brrrrr

It has been a chilly xmas week in Atlanta. We managed to get Hannah out for a walk in her favorite field on the one warmish sunny day we had. We are thinking about heading to St. Simons Island for the weekend since we have Friday off - the forecast has the lows in the 50's and the highs in the low 70's. Sounds pretty good compared to the 20's we are having here.

Hannah is doing good - although she had an upset stomach yesterday (thinking it might have been from some leftovers) She ate her dinner last night no problem and is acting like herself.  The tumour growth spurt has sure come back through. It's pretty darn big again. It seems like the more bulky part is on her muzzle/under her eye. This might interfere with her eating less - but hopefully it doesn't start to bother her eye.

hmmmm

it seems to be.... going away

Comic Relief



Under the airplane seat in her bag

 So the week before I found out about Hannah's mouth, I got another dog.  Her name is Ren and she is a 1 1/2 year old Japanese Chin.  I have spent the past 15 years training my dogs to compete in something - and I picked this breed because I didn't want to train for competition anymore - just for fun.  I have spent alot of time with my dogs obsessing how straight they could sit at my side, & how quickly they could descend down a plank. I am ready for some parlour tricks.

Ren comes from  breeder in Chicago who decided to place her show dogs into pet homes for various reasons. Rather than ship her to Atlanta cargo, I flew up to Chicago to get her, and brought her back in the cabin. This picture is the first time I had really seen her - my first flight was delayed and I basically had to just grab her from the breeder (who met me at the airport) and literally run back to the plane.

The one thing that worried me a bit about getting her was how Hannah would get along with her - but Hannah really likes her.

She has fit into the pack just perfectly - and has been a great distraction for me. Although her clicker training sessions have been snuck in during the Hannah downtime, she has learned quite a few cute tricks. Maybe I should enter her in a pet trick contest... no -  wait.

So Ren is pretty funny.  First off, she had this "bag" I carry her around in everywhere. She had learned that if the bag comes out - she gets to go.  Over the weekend I was heading out without her and taking another dog - and she didn't like that idea. I hear the sound of something dragging along the floor - and there is she pulling her back into the middle of the living room. She got to come along after all...

Kenney also commented one day that he was annoyed that I kept leaving my shoes all over the living room everyday - and wondered why I started doing that. Turns out Ren was dragging my shoes into her bed when I left the house without her (similar to how the toys are surrounding her in the picture).  It was great timing getting her when I did, and its great to have a young dog in the house.

Mornings aren't a good benchmark

She just spent 30 minutes ripping around the garage, praying to find a mouse.

sleepy?

It's very hard to judge how Hannah is feeling in the mornings. On the weekends she doesn't get up til 10am or so (and she has been doing that for a year or more).  She got up when she was good and ready this weekend and was her "normal self". She was so sleepy this morning - it was hard to get a read on how she was feeling. She did jump up to eat her dinner though - so that is good.

When she was young, not only did she never sleep - she never sat. We didn't see Hannah sit/lay down until she was about 6 years old. If the lights were on and you were awake - she was standing there ready to play. We only assume she layed down to sleep when the lights when out :)  One time Jayne and I drove to North Carolina with Hannah and her Lhasa, Charlie to compete in a NADAC agility trial. I was excited about the prospect of actually tiring Hannah out - and seeing her voluntarily sit down. It was a 2 day show with about 6 runs per day - plus the 3+ hour drive in the car there and back.

Never did see a sit that weekend...

Holding Her Own

Summer Fun

Well I just got back from a great lunch hour.  I met a new AMAZING veterinarian that does home visits. (Thanks Tori for the recommendation!!) She and her assistant met me at home over the lunch hour. So much less stressful than taking Hannah to the vet. The Dr. sat on the floor and played with Hannah, fed her treats, and did an exam all at the same time.  So--- it looks like the tumor has shrunk a bit. The bottom edge of it was swollen and puffed out last Sunday - and now it looks like a deflated balloon. She told me with the decrease in tumor blood supply (due to the holistic treatments) that we will have to keep an eye on it for dying skin. That I can handle. Fingers still crossed.

I am not expecting an miracles - but a bit more time would be nice.

Hannah's Got Balls



Broken Toe



The all time favorite - dryer ball

Taken throughout the years...