Testing?

photo by Anita

I think Sissy wants a job as a quality control inspector for Lupine.  (Here’s she’s practicing inspecting tree bark.)

Those two VERY short, frayed pieces used to meet in the middle to form the chest strap on Gretchen’s harness.  I’ve already started the process to make good on the guarantee, which does include chewing, thank goodness!

That’s Gretchen attacking Shadow’s bunny yesterday.  It’s also the last shot of the harness before its untimely demise.  They don’t guarantee that I’ll get the same pattern in return, and this one was recently discontinued, so I think I’m going to order one more, just in case. 

Gretchen went to the vet yesterday for her 3rd round of shots.  It was kind of a mixed bag, as visits go.  Our vet proclaimed Gretchen nearly the most perfect Jack Russell Terrier ever, excepting her allergies.  Sigh.  No wonder Gretchen’s head is so big!  (You can’t tell in the photos, but there’s no way a collar that fits her slender neck can pass over her melon of a head.)

Some of you are aware of Gretchen’s struggle with pyiderma, also know as “puppy rash.”  Well, it’s so much more than that.  The girl has contact dermatitis.  The vet is suspecting either grass, as the rash came on almost immediately upon Gretchen’s arrival at our house (we’re not sure she’d ever been in grass at the breeder’s), or a fiber, most likely nylon or something similar.  If it is grass, she should continue to clear up as the stuff dies for the winter.  If it’s an indoor allergen, the struggle will continue.

So, for now, she gets regular baths and sprays with Mugsy’s leftover Relief.  I also get to spend some time today figuring out which over the counter antihistamine comes in a liquid, so that I can get the tiny dose my little 5.5 pound girl needs.  Her dosage is so small that I’ve yet to find a tablet I could split into even quarters and be close.  ARGH.

But, she’s cute, sweet, and all around-delightful, so it’s worth the trouble to make her comfortable and happy.  I’m just glad she landed with us, dog lovers with plenty of experience with JRT skin issues, and the patience and funds to try to find the right drugs for her.  (Good thing she isn’t diabetic and doesn’t have a nut allergy.  MJ thought it was cute to let Gretchen serve herself from her candied popcorn and nut bucket.)

Again, I’m left wondering how to help others keep their pets and provide food, medicine and veterinary care in these tough times.  I hate that some are forced to surrender pets they can no longer afford, or to give up a pet because foreclosure means no home for the pet too.  Do any of you know of a program in place to help, or do you have a great idea?

Don’t forget my contest either.  The ideas aren’t just for the Knight, but for any of us looking for spare-the-bank gifts.

I’ll post tomorrow, as we’re having a very quiet, we hate turkey non-traditional meal together at home tomorrow, just the Knight, the girl-pups and me, but I realize many of you in the States will be deep in your own Thanksgiving celebrations and you might not be checking blogs.  So, happy Thanksgiving, happy early Dogs on Thursday, and happy not even little Friday yet!