Straydog UPDATE posted TUESDAY 4/1/03 at ~10:00 p.m. CT

Pat Arnold's Daily Dog Log

TUESDAY APRIL 1 2003

Blind Freckles came home today after her surgery

      Freckles doesn't look so good due to the swelling of her eye sockets, but she was happy to be home and back with her son, Leo, again. Unfortunately Leo bumped into her face as they were greeting each other, and Freckles let out a yelp from the pain, so temporarily we've put Leo in another kennel till Freckles recovers from the surgery.

Freckles is back from surgery to "clean out" her eye sockets and stitch her eyelids shut to prevent further infections. The dark stuff on her face is normal, expected drainage, which we washed off as soon as we got her settled back in her kennel.

We kept Leo on leash as his mother sniffed him to be sure this was her son. In his excitement to reunite with his mother Leo bumped her face causing Freckles to yelp in pain, so we moved Leo to another kennel till Freckles is fully recovered.

Leo is put in with Pepsi and Krissy temporarily. The three of them get along pretty well.

Back in Freckles' kennel she makes herself at home getting a drink.

Freckles checks out her kennel finding everything where it was before she went to the clinic for her surgery.

New arrival, Nikki, may have a new home soon!

      Amy and her husband are just plain wonderful people! Amy has volunteered at our Dog Adoption Days in Dallas and has been a long-time supporter of our Happy Home for Strays.

      Amy called this afternoon saying that after she and her husband read about Nikki, their hearts went out to her and they wanted to adopt this precious dog with special needs. They know she has heartworm disease, and also hip dysplasia, and they want to take her into their hearts and their home and give her all the love and care, and medical attention that she'll need. What could possibly be more wonderful for Nikki?!

      The couple also has five other dogs, who were all rescued in one way or another, and this will really be the deciding factor about Nikki's adoption--to see if all the dogs get along well together. For Nikki to have five playful new friends may be just what she needs! The home visit for all the dogs to meet each other will take place Friday, April 18th. We're all happy about this upcoming adoption day, and we'll be counting the days!

Nikki

Many people have emailed asking about Snowflake's health

      Little Old Snowy is not doing so well. Her "house kennel," has become half of our kitchen and in this kennel area she has three favorite sleeping places with blankets in each of her "corners." Until recently Snow was strong enough to walk around to move freely from one sleeping spot to another, but now she just doesn't have the strength to stand up by herself anymore.

      Throughout the night, last night, I was up with her many times when I heard her try to move her little old body from one of her sleeping areas to another. I knew that she was pulling herself along with the strength of her upper body and front legs, because she couldn't stand up or move her back legs, so I got up and carried her from cozy sleeping corner to another. We had a few quiet conversations and then we both went back to sleep for a while longer until Snow wanted to move again.

      It's more than just a hip problem. Snowflake is old and old age and all the other problems it entails have caught up with this sweet little dog. It happens, but it is extremely heartbreaking for us to see. Snowflake has become such a huge part of my life, just like Danny Boy and Davey, and it hurts to know she most probably doesn't have many more sunny days ahead.

      Maybe tomorrow she'll be feeling stronger . . .

Snowflake sniffs the tall grass along the baseline of the park fence during a recent outing (3/15/03)