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.

Something Bad

Dear friends, something Bad happened. A few days ago I was standing on the side of the trail sniffing some interesting moss when suddenly my leg stopped working.

My person took me to Vet. Apparently my CCL has broken. I don't know what this means, except that my knee hurts and my leg is very wobbly. My person says this is like a ruptured ACL in a human. My CCL is entirely gone. 

My person felt very horrible, but Vet said it wasn't her fault. Vet said I have cartilage buildup in my knee which means this has been wearing out for a very long time. 

When I fell a few weeks ago it may have made it happen sooner (although I was walking and running normally again!), but Vet says this bad thing was going to happen anyways. I have played and ran and zoomed and jumped and explored very hard for my entire life! Vet says my body is wearing out!

I am about twelve years old. We are waiting to find out if I am healthy enough to have surgery. If I don't have surgery, Vet says I will still be able to heal up enough to walk for a kilometer or two as long as I go slowly and rest after. I am already starting do some small steps on my bed leg, although it is still very wobbly!

The bad part is that I'm not allowed to go on Big Hikes anymore. All I get to do is sniff in the yard or on the street.

Also, I have to lose three pounds! This means diet! I am getting very little food in my bowl (this is sad), but I am getting kibbles all day long in food puzzles and for lying still and staying put when my person is moving around. So that part is good!

The other good part is that Nature is making Sun and Warm right now.

This is ME in Front Yard. The sun feels very happy on my fur. I am rolling in the grass! I still feel happy! I am still ME!

Dear friends, I don't like getting Old. I would prefer to stay Young, thank-you-very-much. 

Then I could lie in this sunny patch forever...

(Do you see my leg is sticking up? That is my bad leg. I can still move it! I can still roll around! I can still ask for belly rubs! It's just that my leg is rather wobbly...)

I am helpful by going in pictures!

Hi hi hi! Ojo here! 

Last blog post I shared with you that pictures mean cheese! This means that every time my person bends down to take a picture of something, I go right in front of her!

Like this!

I'm sure she wasn't trying to take pictures of the spring flowers in our yard, right? I'm sure she was trying to take a picture of ME, right? She must have just forgotten to put ME in front of the camera, right?

It's a good thing I am so helpful!

(These plant bits are poking my bum. Why are we doing pictures here, anyways?)

Spring pawtrait time

Hi hi hi! Ojo here!

On our Walk today we found these yellow flower things! My person decided it was time to do some pawtraits of US!

These were on a Big Hill in a Big Field. Big Field on Big Hill has many little critter holes in it! They smelled so interesting! All the spring air smelled so interesting today!

Okay, I must admit to you that my leg is still a little sore. I will confess that I walked into the yellow flower things and then I lay down to rest. My person thought this was a good chance to do some good pictures.

Since pictures mean cheese, Pepper joined me for picture time! We don't just say cheese, we eat cheese! More cheese, please!

Good Walks

Hi hi hi! Ojo here! 

My person takes ME on Many Good Walks. Often Pepper gets to come too! Pepper says that he likes our Walks!

Right now my Walks are too short. I wish they were longer, but my leg still hurts and my person says I need to rest. (I don't want to rest on Walks! I want more Walks!)

My leg is getting a bit better. I hope my leg gets all the way better soon so I can do proper Walks again!

Pepper has been very nice to ME while my leg has been sore. He Walks beside ME and keeps ME company, and we do lots of sniffing together. 

This Walk is almost done. Pepper wants to know if we can do another Walk soon? (I want to know if we can do another Walk soon?)

I love SNOW!

I love Snow!

I love Snow!

Did I mention that I love Snow!?!

Do you love Snow, too?

And then BREAD fell from the sky!

Hi hi hi! Ojo here!

Yesterday I had a fall. I went on two Walks and I had Too Much Fun. At the end of Second Walk I tried to jump into the back of Car. But I fell.

Today my leg is hurting.

My person still took us on a Walk today. She went slow, and then faster when I went faster, and then slow again.

And then...

BREAD fell from the SKY!!! Can you imagine?!?

First a big piece! And then another big piece! Then two smaller pieces! And then even more! 

It was focaccia bread and it was very tasty! One piece almost fell on my head!

When we looked up, there was a Big Raven eating bread in the tree. Wasn't that nice of the Big Raven to share with us?

My leg didn't hurt as much after that. I think the falling bread must have helped.

Another day, another Walk!

Hi hi hi! Ojo here! I get to go on a Walk every day! Pepper comes with me many of the days.

Do you have a Walk planned today?

Hi hi hi!

Hi hi hi! It's ME! Ojo!

What are YOU up to today?

Donut

That is a Donut. You have a Donut. I would also like Donut. Please can I have Donut?

Happy Valentine's Day, friends! What happened in your house today? (I got a taste of Donut!!)

Walk, Walk, Nap

Hi hi hi! Ojo here!

I had a Walk! Then another Walk! Now I am taking a nap in the sun.

What did you do today?

Sleeping toes

Hi hi hi! Ojo here! These are my toes! They are resting so I can go running again tomorrow!

Another Beach Day!

Hi hi hi! Ojo here! 

Today we had another Beach Day! 

Pepper and I love Beach Day!

Beach is stinky! Beach is sunny! Beach is fun!

Can we do another Beach Day soon? Pretty please?

Do you have a Beach?