SUNday

Hi hi hi! Ojo here! Today is Sunday and Nature is making Sun and so I am lying in the grass. 

What are you doing today, friends?

(It's bright!)

How to make a Pee-and-Poop-Walk longer

Hi hi hi! Ojo here! 

If you saw my writings from yesterday, you will know that I am doing Pee-and-Poop-only-Walks right now. These Walks are Too Short.

I don't know about you friends, but when I have to poop I have to poop, and it just happens. 

However, I can hold my pee.

Here is my tip: If you want to make a Pee-and-Poop-Walk longer, just don't pee! Isn't that clever?

Since I'm so clever, my person and I have come to an agreement. We pick a Walk, like to the end of the cul de sac and back, or a small loop in the forest, and I get to do that Walk no matter when I pee. Even if I pee at the start, I still get do the whole Walk. 

This is acceptable. 

If YOU ever get stuck doing Pee-and-Poop-only-Walks, remember this tip, friends!

Good Leg, Bad Leg, Good Leg

Hi hi hi! Ojo here!

Long Line is back.

Friends, the Leg formerly known as Bad Leg is also known as Left Leg. Left Leg has been doing well! However, Right Leg has been hurting. A few nights ago I was limping, and I slipped a few times, so my person took me to Vet. (I don't like going to Vet.)

First Vet tried to straighten Left Leg, which used to be Bad Leg, but now it's Good Leg because it went all the way straight! Vet said she was very impressed with how well Left Leg is doing! It is very strong and stable, and has good muscle mass!

Then Vet tried to straighten Right Leg. But this hurt and I wouldn't let her.

Vet thinks I may have done a small tear in the CCL on Right Leg. So now Right Leg is Bad Leg.

In order to make that one Good Leg too, I am only allowed on Pee-and-Poop-Walks for the next ten days. And I have to stay on leash. 

Most of my Pee-and-Poop-Walks are around our house and are on Short Leash, but once per day my person drives me somewhere different and I get to do my Pee-and-Poop-Walk in the forest with Long Line.

I don't want to have to do Surgery again friends, so even though I know I can go longer and faster, I have agreed to do Pee-and-Poop-Walks-only for the next little while. I hope this fixes Right Leg!

Heating Pad

Hi hi hi! Ojo here!

This is a Heating Pad! It is sitting on top of Cobi's old blanket, and when I lie on it I feel warm! It's almost as good as lying in the sun!

My new Heating Pad has different heat settings, a chew-proof cord, and a washable cover! Although I hope it never gets washed, because clean things are yucky. 

Have you ever napped on such an amazing thing, friends?

Lake Morning

Hi hi hi! Ojo here! 

This morning was Lake Morning! I am moving more slowly. My person isn't understanding why, so we're doing shorter Walks. However, I still got to sniff and explore! The air was cool and full of smells! It was a good morning to be at the Lake.

What are you up to today, friends?

Fall pawtraits, summer weather, and a Walk!

Hi hi hi! Ojo here!

Pepper joined us for our Walk today! Half way through, we stopped and posed so my person could do a Fall Pawtrait of us! (And yes, after we said "cheese" we then got cheese!)

My body feels tired and there is some pain in my knees. But I was still very happy to be out on this Walk today. My person stops and waits, and we take our time. (Unless I see a bunny, then I will zoom!)

Pepper zooms most of the time, unless he stops to sniff something with me.

Even though the trees are starting to drop their leaves, Nature is still making Hot! The sun is orange again because there is smoke high in the sky, but even my nose can't smell it down here in the forest.

I think Pepper looks very handsome in this picture, but don't tell him I said so.

My person says I am just as beautiful as I was when I was young. Or maybe even more beautiful. Is this true, friends?

Pepper stayed over!

Hi hi hi! Ojo here!

Pepper came to stay with us for the weekend! I don't mind this. There are more treats when Pepper is here, and also he shared his bully sticks with me!

At first he was a bit anxious and had a hard time settling. (And he may have chewed a hole in my Bed, but that's okay, his person fixed it.) 

After a bit of time, and some Good Walks, he got much more comfortable.

It always takes him a bit of time to get comfortable when he comes to stay over. Maybe this means he needs to come to stay more often?

Now he has gone home again, and I am resting. It is a lot of work to take good care of a house guest!

Squirrels

Hi hi hi! Ojo here! 

The squirrels are very busy right now. They are dashing up and down the trees, and leaping from branch to branch. 

My person says they are getting ready for winter, but I think something suspicious is going on.

I must keep watch.

Pepper and I get to Walk together again!

Hi hi hi! Ojo here!

Pepper and I get to go on Walks together again!

This has been fun! We have sniffed things together! We have done some zooms together! We have chased a squirrel together! We have gone into the Lake together! We have bounded through the forest together!

Mostly, it's just been very nice to be out Walking with my friend again.

And yes, Nature has made some Rain.

Have you seen any of your friends recently?

Beach Day!

Hi hi hi! Ojo here!

Today was Beach Day!

I haven't been to Beach in forever and even longer than that! (My person says it's been over six months.)

We did more walking on paths that we did on the Beach, but still - I got to go to the Beach!!

The only sad part was that there were many dead crabs and I wasn't allowed to eat any of them. Don't you think that this celebratory day deserves at least one dead crab snack?

How's your Sunday going, friends?

I AM FREE!!

 

Wordless Wednesday

 

Bed!

Hi hi hi! Ojo here! I am allowed to sleep on the Bed again!

My blue blanket has reappeared on my person's bed, and the door is now open again!

Today is a very good day. How is your day going, friends? 

Floor!

Dear friends, the mats are slowly going away and the floor is coming back! There used to be a very large mat here! Now there is just floor! But I still like to sleep in this spot.

My person is watching me Very Carefully these days. I don't know why. I only slipped once when I took a corner too fast, and I haven't slipped again. I am fine without the mats, thankyouverymuch!

Bad Leg now feels very much like Good Leg!

Lake Morning and Update on Long Line

Hi hi hi! Ojo here!

Long Line took me to Lake this morning. After days of Big Wind and Forest Fire Smoke, today was calm and peaceful. 

Also, there were many good smells, and the occasional tasty treat! This is because the people like to leave food behind on the rocks by the Lake!

Right now I have some harder days and some good days, but mostly Bad Leg is feeling better and better. 

I am happy to say that today was a good day! I felt happy and frisky!

On another note, I have mixed feelings about Long Line. I can go further from my person when I am attached to it, but it stops me from going under the picnic tables or climbing up onto things to find the food that people like to leave behind in the summer. Long Line and I have had a few disagreements over this.

However, I only need to be with Long Line for another four weeks. (How long is four weeks?)

In general, I am happy that it is cooler, and that I get to go outside on my own now, and that I get to Walk for longer.

How are you, friends?

Bad Leg is Now Good Leg, but Peanut Butter is Suspicious

Hi hi hi! Ojo here!

This week I had a Terrible Thing done to me. This Terrible Thing was called x-ray. I don't know why they made me do it, but afterwards Vet had Good News! 

Bad Leg is now Good Leg!

These are the things Vet said:

• Ojo's leg is weight bearing well.
• Ojo has almost the same muscle mass on both back legs now.
• There is no sensitivity or tenderness at Ojo's surgery site.
• Ojo has a good range of motion in her leg.
• There are no signs that Ojo's surgical plate has moved.
• It looks like Ojo's bone has healed well.

And the best part:

• Ojo is now allowed to walk even faster and even longer! Ojo needs to build more muscle strength so she can go off leash soon! 

We are still waiting for final confirmation from the surgeon, but my person and I think this is Very Good News!

This is ME in the sun. Bad-Leg-Now-Good-Leg is showing. Look closely, friends! My fur is mostly back, you can barely see where they took it off of me!

I am still working on the muscles in my back legs. I find it a bit hard when I try to go up stairs or hop up onto a small something, this can be a struggle for me. However, after Good News, these past few days I've got to go up and down more stairs and I've hopped onto a few low rocks, and I am already hopping better!

The only Bad Thing is that peanut butter has become suspicious. Lately, when I eat peanut butter, I feel very strange after. I think peanut butter may be hiding Bad Things like medicines. I am getting very suspicious of peanut butter and I don't want to eat it right now.

But I have Other Good News! Long Line is taking me to more exciting places, like these train tracks from this morning! I get to Walk now for almost a whole hour in the morning before it gets HOT (it's been very HOT, friends), and sometimes I get another Walk at bedtime too!

What Good Things are happening in your life, friends?

It's my Gotcha Day!

Hi hi hi! Ojo here! It's my 11th Gotcha Day today!

To celebrate, Long Line has been taking me on some Good Walks!

We walked in the forest! We walked where there were ocean smells!

I even got to go in the Lake!

Also, it has been almost Nine Weeks since Surgery! This means I am almost half way through Recovery!

In the meantime, I hope Long Line keeps taking me to fun places!

Here are pictures of ME from my Gotcha Day! Do you think I look any different, friends?

Park and Long Line and Rolling!

Hi hi hi! Ojo here!

Today my person and Long Line took me to Colwood Creek Park! We Walked, then we hung out for a bit, then we Walked more!

I still wish my Walks were longer. And I still wish my Walks were off leash.

However, Long Line lets me wander further away from my person. Today I got to wade in a pond! And drink from it!

Also, Long Line gives me room to do rolling in the grass!

(Hurray for rolling in the grass! I love rolling in the grass!)

Also, Long Line gave me room to find the perfect Stick!

It's not quite as great as running off leash, but Long Line and Colwood Creek Park and rolling in the grass are happy things!

Did you have any happy things in your day today, friends?

Sitting and Long Line

Hi hi hi! Ojo here!

It has been a Long Time since my paws last wrote a blog post. I hope all my Dog Blog friends are well!

Here are some updates from ME:

Bad Leg is getting better! It still can't Walk for very long, but I have decided it is time to start trying to stand on my back legs to get closer to things like crows and human faces. 

My fur is coming back, and from far away people can't even tell that it was missing.

My person is allowing me to go into shallow ditches. (But not deep ones).

Today, three new things happened!

First, my person took a picture of me doing Sit. I have been doing many exercises for many weeks and she wanted to see how my Sit is looking. Bad Leg still sticks out, and Vet says it will probably do this forever, but otherwise my Sit is Good!

Second, my person put me in Cobi's old, ugly harness (isn't it ugly, friends?), and then, on Walk, she attached us with Long Line! This was a bit weird at first and I had to keep checking in with her, but then I realized that Long Line means that I can go further and sniff more things!

We still walked Very Slowly, but I got to explore more! Hurray!

And third, my person finally let me meet and sniff another Dog!

So today is a Good Day. 

How are you, friends?

*****************************

Note from Ojo's person: Tomorrow will be six weeks from her surgery, and we can start increasing the length of her walks beyond ten minutes. In advance of this, I tried her on the long line today to see if she'd go wild, or if it would give both of us a bit more freedom on our walks. 

The long line was great! Instead of trying to pull me down the path, she explored and meandered along. So she was actually walking more slowly, and sniffing more, than on a regular leash. This is ideal!

I've been keeping her away from other dogs since her injury because she can be a bit snappy when she feels trapped on a short leash. The long line allowed her to meet another dog with space and natural movements, and she was able to have a quick greeting and then move on which is her preference.

Once again I'm reminded of how much I love long lines!

I am feeling more ME

Hi hi hi! Ojo here!

Today I am feeling more like ME again!

Earlier, my person was doing the thing called Work Meetings, and I poked and poked and poked her until she left Work Meetings and came to play with ME instead! (I am very good at poking!)

I still don't get to go in Car (my person says this is because I won't lie down when Car is moving), and I still only get Very Short Walks. Pepper continues to be a Good Friend by taking my person Walking when his family doesn't need him, or when they can all go together.

I wish I could go on these Walks with Pepper and my person. I hope I get to do this again soon!

(My person is saying sixteen-and-a-half more weeks. Is that a long time?)

In the meantime, at lunch I got to lie outside with my person. (After hanging out with my Grandpaw for a bit!) I sniffed the air, and I rolled, and then I lay on my back to enjoy the sun on my belly and the cool grass underneath. This was a happy way to spend lunch.

How's your day going?

Update on ME

Hi hi hi! Ojo here with an update on ME and Bad Leg!

Bad Leg doesn't bend very well. Bad Leg shakes a lot. Bad Leg smells funny. Bad Leg feels funny on my tongue because someone stole my fur. 

But Surgery did one Very Important Thing: Bad Leg is stable. 

It feels very different. I am learning to trust Bad Leg again. Maybe, someday, it will be Good Leg.

This is ME napping a few minutes ago before writing this post. I am napping a lot.

If you would like to see how I'm walking six days after Surgery, my person is sharing this video from today. 

(No, I don't like to Walk on the pavement. It is much better to Walk where the things smell better. My person and I are having disagreements about this, but she will allow me to go off the road as long as it's flat.)

Other not-good things: The people won't let me lick Bad Leg. My Walks are very short. I must stay on leash. Inside, there are mats on the floors and fences that move around and keep me stuck in small areas. Outside, I am not allowed to go up onto the rocks or down or into the ditches.

But one Very Good Thing: The people are around a LOT! My person is sleeping with me in the living room! My grandpawrents come to visit every day! (When they come, my person goes away. Sometimes Pepper takes her on a Walk, or sometimes she goes on her own, or sometimes she does the thing called Shopping for Groceries.) 

I am never alone these days for more than a minute or two! I always have company!

This is ME and my Grandpaw lying in the grass. I am happy to have the people around so much.

I hope I can go on longer Walks soon. But I would like the people to keep being around.

How are you doing, friends?

Surgery Done

Dear friends, yesterday was a very strange and upsetting day. But Surgery is done. 

My person says Bad Leg is more stable than it's been in months! I'm not sure I believe her yet. But I was able to hop myself outside to pee, and then I got to lie in the sun.

Surgeon says that things went very well. My person slept beside me on the floor last night, and the people have been around all day. I like these things a lot.

When can I run again?

Surgery tomorrow

Dear friends, my Surgery is tomorrow. Please send ME good energy. And my person, too. She seems anxious today.

I will see you all once Bad Leg is fixed!

Days with my grandpawrents

Hi hi hi! Ojo here! I spent some days with my grandpawrents!

I love going to visit my grandpawrents! They don't do the thing called "work" that my person does all day, so I get lots of cuddles and attention!

Also, they took me on Good Walks!

Today I went to the place called Tower Point! This is one of my favourite places! It has grassy fields and rocks and is by the ocean so I can smell all sorts of good things!

Today, because of Bad Leg, I had to stay on my leash. Normally I get to run! Not today. But even though I didn't get to run and run and run, I was still very happy to be at one of my favourite places!

Do I look a bit tired in my picture? I was. Bad Leg makes me tired more quickly. But I was still very happy!

Weird games

Hi hi hi, Ojo here!

My person has been doing weird games with me recently. This one is called Ice Pack! (I don't know why, it isn't cold at all. My person says it's practice, but I'm not sure what for.)

In the game called Ice Pack, I lie on my side and my person rests this thing on my leg and I get to eat kibbles. That's it! This is an easy game!

(The look on my face is because I am waiting for the next kibble, not because this game bothers me at at all.)

We're playing another game where my person holds Bad Leg and moves it around. She says this is also practice.

In other news, my Surgery is scheduled for April 18. I don't know what Surgery is, but my person says it will be good in the long run. And I like running, so this sounds good to me!

And speaking of running, I haven't been doing any. At all. I must wear a leash at all times when I am outside of the house and I may only walk slowly for a few minutes at a time. This is very annoying. I would like to run! I would like to go further! I would like to go longer!

How are you doing, friends?

Update on ME

Hi hi hi, Ojo here! 

Here is my update on ME! My bloodwork was good and my person put me on the wait list for surgery. I still need to have something called a chest x-ray to make sure my body isn't growing any lumps in my chest or tummy. But if that is good, I can have the surgery.

(I don't know what surgery is, but Vet says I should be able to run again if I have it, so I think I want to have it!)

Thank you friends who wrote to share stories about CCL injuries.

My person has decided to do the surgery for ME, if we can. This is because I do not want to slow down! 

I am starting to take some steps on my bad leg, but I would rather RUN by hopping on my good leg! 

I don't know why my person doesn't want me to do this. I would rather HOP FAST! Why must I walk slow? 

(The people are worried I will make my good leg go bad too if I hop too much on it. But I really, really want to GO FAST!)

In other news, Nature is making Sun and Very Warm, so I lay on the deck and watched the world! This was very nice.

Also, my person took me for a Walk at Picnic Table! I only get five to ten minutes Walk at a time. I spent most of my Walk today sniffing Picnic Table! 

(My person was happy because this made me go slow and use both my legs. I am supposed to do this so that I don't lose muscle.) 

(I was happy because there were FOOD smells!)

Meanwhile, Pepper is being a Very Good Friend. I haven't seen him since the Bad Thing, because he is very bouncy and he gets me running and sometimes he bangs into my body. 

But he has been very helpful because I can't take my person out on Walks right now, so he has been doing it for me. Not every day, because he has his own family to take care of, but he has been making sure that my person is still getting into the forest and climbing mountains, and this makes him a Very Good Friend.