Aftermath

LOL I just think all the recent 'events' have been funny at this point.  There is no real aftermath, it's just my sick sense of humor no one understands but me.  

Our sliced fingers are on the mend and are virtually pain free and I don't have to endure Kim's tears of pain.  It may not have been really necessary to use the ER services in one sense, but the peace of mind about Kim's finger is worth it.  I thought it was much worse than it was.

Most of you that have been coming here for a while have seen photos or read about my fur buddy Buster.  Australian Shepherd,  aka Aussie.

He will be 13 years old this next month.  He is in prime condition for his age, although about 7 lbs. over his ideal weight.  He is down 5 lbs. from this time last year, down to 52 lbs.  That may not sound like much, it's huge when you only weigh 50 lbs.  The vet said that is probably why he had a much better winter than the previous.  The last four or five winters he was always in a lot of pain and limped quite a bit, had trouble getting up and down.  Cold weather, his age, arthritis and weight took it's toll.  The vet check up went well and we got some stuff for his itching.  They like Buster, he has helped pay their college loans.

This year he was so much more active and never limped.  He did get a little stiff when laying a long time.  He was so much more playful and ready to 'go.'  The mild winter was a blessing for him.

We have always done our own grooming.  A few clips to help him stay cooler in this heavy heat we have during the summer.  We never went to the groomer for several reasons.  Cost being one, but the main one is his demeanor around strangers and other dogs.  We didn't want an unfortunate accident.  

He has mellowed considerably in his old age.  So we took a chance with a pro groomer.  Things turned out better than I expected.  After explaining our concerns they took him and did their thing.  They explained that what we described is what is called 'owner aggressive.'  He is only that way when we are around.  He is doing his job, protecting us, with that behavior.  We were very relieved, they said he was a sweetheart.  This may become an annual thing at the start of the summer.

After, a little shorter than I expected but he will be much more comfortable this summer.  Instead of an Aussie, he looks more like a Catahoula.  Will take a while to get used to this look, it's so radically different.  Especially the face.  It didn't occur to me they would change the look around his face and chest so much.

Happy Trails