Juno who is a BEAUTIFUL boxer mix, a week younger than Paisle. Juno and Paisle played very well together in class, and I am so glad Nancy stopped by to say hello to the Bean.

The dogs were so well behaved! There were a few snags...at some point Paisle became fixated on something at the kitchen door and started growling (we put her in the pocket and I was able to refocus her on sits/downs/high fives with lots of treats). Marshal suddenly became very restless (have I mentioned what a strong pup he is?) so I took him outside the patio and he immediately peed. And it was hard trying to maintain a conversation while keeping an eye on the pups. But overall it was definitely a success.
Here is Marshal, in the pocket on Paisle's blanket.

And fair is fair...since I posted a photo of Jenni, I am also putting up my mug--with Paisle of course. You can see the kitchen door behind us, and just a piece of the RR tie that is the retaining wall. Marshal is just out of sight, under my left elbow.
We will go back! I hope they remember us, and speak well of us to other patrons.
I wish you had been able to partake in outings like this, Everett. I hope you were with us in spirit, enjoying the positive experience with pit bulls.

Adding Marshal to the Crew

Dear Everett,

Your suspicions are confirmed. I have adopted that Masked Man, formerly known as Gopher. His new and forever name is Marshal...though most of the time I call him Big Boy. This picture does not show it very well, but he is bigger than Ansel. How much more will he grow? Who knows, but we hope he becomes a good size, maybe even your size?

We are going to the vet on Friday, to have his leg reviewed. When he gets too much exercise, he won't use the back right leg at all, poor thing. I think this is the leg he broke (and hence the reason he was surrendered).

More later, but boy talk about a Lover, not a Fighter! He has learned, from the Bean, that my lap is a really great place to be, and even at his current size he still climbs into it when he can. Oh he is just so precious (funny word for such a large dog!). Ansel continues to tolerate him, and on the supervised times they've been out together, they have even attempted to play. The goofy dog is still working on his playing skills--Paisle helps him with that--but it is so cute to see the boys do the doggy bows, and chase each other around....

Paisle's State Fair Photos

Hi Everett!

I am so excited--my friend Steve sent to me some of the photos he took of Paisle doing her thing at the State Fair on Tuesday, Aug. 26th. Here are just a few...

I think this was the beginning of a sit/stay (I can tell b/c I'm stepping forward with my right foot--if she were to heel with me it would be my left foot)...

and heeling...

Waiting on instructions from the announcer (can you see how close we are to the crowd?)...
After the instruction, "Release your dogs!" "Okay!" What a good girl. Mama is so proud of the Little Bean! Boy was she exhausted, but she did a great job. All those children right at her level, all the food, the exciting smells, the new location, not to mention the other 30-odd dogs in attendance...I could not have asked for any better performance out of her. I can't wait until next year!

Fall Weigh In

Hi Eve!
Don't these pups look cute! There's the rope, at the top of the doggy bed, and the Galileo just sticking out between his ear and head...tucked away for safe keeping, of course.
We went to the vet this morning, to pick up the Bean's next Sentinel tablet, depending on her weight. She's 44.5 lbs, so still with Sentinel Yellow--she doesn't get to white until she tops 50 lbs.
But the big news, is the Masked Man tipped the scale at 62 lbs!!! What a fatty! That means he's gained 5.5 lbs in just 13 days--did he sneak into the State Fair and chow down??? That is some serious bulking up for the winter! ha ha ha ha ha....