When you trust someone to watch your dog....

About 6 years ago, we dropped off Esa and Zed for a two night overnight stay at Howl of a Good Time while Dan and I went to an outside concert.

The location was recommended by our neighbor because they took their dog there.  We didn’t just drop them off, we researched and visited before dropping them off.

It was uneventful (except for Esa not wanting to get in the car to leave). Zed did fine with the big dogs and we were told that he stayed most of the time with the person who was overseeing everything.

I do remember a couple of months later, our neighbor told us that another neighbor took their puppy there and it was killed by another dog who was there.  I don’t know if the dog was the owner’s dog or a boarder.

Anyway, we were shocked to see a press release this weekend that the owner was charged with animal cruelty because a small dog was injured and the location owner did not take it to the vet in time.  The dog later died.

This is so sad, because this is the guy’s (and I’m sure other people who work with him) livelihood.  He seemed like a very nice guy, but obviously one (major) mistake and he is paying.

The Daily Zed: Zed's health

Since May, we have been dealing with Zed and his health problems.  I have continued to post on my Facebook page (private) about his health and have posted #dailyZed pictures there.  Recently, I created a Daily Zed Facebook page and have posted #dailyZed there along with on Instagram.

At Zed's yearly check-up, it was suggested that we visit the cardiologist to see how his heart murmur was.  We have known about his heart murmur for awhile and it was given a 5 out of 6 rating without an ultrasound.

He did well at the appointment and was the perfect patient.  We were given two prescriptions to hold on to until his blood work came back.  His blood work came back and shortly after that (like within 2 weeks), he started to go into heart failure.  Basically, water in his lungs.  He was breathing really fast.  He also will start gagging and can't stop, then faints. It was suggested to put him on a couple of heart meds (like 2 meds and then a supplement for his liver since his liver enzymes were up).  The cardiologist mentioned that when a dog goes on heart medications, it usually extends their life about 2 years.

Zed had a couple of incidents during the night, but I thought he wasn't waking up in time to go outside to go the bathroom.  I also figured it might be the meds.  Then one day (August), I ran upstairs and Zed followed.  I turned right around and started back down.  Zed turned around and "fainted" in front of me.

I took him to the cardiologist and they did another ultrasound and said there was more damage to his heart so he was to take 2 more meds.  I asked what his life expectancy could be and it was now down to one year.

That's when I decided to create Daily Zed Facebook and Instagram.  I thought about how people had "bucket lists" for their dogs.  There wasn't any way that Z could do a bucket list trip, but a flat Zed could!  So a created a #flatZed and asked that people print it out and do selfies.

At least one of my friends has been having fun with it and Dan and I took Flat Zed on vacation with us to the Outer Banks.

Zed has been doing well since starting the two additional medications.  At first he was a little lethargic, but after 4 weeks on the meds, he started to become himself again and we found out that his liver enzymes were going down, so that was probably why he was acting much better.

Then last week, Z and I took a trip to NY.  I had noticed that he was hacking a little more than the once a day, but he seemed ok.  He ended up peeing in the house, but that could be because of the smells in the house AND mama slacked and didn't realize it was that time when he usually goes out.  That was Thursday night.  Friday morning, we were going to leave.  When we woke up, he had an episode.  Hacking and didn't stop until he "fainted".  I was so scared.  Here I have to drive with him for 6 hours - what if he didn't jump back like usual.

Luckily, he did.  He was quiet/tired on the drive home, but he was really good.  I added an extra Lasix to his meds to help.  We probably won't be doing any more traveling with him.

Today, I stopped the mid-day Lasix and now I'm wondering if I should have.  He has hacked a little more than usually, but still seems good.

Please visit Zed's Instagram or Facebook page for pictures of Daily Zed and see what we have been up to.

Becoming Betty: Homemade Doggie Treats

pictures posted in draft 4/23/15 - text added 10/13/15

So I totally forgot about adding text to this post!  This was the first time I made Zed homemade treats.  I had a bunch of bananas and looked up some recipes for doggy treats.  This recipe was so easy and instead of making the rolled out "stars" as in the original blog/recipe post, I just did drop cookies.  You really think Zed cares?

Since Zed's diagnosis, I have made these several times since they are probably better than store bought.

The mix - tastes very much like banana

"You making that for me mama?"

Puppy likes raw dough too!

Ready for the oven

And done!

Puppy likes them!

Adventures in Health: SlenderFX

One of the products that I tried with Youngevity is the SlenderFX French Vanilla.  I tried it straight with milk and used the blender.  It was kind of gritty, but good.

Awhile ago, I found a recipe on the Facebook group HBC30 that sounded good.

I decided to try this, but with strawberry yogurt and frozen strawberries.

Note: my blender was originally my mom's and therefore probably 50 years old, if not old.  It still works great, however I think this recipe is more for an up-to-date blender that can handle the "extracting" thing that is popular.

All mixed up - consistence wasn't what I expected.  It was crunchy (the crushed ice cubes) and the strawberries were still solid.  However, the SlenderFX was totally mixed in and no gritty taste.

Someone was jealous and waiting to see if he was getting anything.

Of course he did! And of course he loved it.

Adventures (in Health): Day 32 on Youngevity

As of today, I have been on Youngevity Classic 90 for 32 days!

I started taking approximately 2 tablespoons of Ultimate Classic and 3 capsules of Ultimate EFA daily.

I finally found a good item to mix the Ultimate Classic with - a protein shake.  I first tried taking the Ultimate Classic straight.  YUCK.  The next day, in unsweetened tea - still not that great.  The next day, milk - pretty good!  Then I figured, why not try protein shakes?  YUMMY - even better than milk!

I have been switching between vanilla and strawberry shakes and it's been working out well.  Before that, I never really drank milk, so this is helping me get some extra calcium.  The Ultimate EFA has replaced the 4000 mg of fish oil that I have been taking for the last couple of years (per doctor's order).

Unfortunately, for the last couple of weeks, I have not been doing well with walking on the treadmill.  That will be changing because I have seen my blood pressure going back up (like 130/90).  So January was one positive health item and one negative item.

I think the Ultimate Classic has helped my body digest food better.  I feel more regular and even without taking fiber pills (which I did not take for a while because I ran out).

I'm not the only one in the household taking Youngevity products.  Zed just started taking Healthy Pet Combo.

The first day (and second day), he took the perPetual fine.  He treated it as a treat since it's a chewable pill.  The dose for the ArthryDex 3/4 scoop which I put over his food dry.  Well, it was way too much.  Zed ate it, but then was licking so much afterwards, like he had a cup of peanut butter.  

Here's a picture of him just licking way. 

So after that, I posted to the YGY Pets Facebook group asking how people give their pets ArthryDex.  Several people posted that they mixed it with 1/4 cup water and made a gravy out of it.  The next day, I tried that - MUCH better.  He just ate the gravy straight.

The next step in my health change is that I am going to try doing replacement shakes for lunch.  So many times, I have breakfast around 10 am and then don't think about eating lunch until like 2 pm.  Then I think, I don't want to eat too much - dinner will be soon.

I am also going to try to do a 3 day cleanse.  I'm interested in seeing how my body reacts to a cleanse since I no longer have food cravings.  I'll be blogging about it.

Adventures: Busy Weekend Full of Fun

This weekend was full of fun.

Saturday, we went out for lunch at The Village at Leesburg and went to Noodles & Co.  We scanned some munzees when we were there and got a geocache too.  We stopped at Hamilton Sofa Gallery which is going out of business (at that location only) to see what bargains there were.  We saw some items we liked for the basement, but we still don't know what we are doing down there decorating wise so no sense in purchasing anything yet.

In the afternoon, I went to my friend's house (in West Virginia) for a Jamberry party.  I'm glad I got to go since I was shown how to correctly put on and take off the wraps and given some ideas to prep my nails better so they don't come out like last time.  I also signed up for another Facebook party (September 28).

The two wraps I had done at the party.

Sunday, we went to the Lucketts Fair.  I wasn't sure what to expect, but for $5 each, I figured what the heck, it's something to do.  We had a good time.  There were a lot of vendors and I really didn't expect to purchase anything (except maybe a funnel cake).

We ended up getting Zed a new bed and I got a (thumb) ring with Esa's name and dates.  I have been looking for awhile for something (and I lost her portion of the keychain that I made for me).  This was perfect.  I asked Dan about getting matching ones, but he wasn't really sure about it.  So, I just got one for me.  I love it and have been wearing it non-stop (more than my wedding ring).

The food was very tempting, but we ended up just getting funnel cake and bringing it home.

Z on his new bed.

My memorial ring.

Adventure: Sick Puppy this Week.

We know that Zed always starts itching whenever we are traveling.  I don't know if it's just the environment change that messes with his system or what.  Usually, I give him some anti-fungal medicine and it keeps the itching at bay.

At the end of July, we went to NY to see family and Z started itching up there.  Unfortunately, we were running low on the med so we had to wait until we got home to get a refill.  So that following Thursday(we got back on Monday), I started the medicine daily.  He was itching but not too bad - maybe a couple times a day. 

This last Tuesday, his itching got out of control.  So much so that he was whining and wasn't able to relax to fall asleep.  So, we took him to the emergency vet.  We just assumed he was having some sort of allergic.  The vet assumed so too.

She ended up giving him a steroid, benadryl, pain medicine, and a sedative.  Needless to say, he was out of it by the time we left the medical center.  Unfortunately, he woke up at 4:40 AM and immediately started scatching.  So I called the emergency vet and the vet tech said to give him a benadryl a little early since the medicine was still in his system.  He ended up sleeping a little.

Our vet (who is a good friend of ours), called and said that if the steroid isn't working then obviously it was probably mites.  So Wednesday afternoon, she stopped by with the medicine and checked him out.  He was so red all over his belly and he was whining so much in pain.  

I gave him his first dose and changed from his daily Benadryl to Zyrtec.  Yesterday he was a little better.  He stopped itching as much, but his belly wasn't that good.  So our vet told me to cook some rice and chicken.  

Today, Zed is so much better!  His belly isn't red and he is almost back to his normal self.  We were able to go for a mile walk this afternoon and his tummy is better.

He'll continue his parasite treatment for about 6 weeks.  Hopefully that doesn't come back.

The Daily Zed: IPad Holder

My new iPad holder

The Daily Zed: Running Errands

We did a family trip to Petco today. 

Z FINALLY needed food.  We had a 30 lb bag to go through which I bought in November. Since Z only eats 1/2 cup a day if he does eat, it was slow going compared to the 2 1/2 cups we were going through with 2 dogs. 

We then stopped at Giant to grab one thing, and Dan went in while Z and I sat in the A/C.

Adventures: DIY and Bday Present

For months, I have been trying to figure out what I wanted to get us for some sort of memorial for Esa.  I looked on Etsy and saw some items that I liked (bracelets, keychains, etc.), but haven't taken the time to really go forward with it.

Then I was looking at the May 2014 Better Homes and Gardens magazine.  This was on the last page.  Seriously....

http://www.pinterest.com/pin/73957618856070650/

Do you see that?  Of all of the names/initials, they use in this publication E S A.  Now, if that is not a sign, I don't know what is.  I have thought about making something, but never really knew what I wanted.  There you go, idea solved.

Today (May 30), is Dan's birthday.  This post is/was a work in progress (and not published until May 30 - just in case Dan decides to look at the blog).

Trial run with paper 

(and a backward letter - what can I say, I don't use stamps very often)

I used 2 Creative Memories tools to get the ovals (used the middle of the tools) .  I purchased the stamps at AC Moore and had the ink pad.

Of course, the next idea that came in my head was maybe I can make a Zed one too, but with his REAL pawprint!

Friday, May 23 afternoon

It took me about 4 tries to get the bottom right large one done.  It's a mess, but I decided to keep it and it would be mine for a reminder how much problems I originally had!  LOL!  I guess it would have helped if I had cleaned the stamps BEFORE using them on the clay!  Like I said, I don't use stamps very often.

I TRIED to do Zed's pawprint (he is so patient!), but his paw is bigger than the large oval AND even when I pressed on his paw, it didn't really make a mark.  His nails did, but not his paw.

Zed's charm has is adoption date on it.  Esa's has her birth date on top and death date on the bottom.

So side story - I made these around 1 pm in the afternoon and had it sitting on the oven to cool when I went on a walk with Zed and our neighbor, Lynne and Sable (Esa's best friend) around 2:15 pm.  I figured - plenty of time to hide everything before Dan gets home at 4 pm.  I had cleaned up the mess when the charms were in the oven, so only the pan was out on the stove.  

Lynne and I come around the corner and who is sitting on our porch but Dan!  PANIC!  I thought for sure that he saw the charms.  So I immediately said, "What are you doing home?  Did you see what was on the stove?"  He said no that he saw that the leash was gone and immediately came out to the porch.  He said he saw something sitting out, but didn't go inspect it.

So, truth will be told on Friday when he gets his presents.

Wednesday, May 28

The finished products.

Dan's

Mine

I enjoyed making these.  It was a quick and easy project that means a lot.

Adventures: Reading Area

Every night, I try to read a little before going to bed.  Sometimes, it's just a magazine, and even then it might only be a page or two.  I know the short time was due to not having enough light on my side of the bed, so we got a floor lamp.  

Then I keep staring at the empty corner.  It used to have Babe's (my cat) treehouse, then it had an air purifier.  For about the last year year it's been empty.

Now, I know this little corner is not HGTV material.  I have been meaning to re-upholster the chair forever, but have never done it.  It's been sitting in the basement area - first used, and then put in a corner and not being used.  There are stains on the seat, it's not as comfortable as used to be and I think Babe left her mark on it by using it as a scratching post a couple of times.

There's a reason why I keep the (now) worn out chair and doesn't match anything I have.  It was my mom's.  I remember being told that Mom spent a lot of money on it.  I think it was either custom made or at least it was upholstered with a specific fabric that my mom picked out.  I can remember there being curtains that matched it too.  It was originally in the "guest" room that eventually became my room (that's a whole other story).  That being said - this chair is probably 60 years old.  My parents got married in 1951, so I know it's from the 50's (like the rest of the furniture I've inherited).

The little stool/bench has been my nightstand for awhile.  I wanted something small, and had it in the basement storage.  It was made by my grandpa Caprarulo (my mom's dad).  Who knows how old that thing is.  Grandpa passed away in 1969 (2 months after I was born) at age 91, so I don't think it was made anytime around then.

So, yes, my little reading area is not HGTV material, but family history material.

I used it for the first time last night.  Let me just say, Zed didn't like it.  He wasn't able to cuddle up with me like usual.  He sat on the floor next to me, stared at my lap but didn't jump up; and realized that he had to wait until I was in bed to cuddle.

The Daily Zed: Mama is a Good Pillow

Mama's knee makes a good pillow.

The Daily Zed: Will Sleep In Any Position

We call this "one-eared pup sleeping with chin pillow" 

The Daily Zed: Cuddle with Me, Mama!

Trying to do work and all Zed wants is attention.  This doesn't happen very often., but of course it happens when I have things to do!

The Daily Zed: Watching the Storm Pass

Crazy pup!  While sitting on the porch watching the storm pass, he decided to sit on the table instead of on my lap. 

The Daily Zed: Mini-vaca

Zed stayed with his Aunt Donna and Uncle Bill this weekend while Dan and I went to the M3 Festival.  It was really weird not having him around, even though we weren't home that long on Friday night or Saturday.  Sunday, we had brunch with Donna and Bill before picking Zed up at their house.  We got to the house before Donna and Bill so I went around back to the glass door to peek in on Z.  This is what I saw....

What an awesome watchdog.  I was even tapping on the door.  He probably would have had a fit seeing me through the window and not being able to get to me anyway

The Daily Zed: I got into Daddy-o's Bag

No need to go geocaching, we can just have the snacks!

This is what I came home to after getting groceries.  I was gone less than 2 hours, and Dan's bag had been sitting on the couch for days.  Sunday, we were gone for about 6 hours and nothing.  Plus, Zed ate his breakfast this morning too!

So, the extra snacks were two peanut butter granola bars and a strawberry cereal bar.  He did leave one of each in the bag.  Oh, that pup.  Good thing they weren't chocolate!

The Daily Zed: More Construction

Today was day two of pounding and the house out of order.  Poor Zed - just wants mama when he is scared.  So much for me doing work on the computer!

The Daily Zed: Construction in the House

Poor Zed- scared to death of the nail gun  Dan is using to put the crown molding up.  He crawled up me to the back of the couch, onto the sofa table.  

Most of the day, we stayed on the office. This evening, Z and I went downstairs and when Dan needed help, Zed stayed downstairs. I figured he would be right at the bottom of the stairs, but no.  He was laying on the couch. :)  I took a picture, but for some reason, it's not coming up on the phone and I am unable to import it.

The Daily Zed: Helping Out

Helping mama with making dinner.