Icky Sickies

(My sister Lucy, the beagle mix, snuggling up on a sick Daddy.)

Mama has been hacking and coughing for 2 weeks now; yesterday, Daddy came down with flu-like symptoms.  It's a bit like living in a hospital up in here right now.  What's a dog to do?!?

In a way, I sort of like it when my humans are sick--they stay home from work, lie around and nap all day, and leave lots of half-eaten foods around unattended.  On the other paw, their sickness can be a real trial to us dogs--they don't hop up as quickly to tend to our needs, they never want to play, and there's no way we're getting a trip to the dog park.  

Some dogs are very nurturing and take a lot of pride in caring for their sick folk; my sister Lucy is one of these.  She snuggles up on the patient to keep them warm.  She also offers her toys to cheer up the sicky, even though she'd prefer to roughhouse and romp with her people.  The other 3 of us--my grouchy husky mix brother Claude, my neurotic sister Sadie, and I--are not really into nursing.  I personally enjoy when I am the focus of all the pampering and attention!  It should be all about me!!

So today I was pondering the issue of sickness and I thought "What if I catch something from these humans?"  I mean, let's face it, people aren't the cleanest beings on the planet; you never know what diseases they are carrying around.   I went on the internet and checked some of my best sources--PetMD, the Oklahoma State University School of Veterinary Medicine, and others.  This is what I found out from them:

Dogs and people share some medical conditions, and can pass these back and forth.  The technical term for the passing of these illnesses between species is 'zoonosis.'  That sounds rather intriguing, but I'd just as soon the humans kept their crud to themselves.  Luckily for us dogs, there aren't that many human sicknesses that we are prone to--mostly, humans and dogs each have their own set of sickness and don't mix them.  However, there are some things we dogs can catch from our people.

Most commonly, humans give dogs--WAIT FOR IT--parasites!  Yep, that's right, bloodsuckers and worms.  Roundworms.  Hookworms.  Tapeworms.  Scabies. Ticks.  Even MANGE!!  Yuck.  It would behoove all dogs to be sure their humans are kept as clean as possible to avoid these horrible creepy crawly type transmissions.

More serious problems we can get from our humans, are bacterial infections and, rarely, some viruses.  It is possible for our people to give us leptospirosis and salmonella, among other things.  These things would most likely be transmitted to us when we drink human toilet water.  Now, this is not usually a big deal for corgis (that short leg thing, don't ya know) but taller dogs are called by the siren song of the toilet bowl.  My grouchy brother Claude is a connoisseur of the toilet water, so he needs to beware!  Another weird thing we can catch from humans is MRSA--the staph infection that pops up all too often in hospitals.  And, humans can be carriers of doggie diseases such as kennel cough if they are around an infected dog then come home and bring those germs to us.  

Theoretically, any mammal can pass rabies to any other mammal, so it is possible we could get this deadly disease from our people.  Luckily, there is almost never a case of rabies in humans these days; we are much more likely to be endangered by rabies transmission from skunks and raccoons.  Besides, loving pet-parents keep their fur-babies vaccinated against this plague so it just shouldn't be an issue.

Now, let's talk about these common cold-and-flu season illnesses.  One thing dogs CAN get from their humans (and vice versa) is strep throat.  In fact, it is possible that humans and dogs can do a back and forth transmission of strep throat that can last and last.  Dogs do get colds, but it is widely believed that dog colds and human colds are caused by completely different germs.  It is also pretty much accepted that dogs don't catch the flu from humans, but, since there are some inter-species influenza viruses (avian flu and swine flu to name a couple), research continues into the interrelation of flu in humans and dogs.

Long story short, it isn't very likely that I am going to catch any of the nasty sickies that my parents are dragging around.  It would still be wise to avoid sharing spit with my people right now while they are ailing, but I'm not going to pass up the chance to swipe their half eaten food if I get the chance!  I guess I'm just pretty daring that way.  

I hope all you readers--human and canine--stay healthy out there.  Drink plenty of fluids (just not out of the toilet), eat nutritious meals, and get good exercise to keep yourselves lively and sickness free!  Til next time...

Love ya,

Lily the Corgi

(Mom's homemade soup, packed with veggies, to ward off the germies. I'm hoping to score some of this myself even though I feel fine!)

The Cold is Coming!

(That's me and my sister Sadie looking pitiful in the snow.)

Hi, everyone!

Well, I just heard on the news that there is an Arctic blast coming--and that means COLD weather for most of us!  My fur-siblings and I get to enjoy a warm house even when the weather is frosty, but some of our furry friends aren't so lucky.  So I thought today I'd give a few hints about caring for your pets in super-cold weather.

1.  Keep Us Inside!  The best way to keep pets safe in cold weather is just common sense:  keep us in the house with our humans, where we belong.  Pets want to be part of the family, so we should really be right up on the couch with our people anyway.  If we are with you, you know whether or not we're comfortable.  When you feel good, we feel good. (A nice warm blanket or throw is always a nice touch for us as well.)

2.  Provide Shelter.  If, for some reason, your pets must be outside in the cold weather, you should provide some sort of shelter.  A nice dog house should be big enough for a dog to move around, but small enough to hold in body heat.  Point the door of the dog house away from the prevailing wind.  Adding some warm, snuggly blankets or hay is also a very appreciated touch.  WARNING:  If you are rigging up some kind of heating device in your dog's house, please be very careful.  Every year, dogs are injured or killed and homes are destroyed when makeshift heating systems in dog houses overheat or get turned over.

3.  Watch Those Feet.  There is nothing cuter than corgi feet (unless it is a corgi butt) and we need to keep those feet protected.  When you take your dogs out for a walk, remember that our feet feel the cold, too.  Also, jagged ice can cut our foot pads, and salt and gravel can be rough to walk on.  Some dogs wear little boots when they walk outside in the winter!  I myself have never worn shoes but they could be a nice fashion statement!  After a nice walk outside in cold weather, you should wipe or wash off your dog's feet--we can get sick if we lick salt or ice-melt chemicals off our feet.

4.  Clothes.  Corgis have a wonderful double coat which helps protect us from the elements, therefore, I've never seen the need to wear clothing besides the gorgeous coat God gave me.  My beagle mix sister Lucy, however, has really thin hair and enjoys wearing sweaters, especially when she goes outside in winter. If you see your dog shivering outside in winter, consider a trip to the nearest boutique for some appropriate (and stunning!) outfits.

5.  Odds and Ends. Just a few words in closing:  We corgis love to eat, as you well know.  We often take the winter cold as an excuse to eat a little extra.  As a responsible dog owner, please be sure not to let your dogs overeat--those cold weather pounds look might cute on us but can be unhealthy.
Some dogs, like my grouchy husky-mix brother Claude, are old and arthritic.  These dogs may need some additional consideration for their joint health during the winter weather.


Well, that's all I've got for today.  My daddy just got home from work and I'm going to snuggle with him on the couch.  That's MY way of beating the wintertime blast of cold.

Love ya,
Lily the Corgi

(That's me on the couch, enjoying a warm blanket.)

Greetings!

Hi, everyone.  My name is Lily the Corgi.  I was a contributing writer to the Corgi Cuteness website while it was active...you may know me from my work there.  If not, well, let me introduce myself.

I am a Pembroke Welsh Corgi (that's the kind without tails.)  Like a lot of dogs, I've seen my share of troubles where my home life is concerned.  As a puppy, I was originally sold to a man who decided he couldn't spend as much time with me as he should; that was a kind thing because us corgis can get mighty lonely when we aren't with our humans.  Then, I was re-homed to live on a cattle ranch.  Well, I'm a corgi, so that suited me just fine!  Unfortunately, the new owner thought I was chasing his cattle--he must have missed the memo telling him that us corgis were bred to HERD cattle and that I was just following the instincts God gave me.  Anyway, he sent me off to a thing called a rescue, where I was placed with a foster family for a while; they were nice but I knew that wasn't my true home.

Then one day, I was loaded up in a carrier and taken to a Petsmart for an "adoption event."   I was a bit concerned because there were a lot of other dogs going along and I had no idea what this was all about.  My foster family told me I needn't worry because I was going to get a forever home.  Now, I know I'm beautiful and adorable and precious and all that, but having to compete with all these other dogs for a new family seemed a little intimidating.  My foster mom told me, however, that I didn't have to compete; my forever family had already chosen me via the Internet and I was going to meet them.  (Here's a picture of me looking pretty smug as we left Petsmart that day!)

So, in the last 3 years I've lived in 3 different houses in 3 different states, but always with my same forever family!  I have a daddy and a mama who love me very much.  I have 3 fur-siblings:  Claude is a grouchy old husky mix; Sadie is a neurotic Australian shepherd; and Lucy is a wild and crazy beagle mix.  All of them came from a place called an animal shelter, which I'm told is like a rescue but not as fancy.

Anyway, that's the story of my life so far.  I look forward to sharing my stories, tips, recipes, and ideas with you, so come back and visit me again!!

Love ya, 

Lily the Corgi