Summer is Over

Tags

canning, dogs, gardening, harvest

It’s official.  I made pesto last night; therefore, summer is over.

The last of the zucchini has been harvested and the plants pulled out.

Crooked neck squash, tomatoes, basil, and grapes came in two days ago.

Freestone peaches arrived at the Farmers’ Market.  I canned ten pounds.  

Some friends of mine gave me a large bag of pears from the tree in their yard.  It made a beautiful pear sauce.  I canned five pints.

All the squash, tomatoes, peppers, and eggplants went into one big batch of spaghetti sauce that simmered all afternoon in the crockpot.

I attempted to make a batch of fermented kosher dills after receiving a large bag of pickling cucumbers from another friend of ours, but alas, my fermentation skills suck, and there is mold growing on top of the brine.  Still not sure what I did wrong – I’m new to fermentation.  (I’ll spare you the disgusting “after” picture, and just share the pretty “before” picture of the pickles)

These lazy, slacking freeloaders are still not laying any eggs.  Total duds.  Although, I may be judging them too harshly.  One night, a couple of weeks ago, I thought I *maybe* saw a rat near the coop.  I’ve actually never seen a rat so I’m not sure what I saw.  Whatever it was had a skinny tail, and was eating a dead mouse out of a trap.  Pretty sure it was a rat.  If so, that might explain why the girls aren’t laying.  If there’s a predator in the area, they’ll stop laying eggs.  How the hell do I solve that problem?And on a sad note, once the pumpkins and squash are harvested from the garden, I will spread my faithful companion’s ashes in the garden.  We said goodbye to Kingsley this summer, and my heart is still full of grief.  I hope he’s chasing mice and gophers in doggy heaven and having a great time.  He deserves it.

To end on a less sentimental note, Ziggy is thoroughly enjoying being the only dog in the house and doesn’t miss Kingsley one bit.  He’s happier and friendlier than he’s every been.  He really is a little jerk.  Oh Zig.  (And yes, he’s napping among the clean cloth diapers.  They’re soft and cosy!)

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Summer Sausage, Asparagus, and Thunder Storms

Tags

asparagus, dogs, gardening, summer sausage

We enjoyed our the first asparagus harvest of the season at dinner this evening.  

 

Will cut into the Summer Sausage.  I ate half of a slice – not sure I trust eating what was essentially raw meat (with dry cure in it) that’s been hanging in a smoker outside for two weeks.  But it was really tasty.  Verdict?  It could use more drying time and more smoke.  

 

Just got home from a community association meeting, and it wasn’t until it came out of my mouth at the meeting that I realized why I just don’t give a shit about the community association anymore – I’m burnt out.  I’ve been on the association for five years as the Indoor Program Coordinator, and I’m so done.  This past year, being a new foster parent, I have found it very difficult to have any energy left over to devote to volunteering.  This was going to be my last year anyway.  I feel like I’m poisoning the whole group with my apathy and lack of committment.  Time to leave.  

It was raining and thundering when I got home.  I wish it would storm all night.  I sat in front of the living room window, and watched the storm for awhile until I felt better.  

  

Kinglsey had his first chiro appointment today.  He yelped, but he didn’t try to bite the vet like Ziggy does.  He’s doing so much better.  I hope the chiro helps him feel even better.  

I leave you with cute pictures of my dogs enjoying the sunshine this afternoon.  

   

 

Second Opinion

Tags

animals, dogs, pets

I took Kingsley to a different vet today for a second opinion.  At first, I felt like a total douchebag calling his old vet clinic and asking them to fax over his file, but now I’m glad I did.

I took him to the vet that does chiro on Ziggy – Dr. Orchard.  She’s an expert on pain management, and at the very least, I hoped she might be able to recommend some other sort of treatment that just a course of steroids.  He’s still in a lot of pain.

She did even better than that.  She found pain in his ribs and back, probably from a wipe out on an icy sidewalk this winter (I think I remember him falling a couple of times, actually.  He likes to dig tunnels in the snowbanks and sometimes digs right off the edge of a yard).  This explains why he hasn’t been jumping up on things, or doing tricks.  He’s also had difficulty sleeping, probably due to this pain.  The vet prescribed Metacam for a week to see if that helps resolve the soreness.  If not, she thinks it can be fixed with one or two chiro appointments.

Then she asked if he was treated for the infection in his teeth.  Bwuh?  That was never even mentioned.  Yes, at least two of his teeth have very bad infections.  This is *possibly* the cause of the mascatory myositis.  She said a long-term, severe infection could cause an autoimmune disease.  She put him on antibiotics for two weeks.  It’s longer course of antibiotic treatment because she’s hoping to knock out the infection 100%.  It’s not safe for him at the moment to have any dental work done, so if it can be healed with antibiotics, that would be the best solution.

She also told me to put him back on his regular food, and not bother switching his diet.  I had started switching him to a higher-calorie dry food, as recommended by his previous vet.  I went to Critters, and they told me to try Satori.  Turns out, Satori is extremely rich and hard on a dog’s GI track, especially a pup like Kingsley who’s had GI track issues in the past.  I found out today that the reason they recommend this food is because the store, Critters, owns half the company that manufactures Satori.  Grrrrrrrr.  Buyer beware.  So I bought some doggie probiotics to sprinkle on his food while his gut recovers from my stupid mistake.  This will also help his gut while he’s on the antibiotics.

I feel so relieved.  I feel like there’s hope that he’ll get better now.  I know the muscle waste is permanent, but I don’t want him to be in pain.  He’s 13 years old, and he’s a small dog.  He could live for another three or four years yet.  I have hope that he’ll be restored to his former playful self and spend his remaining years free from chronic pain.  Before today, I was seriously starting to think I would have to euthanize him soon because I couldn’t stand to see him hurting so much.

Always get a second opinion.  Lesson learned.

Mascatory Myositis

Tags

dogs, mascatory myositis, pets

This guy, right here.  My Kingsley. 



Today I found out he has an incurable degenerative disease – mascatory myositis.  I’m feeling like pretty much the worst dog mama on the planet right now.  

I took him to the vet today because he seemed to be depressed.  His tail was always down, he wasn’t eating his kibble, he wouldn’t do any tricks.  A couple days ago, he tried to eat a rotten sandwich he found in the snow and when I pried his mouth open to get the sandwich out, he yelped.  I thought maybe he had a tooth infection that was causing him pain.  So off to the vet.  I wasn’t prepared for the diagnosis.  

His immune system is attacking the muscles that control his jaw.  First, they become inflammed and sore.  Later, in the advanced stage of the disease, the muscles waste and atrophy, leaving the dog with a very stiff jaw and unable to chew.  The vet pointed out that his tempo mandibular muscles had quite wasted away, but because he is so furry and fluffy, I just didn’t notice.  I did notice that he wasn’t eating, but I thought he was just being picky.  He ate his raw food fine; he just didn’t want his kibble.  I put it away after ten minutes.  Essentially, I’ve been starving my dog.  Worst mama ever.  

He’s on high dosage steroids (prednisone) and a pain killer that is the dog equivalent of morphine.  He is feeling fine.  I soaked his kibble so it was soft and chewy, and he gobbled it up.  The steriods should bring down the inflammation, but he is thirteen years old.  The vet said that at this point we just want to make him comfortable.  We may be able to stop further detrioration, but he won’t improve.  

So, Kingsley, I’m sorry.  I’m sorry I didn’t notice what was happening.  I was so busy with work and foster babies, that I neglected my fur babies, my furry soulmates.  I despise people like me who have human babies and suddenly neglect their fur babies.  All I can say is that it wasn’t on purpose, Kingsley.  I thought I could handle it all.  I never meant to push your needs aside.  I can’t imagine my life without you, and I honestly don’t know what I’m going to do when the day comes that I have to say goodbye to you.  My world will grow dim.  Also, I know you can’t actually read this, Kings, smart as you are, so instead, I’m just going to sit on the couch and rub your belly while you sleep and snore softly beside me because affection is the language you understand best.  I’m so glad we found each other, Kings.  

(If you want to know how Kingsley came into my life, you can read The Story of Kings here).  

New Job

Tags

animals, cats, dogs, jobs, muffins, pet sitting, Zucchini

Sorry for the lack of post on Wednesday this week. I got a new job! Possibly my dream job. Possibly even better than acting.

I am a Pet Sitter with Animal Crackers. Basically, this means that I get paid to spend time with cats and dogs all day. I visit them, play with them, cuddle them, walk them, and feed them, and I get PAID to do this! The hours are flexible, but most of my shifts are between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m., which means I get to sleep in and I get off early. Best part? No customer service. I don’t have to deal with people – just animals! It’s awesome.

I also made the best zucchini oatmeal muffins. You can find the recipe here. I modified it a bit. I used red fife flour instead of oatmeal flour, and I didn’t have any lemon zest on hand. But they are hands down the best muffins I’ve ever made. Period. Makes me want to throw out the batch I made last week. Yuck.

I enjoyed a couple while soaking up the last of the warm temperatures on the patio a couple days ago.

Have a great weekend!

At Last!

Tags

backyard chickens, bicycle, dogs, gardening, spring

You guys, it’s Spring! For reals, this time! On Saturday, the temperature reached +18C! Yes, this news deserves all those exclamation marks and more!

We spent all day outdoors. It was so good. Will planted onions and spinach in the raised (covered) beds. We raked the grass, spread some of the snow, cleaned up the patio and set up the table and chairs.

Unfortunately, the girls had to spend most of the afternoon in dog kennels in the garage because a technician from SaskTel was here for over three hours upgrading our phone and internet lines. So they didn’t get to enjoy as much of the nice weather that we did.

(Backyard chickens are illegal in Saskatoon, and I don’t think the SaskTel technician can rat us out to the city, but we decided not to take any chances. We hid the girls away. We figured if he asked us what the coop was for, we’d say rabbits or homing pigeons, which weirdly enough, are legal in Saskatoon. Go figure.)

After our work was done, we sat in the sun and drank Will’s homebrew beer from Mason jars. I think I might actually be developing a taste for beer in my thirties. I’ve never liked beer, but lately, a cold beer on a hot patio is divine. The dogs rested in the shady, cool parts of the pavement, and I dusted off my bike, oiled the chain and took it for a spin. Glorious. Glorious, glorious, glorious.

As much as I loathe Winter at times, I have to wonder – would I appreciate Spring and Summer as much without Winter? Would a warm day ever feel this special without the memory of -40C? Would it be as awesome to take off your jacket because you’re too warm without months of having to wear Sorels and a goose down parka? I doubt it very much.

I hope Spring has come to your corner of the Earth!

This Week on the Homestead – We’re Dying for Spring

Tags

backyard chickens, dogs, Home, pets, spring, weird eggs

Oh, this has been a long, grey, cold, dry winter, and everyone is just dying for it to be over.  The girls are tired of being cooped up.  They pace back and forth in the run, and squawk until we let them roam in the yard.  The boys go absolutely nuts if they don’t get their daily 20-minute walk.  And the humans?  We just can’t wait til we can play in the dirt.

A few photos from our week:

Ziggy and his Frog.  The Frog is on its last legs (you can see he’s already missing a foot), but Ziggy drags this thing everywhere with him.  It’s his latest “baby.  He’s had a few “babies” over the years, and they all end up in the trash eventually.  He loves them to death.

Someday, I’m going to do a photo series called, “Eggs You’ll Never See in a Grocery Store.”  I had no idea these weird things could happen to eggs.  Before I had chickens, I only ate grocery store eggs.  Clean, white, sanitized eggs.  I had no idea that chickens could produce such abnormalities.  Take this weirdo of an egg.  It’s Liesl’s.  I think she may have consumed too much calcium last week.  Weird, right?

Oh, dirt.  Glorious dirt.  Will covered one of our raised beds with plastic a couple weeks ago, so the ground was thawed enough to actually work the soil this past weekend!  It felt so good to put a shovel in the ground.  Ginger was happy to be back to work in the dirt, as well.  She had a great time scratching it up!

And now, as I’m writing this, it’s snowing outside.  April 23rd, and it’s snowing.  A few weeks ago, I was joking when I said maybe Winter will never end.  Like somehow our world turned into Westeros (from Game of Thrones), and Winter may last for years.  But as I watch the blizzard outside my window, I really am starting to doubt if this Winter will ever end.  At this point, we are going to have snow on the ground well into May.  MAY.  The only way Mother Nature could make up for this awfulness is to skip Spring entirely and go straight into Summer. Okay?  Okay.

Zig Goes to the Chiro

Tags

chiropractor for dogs, dog chiropractic, dog chiropractor, dogs, pet, pets, Ziggy

Yes, that’s right.  Ziggy sees a chiropractor.

A couple years ago, he started favouring his right hind leg.  I took him to his vet, and the vet put him on an anti-inflammatory for a few days, thinking he must’ve jumped off the couch or something and strained it.  Well, it didn’t go away, and the vet told me the next step would be x-rays, and possibly surgery.

Ummm, no.  I found him a doggy chiropractor instead.  He had a seriously messed up spine, especially his lower back region near his tail.  She told me his back is a bit too long for his legs, and his muscles are working overtime to keep his back in shape.  No wonder he growls whenever someone pets him – his back hurts pretty much all the time.

The first treatment was not fun.  He bit the vet twice.  That’s why he wears a muzzle now whenever we go.

It took about three treatments before he started to really improve.  He also lost nearly seven pounds (which is a lot for a little guy!), so that relieved some of the pressure off his lower back.  The treatments don’t even phase him now.  We go two or three times a year for upkeep.  He doesn’t get upset at the vet anymore, but I still muzzle him, just in case.

After he’s had a treatment, he’s full of energy.  He must feel like a puppy again.  (I know exactly how he feels – sometimes, for a few lovely hours after I’ve had a chiro treatment, I feel like I’m 24 again).  Ziggy gets a little crazy and loves to play fetch with his ring for about 20 minutes after we get home.  Then he remembers he’s ten years old, and goes to sleep on the couch.  It’s a dog’s life.

Dog Days

Tags

animals, dogs, off-leash park, pets

Okay, the title of this post is a bit misleading.  It wasn’t a full day at the dog park, more like “An Hour at the Dog Park.”  I wish it had been longer, but it did the trick.   The weather was gorgeous, and the dogs were exhausted when we got home.  They slept all night.

I’ve always believed that a good dog is a tired dog.

The boys have been a bit wild lately.  Lack of attention, I think, and lack of exercise.  I have no time to walk them, and they’re used to daily walks.  They’re going a bit stir-crazy being cooped up inside the house all day.  Thank goodness for off-leash parks!

The Story of Kings

Tags

animals, dogs, pets, rescue dogs, SPCA

The Kings.  Kingsman.  Kingsbert.  Kingslerama.  Full name: Kingsley Windermere Brooks.  We met Kingsley in October 2005, three months after Will and I were married, five months after we bought our house, two years after I told Will I couldn’t be with someone who didn’t want dogs, and thankfully, he relented.

We find ourselves at the SPCA.  I see Kingsley, then known as “Dodge.”  He’s quiet, doesn’t bark like the others, but there’s sign on his cage – “I’ve been adopted!”  We go home without a dog.  Next week, we try again.  Lo and behold, he’s still there.  His adoption didn’t go through.  We take him for a walk and when we come back, I sit on the floor and he rolls overs into my arms.  Done.

On his behavioural assessment it says he is a “submissive peer,” which I take to mean that he’s not the dominant dog of the pack.  When we get home, I find out it should have read “submissive pee-er,” meaning when he feels dominated or threatened, he rolls over on his back and pees.  It takes a few months, but that behaviour eventually recedes, and a happy, confident, smart, and loving dog emerges.

He even became an actor, like his mama, appearing onstage as Crab in The Two Gentlemen of Verona (and got the part after crying during the audition and peeing on the director – actors, take note!)

The Kings.  King of the Yard.  King of my Heart.