Bob and Rox were in Bob's car on the way to the park for a walk. Bob looks over to see Rox's head down near the floor. No sound, no gagging, no retching....... just a big pile of regurgitated rabbit guts.
Yes, the visual is as bad as the real thing. I tossed 4 times....
Not knowing what "it" was, and worried about some relationship to the otter incident or meds resulting therefrom, Bob bagged the barf and I headed off to the vet's office to let THEM look at it. My thinking was why not share the adventure?!
Dr. Plein, the only male vet in the practice took a look and declared "rabbit guts".
I wasn't surprised because half way to the vet my cell rang and it was Bob telling me he'd found a rabbit 4 feet from the patio door. It was missing some hair and it's insides. Ah, a clue.....
So here's the upside: Rox may have thrown up all there is to throw up. The downside is she may still throw up some more.....
Rabbits carry tapeworms so we have to take her back in 1 month to get a shot for tapeworm after any possible tapes go thru one life cycle.
Dr. Plein was concerned that Rox was being exposed to all this wild critter stuff. I assured him she is always on a leash (otter attacked her) and always in a fenced, locked-gate back yard in a subdivision (rabbit).
So we think Rox must have been pretty proud, she had dragged the dead half-eaten rabbit up to the patio to either show it off, or bring it in the house. The only thing that saved us was Bob calling her to go for a walk. She drops everything for walks.
She's only got one eye! How does she do this stuff?
And she's not kissing me for a long time !!!!
Icky poo and gag-city-to-the-max!
Sorry, we decided not to photograph either the gag bag or the empty-in-the-middle-bunny. I'm sure you understand..........
17 September 2008
Follow the Scent Home
An interesting note to all the otter attack hysteria...
When Rox slipped her collar and ran after the otters bit her butt, her instinct was to run for safety and/or home. She ran right past Bob and turned in at the sidewalk to John and Diane's condo. Bob found her panting at their door.
We had been to their condo the night before and Bob figures Rox smelled our scent on the path, and chose it as the way to safety.
I guess scents linger. I suppose that's how bloodhounds track their quarry.
I guess that makes Roxie a bloodhound dachshund.
Good to know that her instinct was to "go home"....
When Rox slipped her collar and ran after the otters bit her butt, her instinct was to run for safety and/or home. She ran right past Bob and turned in at the sidewalk to John and Diane's condo. Bob found her panting at their door.
We had been to their condo the night before and Bob figures Rox smelled our scent on the path, and chose it as the way to safety.
I guess scents linger. I suppose that's how bloodhounds track their quarry.
I guess that makes Roxie a bloodhound dachshund.
Good to know that her instinct was to "go home"....
The Dreaded Cadillac Crate That Made Roxie Cry
This is the crate that made Roxie cry. This thing is HUGE. It takes up the entire back seat of an SUV. It's made for car safety. Roxie didn't see it that way.There is a foam pad on the bottom, two pillows at one end (one of them is mine, by the way, with my scent on it - although it is now hers, with HER scent on it...) and her favorite quilt.
I'm proud I got her the biggest one that would fit. I'm proud I got one to fit in the middle seat so she could be by us and not get hurt in a rear-end collision. Putting her in the way back seemed to be too much like cargo, so she made the middle.
We petted her with our fingers through the cage bars. She was not impressed. We talked to her almost all the way. She was not impressed. We fluffed up her pillows. She was not impressed. We told her we loved her enough to keep her safe. She was not impressed.
I feel like a bad mom putting her "in a cage" but it really and truly is the most safe way to travel. If I could have sat in the back and held her I would have, but she would have tried to get into the front seat and would have cried until she got there. So we opted to put up with the crying (which broke our hearts) to keep her safe.
She is not impressed.
A Girl and Her Daddy
At the rest stop on the way home from up north. I zoomed in for a closer shot...
This is behind the brick outhouse....
This is Bob wishing I'd leave him out of the pictures... isn't Roxie pretty? Can't see her shaved butt from this angle....
This is behind the brick outhouse....
This is Bob wishing I'd leave him out of the pictures... isn't Roxie pretty? Can't see her shaved butt from this angle....16 September 2008
River Otter - 1, Roxie - 0
Our long week-end up north turned out a little different than we had planned....
We got special permission from the owner of a condo in a resort up north on Lake Michigan to bring Roxie. We thought she'd love walks in the the woods and a different environment for a change. Our hopes were high and we were excited about the mini-vacation.
For safety reasons, we made the huge decision to get a travelling crate for Roxie for the trip. She thinks, being moderately spoiled, that her place in the car is in the driver's lap. Someone before us did her that disservice - she cries if she's in the back seat, cries if she's in the passenger seat and tries to jump into the driver's lap when she can. Obviously not a safe thing to do.
Bob lets her ride in the front passenger seat to the park, as the airbag does not trigger because she's too light weight. But for me, that's still unsafe. In an accident she could go thru the windshield or out the door. So as much as I HATE cages, we got her one for the middle seat. It's huge, the cadillac of crates, and filled it with pillows, pads, and quilts. She can turn around and sleep crosswise in it, it's so big.
So off we go, Roxie in her specially decorated crate. The trip was 330 miles. She screamed and cried for 260 miles. Believe me when I say it was pathetic, heartbreaking and headache-inducing. Not to mention her laryngitis upon arrival at the resort.
Trying to be especially kind, we stopped every 75 miles or so and walked her, gave her treats and pets. No dice. She must have been royally pissed at being in jail.
At about 250 miles I called back to our vet and asked what we could give her to "shut her up".... now, truly I didn't say it exactly like that, but the intent was implied. Bless her little noisy heart.
Turns out that Xanax is a wonder drug. We used it on the return trip and it cut out about 80% of the crying.
Spoiled behavior... or anxiety? Whatever, Xanax is the drug of choice for long trips in the safety of her crate.
Next on the list of excitement: wild critters in the North Woods. Northern Michigan is really very rural and woodsy. I freely admit to being a suburban gal. Don't like flies, bugs, critters, dirt, lack of amenities... you get the idea. So when Bob was walking Roxie for her daily business trips, his stories of adventure went right over my head.
Long story short, they saw (at close range!) skunks, chipmunks, squirrels, raccoons, foxes and most importantly, river otters. The northern Michigan river otters apparently like to hide under cars and attack unsuspecting dachshunds walking by. And if you are a regular reader, you know that Roxie lives to fight those wild critters....
The otter attacked, Roxie countered, slipped her collar, chased the otter into it's river den and we guess found a nest of them. She chose retreat as the better part of valor and got her ass chewed on the way out.
In the midst of the fray, Bob hit the otter on the head with his flashlight to get it off of Rox, and he was left holding the huge Flashlight-That-Shines-to-China, a leash with an empty collar and no dog in sight. Should mention here that it was 6:30 AM and pitch-pitch-inky-black. The otter will undoubtedly have a headache.
War wounds below. They shaved her beautiful hair and found many little scrapes, bites, punctures and lacerations. She looks like a patchwork baby.
Luckily she'd had her rabies vaccination last month after a close encounter of the raccoon kind, and she got her distemper at the vet along with antibiotics and pain meds.
This latest-and-greatest adventure occured on our last morning there. We threw everything in the car, wrapped her in a towel and took off for a five-hour drive to our home vet. Lesson learned - scout out local vets when travelling.
Roxie had a quieter ride home with the Xanax, our vet was wonderful, Roxie acted like a lady while they worked on her and I gave her a major pain pill for that night. She slept like a log and woke up refreshed on Monday AM. She's bruised and puffy, but no infection so far. She grumbles if you try to touch her boo-boos, so we avoid that.
On the long ride home, I kept thinking how upset I was, how I couldn't deal with all the potential trauma, all the "what-ifs" and I finally came round to accept that this is just who she is.... she's good with most dogs and wonderful with kids, but she HATES critters, especially those nasty north Michigan otters.
Of course, in the future, we won't be walking her in the dark in the forest....
We got special permission from the owner of a condo in a resort up north on Lake Michigan to bring Roxie. We thought she'd love walks in the the woods and a different environment for a change. Our hopes were high and we were excited about the mini-vacation.
For safety reasons, we made the huge decision to get a travelling crate for Roxie for the trip. She thinks, being moderately spoiled, that her place in the car is in the driver's lap. Someone before us did her that disservice - she cries if she's in the back seat, cries if she's in the passenger seat and tries to jump into the driver's lap when she can. Obviously not a safe thing to do.
Bob lets her ride in the front passenger seat to the park, as the airbag does not trigger because she's too light weight. But for me, that's still unsafe. In an accident she could go thru the windshield or out the door. So as much as I HATE cages, we got her one for the middle seat. It's huge, the cadillac of crates, and filled it with pillows, pads, and quilts. She can turn around and sleep crosswise in it, it's so big.
So off we go, Roxie in her specially decorated crate. The trip was 330 miles. She screamed and cried for 260 miles. Believe me when I say it was pathetic, heartbreaking and headache-inducing. Not to mention her laryngitis upon arrival at the resort.
Trying to be especially kind, we stopped every 75 miles or so and walked her, gave her treats and pets. No dice. She must have been royally pissed at being in jail.
At about 250 miles I called back to our vet and asked what we could give her to "shut her up".... now, truly I didn't say it exactly like that, but the intent was implied. Bless her little noisy heart.
Turns out that Xanax is a wonder drug. We used it on the return trip and it cut out about 80% of the crying.
Spoiled behavior... or anxiety? Whatever, Xanax is the drug of choice for long trips in the safety of her crate.
Next on the list of excitement: wild critters in the North Woods. Northern Michigan is really very rural and woodsy. I freely admit to being a suburban gal. Don't like flies, bugs, critters, dirt, lack of amenities... you get the idea. So when Bob was walking Roxie for her daily business trips, his stories of adventure went right over my head.
Long story short, they saw (at close range!) skunks, chipmunks, squirrels, raccoons, foxes and most importantly, river otters. The northern Michigan river otters apparently like to hide under cars and attack unsuspecting dachshunds walking by. And if you are a regular reader, you know that Roxie lives to fight those wild critters....
The otter attacked, Roxie countered, slipped her collar, chased the otter into it's river den and we guess found a nest of them. She chose retreat as the better part of valor and got her ass chewed on the way out.
In the midst of the fray, Bob hit the otter on the head with his flashlight to get it off of Rox, and he was left holding the huge Flashlight-That-Shines-to-China, a leash with an empty collar and no dog in sight. Should mention here that it was 6:30 AM and pitch-pitch-inky-black. The otter will undoubtedly have a headache.
War wounds below. They shaved her beautiful hair and found many little scrapes, bites, punctures and lacerations. She looks like a patchwork baby.
Luckily she'd had her rabies vaccination last month after a close encounter of the raccoon kind, and she got her distemper at the vet along with antibiotics and pain meds.
This latest-and-greatest adventure occured on our last morning there. We threw everything in the car, wrapped her in a towel and took off for a five-hour drive to our home vet. Lesson learned - scout out local vets when travelling.
Roxie had a quieter ride home with the Xanax, our vet was wonderful, Roxie acted like a lady while they worked on her and I gave her a major pain pill for that night. She slept like a log and woke up refreshed on Monday AM. She's bruised and puffy, but no infection so far. She grumbles if you try to touch her boo-boos, so we avoid that.
We're wondering if she's thinking she had great adventure... she might be dreaming of the otter she chased away, who knows...
On the long ride home, I kept thinking how upset I was, how I couldn't deal with all the potential trauma, all the "what-ifs" and I finally came round to accept that this is just who she is.... she's good with most dogs and wonderful with kids, but she HATES critters, especially those nasty north Michigan otters.
Of course, in the future, we won't be walking her in the dark in the forest....
17 August 2008
Corn on the Cob!
Another first - this is the first August Roxie has been with us. And we found out today that she loves corn on the cob and is a whiz-kid at eating it... right off the cob!!!
First she licks, then she nibbles kernels off with her front teeth, row by row......
Fresh corn right from Long's Farm, right off the stalk. Sweetest corn in the whole world. Some days we get it into the pot within 2 hours of picking. No need for butter or salt, it's that sweet..... you could almost eat it raw.
Roxie has good taste when it comes to veggies!
First she licks, then she nibbles kernels off with her front teeth, row by row......
Fresh corn right from Long's Farm, right off the stalk. Sweetest corn in the whole world. Some days we get it into the pot within 2 hours of picking. No need for butter or salt, it's that sweet..... you could almost eat it raw.
Roxie has good taste when it comes to veggies!
15 August 2008
New Neighbor
I'm of two minds tonight..... Bob and I were sitting on the patio with all the doors and windows open. We have a new neighbor moving in next door. All of a sudden I see in our garage a huge black dog! It had come into our garage and up to the screen door to the patio. She looked at me like she wanted in!
Luckily Rox was not on the patio. I'm afraid she might have taken exception to a stranger in her garage....
I secured all the doors so Rox wouldn't see the dog, then went out into the garage to check on the dog. Turns out it's a "she" and her name is Pepper. The new neighbors had left a door open and Pepper was exploring her new neighborhood.
Pepper looks like a golden retriever except she's all black. She came up to me and wagged her tail, wanted to lick my hand, weaved around my legs like a cat. She seemed friendly.
So did the other dog until he bit me.
So Pepper goes out of the garage and ambles over to her new home. I called over the a young girl moving in "is this your dog?" and she said yes, called to Pepper and off she went trotting to her new house. The girl said Pepper is very friendly and is good with other dogs.
The question is, of course, is Roxie going to be good with her?!
The hesitation I'm feeling is this: we would never in a million years let our dogs wander, especially in a new home situation. After the previous dog bit me, I'm wary of free-roaming dogs. In our township, dogs must be on leash or in a fenced setting. The house next door is a rental with all yard sides fenced except for about 20 feet on one side, so the dogs can wander free.
How does one welcome a new neighbor and say at the same time, "oh, and by the way, please make sure your dog doesn't run loose"? And the other side is this, if Pepper is truly a very friendly loveable girl, I'd welcome her visits. But what about the other neighbors, what about other dogs running loose who aren't friendly....
It's a conundrum. And we still need to see how Rox welcomes this new dog....
Lordy, life is full of worries sometimes.
UPDATE: Roxie's new neighbor is Pepper, a big black long-haired dog. Pepper is very sweet and she and Rox sniff then ignore each other.... Pepper's mom immediately put up the final few feet of the fencing to complete her fenced in yard. Pepper can't run wild in the sub.... and ironically, she would be a great ambassador, as she is very gentle and sweet to everyone.
Pepper doesn't bark madly when she's out, and she isn't left out all day.... So it turns out the new neighbor is a responsible dog lover and owner. Who could ask for a better neighbor?!
Life is good sometimes....
Luckily Rox was not on the patio. I'm afraid she might have taken exception to a stranger in her garage....
I secured all the doors so Rox wouldn't see the dog, then went out into the garage to check on the dog. Turns out it's a "she" and her name is Pepper. The new neighbors had left a door open and Pepper was exploring her new neighborhood.
Pepper looks like a golden retriever except she's all black. She came up to me and wagged her tail, wanted to lick my hand, weaved around my legs like a cat. She seemed friendly.
So did the other dog until he bit me.
So Pepper goes out of the garage and ambles over to her new home. I called over the a young girl moving in "is this your dog?" and she said yes, called to Pepper and off she went trotting to her new house. The girl said Pepper is very friendly and is good with other dogs.
The question is, of course, is Roxie going to be good with her?!
The hesitation I'm feeling is this: we would never in a million years let our dogs wander, especially in a new home situation. After the previous dog bit me, I'm wary of free-roaming dogs. In our township, dogs must be on leash or in a fenced setting. The house next door is a rental with all yard sides fenced except for about 20 feet on one side, so the dogs can wander free.
How does one welcome a new neighbor and say at the same time, "oh, and by the way, please make sure your dog doesn't run loose"? And the other side is this, if Pepper is truly a very friendly loveable girl, I'd welcome her visits. But what about the other neighbors, what about other dogs running loose who aren't friendly....
It's a conundrum. And we still need to see how Rox welcomes this new dog....
Lordy, life is full of worries sometimes.
UPDATE: Roxie's new neighbor is Pepper, a big black long-haired dog. Pepper is very sweet and she and Rox sniff then ignore each other.... Pepper's mom immediately put up the final few feet of the fencing to complete her fenced in yard. Pepper can't run wild in the sub.... and ironically, she would be a great ambassador, as she is very gentle and sweet to everyone.
Pepper doesn't bark madly when she's out, and she isn't left out all day.... So it turns out the new neighbor is a responsible dog lover and owner. Who could ask for a better neighbor?!
Life is good sometimes....
13 August 2008
Rabies Shot, One Month Early
So...
Bob started out with Rox for her second morning walk and the neighbor called him over to show him what she had in her car....... she'd live-trapped a HUGE raccoon!
As soon as she opened the car door, the raccoon started hissing and trying to get at Roxie and Roxie tried to get at the raccoon.....
Bob was able to pull her away and the walk never even got started. Rox would not leave the neighbor's driveway even after she drove off in search of someplace to dump... er, relocate, the raccoon. In the meantime, her dog (who came onto our property and bit me the week they moved in) was in her front window about to come through the glass to get at Roxie.
Thinking that the raccoon could have spit some saliva at Rox, I called the vet to get her Rabies shot one month early (she due in September). Who knows if she was at any risk of exposure, but better safe than sorry.
So Baby Girl gets a shot tomorrow. Ouch. Bob is upset for her. She'll probably get mega-treats from him when she gets home.
Oh, and the dog who bit me - they are moving... today was their last day in the house. Yea! That damn dog was mean!
Bob started out with Rox for her second morning walk and the neighbor called him over to show him what she had in her car....... she'd live-trapped a HUGE raccoon!
As soon as she opened the car door, the raccoon started hissing and trying to get at Roxie and Roxie tried to get at the raccoon.....
Bob was able to pull her away and the walk never even got started. Rox would not leave the neighbor's driveway even after she drove off in search of someplace to dump... er, relocate, the raccoon. In the meantime, her dog (who came onto our property and bit me the week they moved in) was in her front window about to come through the glass to get at Roxie.
Thinking that the raccoon could have spit some saliva at Rox, I called the vet to get her Rabies shot one month early (she due in September). Who knows if she was at any risk of exposure, but better safe than sorry.
So Baby Girl gets a shot tomorrow. Ouch. Bob is upset for her. She'll probably get mega-treats from him when she gets home.
Oh, and the dog who bit me - they are moving... today was their last day in the house. Yea! That damn dog was mean!
11 August 2008
Beauty, Once More
I just can't help myself. Here is another picture of beauty....
Bob and I have commented that maybe Rox knows by now that this is her final home. We are family # 5 for her. That must have been very confusing for her especially in the beginning. From a human standpoint, I'd sure be nervous about 5 homes in 5 years.... but Rox has made it through those homes intact. She's sweet, loving and smart. Has no bad habits and makes a point of not snarling at all the other dogs; only some of them.... we like to think she's being protective of her new home and family. Although we aren't really new anymore, are we?
Nine and a half months! Wow... it's been a wonderful time of getting to know her and understanding her. She's pretty easy to read, as she communicates very well. Bob is totally and unabashedly in love with her. He's been completely taken over by her charms. It seems so long ago when we first married and I wanted a dog. Bob was opposed to the idea and it took two years for him to give in. Now he lives for Baby Girl. I like to think she brings out Bob's feminine side. He frowns when I say this...... ha ha.
There's really not too much going on in our lives right now. Rox has her two morning walks, her frequent brushings and massages, and her home-cooked diet. She's lost weight since the neck injury and it's steroid weight gain.... she's back to her girlish waist. We've trimmed her hairy feets. Her winter coat is shed and she's trim and styled.
We're just hangin', as the kids would say. Summer time, and the living is easy....
18 July 2008
Three is Magic Number
Roxie is fine. We've been busy and have sadly neglected our blogging duties....
She finally recovered from her neck injury, or whatever it was. It was 6 weeks of hurt for her and misery for us. We hate, hate, hate to see her uncomfortable! But the second course of valium is what finally did it. She is now the wiggly girl she was when we got her....
Rox has developed a plan, as all thinking dogs will do. She goes out for her final duty run at bedtime. Comes in and gets her good-girl treat. Prances, tells us how good she is and then........ back out for trip # 2. Same routine, same treat. So we've caught on and tell her after number two trip she is done. She stands in the kitchen and barks at us. Raa-roo, wahroo, ark ark! Then runs to the door for trip # 3. By this time we are laughing. She gets us every night. As if it's a first run movie and we've never seen it before and don't know what's going to happen next. She thinks we are stupid. She is so blatent, transparent as glass.
So on trip # 3 she sits at the outer door, listening to the night sounds. I guess she might be waiting for a possum to cross the patio - she sits stone still like a statue in the dark. Listening.
Finally we get her in and she gets treat # 3 and we have to carry her off to bed.
Yes, she's back in bed with us. Sigh. Those springtime thunder showers and July fireworks scared her so we had to protect her from them coming in the house. That meant middle pillow.
Sigh.
She finally recovered from her neck injury, or whatever it was. It was 6 weeks of hurt for her and misery for us. We hate, hate, hate to see her uncomfortable! But the second course of valium is what finally did it. She is now the wiggly girl she was when we got her....
Rox has developed a plan, as all thinking dogs will do. She goes out for her final duty run at bedtime. Comes in and gets her good-girl treat. Prances, tells us how good she is and then........ back out for trip # 2. Same routine, same treat. So we've caught on and tell her after number two trip she is done. She stands in the kitchen and barks at us. Raa-roo, wahroo, ark ark! Then runs to the door for trip # 3. By this time we are laughing. She gets us every night. As if it's a first run movie and we've never seen it before and don't know what's going to happen next. She thinks we are stupid. She is so blatent, transparent as glass.
So on trip # 3 she sits at the outer door, listening to the night sounds. I guess she might be waiting for a possum to cross the patio - she sits stone still like a statue in the dark. Listening.
Finally we get her in and she gets treat # 3 and we have to carry her off to bed.
Yes, she's back in bed with us. Sigh. Those springtime thunder showers and July fireworks scared her so we had to protect her from them coming in the house. That meant middle pillow.
Sigh.
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