Monday, July 25, 2011

Happy 4th Birthday Party For Bud


Bud is having a party on July 31 at 1 pm at his house at 1297 Cass Ave Cayucos
The beach has been heaven! After the party there is beach to romp. Dogs love having a good time. There will cake for people and cake for friendly dogs.

Friday, July 22, 2011

Bud's Paws



Bud has suffered breaking off of toe nails twice, from playing at the beach. I had to take him to my vet to remove what was left on the toenails. Then Bud had to wear a bootie, and he could not play for a week or two. Poor Bud. You can read this story about Bud's Boo Boo, in the upcoming sequel of Jetta's Journey, when it comes out. Since then, Bud hasn't let anybody including me touch his toe nails. What I am doing to help him get over this trauma (yes he is a drama boy)is shown in the pictures. This is me, feeding him treats to even let me handle his paws. If Bud thinks I'm going to touch his paws he runs to his crate and there no getting out before he wants to come out. When I feed him, I bend down to touch his paws. Some dogs never forget painful injuries. The only thing I know to do is try to be calm and gentle but let him know that he needs to allow me to handle his paws. I haven't tried to clip his toenails yet. He hasn't needed that to so far. If anybody reading this blog has a better idea, please advise.

Friday, July 15, 2011

Car Accident


We are all aware of car accidents; we hear of them on the news every day, but we never think it will be us.At 5 a.m. on July 29th, a rainy morning, I left my house to go for my early swim at the Cuesta College pool. Since there is no shelter for Bud, my Service Dog, there, I left him home. After merging onto the freeway, my driver had a seizure. His car spun out of control for nearly five miles, swerving wildly back and forth across lanes from shoulder to shoulder. I thought we might go over a cliff. My driver remained slumped over with his foot on the gas pedal, one shoulder leaning on me. It happened so fast; I tried to wake him; I hung on for dear life. Eventually I felt the car turn as we sped from our southbound lane into on-coming traffic on the northbound lane. We broke through a chain link fence, a picket fence, turned again and dove into a shallow creek, stopping abruptly when we hit a concrete bridge support. I remember watching the concrete speed towards us just before the windshield cracked into spider web-like lines that blocked my view. I tried to grab my driver’s cell phone, but I couldn’t reach his pocket. He then came to, but remained in a daze.

“We’ve been in an accident; I need to call 911. We’re okay, but I have to call.” I said.
The young man shook his head in disbelief, but gave me the phone. While I was calling 911, I saw a man walking toward the bridge. I asked him what street we were on, since our car was hidden from view, so the paramedics could find us. The paramedics came within five minutes. They removed me from the vehicle on a board and carefully put a neck brace on me. After a thorough exam at the hospital, I received a diagnosis of a bruised shoulder and probably whiplash. No one could believe that no other cars were on the freeway at that time, and no one else was hurt or killed. I’m blessed to be alive. I believe the Angels and my Jetta dog in heaven guarded us. I am thankful that Bud did not come with us because he may have been thrown around in the car with serious injuries, or killed.

I now always put Bud in his seat belt when we travel. They are easily affordable at pet stores for an affordable price. They are sized by the weight of the dog, and are proven to save dogs lives during the unexpected. We never know when an accident will happen. If you love your dog, spend the extra few minutes to attach the harness and seat belt, put them in a crate bolted to the floor, or leave them home. Our loyal dogs protect us every day, so we need to do all we can to protect them.

Saturday, July 9, 2011

Bud Makes A Friend




Bud met Reese, a 13th old boy while vacationing in Cayucos. Bud put him to work. Reese’s mother is a teacher and she bought two of Jetta’s books from me. We love Reese. He plans to go to UCDavis to be a Vet, when he grows up. We LOVE our vets. We miss him.

Friday, July 1, 2011

Bud's Meltdown At The Vet


In Jetta's Journey,chapter 31, "Jetta Goes to the Vet," Jetta loved the Vet clinic because she always got treats. But Bud is a different dog. Last year, poor Bud broke toenails past the quick twice and the vet had to remove the torn pieces that remained.That was a very painful procedure for Bud. Ever since then, he has an aversion to vet visits. He doesn't want to get out of the car. I have to have help dragging him in while he whines and carries on. Since I'm aware of this behavior,I have been taking him to the clinic and showing him it's a happy place where he gets treats once a week. This poses challenges for Bud's training. Last week Bud had a well visit to Dr. Truax. We entered the room with my helper dragging Bud. When he needed to be on the exam table, he had a twenty-minute meltdown. The doctor and technician had to hold him down despite me telling him "Bud, It's okay, it's okay." They called in another doctor and technician in to help. They laughed at Bud's strong legs when they all tried to turn him over, saying they were pit bull legs. I will obviously working on this issue for awhile. But Bud's weight and condition are fabulous. After we left, a woman told me she saw a Guide dog that wouldn't go to the vet either. He turned away. Bud is quite different from Jetta. This story will be in Bud's book when it comes out.