Our break

Well, hello! I know, I know, I've been gone too long. When Relay got injured I figured it was a good time to take a break to care for him as best as we could. I want to take a minute and thank everyone who expressed their concern and offered support or kind words, it really meant the world to me, (and I'm sure Relay as well if he could understand such things :-)

I also want to extend my thoughts to my east coast friends. While we live on the Virginia coast, have family in DC and New Jersey, I am very glad to say that all my friends and family are safe and I hope the same for you and yours. Please take a minute to give an extra special hug today. I'm sending one out to all of you.

Lastly... Happy Halloween! I'm already playing around with my witches makeup, and now that the storm is over, I can touch up all the decorations out front, get my candy ready, and prepare to celebrate handing out goodies with Relay dressed in a Vikings jersey. Miss Trixie here got her photo done with her new foster mom Emily.

How is Relay doing? Well, I have no idea as to the condition of his ligament, but as far as I can tell, he's fine. There are still a few more weeks of quiet in store for him, but he's acting like nothing ever happened, so I'll take that as a good sign. He's been very annoyed to have lost all his friends, been crated more, and left home for all the festivities, but I'm sure he'll forgive us in time.

As for Jeff and I, being without foster dogs, does not mean we stopped supporting our friends. We went to a Howl-o-ween event, a picnic, hosted a dinner out at a local mom and pop burger joint that is very dog friendly, and even picked up two very special fosters. One phone call from the pound and we now have two neonatal kittens. Relay was a little suspicious after one of them tried to nurse. lol.

I have some of my favorite blogs to catch up with and I have plenty to catch you all up on, but the break did us some good. Just so grateful to report all is well here and the skies are clear. Enjoy your Halloween, and be sure to share pictures and notes on how you'll celebrate today.

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Relay has a torn ACL

As we were driving over to pick up Relay, Mary informed me that she had already taken him to the vet after a night of rest showed no signs of improvement. The vet believes he has a torn ACL. Not the kind of news you want to hear over bluetooth.

Thankfully, the diagnosis leaned towards the chance of Relay healing on his own with rest for 4 weeks as opposed to it being completely torn which would mandate surgery. That rest required us to make some adjustments at home.

I made some very sad phone calls to our rescues to say we had to take a break from fostering. Internally struggling with the idea of not getting back Trixie already, I was unprepared for the one two punch to loose Max and Little One at the same time. I really love those pups and it's like their stories will be left unfinished in my mind. I had not realized how cathartic the adoption process was to letting go. And a part of me feels like I'm letting everyone down.

No one more so than my poor baby. Relay, sorry puppy but your mom's at a loss.

I have been looking into ACL injuries and healing on your own without surgery is normally not advised for dogs over 30 pounds. At 38 pounds, the vet must have thought the injury slight enough to try. But this path could also mean he'll break it anyway or tear his other leg from over use. It's going to be very hard keeping a an active dog as subdued as possible and each time he runs I cringe. Trying to be proactive, I'm  looking into some supplements to the medication prescribed by his vet.

In the mean time, I have this nagging question in my mind: why? Certain breeds are predisposed to ACL injuries, but to my knowledge my mutt doesn't have those in his makeup. Dogs that are overweight or under exercised are also prone, but he is very trim and very active. His diet is varied to allow for the best health. What then? One reference mentioned a link to dogs neutered under 5 months. Relay's paperwork at the pound mistakenly estimated his age at 6 months when he was snipped, his real age being closer to 3. But how much stock should I put into that?

Sigh... I'm going to have a nice long pity party / stressing session, and then I need to pull it together. My dog needs me.

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Foster dog shuffle

Remember when K9JL asked me to babysit Murphy while his foster parents were on vacation? Well, this time I was the one headed out of town. Running up to Jersey for the long weekend, I needed to call in a few favors to watch the pups. For the most part, everything went smoothly.

Returning to Norfolk, my first stop was to pick up Max. Our foster from CSRSEVA lived up to his nickname, 'Fabulous'. He was watched by a volunteer from the rescue and as suspected, he's still perfection. Max learned how to use a doggie door, got along great with everyone and was a wonderful guest. 

Next we went to Mary's house. Relay got to hang out with Izzy and Iso. Well, actually that little dog from Mexico still doesn't have a name. At this point we all just call him Little One. When Jeff went to the Gulf, I took the puppy in, convincing Mary that when you have three dogs in the house, a fourth is no extra trouble. Mary has been struggling with the decision to rehome. When I left for the weekend she was sure that it was best to find him a new family, when I came back she wanted to keep him again.  

As for Relay, when he gets together with Izzy there is always trouble. This time around Relay managed to sprain his leg playing chase in the yard. My poor baby couldn't put any weight down on his hind leg. I was concerned about him playing hard with the bigger dogs and the strain of going up and down the stairs multiple times a day. So, he stayed with Mary and Izzy an extra day to give himself time to mend. 

On the road to pick up Trixie, I got a call from Jessica of K9JL. I mentioned Relay's injury which must have solidified something in her mind, because she recommended that Emily continue to take care of Trixie a little longer. That lovable minx was doing terrific with no destruction to speak of. I hesitated for a minute before agreeing with relief. I'm not sure what Emily is doing differently, but bow to her superior abilities. I do feel guilty that our record with this rescue is 1-2 having successfully fostered Elmer, but having issues with Murphy and now Trixie. There is talk about possibly making the change permanent and finding us a different foster. Of course I would want what is best for Trixie and could use the break. It's just that I would feel like a heel and a little like a failure. We'll see how it unfolds.

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Having fun with Dante

I was thrilled when our friend Julia and her bichon, Dante invited the whole pack (Relay, Trixie, Max, & Iso!) out to lunch at one of our favorite dog friendly spots, Sam's Texas Sub Shop (for more dog friendly restaurants with reviews check my yelp list). I took a bunch of pictures, but examining two, I couldn't help but have a little fun.

This post is participating in a blog hop. Check out more Wordless Wednesday fun hosted by Blog Paws.
And for an added bonus entry, check out our mention over at our friends at Essentials Enterprise. We love that picture, too. 

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