A sad goodbye ...

This evening we had to say goodbye to our beautiful feline friend, Emerson. She suddenly succumbed to the ravages of an advanced tumor and we made the decision to let her go peacefully.

Sleep now, lovely girl.

A pet present perhaps?

 

Oh wow .... I found this today, and it made me wonder whether I should be doing more to enhance the life of our fish. Maybe they're really bored just swimming around in their pots in the garden ...?

(fish pic from here)

A fast track, high stakes, 49 starters in 7 heats ...

.. and victory for Pepperoni!

It was the Port Fairy Dachshund Dash!

We formed the cheer squad for Pepper, Wilbur and Ted, although there were so many adorable little dachsies it was impossible to pick a favourite.

Wilbur was too scared to race so he watched his sister win from the safety of Petra's shoulder-bag. After the race he crashed as though he had run the hard yards!

So many silly sausages!

Blog catchup #3 - Port Fairy transformations

.... in the midst of all our other renovations, G spent a week in Port Fairy and made a start on fixing up our little ugly duckling house there. I caught the train down after work on Friday last week - it was lovely to see G and the dogs again and spend some time getting to know our new cottage.

There are lots of crisp, juicy apples on the ground in the garden, upon which Gus feasted non-stop (I'm not sure that it's good for dogs to eat so many apples, but he just seemed obsessed with them). Each evening we walked across the bridge that spans the little river near the port and let the dogs go totally loopy at the beach. It's a really relaxing place.

We managed to finish painting one room (thanks to G's expert plastering and preparation work). The new paint finish, light shades, wafty sheer curtains and thrifted furniture have transformed a once-glum room into a sunny, peaceful retreat. Nice!

Real estate agent's photo, taken before we bought the house.

 Before: greasy-looking olivey-mustard walls and dark ceiling, too much

furniture and horrible synthetic lace curtains

After: a lighter, softer, less-cluttered style

 little Bracken

 Gus the wise (?!)

 

... again, I didn't have a camera unfortunately (just my phone), so I was unable to capture the light and bright feeling of this room properly. You can see that I did snap our canine helpers though. They pushed in and wanted to take all the attention after waiting patiently in the hallway forever.

We're heading back next weekend; while I gallivant around Warrnambool on a field trip with my post-grad students G plans to make a start on the living room. Now that room needs quite a bit of work, but we'll make it look pretty in the end!

(before we bought it)

* While I wouldn't usually choose a bedframe like the one shown above, we bought the queen-size bed, complete with mattress (in good condition) for only $50!

Animal rehab

We seem to be operating an animal rehab centre here these days ...

Our sweet little adopted dog, Bracken, is settling in and making progress, but he still has a lot of psychological issues as a result of his traumatic past. Poor little guy! He so desperately wants to be part of our pack!

Last week while I was mowing my neighbour's lawn I saw (and heard!) a little ring-tail possum fall out of a tree onto the concrete driveway... *crack!* ... Ouch! The possum was stunned but didn't seem to be badly injured, so I wrapped him in a warm towel and let him rest in a box for a while before taking him back to his tree, where he promptly scurried on up to a high branch. This is the second tree-fallen possum I've found nearby in the past year.

Bad juju

Don't you hate it when you're trying to do the right thing but somehow the day just seems to turn all upside-down and inside-out?

Yesterday there was some bad karma at my house.

To set the scene: I'm hobbling on crutches due to an injured hip and fractured foot. The dogs and I are navigating a couple of rooms in the front of the house (as the main living areas remain only partly demolished), and the cat is winding her way between my legs at every opportunity.

Suddenly Bracken jumps up against a bookshelf in our entrance hall/makeshift kitchenette, sending a  mixing bowl crashing to the floor. The glass splinters everywhere, I grab both dogs, hustle them outside and reach for the largest pieces of glass, immediately slicing my finger. Blood starts dripping all over the floor as I try to find some paper towel and hop around in a clumsy attempt to gather up the remaining glass, find a rubbish bin and wrangle the vacuum cleaner, all the while leaving a trail of (rather pretty) red splashes amongst the glittering splinters. The dogs start to bark and leap excitedly at the screen door just as the phone starts ringing, while our cat makes a mad dash through the chaos, spreading the mess further and knocking one of my crutches clattering onto the floorboards....

I stand still for a moment and take some deep breaths.

.... *one* ....

.... *two*.....

.... *three* ....


.

Argh!! *warning - tired, grumpy rant alert*

Ugh. It's 1:35 am and I've just arrived home from the animal emergency hospital/24-hour clinic, having only had three hours' sleep last night due to poor little Bracken's fretting. When I took him to the vet this morning (yesterday morning?), we found that he had a serious infection in both ears, with so much damage that the vet said she was surprised that he wasn't deaf. No wonder he couldn't settle down to sleep last night - there are few things worse than intense earache.

Bracken was sedated and stayed at the vet for a few hours before being sent home with a bundle of medications. He seemed fine until about 10 o'clock this evening when he started frantically shaking his head, scratching his ears and crying out in pain. I tried to calm him and put more drops in his ears but he became more and more distressed, panting heavily and yelping each time he moved or scratched his head.

After a while it became clear that the pain was getting worse, so I drove out to the animal hospital at Essendon Airport where we had to wait, with Bracken becoming more and more distraught with each passing minute. The vet was lovely though, and finally (at around 12:30), I was able to leave with a slightly less stressed pup. Apparently the methadone sedation only lasts for about 4 hours, so I hope I can get two or three hours of sleep before Bracken wakes and cries again. It's like bringing home a newborn!

What makes me really angry is the thought of him being by himself with this level of pain for weeks or months; according to the vet, the infection's intensity indicates that it isn't a recent ailment. Animals are so vulnerable in our world, and I hate the idea of them suffering alone. I'm just saddened by the ignorance and selfishness of Bracken's previous owners ...

It's nearly 2 o'clock now and I'd better try and sleep in case the pup wakes up in a couple of hours. *sigh!* My husband is overseas and I'm feeling sad. What a crappy evening!


Hang on ... enough of this blathering. Stiff upper lip and all that ... !

I'm sure that the new day will bring happiness and some relief for the pup. Let's catch up then.

Neglected pup update

This morning we finally got to meet the poor little pup whose sorry plight we'd heard about through an acquaintance. We found out that he had been left alone in a suburban back yard for six months (!!), eating decidedly non-canine food like potato chips and noodles, dropped over the fence by a neighbour.

The dog is suffering from ear infections and the ill effects of a poor diet, and when we met him he was very dirty with matted hair. But he's surprisingly chipper, extremely friendly and seems very eager to please! I gave him a bath this afternoon; he's booked in for a haircut on Tuesday and I'll take him to the vet tomorrow for a full checkup.

His name was Ralph .... we didn't think he looked like a Ralph though (and he didn't seem to know his name) so we've renamed him Bracken. G calls him Brachyosaurus.

Thank you to those of you who offered to try and find a place for him to stay over Christmas while we travel interstate - your efforts to help, and kind wishes, are much appreciated. As we didn't meet Bracken till today I wasn't quite sure how to finalise our Christmas plans, but I'll probably be in touch soon if you've offered to help!

Can you help?!

I'm sending out a couple of pleas for help this evening ....

1. We have been 'offered' a cocker spaniel who is currently rather neglected and alone, and we're considering taking him in so that he can get out of his current miserable situation. Apparently his family are renovating their house at the moment but not living there, just throwing a bit of food over the fence for him in the evenings and leaving him by himself, and they want to give him away.

We've already booked flights to travel interstate from Christmas Day until January 2nd, and we'd be extremely grateful if we could find someone to look after him during that time. Please let me know if you're in Melbourne and would consider giving him some Christmas holiday care, or if you know anyone who might be willing to do so ...

(our little Gus has put on a serious expression to try to convince you!)

 

... and another little snippet:

2. The Diamond Creek Donkey Shelter seems to be in significant financial trouble at the moment - donations of any size will be gratefully received. Just thought I'd better spread the word....

We sponsor this little chap, whose name is Dudley.

Scurry scurry scurry!

*Sigh*

It's one of the busiest times of year again for me and I'm feeling a little swamped. I had grand plans to do several more hours of work when I got home this evening, but I'm so tired I barely managed to answer a few emails ...

So for the moment I think I'll just post this lovely portrait. I like the intensity of the little rat's expression, 'cause it mirrors the way I feel.

I hope this week is treating you well!

(source)

Little bear

You may be aware that our dog Gus is a dedicated treehugger.

I took a couple of short videos of him at a local park the other day.... you can watch him climb one of his favourite trees here, here and here.

(you might have to turn your head or your laptop on the side for the first clip ... sorry!)

Radioactive cat

Our poor little Emmy is in the vet hospital receiving radiation therapy for an illness .... when she comes home next week we won't be able to let her inside or cuddle her for more than 30 minutes a day 'cause she'll still be radioactive!
 

....  I wonder if she might develop a secret super-hero identity?

Summer daze

Hot

Sleepy

Dog

Glühdachel?

For several years my hubby and I have been thinking about getting a little dachshund.


Siobhan has a suggestion ... Even though we don't yet have a real sausage dog, perhaps this little fella could light up our lives:


Urban Outfitters are offering life-sized dachshund lamps for US$78.

(happy little dachels found here and here)

Dog and mog

It's chilly, grey and windy today, with occasional showers spattering against the windows. I think Gus and Emerson have a few good ideas for staying cosy on a gloomy Sunday afternoon:

1. Find a sunny corner and soak up that sunshine whenever you can


2. Wriggle around on the floor in front of the gas heater


3. Close your eyes tight and snooze in your bed


4. Sneak into some warm, unsupervised bedding while it awaits fresh covers (even though you know this is strictly forbidden!)


5. Share a bed with your best friend and snuggle up tight


6. Don't forget to put on a scarf before you go out in that wind!