What a hoot!

What do you do when you have a dog who is biting their tail??? Put a red sock on it, of course, and duct tape it with white duct tape. …and then take pictures!!

But here’s the best… he had feeling in his tail and was holding it up which he hadn’t had in the recent past. It was an extremely windy day and we all took a walk in the yard but something in the weeks caught attention of Ari, Kobie and Olivia

Holding on..

It's been a week and he's no better or no worse. I have chosen to stay close to home (meaning no overnight excursions to dog events) so I can see Ari through this. I am reminded on occasion that all is not well. Just a bit ago I missed him in the house and went to look for him. As I suspected, he had gone outside through the dog door, and as often happens, he didn't remember that he can also get in that way. So, I found him huddled against the house under an overhang outside the patio door that he knows he can get it.... when it's open. Not so bad but it was really raining and he was soaked. All is NOT well.....

Well, I guess it had to happen....

......sooner or later. For over a month, the old Ari was back, running and playing outside. It was wonderful to watch him after having seen him struggle to get up for months.

In the last few days I've watched Ari, ever so slightly, go downhill. He limped a little, had a harder time getting up and today he yelped as he didn't make a jump over a bag of cans and his leg got twisted. He was, however, running after a chipmunk in the yard so the reality is it could have happened to the healthiest of dogs. He did play outside all day and had a great time but tonight he was limping and his body was just a tad twisted. :-(

Good Days....

More good news... or should I say everything is stable... which is good news. I looked at Ari's chart and it appears that from mid-July to mid-August he was really bad but since then he has been good. He's walking, running, playing in his pool, barking at the night, running after the school bus and having an all around good time. These videos were taken at dusk today so the light wasn't the best. Tomorrow is an appointment at the vet for his percortin shot.

Labor Day weekend 2009

Ari had a blast over the Labor Day weekend! He played in his sandbox and pool, barked at Brita along the fence, ran and played with Kobie, rolled in the grass and barked into the wee hours at the full moon. I'm sure glad my neighbors live a bit away from me. It was like he appreciated the new lease on life that was given him and he was going to use every minute to have fun!

The best was watching him do bitework. I took him along to Campbellsport to train with Angie and at first when I had Brita 0ut and shook the clatter stick, he pushed out of the soft crate he was in and came bolting onto the field to see how he could be involved. He was able to jump into the back of the van and when I put him back in I made sure the zippers were closed so he could get out again. When it was his turn he did his usual circles around everything carrying the sleeve just like old times! Below is a video and links to other videos on You Tube.

Click through to Ari's YouTube account to see more.

Playing with Kobie

Ari was playing with Kobie tonight like I've never seen him play before! If you look closely you can still see him wobble a bit but he seems to compensate by planting his rear legs a bit apart. I can't remember the last time he jumped and ran like he did tonight or dug in his pool with such enthusiasm! It is wonderful to see him play like he is and I wish this feeling of impending doom would go away!

Fun on the sandy beach...

....... well ....not the beach but fresh sand in the sandbox in a new location where Ari can sit and look over the road and yard while Brita runs circles around him! He will dig on command.. has done it since he was a puppy when I taught him as he was digging in water in a pool! Brita is just learning to dig on command!

Waiting for the bus the first day of school!

Due to Ari's ups and downs with seizures most likely from a brain tumor and his inability to walk, I never thought he'd be around the first day of school this year much less be in good enough shape to play with Brita while waiting for it to arrive the first day of school.
The first event was the arrival of a dump truck and it's departure, then the kids waiting for the bus and then the bus itself!

At the end of the series of pictures, Brita is so warm from running that there is steam coming from her body. It was a cool morning with low lying fog and at first I thought she was kicking up sand but then realized it was following her everywhere!