I went to the vet and came home

 I made every attempt to get to the "cheese-in-a-can" but it was difficult to negotiate the small counter space.

 Isn't there a ladder here for me?

 I can smell that cheese, where is it?

After my visit with the vet they decided I have to wait 5 more days before my sutures can come out.

 Cooper gave his information to tech vet himself, note the "can-of-cheese" right by his snout.

 Oh geez, he's kissing the tech vet! That is so against the rules.

 This is Coop snarfing up the "cheese-in-the-can" after his Adequan shot.

 This is me having a nap when we came home. All the vet business is tiring. Plus I ate a lot of "cheese-in-the-can"!

Good-night Sweet Girl - Remembering Dottie

 Dottie Edwards
1996-2010

(Dozer's Mum here) Dear Dottie Dog went downhill last night and I took her into the vet this morning and had her put down. I was up most of the night with the dear old girl and the vet thinks that her symptoms indicated a brain tumor and heart failure (which we already knew). Whatever it was, Dottie was in distress and I am not one to let an animal suffer. They do such a lovely job at the vet's office. They gave Dots a sedative which equated to two stiff Scotch and waters and she was in a very happy place based on the fact that her tongue took on a life of its own. And then she was gone after the final shot. She had her favorite vet and tech and honestly it was such a gentle passing, one could not have asked for a better exit. I am having her cremated and then will give the ashes to her previous owner's son who will have them scattered on Betty's plot so they are together again.

Dozer amd Cooper noted that Dots did not come home with me and for the first time, both of them got on my lap for a cuddle (that only lasted a few minutes and probably will not be repeated again in this lifetime!)

Dottie Edwards - took down garbage cans, ate one of the kitchen chairs, loved apples off the ground, moaned and rolled on her back when she was feeling frisky, loved to have her ears scritched and never forgot she was an AKC Champion show dog.  How lucky we were to have her in our life for two and a half years. Now we return her to Betty so she can sit by Betty's feet and have treats fed to her and talk to her old friend about this and that. Thanks for visiting us Dots, we will always love you!

(Thank you to Emily at Dreameyce Pet Photography for these beautiful pictures of Miss Dottie - Emily caught the essential Dots so we will have such lovely images to remember our old girl! Click here to visit Dreameyce's website)

Anesthesia is a long trip home

Dozer here:

Mum has brought Dottie home and she is sort of with us. Mum says Dottie is going to be sleepy for a while and needs to rest because she still is getting past the anesthesia. Dots has been crying a bit but then she puts her head down and sleeps a little. She will be better tomorrow. Until then she has to stay in her room so she doesn't fall down or hurt herself.

Our vet (Ark Animal Hospital) today was Dr. Lewis-Simpson (left) . We like her bunches, she is very nice and gentle. Dr. Lewis-Simpson has a DVM from Oregon State University and Washington State University, and she has a special interest in surgery. (Good thing with my knees).

And our vet tech was Jasmine (left) who is Cooper's girlfriend, except we aren't supposed to tell anyone that because he says it is a secret. (He made me put the hearts next to Jasmine's picture).

"She loves talking with people and prides herself on providing great customer service. Her dog Bronx was adopted from Heartland Humane Society and is a professional beggar by nature. She also has four cats: Ziggy, Brooklyn, Meko, and Kaya." (from the Ark website)

These are the culprits in our tale of woe. (See below) The big boulder was a centimeter in diameter and brought along a bunch of little friends when he left Dottie.

Dottie is going on special food starting tomorrow and she has to take antibiotics twice a day to get better.

Shhh, Dottie is asleep. We'll write more later. Night and thank you for your thoughts and prayers (they worked!), Love from your favortie naughty corgi, Dozer

Update on Dottie Dog

Mum says "thank you" to everyone's good thoughts and prayers for Dottie. The vet put her under sedation and managed to remove a large bladder stone without surgery. So Dottie gets to come home! She still has some stones but she is going back on her special food again and we will hope we will get another good year like last time.

Dots is currently sleeping off her anesthesia.

Mum will go get the merry Dot'ster later this afternoon. And then Dottie will probably be ordering room service and making us go get her things. She is such a diva at times.

Ohhhh Noooo! Not Again!

Dozer Dog here. Mum says to tell you that Cooper has blown his right rear knee like I did last year and the year before. They almost had to pick Mum up from the floor at the vet's office. She was incredulous (which is a big word which I do not understand). "How could this happen?" she squealed. The vet thinks either our family is cursed or it was just "one of those things". (Mum says that I can't say that because the vet never said we were cursed.)

That's the bad news. The good news is that Cooper is pretty much pain-free. He is probably too old for surgery but Mum says they'll keep that up their sleeve in case things go from bad to worse (like if he blows out his left knee). Coop is going to have shots twice a week of some drug into his knee (yeeech!) and Mum said the vet will be doing that because she draws the line at shootin' shots into knees. He'll do that for eight weeks and if it shows it is helping him, then he'll go to one to two shots every month.

Dad threw a fit and started doing research on ACL's in dogs. He thinks we're not eating right or something because Tinker, his Cocker Spaniel when the old geezer was a boy, ate table scraps and ran by Dad's bike just fine and never broke his knees. I'll go with the table scraps theory any day - bring'em on!

This is me being a pirate because this blog is supposed to be all about me and we have spent much too much time on Cooper. Focus on my picture, I am in need of comforting too.

Thank you all for your kind words, prayers and crossed paws on Cooper. This was, of course, not the news we wanted but at age 12 Cooper has many good years ahead. While we joke around on our blog, our dogs are an important part of our lives and I am truly touched by the many nice notes from people I have never met and yet feel are dear friends in my life. Thank you all! Love, Nancy

Coop Needs Your Good Thoughts

Mum came home last night and saw Cooper limping. He is not using his right leg very much. He isn't in pain but he is definitely not using his right rear leg. Mum tucked him into bed, put his Oregon State University sweatshirt around him and we all snuggled. (Yeah, that's Coop sleeping on Dad's pillow).

Anyway, if you could please cross your paws for Cooper it would be appreciated. Mum is going to call the vet after lunch (which is when she drives home to check on us) and make an appointment for Cooper if he is not better. She said something about x-rays and checking out his joints.

I think Cooper is faking it so he can go to the vet and have cheese-in-a-can without me.

Why is this blog not centering on me as much as it should? (big sigh)

Our Favorite Place to Visit

We got to go to one of our most favorite places on Saturday - Ark Animal Hospital. We love it there - they have cheese-in-a-can! Anyway, Mum had this misguided notion that all three of us could go in for our kennel cough vaccination at once. It turned into a three ring circus but we had a good time!

Note that they put us in the largest room. Mum took our leashes off and then it was run and bark time.


This is Cooper showing off - he likes to show how he can flare out his fur. Personally I think he is praying that they don't put the thermometer up his bootie, but they did anyway.


This Dottie having her heart checked. They had to hold her mouth close because she makes a lot of noise when she breathes.

Another view of Dottie. Her ears look like a windmill! BOL!

Mum says we are all healthy and it was a good visit. We love the vet (Melody) and all the folks at Ark. They always get down on the floor with us which we appreciate. And they have giganormous treats!

Thursday Update on Dottie

Unfortunately this morning Dottie could not pee again, a bit of a setback. They took another set of x-rays and everything looked reasonably okay so they believe it is due to swelling from all her procedures yesterday. About mid-morning the vet's office called and announced that Miss Dots had just taken a walk and pee'd. If she can keep this up, she can come home tonight. We're keeping our paws crossed! (Otherwise she will have to stay at the vet/hospital until we can resolve this in one fashion or another.)

Currently Miss Dots is napping happily at the vet's office. I sent her a message to steal everything out of the mini-bar because this is the most expensive hotel she will ever stay in and we might as well take everything we can get our paws on! LOL!

10am Update on Dottie - from Mom

Got Dottie right into the vet and they did an ultrasound on her abdomen. She has stones in her bladder and a large one stuck in her urethra. They did x-rays and there is something not quite right with her colon so they are giving her an enema to clear it out to shoot more x-rays. (I warned Dr. Williams that Dottie does eat everyone's poopies, so whatever comes out has been around the block a couple of times!)

If the vet cannot use a catheter to move the large stone from the urethra back up into the bladder then I am afraid I will have to put Dots down. She is too old and her heart could not take the surgery to cut open her urethra - and the recovery would be painful and her quality of life would diminish day by day. Dr. Williams said if it were her dog she would have to make the same decision. So we hope that our grand lady's stone will move upwards and out!

Her heart rate is a bit slower than it should be right now but she is alert and relatively comfortable. They will give her pain meds before catheterizing her. Right now all she wants to do is empty her bladder.

Thanks for all the nice comments - your support means a lot.

Dottie Very Sick - Cooper On-Board

Mum is taking Dots down to the vet when they open at 8:00am (PST). We have all been up since 1:23am when Dottie got up and started pacing and panting. She has been crying softly when she hasn't been doing the P&P. Fortunately Mum listened to my advice and made sure Miss Dots had nothing to eat so she has an empty stomach when she gets to the Ark. I got the Internet on and started trying to diagnosis the problem but Mum rolled her eyes and told me that was not a good use of my time and talents. (I think Mum believes it is Dottie's urinary system that is the issue but Mum says we should leaves these issues to the professionals). Dozer is completely freaked because he is a dog that likes a routine.

On the brighter side, Mum's laptop won't boot up so she can't get her web work done and she is using her mini-laptop which she says is an "adventure" (and I don't think that is in a good way). Mum said something like "It never rains but it pours" which is a bit confusing. But when Mum's laptop doesn't work she talks to me about everything in life so I think it is not such a bad thing to have it get sick.

We will keep you posted on our Miss Dots. She is 15 years of a good dog and Mum says she deserves the best.

Visit to the Vet - Dozer's Notes

Yesterday it occurred to me that I have not spent much time or money at the vet so I made Mum take me down. I had a bump on my back that Mum and Dad did not like and I found painful. So I made sure I waited for a weekday, so Mum would lose time at work, and got an appointment to see my favorite vet, Dr. B. Turns out it was a puncture wound, someone nailed me, from my play time at Inavale Farm. Since it was healing nicely, we decided to just let it be. Dr. B checked my ears and cleaned out one of them - no yeasties, just wax. It seems to make Dr. B so happy to play with my ears I cannot refuse her. This is me with the ladies (they love me). Yup, it's cheese-in-a-can time while Dr. B checks out my knee. If I had opposable thumbs I could empty that can in a New York minute. So forty dollars later Mum has piece of mind and I have a tummy full of cheese. Mum says it is the most expensive cheese she has ever bought. I say I am worth it! BOL!

Early pictures of me - from Cooper's Notes

It is hard to believe that I have been in my forever home now for two years. Where did the time go? It seems like yesterday that Mum and Dad stopped by Greenhill Shelter and picked me out. It was the second time they had come to try and get me. The first time I was too sick to be adopted out. Then the shelter thought they might send me to Portland and perhaps someone there would want me, otherwise it was off to death row. But Mum and Dad took off from work on a Friday morning and drove for 45 minutes to come and get me. They brought Dozer who wasn't very excited about sharing his pawrents with me. After I got home Mum realized I smelled really, really bad. And I had gunky things in my hair and my face was all crusty. First she took me to the vet because that was the most important thing and we spent two hours and a whole bunch of money there. Then I came home and Mum and I got in the shower together and I had a shampoo and a shake. Mum said she could not believe how much I looked like the Cowardly Lion from the Wizard of Oz. I said "really" and she said, "Yes indeedy!" So, out came the camera and here I am immortalized. We simply must get Mum some professional help so she can stop carrying that camera with her all the time!

Update on our patient

Dozer's surgery took quite a while but he came through with flying colors. He had a bit more damage than anticipated, but his wonderful surgeon put all the pieces together and he was put to bed by his favorite tech, Chrissy. I stopped by at 5:00pm to say good-night because he needed to stay overnight where he could be monitored and have his pain medication. Just before I arrived he had been in pain and they gave him some morphine so he was dozing and not really aware of who was with him. He was trying to get his collar out of the way but then gave up and closed his eyes.
The vet and techs had Dozer on a nice blanket pad with a warm, white blanket covering him - so he was all tucked in for the night. When I got down to give him a kiss good-bye his little pink tongue was just peeking out from his lips, which he does when he is having good dreams. I know he will have a good night's rest and he can come home tomorrow night after I get off work.

I went to Petco tonight and spent the Christmas money on a large cage which has the dimensions the vet said he needed - 4 feet - to turn around. And of course if you get the cage, you have to get a nice pad, wee wee pads, and assorted other items. Did buy Cooper a Halloween costume (pictures to come) which my boss feels does not help Coop's self-esteem (really?).

I have been overwhelmed by the concern of others for Dozer and it touches my heart. Howee in Texas sent such a nice note via his Mother, and folks I have never heard from before and who I did not know before, have sent their warmest wishes. Thank you all. Dozer's surgery will pretty much empty the coffers but he will have 85%-90% use of the leg and that means he will have a great life. And really, how can I put a price on the warm muzzle of a sleepy Pembroke Welsh Corgi who runs in his sleep and likes nothing better than sitting in my lap and leaning against me as he falls to sleep? Yes, you're right, it's priceless!

Good-night all!

Bad News On Dozer

Dozer's Mum here:

I am sorry to tell you that little Dozer Dog is having surgery tomorrow to repair his left rear knee. He was playing fetch and tore his ACL and did damage to the knee itself. I could have let it heal on its own but within 2-3 years Dozer would have had severe osteoarthritis and pain and by his golden years the leg would no longer have been able to bend and he would have been hobbling and in great pain. When this happens to a person, surgery is the only option. Dozer deserves the same.

I took him to the emergency vet on Sunday morning and they gave me all the options and got Dozer on pain and anti-inflammatory meds. The strange part of this has been that Doze has not expressed any pain at all. His left hind leg just hangs and he doesn't put weight on it. I took him to his own vet yesterday and again, he never yelped, growled or showed any indication of pain. They didn't even have to sedate him for x-rays - he laid on his back, on his side and let the technician manipulate his leg without a whimper or any movement. (That said, he does know that the techs have access to cheese-in-a-can and he loves the ladies!) And yes, they did check to see if he had feeling in the leg. Apparently he is a stoic soldier.

I took Dozer down tonight and he will spend the night in the kennel at the hospital and then have the 3 hour surgery tomorrow morning. Unfortunately, it is a painful surgery so he will need to be on strong pain meds and in his kennel at home until a few days have past. The surgery is going to be very expensive (think thousands of dollars) and he will need physical therapy once the knee stabilizes. Again, no one is holding a gun to my head and making me go this route, but it is the only option I will consider. Dozer will be 4 years old in December and he deserves to have a full life with full mobility. I don't like credit cards but fortunately I have one with a zero balance and a low APR, so Dozer can have his surgery right away which means he can begin the healing process. How many people can look at their credit card statement and then look over a sweet corgi sleeping by a fireplace and know that every monthly payment has bought such continuous pleasure and delight? Much better than new shoes any day! LOL!

I have incredible confidence in our vets at Ark Veterinary Hospital and the staff is wonderful. Dozer could not be in better hands. I will keep you posted.

Love, N

A Pathetic Day

I was all packed and ready to head to Texas with Willow to save Howie from his prison, but then Mum decided I needed to go to the vet. I didn't see it on the calendar, how could she just decide this on her own? Apparently there was some booster shot that over due by a week. (A week? Who cares about a week? Now 6 months, that is an overdue booster shot!). And Mom made this appointment Friday and never told me. I had no time to prepare myself, have a wash, check my breath or anything! Does that woman never consider my needs?

So, off we go in the dogmobile to see my lady friends at Ark Veterinary Hospital in Philomath. We checked in and immediately the love begins. Lots of pets, tons of "he's soooo cute!", and some definite winks at my good looks.

We went to my favorite exam room which has the exam table that goes up and down from the floor. Like a silver elevator! The nice veterinary assistant took me into the back for a blood draw and my vaccine shot. All Mum could hear was hysterical laughter. When they brought me back Dr. B said I was a starving Corgi because I tried to eat everything from the plastic sheath on the thermometer to jumping up to see what was on the counter. Well, duh! Unfortunately when they weighed me I came in at 33 pounds, which is my fighting weight. So feigning starvation didn't work.


Dr. B found some yeast in my right ear which is always a troublesome issue. With the hot weather and humidity, it is not a surprise. Normally I wouldn't want anyone messin' about my ear, but Dr. B is another matter. What a lovely and deeply sensitive woman she is. No doubt everyone else at the Ark looks to her as a piller of veterinary skill. And as long as she keeps making me Cheese Whiz sandwiches, I will continue to spread more complimentary comments around the Web and I will remain her devoted boy.

After having my ear cleaned, Mum made an appointment for my yearly teeth cleaning on September 2nd. As long as Dr. B is in my mouth, I have no issues.

After we got home the office called and said I have crystals in my wee wee. How did they get there? I demand a re-test! No one told me I was having a test on my wee wee, if I had known I would have studied! Mum has to get some of my wee first thing in the morning and get it to the vet within an hour and a half (good luck on that one) so they can check it again. I may see if I can negotiate for some Cheese Whiz - give me a can of cheese-in-can, I'll give you as much wee wee as you can carry.

Howie, sorry I can't come rescue you right now, I have to go study for my wee wee exams.

Got My Teeth Cleaned

Cooper here:

That's me over there, feeling a little woozy.

This morning Mummy did not feed me breakfast. I knew something was up. Dozer was going ballistic for his kibble.

Mum put my leash on and put me in the car and then ran back in to feed Dozer before he gave himself a fit for lack of food.

Mummy took me to Ark Animal Hospital where they love me. I tried to show them how much I loved them by peeing on the floor. Sharon the receptionist cleaned it up and was very nice about the whole incident.

I was a very good dog. I was nice enough to let them take x-rays of my teeth without even being under anesthetic. Everyone was very impressed that I laid on my back and stayed there while they took the magical pictures.

I don't remember much about the day except that I slept a lot. I did mange to poo in my kennel and got it all over my butt, so the staff got out the water and cleaned me up. When Mum picked me up I was a bit wobbly and feeling very stressed. She carried me out to the car and got me home where I kept walking around and giving Mummy strange looks - like I didn't know where I was or who she was.

I am slowly waking up but Mummy is putting me to bed early and I get to sleep in the big bed with Dozer and Mummy! We just have to wait until 8pm for dinner and I only get half of my usual fare. I don't care, I just want Mummy to hold me and tell me how nice I am.

My teeth are all clean and I didn't have any extractions or anything like that. They did clip my nails which aren't easy to find with all my fur. For a whole lot of dollars Mummy said I should be in tip top shape! But Mum said I am worth a million bucks, so a couple of hundred is just a drop in the bucket!