"LJ" is in the house!

"L.J" stands for Lance Junior. So okay, this blog post may be about "Littleness," just not the doggie kind.

If you have been reading this blog you know that we lost our most beloved flame-point Siamese a few months back. We then went into a strange altered state of not finding/yet finding a replacement for him.

Well, not him, but you know some kitten energy into the household to take our minds off of how lonely we were without him (even with 5 dogs and 3 other cats).

We had truly given up (at least for now) when the call came. A 4 week old flame-point Siamese kitten in trouble!

You can only imagine how fast we were out the door. Even if it wasn't LJ, we could not in all good conscious in Lance's name a flame point kitten to go untreated.

So we were driving to the not so great part of town and our GPS took us down a dirt alley. Um... Should we go down there? It was getting dark and my Roomie and I are not the bravest of the bunch.

But then out of the shadows stepped a huge flame point Tom cat. He was dirty and scrappy and thin. But oh so beautiful. Since we were within 3 houses, we knew that was Daddy kitty. He disappeared back through a broken down car, but we knew we had just had our first sign that LJ was right around the corner.

When we got there the foster mom totally had her heart in the right place, but did not have the knowledge necessary to care for such sick kittens. There were 5. Honestly LJ was so thin, malnourished, and dehydrated we weren't even sure if he was the kitten for us. But how could we leave him there?

Then there was his runt sister. She was half the size of the other kittens who weren't really all that big to begin with. The foster mother and I spoke for over an hour giving care instructions and general tips.

But at some point both LJ and his little runt sister ended up inside my sweatshirt. I looked at my Roomie. We both knew what that meant!

Of course I rationalized it that with only 3 kittens on her hands the foster mom could give better care to the remaining litter, but the truth was I knew that little runt wouldn't make it another 24 hours without aggressive care.

We spent 3 days getting the kittens back on the bottle. Giving fluids and medications. Grooming. Loving. Biting our nails. Would they make it?

Well, we are happy to say they have! With flying colors. Our little runt is named Gretchen while of course the newest addition to the family is LJ, who happens to be a 'snow ninja,' but that's a whole other blog.

And we are having the time of our life. To see two kittens on death's door bloom back to life (mainly so they can chew on our toes it appears) has brought love and light into the house.

We shall always miss Lance, there is no doubt, but I think our period of deep, sorrowful grieving is over.

After all Lance clearly sent LJ to us. We HAVE to enjoy him!

#thankyouLance #evenknowwefeelyourlove

The Magic Dog Cookie Dispenser

My Bichon "Molly" believes that any object in your hand is a magic dog cookie dispenser.

ANYTHING.

Now let's be clear, Molly has chronic pancreatitis so in the 14+ yrs I have had her she has NEVER gotten a treat. Chewable medicine, maybe. Treat? Never.

Yet a Bichon can always dream, right?

Recently one of her little warts on her back leg (she is a Bichon so basically since birth we knew she would have fourteen million warts as she grew older, destined by her genes) got infected.

No big deal. Gave her an injection of abs and started using a topical spray. Now she doesn't mind the spray. It doesn't sting. It doesn't bug her at all.

Yet every time you get the little spray bottle out, Molly jumps up and starts wagging her tail.

Because you see the bottle could be a magic dog cookie dispenser.

Me: "No, Molly. I need your rear end."

Molly: "Nope. I'll take the cookie right here in my mouth."

Me: "There are no cookies, Molly, just medicine."

Molly: "Um, that there is a magic dog cookie dispenser."

#oy

So what should take about 2 1/2 seconds takes about a minute in a half. 87 1/2 of those seconds convincing her that the tiny vial does not have cookies in it and the other 2 1/2 to spray it on her.

Don't even get me started about putting on flea control!

#tryanddoitinhersleep

#lesstrauma.... #forme :-)

"Ali" - The Boxer #thebreed #nottheprofession

Ok, yes, I know this blog is called "Pups in Tea Cups," and I am in theory supposed to talk about "Littleness" 24/7, however sometimes a true underdog comes into my life and I just have to share their inspiring story about "Bigness."

When I first met "Ali," it was a difficult time for him. He had been dumped at the shelter (at 10 years old) then adopted, but he kept 'fainting.'

Anyone that knows Boxers, knows this isn't a good sign.

Each time he got excited (especially at a niece's birthday party), he would fall over.

Between my testing and the cardiologist's verdict, it looked like Ali may have only had a few weeks left. After talking to his new parents about my 'honored to have been a part of this animal's life' motto, they decided to give him the best few weeks he could have.

Then a month later they called me. His fainting spells had stopped. They brought him in. Sure enough he still had the heart problem but had somehow medically stabilized.

We thought that was the only miracle 'Ali' had up his sleeve. Boy were we wrong.

Months later they were at the dog park and two unleashed Pit Bulls jumped the fence and headed straight for my client's young daughter. 'Ali' didn't hesitate, he ran between them and got attacked for it.

My client's were distraught. They loved him for protecting their daughter but knew this had to be the end for 'Ali.' Either the fight or the stress would take him.

But no!

Not only did he not faint, he survived the attack! They rushed him into me.

After washing the blood off of him... it turned out NOT to be his! There wasn't a single scratch on him. He was busy wagging his tail and looking for treats!

Even with his fragile heart, he won the fight! Now, that's our 'Ali.'

We have no idea how much longer he will be with us, but he proved beyond a shadow of a doubt why he was meant to enter our lives. He quite possibly saved their daughter.

So here's to a Ali!

He just showed us that even with a damaged ticker, you can still show heart! #lovehim #bignesstotherescue

My Life as a Vet

It is funny. I get people all the time saying either... "I wish I were a vet." or "I can't imagine how you can do it."

The truth is I can't imagine NOT being a veterinarian.

Life has taken me lots of different places and at times I have taken a break from vet med, but I can't imagine not having the knowledge I have nor the experiences. Even the heart-breaking ones.

I think I was born in-love with animals. If you look at every pictures of me as a child, there is an animal in it. We are kissing or hugging or I am sharing my food. We even have one with the 'ghost' of a goose in it.

And since then I have been an animal magnet. If there was a stray or injured animal in the neighborhood (and let's be clear I lived in the country so my neighborhood included miles upon miles of farmland), it found me.

Even now, exhausted baby seals come right up to my yard, knowing they will be safe.

Why do some people think being a vet is hard? Well, there is the loss. Beloved pets (to their owner and to me) whose journey on this plane comes to an end.

I think I was lucky I grew up in the country. So young I was introduced to the cycle of life and that death is simply a part of it. Doing rescue as a child, I probably lost more animals to an early death than most people have pets their entire life.

One might think that would harden me to it. Instead I think I learned to embrace the good of the time we had together.

I truly do believe God misses that animal and calls them home.

Some of these were true hard luck cases. Whenever I lose an animal and start to ask 'Why did I even try? Why did I let myself in for this pain?", I always ask myself... "If I knew EXACTLY how this ended, would I still have tried?"

The answer is always yes. Because I always feel honored when an animal comes to me for even end of life care. Sometimes it is just five minutes. It doesn't matter. They honored me by inviting me into their lives. I wouldn't change a thing. I am so blessed to be at the center of an animal karma hub.

So that is how I 'do it.' How I am able to see so many animals pass through this plane and into the next.

I count myself lucky to have known them. To have loved them. Because if they were in my heart, for even just a second, they will always be there. #always

In loving memory of Uther, Gwen, Morgan & Minxie, May God find as much joy in your light as you gave to me.

Yersinia - The Cat & the Invisibility Cloak

Yes, I know another departure from "Littleness," but I have told this story to every dog owner I know and it cracks them up so I figure you guys wouldn't be much different :-)

Yersie is a black cat. She has lived with my Roomie from the age of 4 weeks old where she has been treated like a princess. Why do I tell you this? Well, after I describe her actions you would immediately feel sorry for her and think she had been abused.

She has not.

Her problem is she is a Bombay... with possible mental issues. Don't believe me? Read on!

Please note those HUGE eyes. Now that is a picture of a Bombay cat... CALM.

Now imagine one scared, and that would be Yersie. Only she gets 'scared' by air molecules. She gets 'scared' by me walking into the room or if you put a new rug down.

Everything in her world is 'scary.'

So thank goodness Yersie has what we call an 'invisibility cloak.' You will walk in the room, which normally will set her eyes bulging and her running for the nearest exit, and she just sits there calmly. Blinking casually.

Clearly, her invisibility cloak is 'On.' Now if you go to pet her, she freaks out, realizing her invisibility cloak has fallen off and runs for her life.

She also thinks I am her Mommy half the time. The other half the time she panics and runs away (awkwardly, but that's a whole OTHER blog). Now wouldn't you think if 1/2 the time the person you are rubbing up against ISN'T your Mommy, that you would do the sniff test first? Nope, I've usually pet her for about a minute before she finally sniffs my hand and panics.

Sometimes she will try to sneak away and her invisibility cloak slips and somewhere half way through her exit she panics and runs.

Now let's be clear. The vast majority of the time none of us have moved an inch.

Ah, Yersie's inner world.

If only I could live in it for a day (and learn how to sew me one of those invisibility cloaks :-)

Pumpkin Pie with Whipped Cream on Top

Yes, that is the name of a Shih Tzu puppy I know.

And the story behind it is even better than the name! :-)

You see my clients went down to Mexico for vacation for Thanksgiving. They had a cat and had lost their dog about a year before so this was the first year they could really travel for the holiday. I had no idea at the time they were having marital problems.

Well, while they were down there trying to 'spark' the connection, they actually made the decision to break up... Um, until a tiny, scrawny, little rag-a-muffin puppy trotted into the resort then promptly collapsed.

Oh my gosh! They knew enough to give it some Karo syrup to get its blood sugar up, but since there wasn't a veterinarian for miles around they decided to just jump in the car and haul booty home to my clinic.

Now this pup had EVERYTHING you could have wrong with you. Parvo, parasites, mange, kennel cough. You name it. He had it.

I warned my clients that I had no idea if I could get the little guy through, but they wanted to try.

To make a very long medical story shorter, I helped the little guy through just about everything and he should have been on the mend, he would NOT eat. I mean we were feeding him through his vein, but he wouldn't even tolerate force feeding.

What were we going to do with the little guy? At some point I need him to well... eat!

Needless to say they both spent hours at the clinic keeping the puppy company and begging him to eat.

I told them to take a break, go get some dinner and come back so we could talk about our options.

They came back and had generously brought back a piece of pumpkin pie for me. So there we are, my clients tempting the puppy with baby food, and turkey and NutriCal and anything under the sun while I munch on the dessert. I leaned over to check his catheter when he jumped up and took a HUGE bite out of my pie!

It all happened so fast he downed the piece then jumped up for another one, getting a face full of whipped cream!

We all started to laugh. Little dogs will decide what little dogs want to eat. Or was it so much what I was eating as that I was eating it off a plate of my own?

We got another set of plates and each put 'our' food (baby food, turkey, NutriCal, you know all the stuff the puppy wouldn't eat a minute ago) and then pretended we were eating it.

Oh My Gosh! He couldn't get enough of it. We even 'tried' to keep it away from him. No way! It was HIS!!!!

So that is how Pumpkin Pie with Whipped Cream on Top got his name.

And in the course of caring for the puppy, my clients somehow realized why they fell in love in the first place. A few months later they renewed their vows... in Mexico. With Pumpkin Pie standing right between them!

Once again, 'Littleness' comes to the rescue!

I know this Blog is usally about "Littleness"

But this week I met "Sandy."

A big, goofy Golden Retriever that I just had to tell you about.

Now you see my dogs generally like other dogs, however on walks if Orlin (my cocker/Golden cross) feels like his girl, Molly (my nemesis Bichon Frise) is endangered or even slighted in the least by a new dog, he will jump the other dog.

Doesn't matter it could be a poodle or Great Dane, Orlin will take them on.

Now I keep them on leash because of this and usually can keep them separate enough to keep everyone out of trouble... until "Sandy."

So we are starting our walk and see a HUGE golden chasing a ball into the surf. She is soaking wet and as happy as could be.

I angle us so we take the 'high road' in the sand dunes (my legs complaining) to avoid any problems when Sandy sees Orlin and Molly. She looses her mind!

"DOGS! DOGS! DOGS!" She drops her ball (I mean, come on that should tell you how excited she was) and comes charging over. Now Sandy's Mom must have predicted this because she already has a leash out and yells, "Sandy! Down!"

Shockingly, Sandy skids to a halt in the sand half way to us.

"Whew!" I think. She is just a big, goofy, puppy but at that weight and that speed? Holy Cow!

Everything went great until Sandy's mommy was a few feet away. Suddenly Sandy realized "Wait a minute! If Mommy gets that leash on me I can't visit my new friends!!!"

Well, within moments, Sandy was bounding our way again and then jumped on Molly!

Now she was just playing but tell that to Orlin and especially Molly! Snarling, snapping, and hysteria ensued.

Thank goodness Orlin's got that huge overbite and can't really bite, but he was holding onto Sandy's ruff for his life! And once Molly got over her initial shock, she latched onto Sandy's tail and wouldn't let go.

What, you might ask, was Sandy doing the whole time?

Um... Smiling! Panting, happy. No actually thrilled!!! You see, she thought they were playing.

Sandy was like "I know!!! I am so happy to meet you TOO!!!!"

Mommy wasn't far behind and got the leash on Sandy, the whole while I am trying to apologize for my two white fluffy Cujos.

But Mommy just laughed. "Nope, Sandy's got to learn some time. She gets in trouble five times a day for this!"

As Mommy was dragging Sandy away the Golden was like "Bye Molly and Orlin! I am so glad we met! Maybe we can do it again sometime!!! Call me!!!! I'm serious, CALL ME!!!"

And of course my two are like "oh ya, we'll call you!" as they growled.

Ah, Sandy. I hope some day to meet her again. You know, after more obedience training :-)

Just so everyone knows no dogs were harmed during the creation or writing of this blog!

Alright, enough with all this cat and bigness stuff I've been writing about lately. Next week's blog will be about Littleness!

#unlessofcourse #werunintoSandyagain :-)