Happy. Sassy. Much loved.
Happy Birthday, Padre!
Showing posts with label Padre. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Padre. Show all posts
Thursday, March 22, 2012
Birthday Boy!
We want to wish our senior foster dog, Padre a very happy birthday. Today he turns 15, but you wouldn't know it to look at him.
Happy. Sassy. Much loved.
Happy Birthday, Padre!
Happy. Sassy. Much loved.
Happy Birthday, Padre!
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Padre's big day...
that would be this Friday. :)
Padre came in here back in October needing a dental very badly. One delay after another and here it is mid-January and he still has a nasty mouth.
Sunday things started moving into more critical territory when his face began to swell a bit on one side, and lifting up the lip showed some ulceration on the upper gum line by a tooth I *know* is going to have to come out.
So off to the clinic we went yesterday morning, and came back armed with antibiotics and Metacam and an appointment for Friday morning for a dental (and at least one tooth extraction I'm pretty positive). And the pain med is making a BIG difference for Padre. I got enough for three days which should give the antibiotics time to start working well on the infection and helping with the pain from it.
Friday morning we'll take him in around 10. Considering his insecurities - and they can be considerable - I'll be there when he goes under and then when he begins to come out of the anesthesia. I used to have to do this for Elvis (the puppy mill refugee foster dog we lost last summer), so I have no problem doing it for Padre. He just about shakes himself to death when he thinks he's being abandoned, and there's no point in putting him through that for no good reason.
If I'm right, this dog's mouth has been causing some of the interpersonal relationship issues. I think he's been in low grade pain for quite some time, and having the Metacam here is showing me a very different, and positive side, to this dog. Generally around 4:30, he becomes very animated and outgoing. That's about an hour before he gets fed, and he's hamming it up. I never see that at any other time. This morning, I'm seeing it, and I think it's the pain meds giving him the relief he's needed.
It will be interesting to see how he comes out of the dental and if the changes I'm hoping to see happen. I sure hope so. Padre is a sweet, sweet boy, and he deserves to be happy and pain free.
I'll post again on Friday after the dental.
Padre came in here back in October needing a dental very badly. One delay after another and here it is mid-January and he still has a nasty mouth.
Sunday things started moving into more critical territory when his face began to swell a bit on one side, and lifting up the lip showed some ulceration on the upper gum line by a tooth I *know* is going to have to come out.
So off to the clinic we went yesterday morning, and came back armed with antibiotics and Metacam and an appointment for Friday morning for a dental (and at least one tooth extraction I'm pretty positive). And the pain med is making a BIG difference for Padre. I got enough for three days which should give the antibiotics time to start working well on the infection and helping with the pain from it.
Friday morning we'll take him in around 10. Considering his insecurities - and they can be considerable - I'll be there when he goes under and then when he begins to come out of the anesthesia. I used to have to do this for Elvis (the puppy mill refugee foster dog we lost last summer), so I have no problem doing it for Padre. He just about shakes himself to death when he thinks he's being abandoned, and there's no point in putting him through that for no good reason.
If I'm right, this dog's mouth has been causing some of the interpersonal relationship issues. I think he's been in low grade pain for quite some time, and having the Metacam here is showing me a very different, and positive side, to this dog. Generally around 4:30, he becomes very animated and outgoing. That's about an hour before he gets fed, and he's hamming it up. I never see that at any other time. This morning, I'm seeing it, and I think it's the pain meds giving him the relief he's needed.
It will be interesting to see how he comes out of the dental and if the changes I'm hoping to see happen. I sure hope so. Padre is a sweet, sweet boy, and he deserves to be happy and pain free.
I'll post again on Friday after the dental.
Friday, January 6, 2012
Not a big fan :)
Just about every longhair I've known and every smooth carried the longhair gene at least liked water just a little, teensy bit.
Not Padre. Definitely not a fan.
Not Padre. Definitely not a fan.
Saturday, December 17, 2011
Padre update, December 17, 2011
I figured I would start with the new kid on the block and work my way backwards. :)
Padre has been with us now for nearly two months.
For the most part, he's gotten settled in and he no longer wanders around with a lost look on his face. He's a member of the pack, albeit he's not top dog, and I think that bothers him some. He's cool with Haley being higher than him, but I think he'd like to be next in line, and he's really not. It doesn't cause a conflict, but it's just a feeling I get.
His coat has improved tremendously. It's not where it should be, but he got another bath yesterday, and this time, rather than me coming away with red furry palms, the breakage was mainly running off in the stream of water. You can see the frizzy ends still, and there are some of the lighter, "deader" patches, but they've thinned out considerably, and what has come in gives me the nice, deep chocolate that I prefer (I'm picky about chocolates in ways that I'm picky with few other colors).
Since the weather has cooled off, Padre is doing what every longhair I've ever known does...goes outside at every opportunity. He's loving the cooler weather, and has even started going on walks with Randall. Since he has the longhair rear rather than the type of rear I'm used to in my smooths, his movement tends to be slower, but Randall said as long as he doesn't get bored, he's happy with the walks. Since Haley, my very senior 16 year old, is no longer able to make the long walks, it's nice for Randall to have company...though he does have to work Padre's stamina up.
One thing, though, when Randall takes Haley out (and she goes first even if it's only to walk down a couple of houses), Padre stands at the gate in the hall and whines. He gets very animated when Randall comes back and he knows it's his turn. :)
He is still not allowed to come in for the final plate licking with the others. It's simply too dangerous for the others, so he gets a little saucer with rice and some of what's left over. That seems to suit him fine, so we'll just continue doing that. I've never had a dog that was food aggressive with other dogs (I've had one that was food aggressive with people, but only with food in his food dish), but with a little compromise we've worked out the solution.
Padre was "advertised" as crate broken. Well, no. Maybe at one time he was, but now? He whines and moans and scratches at the gate. We tried for a few weeks to get him settled in, but the only way we could get him to sleep was to hit him with Valium. Sorry, but I refuse to drug a dog to that extent. So, for Padre, I've made a concession I've never made with any other dog...he's allowed to sleep loose in the house. We've got a blanket that we fold up and put under my computer desk, and before we've settled in to read (and after Haley has settled into sleep in her crate in our room), Padre is let out. He wanders around a bit and then heads to the blanket.
One thing I will say, this dog is very well housebroken. So my concern there might be problems there have been put to rest.
He still hasn't had his dental. Things are delayed there, but I'm hoping after the first of the year we can get that done. He does need it, though some of the tartar is coming off (makes me wonder what he was being fed). He's also tonight, for the first time, chewed on a rawhide. He's usually not done that, and I thought it might be that his mouth was sore, so if it was, it's apparently improved.
w/r/t his foster status. He's a sponsorship/permanent foster for us. Linne and I talked it over, and I told her that at his age, and with what he has been through, if ATDR wants him here as a permanent foster, we'd be happy to have him. Granted, when he was first scheduled to come here it was thought he was 16 1/2, but he turned out to be 14 1/2. That was OK. Hell, he's still a senior. He's happy. His environment is stable. He's healthy and loved, so he's welcome to stay with us for as long as he wants.
I haven't done much picture taking in the last month or so, but here is one from a week ago and then another from tonight when he was under my desk.
Padre has been with us now for nearly two months.
For the most part, he's gotten settled in and he no longer wanders around with a lost look on his face. He's a member of the pack, albeit he's not top dog, and I think that bothers him some. He's cool with Haley being higher than him, but I think he'd like to be next in line, and he's really not. It doesn't cause a conflict, but it's just a feeling I get.
His coat has improved tremendously. It's not where it should be, but he got another bath yesterday, and this time, rather than me coming away with red furry palms, the breakage was mainly running off in the stream of water. You can see the frizzy ends still, and there are some of the lighter, "deader" patches, but they've thinned out considerably, and what has come in gives me the nice, deep chocolate that I prefer (I'm picky about chocolates in ways that I'm picky with few other colors).
Since the weather has cooled off, Padre is doing what every longhair I've ever known does...goes outside at every opportunity. He's loving the cooler weather, and has even started going on walks with Randall. Since he has the longhair rear rather than the type of rear I'm used to in my smooths, his movement tends to be slower, but Randall said as long as he doesn't get bored, he's happy with the walks. Since Haley, my very senior 16 year old, is no longer able to make the long walks, it's nice for Randall to have company...though he does have to work Padre's stamina up.
One thing, though, when Randall takes Haley out (and she goes first even if it's only to walk down a couple of houses), Padre stands at the gate in the hall and whines. He gets very animated when Randall comes back and he knows it's his turn. :)
He is still not allowed to come in for the final plate licking with the others. It's simply too dangerous for the others, so he gets a little saucer with rice and some of what's left over. That seems to suit him fine, so we'll just continue doing that. I've never had a dog that was food aggressive with other dogs (I've had one that was food aggressive with people, but only with food in his food dish), but with a little compromise we've worked out the solution.
Padre was "advertised" as crate broken. Well, no. Maybe at one time he was, but now? He whines and moans and scratches at the gate. We tried for a few weeks to get him settled in, but the only way we could get him to sleep was to hit him with Valium. Sorry, but I refuse to drug a dog to that extent. So, for Padre, I've made a concession I've never made with any other dog...he's allowed to sleep loose in the house. We've got a blanket that we fold up and put under my computer desk, and before we've settled in to read (and after Haley has settled into sleep in her crate in our room), Padre is let out. He wanders around a bit and then heads to the blanket.
One thing I will say, this dog is very well housebroken. So my concern there might be problems there have been put to rest.
He still hasn't had his dental. Things are delayed there, but I'm hoping after the first of the year we can get that done. He does need it, though some of the tartar is coming off (makes me wonder what he was being fed). He's also tonight, for the first time, chewed on a rawhide. He's usually not done that, and I thought it might be that his mouth was sore, so if it was, it's apparently improved.
w/r/t his foster status. He's a sponsorship/permanent foster for us. Linne and I talked it over, and I told her that at his age, and with what he has been through, if ATDR wants him here as a permanent foster, we'd be happy to have him. Granted, when he was first scheduled to come here it was thought he was 16 1/2, but he turned out to be 14 1/2. That was OK. Hell, he's still a senior. He's happy. His environment is stable. He's healthy and loved, so he's welcome to stay with us for as long as he wants.
I haven't done much picture taking in the last month or so, but here is one from a week ago and then another from tonight when he was under my desk.
Friday, October 28, 2011
Padre update, October 28, 2011
Since it's been a week since Padre came in, I thought I'd do an update.
Things are going well for the most part. There are a couple of issues. One serious. One not so serious.
First the serious one.
For the last several nights, we've made an attempt to include Padre in the evening "plate licking." That's where everyone gets a chance at a final plate after our dinner. Sometimes it's rice. Sometimes it's soup. Sometimes it's a little bit of what's left over.
We didn't try this until he'd eaten a full meal since I knew food aggression might be a problem. For three of four nights, there's been a varying amount of conflict between him and one other dog. We were always able to make sure he only had one dog to compete with (and never Aggie since she's a piggy eater). The first night he lunged at Skeeter. The second night, he was fine. Last night he growled at Haley. Tonight he nailed her...or would have if I'd not been right on top of them waiting.
So that's it. No more including Padre in the plate lickings. He's just fine around the others if he's handed something, but he turns into a jackass when he free feeds. I had told Randall I would give him one last chance. That was tonight and he failed it. I won't endanger the other dogs.
The other thing, which is not so serious is his possessiveness. It's completely understandable, though it's not allowed. Mainly it's growling. I've never let it go past that, but he's never shown much interest in anything beyond that. It's also happening less and less frequently, so I suspect in a week or so it won't be an issue.
Beyond those two things, he's an absolute doll.
We're still brushing and working on his coat. It seems to be improving. He's still itchy, but between the bath last Sunday, the grooming, and good food, it's making progress. Hopefully within a month we'll see the dead/dying coat come out and be replaced by healthy shiny coat and good skin.
Randall also took Padre for a walk today. With the cooler weather, Padre has a ton of energy, and he was going out in the backyard every chance he could. Since Haley has declined over the last several months, we knew her days of keeping Randall company on long walks were over. She's pretty much limited to the shorter ones. But Padre has taken on that role happily. He went for a nice long walk this morning, and Randall said beyond teaching him to heel, he's just fine. Nothing bothers him. He won't go for the night walks until Randall is comfortable that he's steady on heel, but that shouldn't take long.
He has an appointment Monday morning with Dr. Walthall. He's in good shape, but he is going to need his teeth cleaned, and I want her to see him before hand so she can do blood work and check him out. I would like a heartworm test done just for the records, and I want her to check him out good. Then we'll schedule the dental.
Other than the two problems I mentioned up top, he's really a good house guest and fits in well with the group. He's going to do just fine here, I think.
Things are going well for the most part. There are a couple of issues. One serious. One not so serious.
First the serious one.
For the last several nights, we've made an attempt to include Padre in the evening "plate licking." That's where everyone gets a chance at a final plate after our dinner. Sometimes it's rice. Sometimes it's soup. Sometimes it's a little bit of what's left over.
We didn't try this until he'd eaten a full meal since I knew food aggression might be a problem. For three of four nights, there's been a varying amount of conflict between him and one other dog. We were always able to make sure he only had one dog to compete with (and never Aggie since she's a piggy eater). The first night he lunged at Skeeter. The second night, he was fine. Last night he growled at Haley. Tonight he nailed her...or would have if I'd not been right on top of them waiting.
So that's it. No more including Padre in the plate lickings. He's just fine around the others if he's handed something, but he turns into a jackass when he free feeds. I had told Randall I would give him one last chance. That was tonight and he failed it. I won't endanger the other dogs.
The other thing, which is not so serious is his possessiveness. It's completely understandable, though it's not allowed. Mainly it's growling. I've never let it go past that, but he's never shown much interest in anything beyond that. It's also happening less and less frequently, so I suspect in a week or so it won't be an issue.
Beyond those two things, he's an absolute doll.
We're still brushing and working on his coat. It seems to be improving. He's still itchy, but between the bath last Sunday, the grooming, and good food, it's making progress. Hopefully within a month we'll see the dead/dying coat come out and be replaced by healthy shiny coat and good skin.
Randall also took Padre for a walk today. With the cooler weather, Padre has a ton of energy, and he was going out in the backyard every chance he could. Since Haley has declined over the last several months, we knew her days of keeping Randall company on long walks were over. She's pretty much limited to the shorter ones. But Padre has taken on that role happily. He went for a nice long walk this morning, and Randall said beyond teaching him to heel, he's just fine. Nothing bothers him. He won't go for the night walks until Randall is comfortable that he's steady on heel, but that shouldn't take long.
He has an appointment Monday morning with Dr. Walthall. He's in good shape, but he is going to need his teeth cleaned, and I want her to see him before hand so she can do blood work and check him out. I would like a heartworm test done just for the records, and I want her to check him out good. Then we'll schedule the dental.
Other than the two problems I mentioned up top, he's really a good house guest and fits in well with the group. He's going to do just fine here, I think.
Sunday, October 23, 2011
Padre. The new kid on the block.
Sweet, sweet Padre. Sweet, sweet, younger-than-expected Padre. :)
We originally thought the small standard, chocolate long boy, Padre, was 16 1/2, but as it turns out, he's really 14 1/2. Which makes a lot more sense considering his movement and mental faculties.
He was transported to Waco on Friday. His itinerary over the last week has been really hectic with our home being the fourth place in just a little over a week that he's landed...fifth if you include the two hour drive from Dallas sitting on Rosann's lap. And needless to say, this was one stressed and insecure boy. It's tough for a younger dog to handle, but when you're retirement age, well, it's really hard.
The first evening here, all he did was pace and pant and pace and moan. Very insecure, though you could tell he was going to get on fine with the other geriatrics at the house. He wasn't interested in eating and the look on his face would break your heart. He just did not understand what was happening to him.
Yesterday was his first full day here, and the stress must have finally been too much. He spent most of the day passed out on a blanket by my desk. Most of the other dogs camp out there, so he found a place and collapsed. He did show enough interest in what was going on in the kitchen when I went in there, and there was a LOT of interest in the fridge.
Still he just mainly wanted to sleep. He didn't eat dinner, but did nibble some and ate any treat you put in front of him. He got lots of love and sweet talk and petting. And brushing.
His coat. Oh my. It sucks. There's apparently a combination of things going on. Bad food from his original home, lack of grooming, lack of bathing. His coat is really rough. Split ends and blowing and felt like he'd been rolling in dust and dirt. I slickered him a couple of times and between the flakes, the scratching and the coat coming out, I could tell he was miserable.
This morning when I got up, he was at the den gate to say good morning. Tail wagging and bright eyed which was a definite improvement over the stressed and shut down boy he's been for the last 36 hours. He also had a bit of breakfast which was the first substantial amount of food he's had.
His day has really been taken up by a lot of attention, and you can tell he's loving being around the other dogs. He's not been a huge fan of the cats, but that generally takes time. Like every other foster we've brought in, he gravitates to Ollie, my big, black Oriental Shorthair boy. For some reason the house panther is the most fascinating. He showed some interest in Howdy, my Devon Rex mix, until he realized that her posture and eye contact didn't make her a good candidate to chase. As I told him, Ollie is the cat he can chase and not catch; Howdy is the cat he can chase and wish he hadn't caught. Not to put too fine a point on it, Howdy takes no shit from any dog.
I suspect he will come to understand the cats fairly soon. :)
This afternoon, I decided that no matter his stress level, he HAD to have a bath. His itching was too much (even with a Benadryl he was still scratching) and, frankly, he just smelled houndy. So tub time for Padre. He got a good, long soaping and a heavy slathering of conditioner. I didn't dare try to blow him dry...his coat was literally breaking off in my hands. You could run your hands down his back and sides, and little clumps of hair about 1/4 inch would be all over. He got lots of treats during and after the process, and while he's not a fan of bathing, you could tell the play of the water over his back felt good.
He's going to have to air dry, and I suspect he'll have a really bad case of the frizzies, but at least he'll be clean and he should have some relief. Daily brushing and good food will take care of the rest, though it will take time. For now, he's passed out again on the blanket, so I know he's at least feeling somewhat better.
Randall and I talked it over and I asked Linne what ATDR's plans would be for him. When everyone thought he was two years older, we knew he'd be a permanent foster. At 14 1/2, though, I wasn't sure. After some discussion, though, Padre will be a "sponsorship" dog. Like I told Linne, if someone saw him, fell in love and just HAD to have him, well, that'd be one thing. But the likelihood of that happening is pretty slim, and really the poor guy needs stability, so he's here until he has to leave us.
So I doubt I'll post too many updates on him. He will have a photo album like the others do, but this blog will concentrate mainly on Aggie and Penny.
I did get a couple of photos of him. The first was yesterday afternoon when he was awake between naps. The others are just after his bath (don't look at his toenails, they're awful and will get cut when he goes in for a dental in a couple of weeks).
And I do want to thank everyone who has been involved with this sweet boy for the last week or so. Janice, Don, Rosann...thank you all so much. I know Padre doesn't understand what's been going on, but I do, and I appreciate everyone's help in getting him here to us.
We originally thought the small standard, chocolate long boy, Padre, was 16 1/2, but as it turns out, he's really 14 1/2. Which makes a lot more sense considering his movement and mental faculties.
He was transported to Waco on Friday. His itinerary over the last week has been really hectic with our home being the fourth place in just a little over a week that he's landed...fifth if you include the two hour drive from Dallas sitting on Rosann's lap. And needless to say, this was one stressed and insecure boy. It's tough for a younger dog to handle, but when you're retirement age, well, it's really hard.
The first evening here, all he did was pace and pant and pace and moan. Very insecure, though you could tell he was going to get on fine with the other geriatrics at the house. He wasn't interested in eating and the look on his face would break your heart. He just did not understand what was happening to him.
Yesterday was his first full day here, and the stress must have finally been too much. He spent most of the day passed out on a blanket by my desk. Most of the other dogs camp out there, so he found a place and collapsed. He did show enough interest in what was going on in the kitchen when I went in there, and there was a LOT of interest in the fridge.
Still he just mainly wanted to sleep. He didn't eat dinner, but did nibble some and ate any treat you put in front of him. He got lots of love and sweet talk and petting. And brushing.
His coat. Oh my. It sucks. There's apparently a combination of things going on. Bad food from his original home, lack of grooming, lack of bathing. His coat is really rough. Split ends and blowing and felt like he'd been rolling in dust and dirt. I slickered him a couple of times and between the flakes, the scratching and the coat coming out, I could tell he was miserable.
This morning when I got up, he was at the den gate to say good morning. Tail wagging and bright eyed which was a definite improvement over the stressed and shut down boy he's been for the last 36 hours. He also had a bit of breakfast which was the first substantial amount of food he's had.
His day has really been taken up by a lot of attention, and you can tell he's loving being around the other dogs. He's not been a huge fan of the cats, but that generally takes time. Like every other foster we've brought in, he gravitates to Ollie, my big, black Oriental Shorthair boy. For some reason the house panther is the most fascinating. He showed some interest in Howdy, my Devon Rex mix, until he realized that her posture and eye contact didn't make her a good candidate to chase. As I told him, Ollie is the cat he can chase and not catch; Howdy is the cat he can chase and wish he hadn't caught. Not to put too fine a point on it, Howdy takes no shit from any dog.
I suspect he will come to understand the cats fairly soon. :)
This afternoon, I decided that no matter his stress level, he HAD to have a bath. His itching was too much (even with a Benadryl he was still scratching) and, frankly, he just smelled houndy. So tub time for Padre. He got a good, long soaping and a heavy slathering of conditioner. I didn't dare try to blow him dry...his coat was literally breaking off in my hands. You could run your hands down his back and sides, and little clumps of hair about 1/4 inch would be all over. He got lots of treats during and after the process, and while he's not a fan of bathing, you could tell the play of the water over his back felt good.
He's going to have to air dry, and I suspect he'll have a really bad case of the frizzies, but at least he'll be clean and he should have some relief. Daily brushing and good food will take care of the rest, though it will take time. For now, he's passed out again on the blanket, so I know he's at least feeling somewhat better.
Randall and I talked it over and I asked Linne what ATDR's plans would be for him. When everyone thought he was two years older, we knew he'd be a permanent foster. At 14 1/2, though, I wasn't sure. After some discussion, though, Padre will be a "sponsorship" dog. Like I told Linne, if someone saw him, fell in love and just HAD to have him, well, that'd be one thing. But the likelihood of that happening is pretty slim, and really the poor guy needs stability, so he's here until he has to leave us.
So I doubt I'll post too many updates on him. He will have a photo album like the others do, but this blog will concentrate mainly on Aggie and Penny.
I did get a couple of photos of him. The first was yesterday afternoon when he was awake between naps. The others are just after his bath (don't look at his toenails, they're awful and will get cut when he goes in for a dental in a couple of weeks).
And I do want to thank everyone who has been involved with this sweet boy for the last week or so. Janice, Don, Rosann...thank you all so much. I know Padre doesn't understand what's been going on, but I do, and I appreciate everyone's help in getting him here to us.
Saturday, October 22, 2011
One of these...
is new. :)
I'll give you a hint. It's the large brown blob on the right. AKA Padre who came in yesterday after an eventful week or so of making his way from west Texas to Waco. 14 1/2 year old chocolate long whose owners moved and left he and his buddy to be taken in by ATDR.
More on this sweet boy as he gets settled in. We thought he was a couple of years older than he is, but regardless, he's sweet, laid back and quite insecure right now. Not sure what his status with ATDR will be, but he may be a sponsorship dog.
I'll give you a hint. It's the large brown blob on the right. AKA Padre who came in yesterday after an eventful week or so of making his way from west Texas to Waco. 14 1/2 year old chocolate long whose owners moved and left he and his buddy to be taken in by ATDR.
More on this sweet boy as he gets settled in. We thought he was a couple of years older than he is, but regardless, he's sweet, laid back and quite insecure right now. Not sure what his status with ATDR will be, but he may be a sponsorship dog.
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| From L to R: Haley, Aggie, Penny, Padre |
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