Open Wide For The Dentist

One way to know to know when your cat needs a dental- take a photo as the cat is yawning. Of course, your veterinarian can do a mouth exam and determine if a dental is needed. Most old cats need to have their teeth cleaned. Dentals are important for the longevity of both cats and dogs. Infected gums and rotten teeth cause heart and kidney disease which greatly hasten an animal’s demise. The tartar and gingivitis are both evident in this photo of my old cat Addie. My vet did lab work to make sure she could withstand the anesthesia. Her kidneys and liver were just fine. I think Addie was 14 years old at the time of her last dental. She lived to be 18 years old.

Another fine mess you got me into….

I really like this photo which was taken by one of my most favorite bloggers, Andrew Hardacre. Andrew is an exceptional photographer and world traveler who finds amazing subjects. This photo is one for the books.

All downhill from here

For Yvonne,

CAT  and DOG

Korea, October 2012.

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Best Dog Quote

       “Be the person your dog thinks you are”

                                                           By JW Stevens

Muddy, Labrador retriever.

Birds for Yvonne By “All Downhill From Here”

Andrew Hardacre has been a good blogging friend since 2011 or 2012- just not sure what year I began following and loving his beautiful photography and exceptional writing ability. I hope the few folks that are still following me will hop on over and have a gander at some of Andrew’s posts and marvelous photos. If you like or love birds, I guarantee that you’ll be entertained.

I still can not access my photos in my new W10 computer.I have no motivation for a post Maybe in the future I can find a tech to remedy the situation. I do have some in my WP gallery so perhaps I can create a post from some of those.

All downhill from here

I don’t do as much bird photography these days. I don’t like the standard since I gave up heavy tripods and long lenses. Everything is a compromise so I just do my best and accept the body is weak even if the spirit is willing. Nevertheless I promised Yvonne I would post some bird shots and here goes:

Starting with Dusky Thrush, taken locally last month.

Verditer Flycatcher, taken in Malaysia in October

Dark-sided Flycatcher – actually not too bad because the bird was happy for me to approach to within a few metres

Bull-headed Shrike, another local long stayer

And last but not least Streaked Spiderhunter from my Malaysian (mothing) trip

Oh go on then, one more – Sultan Tit. I struggled to see this species for ages but typically once I had seen one I found them everywhere!

Happy 2020, Yvonne.

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Critical: Show Your Humaneness At Easter (Original-April 16, 2011)

See photo below this article. I have not posted and inserted a photo in quite sometime and I am having more than a small amount of frustration to get this right. Photo is supposed to be here where I am writing non-essential words. Hee hee.

 

What Not To Do For Your Children At Easter

 

Do you have little ones chirping- quacking- hopping or hoping for a wee baby chick, duckling, or bunny? If so, don’t leave this page without reading. I hope that after reading this entry, you can say NO to your child or children if they have been bugging you for a live Easter gift. Easter will be here in about 3 days. What do you give your child/children as an Easter gift? A live bunny, a baby chick or, a duckling? Think long and hard about your choice. Baby chicks and ducklings are very small and their little bodies can not hold up to being passed around between children or even just one child. Chicks and ducklings grow and become larger. How would you keep that chick or duckling safe from the family cat or dog? How would you care and house that chick or duckling? Even if the chick managed to grow to adult hood you will have a mess to deal with. Children can catch several diseases from that baby chick. Serious diseases. What will you do when that baby chick/duckling expels very malodorous excrement on your child or in your child’s hands while holding the chick/duckling. The small bird in all probability will die because it does require special care. A cage, chick/duck food, a watering bowl, and a small feeder designed just for baby chickens or ducklings. Cages must be cleaned daily. Clean black and white newspaper (not colored parts or adds of the newspaper)  should be used. Are you prepared to deal with that? Or are you one of those people who figures “oh well. It’s just one of millions of chickens/ducks and the life of one baby chick/duck doesn’t matter that much.” What about that cute bunny that you saw in the pet store? As it turns out that bunny also needs special care. A cage, (made just for rabbits) water (preferably a water bottle) that the rabbit can sip from- keeps the water clean, a dish for rabbit pellets, hay for the bunny to eat,  and small amounts of  raw fruit and vegetables to keep its digestive tract healthy. But it does not end there.  The cage should be cleaned daily to keep the bunny healthy. Rabbits should also be vaccinated for 2-3 diseases. The rabbit should be spayed or neutered before 6 months of age.  A rabbit should be held a certain way because the delicate back is easily broken just from twisting and turning or letting it fall to the floor.  They really do not like to be picked up and handled. If you just turn it loose in the back yard it can easily meet its demise in the jaws of a dog or cat or a hawk can swoop down and make a meal of the bunny  and lets not forget that Great Horned Owl that will snatch it up at night or early in the morning. How will you keep it safe from over zealous children that want to carry it around or simply pet the bunny many times a day. Bunnies grow up and become large rabbits. Are you going to just turn it loose in your backyard or take it to the local shelter to give it up because it is just too messy and difficult to keep in the house. Bunnies are also capable of biting and then you will worry about a possible infection from the bite. Now if you still want a rabbit for your child there a a few more things to consider such as disease transmission to you or your children. A plethora of diseases also are on the list of why a rabbit is not a good choice for your child. Pasturella, coccidiosis, giardi, E-coli, toxoplasmosis, and the list goes on. If you keep the rabbit outdoors they are also susceptible to heat stroke and also need warmth in the winter. Remember: these are domestic rabbits which are much more delicate that a native wild rabbit. So let your conscience by your guide. Just don’t give a chick or bunny as an Easter gift unless you want a lot of work and the real possibility that the animal will die. If it doesn’t succumb to disease or neglet your children will grow tired of that chick or bunny and then you are faced with what to do with that Easter gift. Be smart and humane; omit anything live for your young child. There are many things to give your child. A stuffed rabbit or a toy chick or duck  are great and you will not have all of the work and worry.  Of course there is always the Easter candy but beware of the chocolate that the family dog can and will eat. Chocolate is deadly for dogs. If your dog ingests chocolate take your pet to the animal emergency where it can get the proper care to keep the chocolate from being absorbed. Special care is required for after care. PRECAUTIONS ARE THE KEY WORDS. The care and consideration that you show toward a “lesser” bird or animal will have an impact on your child’s emotional development. How your child will treat you later in life and how much empathy your child has for other human beings and animals is learned at a young age. This is something that can be taught but not at the expense of a small helpless animal. Your child can learn how to treat others and animals by following your example- good or bad. After Easter the animal shelters become filled with bunnies and chicks. Don’t be guilty of adding to the shelter’s already over flowing facilities. Be humane and don’t get give your child a live pet. Visit the zoo, watch an animal movie or, read a cute story to your child/children about an animal/s You’ll be glad you did.

Eve’s necklace: native, drought tolerant, understory tree. This little tree blooms about the time Easter rolls around. I love this tree which native Indians utilized to make necklaces and etc. After the blooms fade, small hard berries form and dangle like a beautiful necklace. I have several of these trees on my property .

May Your Holidays Be Merry (Not Sad) Be Careful and Watchful For the Welfare of Your Pet. Original post 12/21/2011 Repost

Puppy. Border collie (smooth) and Australian shepherd cross. Photo taken about 2013.

 

I posted this about six years ago.. This is a repost at the request of Da al. https://happinessbetweentails.com/ this post.  She has my permission to reblog. Please excuse any typos. I have not been in the best mood of late since I had Beasley, the cat, “put down” this past Saturday. A week ago I had my pit bull, Lucky (14 years old approximately) euthanized. So the loss of two pets in a week is a bit much. But I am ok.

A time for many to celebrate but if your pet eats or chews on something that is toxic or that can cause real harm to the animal’s body then there isn’t much to be happy about. There are so many things that are deadly or can make your pet sick that this list, as I type sort of makes me feel ill.

So on with the warnings- do not take this information idly. These are real hazards.

1. Christmas trees that are real and in a container of water: the water can become toxic just from the tree which leaches a pesticide residue that had been applied at the tree farm.

2. Water that the tree is standing in can become moldy- keep the water container covered if the tree is one that was fresh cut.

3. Artificial trees if chewed on and swallowed can cause severe damage to the intestinal track of a cat or dog. Supervise your pet and if you can’t, then keep your pet in a crate or in a closed room.

4. Antifreeze- from a leaking radiator in the garage- Antifreeze attractive to many pets. The taste is sort of sweet and some animals will lick or drink it. This stuff is deadly if you can not get your pet to an ER immediately. With rapid treatment your pet can be saved. Otherwise your Fluffy or Fido is doomed. No ifs or buts. Antifreeze fries the kidneys.

So on to foods we go: Do not allow your pet to taste or eat any of the following. Some of the foods/drinks will cause death or serious illness.

1. Alcohol  

2. Avocado

3. Chocolate- not any kind. Don’t take a chance and try to analyze the kind of chocolate ( dark  is extremely toxic.)

3. Fatty foods

4. Macadamia nuts, peanuts

5. Moldy or spoiled foods

6. Grapes and raisins

7. Yeast dough

8. Xylitol (this ingredient is in some chewing gum and used as a sweetner in some foods. Extremely toxic.

9. Garlic, garlic powder, onion and onion powder

10. Any flower that is growing from a bulb  or is a member of the lily family (these are killers also.) Damages the kidneys unless you get immediate treatment. Can begin kidney damage within minutes. Don’t take chances with any flower- just don’t bring them into your home.  Cats especially like to chew on fresh greenery. Some of the flowers of the lily family are sure fire killers.

11. Ornaments and electric cords/lights. Keep your pet away from the tree.

12. Don’t use use tinsel. Cats are attracted to the long dangling  strands. If eaten the tinsel can bind into a ball and block the intestinal tract or the tinsel, ribbon, or string can wind around parts of the intestines. These things also can kill you animal if surgery is not performed to remove the “foreign bodies.” 

 13. Some information says that coffee is also bad.

14. Mushrooms. Don’t allow your pet to acquire a taste for mushrooms. Veterinarians believe and other authorities that if a pet eats a commercially grown mushroom then it is more likely to hunt for these when outdoors. We all know that there are mushrooms growing in the wild that are poisonous. Some look like a toy and some look like a ball. I’ve seen my own dogs want to play with mushrooms that were “pretty balls” and I had to quickly destroy the mushroom and give a firm no to my dogs.

15. Medications of any kind, especially chewable human and pets meds. I have a chocolate lab named Molly that opened the bottom of a cabinet where I had stored some empty med bottles that I had washed and intended to use for who knows what. Molly found an empty Vetmedin (chewable heart med for dogs) bottle and chewed the bottle hoping to get something delicious. Some dogs love to eat and big dogs really love to eat. So child proof your cabinets or dog proof them.

16. One last caution while I’m “thinking.” This is one that I personally experienced. About eight or nine years ago, Puppy, my border collie and Australian shepherd cross jumped into the compost pile which was not fully “ripe.” I always added vegetable and fruit scraps and these were still in the decomposing stage. Puppy either ate a piece of the compost or licked some from his paws. Thank God I was outside with my dogs (I usually am). About 30 minutes after I had gone into the house with the dogs I noticed that he was very droopy and salivating excessively. He was very listless and I knew that he was in trouble. I called my vet and rushed him to the clinic. I told the vet that he had been  playing in the pile of compost and she then told me that compost can be very toxic if in the “right stage” of decomposing. She quickly gave him some injections and Puppy was ok after several hours.

17.Poinsettias. (a thank you to Dr. Laura for the reminder) https://bipolarforlife.me/ Can be toxic and cause respiratory problems. Not considered deadly but please be careful>

The bottom line of this list is that you can’t be too careful if you are a pet parent.

No blogging for a while. Three of My Cats Have Cancer Will work On MY Own Blog.

Carley 2013

Beasley. 2013

Addie 2013
Born: Mother’s day 1999

These three cats were hand raised by me. I love them more than I can say. All are all are getting treatments for cancer but I’m afraid that none are working.

Dogs and Cats That Love Each Other. Precious!

I fell in love with this video and it makes me smile each time I watch the slide show. It’s just about the sweetest thing that I’ve seen in a long time. I hope who ever takes the time to have a look, will enjoy this video as well.

This video was posted on my FB Timeline by my blogging friend Val Erde, who lives in Wales. Val’s blog is “Coloring The Past” at https://colouringthepast.com/2017/08/16/curious-little-boy/ Face Book site is at https://www.facebook.com/valsvintagepotpourri

She is a talented artist who works magic with color. She is an expert at old photo restoration and also adds color to aged B&W photos.

Charlie the Beagle and the Baby He Loves

I am way delinquent in posting anything in my blog. Another video is all I’m up for at this time. There are plenty of posts over in that drafty spot but I have no motivation to edit any. Hopefully one day I will suddenly arise from a state of mind that I would not wish on an enemy.

Charlie the beagle is one of my favorites and I have watched probably ten times. It makes me cry every time I watch the lovely video. The little dogs’ devotion gets to me. If only people were this nice to each other.

Most likely my followers have seen this some place before and I apologize for being lazy.

 

 

 

Things A Dog Lover Should Not Forget (video)

I saw this on Face Book and perhaps many of you have previously seen this video. I think it’s well done and the music is not bad. You might even shed a tear or two if you love dogs as much as many of the bloggers that I follow on Word Press.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZM6GWiD5FuA&t=39s                Video is below.

 

Little Girl That Feeds The Crows

I found this one by “surfing” You Tube. I love birds and really like crows. I’ve observed those that come to my feeders and the bird bath. At certain times of the year, they leave sticks and small rocks in the water but I believe these are used as tools to pulverize the meat, acorns, or corn according to whatever I happen to feed them. Thus far I’ve not had a chance to watch them at length since I am either too busy or fatigued from the afib meds that I take. This video is a bit long, about 5 minutes or a bit more. I hope you find it interesting and maybe educational.

To digress a bit, I hope to get back to posting at least every two weeks or weekly maybe. I have more than 50 posts in draft form that need some polishing and some I will delete. In the meantime I have tried to keep up with the bloggers that I faithfully follow.                                                 .

My son has improved considerably but his MDs want him to enter inpatient rehab to improve his speech and motivation as well as well self-esteem.Texas pays for inpatient rehab for TBI patients that have no insurance. I wish that all states had this program.

 Yvonne 

 

Forced to Take a Semi Break For Awhile.

Just a short note to the folks whose posts I comment on routinely. I’ve been commenting sort of here and there. I hope to be back soon but it could be longer. I’ll not go into much detail here. Shortly after 12mn of New Year’s eve my son was riding his ATV on gravel. He hit a rut and the vehicle rolled over with him underneath. Two men who were there lifted the ATV off him. He was in ICU for 21 days, the orthopedic unit for 4 days and he is now in rehab. He suffered a traumatic brain injury, four fractured ribs and, a fracture of T 11.  He developed aspiration pneumonia  and afib while in ICU.

I think there was an angel riding on his shoulder that night. He is making progress and his long term memory is pretty good. He has some speaking problems but with speech therapy he is progressing. Whether he returns to normal or near normal remains an unanswered question.

 

My son had/has many friends who have been very concerned and very kind. I’m grateful that so many folks from his past remembered my son as one who was always so nice and so friendly. He’s not been as successful as most of them but that did not seem to matter to all who have known Danny.

At some point in time I’ll write about the ordeal and how dangerous an ATV can be.

Thanks to Rod Sprange  (http://reflectionsinpuddles.com/ (a good blogging friend) for the prayers and the prayer list. I’m very grateful.

 

Regards,

Yvonne D.