Straydog UPDATE posted SUNDAY 5/4/03 at ~9:14 p.m. CT

Pat's Daily Dog Log

SUNDAY MAY 4 2003

Kind of a gray day, but it brightens up somewhat by mid-afternoon

     Today started out sort of gray and misty, but by mid-afternoon the sun was beginning to shine, and the very light misting rain finally stopped.

More dogs get groomed:

Kennel companions Max and Molly are first on the list

     I took a little time away from writing thank-you letters in my living room office today to do a little more grooming to some of our furry residents, and a very good time to do this is when the various pairs of dogs are brought to the play yard for their exercise fun. Max and Molly were first on the list to get brushed and have a toenail trim today, and Max needed a few small mats removed from his silky long fur.

     Max is a beautiful golden-haired Chow mix, and he usually holds very still while I trim his nails and brush his fur. If we keep him brushed daily, he will never have a mat, but if we miss a day or two, his fur begins to tangle. Max was a good fellow and I managed to get all his nails trimmed and two small mats removed.

Molly was next

     Molly has beautiful, very thick, fluffy white fur, and she is another dog who needs a thorough brushing every day. If we can manage to keep her brushed, she doesn't get mats (true of any of the long-haired dogs), and she always looks so pretty after a good brushing. Molly held still for me too, at least while I trimmed her nails, but she decided that the nail trim was all the grooming she wanted this morning, and as soon as I finished her last toe, off she ran to play.

     Molly and Max have been together as kennel companions for a long time, and because of this, they are inseparable now, and will have to be adopted together.

Sir Anthony and his kennel companion, Little Susie, receive nail trims too

     Sir Anthony, a big, handsome Lab/Coonhound mix, and his furry companion, adorable Little Susie, needed some grooming attention as well.

     Susie is our little "ragamuffin" looking dog. Her long fur is very thick and somewhat of a mixture of being very course and silky smooth. It takes a good 20 minutes to get her totally brushed, and when she is brushed from head to the tip of her furry tail, she looks gorgous, until you let go of her! Then within seconds, as soon as she rolls on the ground or takes a "dip" in the doggie swimming pool, her beautifully brushed fur becomes tangled, and she has the appearance of the little ragamuffin dog again. Ragamuffin appearance or not she is a sweet little dog and looks adorable (to me) all the time.

     Sir Anthony needs no brushing really, but he likes the attention, and does hold still for a few minutes. Nail trimming he isn't too fond of, but he lets me do it for the "cookie" he will get when the trimming is over.

     These two companion dogs have been together at our shelter for a long time also, and because of the strong bond between them, just as with Molly and Max, Anthony and Susie will have to be adopted together.

Happy is doing okay

     Senior Citizen Happy seems to be feeling much better today. (She was rushed to our vet clinic late afternoon Friday because her back left leg couldn't support her, and the x-rays showed advanced arthritis, and of course once again the vet saw the severe hip dysplasia in both of her hips.)

     Today Happy is back to walking normally, which the doctor thought would happen, and Happy is feeling happy and playful today!

Nikki, is recovering progressively from her heartworm treatment

     To those of you who continue to ask how Nikki is doing (the extremely frightened Pit Bull who is being treated for heartworm disease ) we're happy to report that we've had no more bouts of coughing from Nikki these last several days, and she is doing okay.