The View From My Window

This was my view from my window last week. I spent a bit of time admiring the snow as it fell. Everything was so peaceful and quiet out there. It's kind of sad to see the street get marred with tire tracks and the pristine white yard littered with footprints.

But the tracks in the snow were well worth it, seeing how much fun the kids had. The furry kid (who is really our resident senior citizen) became a pup again at heart, bounding through the snow like a deer! He was outfitted for the snow, wearing his sweater...we just need some booties for him and he'll be set. (Yeah right, like he'd wear them!!)

Loving the snow (and getting pats, of course!)

Invasion of the Fleas

Has anyone else had a horrific time with fleas this season? Apparently this flea problem has been going on around the country for the last two years, but I have been fortunate to avoid it until now.

I have a dog who seemingly repels fleas. His "brother", a cocker spaniel attracted them like a magnet, but he (the lab-greyhound mix) rarely has any.


The last few weeks I've noticed him scratching a lot but didn't really pay much attention. He has minor skin allergies and I thought maybe he'd been laying in the grass. As time went on the itching did not subside so I thought it was time to take a closer look.

Lo and behold, the dog has fleas! He's been on Vectra for the entire season and I was shocked to see it wasn't working. I spoke to my vet who confirmed my suspicions: The fleas seem to have built up a tolerance to the medications currently on the market. There is another product my vet suggested called Comfortis that I'm going to try as soon as they get it in stock. I'll let you know if it works.
In the meantime, I sit down every day with my poor itching dog and comb him with a flea comb and jam the fleas I catch into a glob of vaseline on a tissue. Pretty labor intensive, but at least my dog is enjoying the attention!

My Buddy

Today is the second anniversary of the loss of my #1 son and buddy. He was our "kid" for 15 years and was as spoiled as they come, but very sweet and well behaved!

Except when it came to unattended food. There is one incident that is still talked about in our family which he will never live down...the time he climbed on the dining room table and ate my Dad's birthday cake! Fortunately the party was over and we'd all had a piece!

One of his favorite holidays besides Christmas was Halloween. Here he is dressed up as a bumble bee! He would wait at the front door for the trick or treaters to come. When we opened the door to pass out candy, he would stick his head in their bags to see what yummy things they had! He never stole anything, I think he got his jollies by sniffing all the candy.

Here he is tubing at the lake! He got such a kick out of it, but we only let him ride into the cove, not on the main part of the lake...it was just too choppy and dangerous. And yes, he's wearing a lifevest! He loved riding in the boat, swimming, and looking for fish in the water. A pleading look..."Mom, the puppy is chewing all my toys up! And he's on MY rug!" He used to pick on his "brother" and I tried to warn him that his brother would grow twice his size, but he didn't listen!

However, he was still the boss despite his size. He'd gobble his own dinner up and then stare at his brother until he successfully intimidated him out of his meal! We wondered why he was gaining so much weight, while the other one was losing it!

I miss him and probably always will, but am so thankful he was a part of my life. I have so many fond memories of his antics! He was a lot of fun!

Anyone Ever Heard Of A Lurcher?

Apparently, this is what my dog is called! I always thought he was a lab/greyhound mix until someone from a greyhound rescue club told me otherwise. He is indeed what I always thought him to be, but he now has the official title of Lurcher. It's not a recognized breed but the name given to many sight hound mixes. They're very common in the UK but rather unusual here in the states.

Here's a more recent picture of my pal. He's getting really grey around his muzzle :( He's enjoying his favorite place in the whole wide world--the lake. He loves to swim.

They say greyhounds just go until they drop and I hope that's what he's going to do. He's always been VERY active. A joke I make about his mixed heritage is that he retrieves things (Labrador retriever), very quickly (Greyhound)!

Remembering my buddy

It has been a year since I lost my little friend of 15 years. He was such a beautiful dog, very peppy personality, and a lot of fun to be around. This photo was taken on his last day. He was so tired and just worn out from a long life. I miss him.