Chance update and Snow

We finally got a little snow.  It has been snowing off and on since Sunday night.  We have about three inches total. 

We are a Nusing Facility for an aging Boder Collie.  He is still weak after his bout with pancreatitis.  His diet is slowly being increased from just water to rice and boiled hamburger…and pumpkin.  He likes cooked carrots so some of them have been added to his food also.  He is REALLY hungry and he thinks we are starving him to death.  He wears his harness coming down the steps as his back legs are weak especially the right leg.  He is a pain in the neck when he wants food.  Far Guy made him some more homemade pumpkin treats with egg, rice flour and pumpkin…he likes them and knows they are kept in the fridge…and will lead you there.

 

He is still eating snow.  He is improving..and those of us who are older know that it takes a little while to snap back.  He is going to the mailbox with Far Guy again…he refused to go for a few days.  So there is improvement.

His anal tumor seems to be better…it disappears…and then appears.  Go figure.  It doesn’t seem to be painful for him…it probably hurts me more than it hurts him…cause I am delegated to keep his butt clean.

We have a good friend who is a retired Veterinarian…he says we are doing all the right things.

I worry about Chance taking off to the woods to hide and die alone.  We had another dog that was close to death and she kept trying to hide in the yard and refused to come in the house.  So I am glad there is snow so at least we can track him.

Chance is over 13 years old.  He has been a good friend.  No doubt he will rebound this time but realistically we know the day when we say goodbye is coming closer every day.  So we will enjoy him while we have him.

The farm and a new puppy

The curve in the driveway to the farm where I grew up.

I remember when the Lilac bushes to the left were really small. We could walk inbetween them. In fact every morning we would head out the door around the corner of the house, through the lilac bushes into the ditch and up on the road and down the lane to catch the bus.  In the winter we had to go the long way around. The driveway was about a tenth of a mile long.  On the right where the Jack Pines are there were just a few Jack Pines and a row of Lombardy Poplar.

The barn. I need to take some more photos of it from different angles as I have a project in mind. Not that I need another hobby but I saw a new art form that I want to try.  I should probably hurry with the photos as sooner than later this barn will collapse.

The real reason we visited the farm.  Meet Annie the thirteen week old Border Collie from Montana where her parents were both “cattle dogs” she has a good home on the farm with some beef cattle to herd and a whole bunch of little kids to spoil her.

She got bored with us.  She has a sister named Lily who is a Boston Terrier…who will be the one in charge.  It was fun to see this Border Collie puppy. 

Chance watched from the back seat of the car…we only unload him when it is necessary.  He had a good view and barked as we drove away!

This n That

It was a rainy day yesterday..we went south of Detroit Lakes to give Jen a hug for her birthday and enjoy breakfast with her. She was at her annual Fall Scrapbook Retreat.  Last year I attended with both of my daughters, this year I had to work.

We had lunch at the park in Osage with members of the Fire Department.  The food was great, it rained the entire time we were there. After all that food I needed a nap!  So nap I did. What else do you do on a rainy Sunday afternoon anyway?

Far Guy visited with his cousin Alaska Guy..I heard them talking but I can sleep through just about anything. We have not seen Alaska Guy for quite some time.  His Father’s health is failing, he is sleeping most all of the time, when he is awake he is  forgetful..one day he asked his wife who she was..she replied “ I am your wife.”  He said “Really?”  She replied “We had seven children together..I should know if I am your wife or not.”  The other day he escaped from the apartment building..someone found him wandering outdoors and brought him back home.  He is 94 years old.

We skipped supper..and went for a drive because the rain stopped.

We watched the sun disappear under the clouds up on the prairie.

We stopped by the neighbors and got some onions. Barb shared her onions with Far Guy.   They have a very pretty Border Collie named Maggie.

She is shy around people she doesn’t know.  The opposite of Chance, who thinks everyone is his long lost friend.  I never did get to pet her, even after I threw the ball for her and  a ball crazy Boston Terrier.    Maggie is about the same size as Chance.  He barked at her from inside the car and drooled on my seat.

Far Guy came home and cleaned  his onions, chopped them all up and put them in freezer containers to use all winter. He only had to stop a few times to wipe his eyes:)

Ready, Set.. FLY!!

Chance enjoys his pool. Recently I captured part of his everyday playtime. Far Guy uses the flinger to throw water droplets into the air for Chance to catch!

This is one of Chance's favorite activities! After a good round of playing ball, he will go over and lay next to his pool...and wait ..and wait..and stare at you..as if to say " Time to play in the water now."

The story of the pool: I went to town in search of a pool for him several years ago. I found one at a local discount store, it was located outside with a bunch of other pools, some smaller some larger. There was only one left of the size I wanted. I took it inside, stood in line, paid for it and loaded it in the pickup.
Later on in the summer Far Guy was giving the pool a really good cleaning, and discovered that I had inadvertently picked up not only one pool but three, they were stuck together so good that they appeared to be one. I was a pool thief. Far Guy said "Never in a million years did I ever think my lovely wife was a thief, but I have the evidence." I gave one away to a gal that had rescued a Border Collie, she didn't have a pool so I shared with her. Far Guy said "You realize that you are aiding and abetting a known criminal by receiving stolen property?" He just couldn't keep his big mouth shut about my pool episode. I am still left with an extra pool, this troubled me for some time. Should I go back to the store, and tell them I only wanted one..but accidentally got three? I took them through the checkout, shouldn't the clerk have noticed that there was three instead of one? After all it was her job, I was just the unsuspecting customer. I did not go into the store to become a pool thief on purpose.
I decided it was not my fault, and made a donation to the Local Animal Shelter which more than equaled the price of the two extra pools. Kind of like taking from the rich and giving to the poor, or a Farside Robinhood! So now the whole blog world knows...What would you have done? :)