Rosie, taken on October 17, 2009.

I adopted Rosie four years ago today. My ex-girlfriend and I started looking for a second dog when we realized that Porter (a year old back then) needed even more playtime than we could provide. Just like with Porter (and eventually, Pearl), I put Rosie through a personality test. It was important to me to find a dog that fit my desire for a companion, and also a dog that fit fairly close to Porter’s dominance level. I wanted a pup that was inquisitive, but not too independent. Snuggly, but not too needy. Playful, but not aggressive. Rosie fit the bill down to the last line, and sealed the deal when she leapt fearlessly off of a planter box towards my outstretched arms.

To my surprise, it was much easier to raise a second dog with Porter providing a good example. He was top dog for about Rosie was about six months or so, when she finally outgrew him and realized she could get to things he couldn’t:

I’d like to encourage anyone looking for a companion dog to consult their regional rescue agencies first. We got Rosie from SHARE, and I don’t think they are active any more. However, Homeward Trails and the Washington Animal Rescue League are both great folks to deal with if you live in the Mid-Atlantic region of the US.

Just a quick update on Rosie, my four year old dog who was diagnosed with epilepsy last month.

I took her in last week to have her liver and kidney functions tested. Rosie was fantastic as normal at the vet. She had a 10% increase in body weight (40 pounds, up from 37), which was expected given one of the side effects of phenobarbital. They drew two vials of blood — one for in-house testing and one for tests that needed to be done at a dedicated lab facility. We sat on the floor together and talked while we waited for the in-house results to come back.

Luckily her tests came back with acceptable ranges. Last Friday the vet called with her second set of results. Her phenobarbital levels are lower than expected, but since she isn’t having any seizures they didn’t want to adjust her dosage. The higher the dosage the better her phenobarbital levels would be, but that also meant a higher likelihood of damage to her body. As long as she doesn’t “get the spirit” I’m going to keep her at her current dose.

Thanks to everyone who has emailed, called, texted, or sent smoke signals. I love my dogs very much, and this has been a great reminder to stop what you’re doing every now and then and kiss your loved ones.

Happy birthday to my little quaker — who is four years old today.

She has been back to her old self lately; no staring absently at the floor, and certainly no seizures. I am taking her in to see the vet tomorrow and hopefully her kidney and liver functions will be within acceptable ranges.

In the meantime, there are plenty of adventures to be had in the backyard:

Happy birthday, sweetheart. Many more.

Rosie had a massive cluster of seizures almost two weeks ago. After two shots of Valium, I brought her home and immediately started her on a regime of phenobarbital. I am happy to say that after some initial sluggishness and “spacey” behavior (which my vet warned me about), Rosie is back to her normal self. She stalks squirrels and birds in the back yard like an apex predator, and runs around and plays with the other dogs.

She also loves sitting on the couch with me and watching television:

She’s not out of the woods by a long shot, but it makes me happier that she hasn’t had any more seizures. I was concerned that she may have a tumor or brain injury that was sparking them; so far the phenobarbital is keeping everything under control. The next hurdle is testing her blood in a couple of weeks to make sure that her medication isn’t adversely affecting her liver and kidneys. Depending on what the doctor says, we may lower her dose a little bit. She’s in the middle of the road as far as dosage goes for her size; it would be nice to wean her off a little bit to further protect her innards.

Thanks to everyone for emailing, calling, texting, leaving messages on Facebook, and being concerned about Rosie. I love her dearly and I really appreciate folks giving her hugs, virtual or otherwise.

I came home early last Friday to get some work done and then start an early weekend. When I opened the door, my middle dog Rosie was convulsing on the floor. Her rear legs were fully extended and useless as she paddled towards me with her front feet. Her entire face and chest wet from drool. Whatever happened to her, it had been happening for a long time.

At first I thought she had suffered a spinal injury, but everything seemed okay when I ran my fingers down her spine. I checked her hips next, then her legs. Everything seemed okay. I made a quick sweep of the house to make sure she hadn’t gotten into anything toxic. Everything was in its proper place except for the fluffy guts of a chewtoy. I came back to my little girl and held her close to me while I thought about what to do.

I spent almost five years on a farm as a kid, and we had two dogs with epilepsy. The symptoms looked familiar, and while I was thinking about it Rosie completely stiffened up again. Her eyes dilated completely and drool was streaming from her mouth. I put her collar on and carried her out to the car.
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My dog Pearl likes to eat things she shouldn’t. Whether it be batteries, mobile phones, DVDs, stuffed animals, or paper, it’s mostly just an annoyance and I worry about things getting stuck in her stomach. One thing I really don’t like her eating, however, is poop. I have often looked out of the kitchen window to see her wolfing down some doggie leftovers. I have even caught her waiting, MOUTH OPEN, underneath Porter or Rosie.

What’s worse is that she’s taught Porter that eating crap is a great idea, so now he’s doing it, too.

I researched this online, and found a few suggestions on adding things to a dog’s diet to make their deuces less tasty. I thought this was kinda odd, since I figured droppings were nasty to begin with. But after reading reviews on Amazon.com and a few pet Web sites, I decided to give For-bid by Alpar Labs a try.
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I don’t know if it was a seasonal thing. Maybe something about the cooling temperatures that softened my resolve. Maybe the glut of puppies after paw-paws and babymamas got it on in the summer heat. Whatever the reason, I adopted Porter and Rosie almost a year apart from each other.

Happy adopt-a-versary, little Rosie. You’re not the youngest gal in the house any more, but you’re still the princess.

Please don’t let the giant eat me.

I wrote a post about Sergeant’s SentryPro XFC topical flea and tick product almost a year and a half ago. The treatment threw Porter and Rosie into an allergic reaction that consisted of trembling, panting, scratching, and “air licking.” I made the post because I was upset. I was upset at Sergeant’s for putting the product out. I followed the directions and BOTH of my dogs has an adverse reaction. I was also upset at myself for not using my usual Frontline (which I’ve never had a problem with before or since the SentryPro incident).

So, I made the post in May of 2007. I had no idea that thousands of people would read the post, hundreds would comment, dozens would email me personally, and the post would be the number one Google search result for “SentryPro XFC.” I got mentioned on The Consumerist. Some of my readers started a class action lawsuit.

It took all of that an sixteen months, but Sergeant’s finally responded.

People who have posted a comment in the past are automatically emailed when someone makes a new comment, so hundreds of people got an email tonight with Sergeant’s reply. A few people have already started to reply …. I have a feeling this isn’t over by a long shot.

Today is officially Rosie’s birthday. She’s my only dog that I know when her birthday is; I think the best you can usually hope for with rescues is a birth week. For example, I only know that Porter was born about the first week of September, and that Pearl is sometime the last week of April.

I can’t believe Rosie is three! I remember when I adopted her, she was about the size of a potato. I held her in the palm of my hand.

Love you, little girl!

Every good horror film (and most bad ones) gets a sequel. Less than a year after the first installment, my dogs are somehow killing birds in the yard again.
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