I'm A Bad Ass--or--Perhaps I Miscalculated

Thinking about life, love and forgiveness...sigh.

Hi, all, Lily the Corgi here.  Well, it's been a while since I've written and I wanted to let you know that I've been a bit down lately.  Let me tell you all about it.

Last time I blogged, I told you my humans were going out of town on a vacation.  Not just mama and daddy, but all my closest aunts, uncles, and cousins as well, leaving no one in town to take care of me and my sisters.  Hey, I've been around the block enough times to know what that means--a kennel.  When we lived in west Texas we went to a kennel a few times; it was a very nice place with grassy runs and nice people who understood what a special being I am, since I'm corgi and all.  But this time, I found out that, because Sadie and Lucy have to take various shots and medicines every day, we weren't going to the regular type kennel and would have to be kenneled at our vet's office.  The vet's office, do you hear me?   What kind of thinking is that?  How many of you humans want to relax for 10 days in the comfort of your doctor's office?  And here's the worst of it--the vet gave mama a "special rate" since we are good customers.  Basically, they paid for Sadie and Lucy to stay there but the vet let me stay for free.  Free, I tell ya!  How insulting is that?  I'm all for saving money but the corgi should always be the most pampered, most valuable, and most expensive of all dogs.  I felt like I was something left in the irregular bin at KMart.

Anyway, my humans left and I tried to make the best of the depressing and embarrassing situation.  I did my best to be nice to Lucy and Sadie, but ever since Claude died there's been a little bit of a power play by Sadie to change the status quo of our family pecking order.  Of course, as the alpha of all alpha girls, I cannot allow this to go unanswered.  So one day at the kennel, Sadie got a little too sassy for my liking and I had to lay some discipline on her.  Okay, I'll admit that sometimes when I get into a little scuffle, I get a bit carried away...and this was one of those times.  Sadie and I got in to a full scale, all out dog fight.  The vet techs yelled at us and while Sadie was distracted, I grabbed her ear and hung on like a pit bull.  Instead of admiring my sweet WWE moves, the vet tech turned a hose on me!  A hose.  Well, it was now a matter of principle and I refused to let go.  Then the vet came in, reached right in and yanked me off Sadie.  They took me out of the cage with my sisters and put me in something called "solitary confinement."  That means I had NO canine company at all, not even Lucy.

They said I tore Sadie's ear up pretty badly and that she bled a lot.  They made her take antibiotics because they thought my spit might have carried some kind of infection.  I'll have you know there are only 2 ways my spit can go--pristine clean or Ebola ridden--I don't do anything mediocre.  Of course, Sadie is fine; I didn't give her Ebola or mad cow disease or any other infections...all I did was put her in her place.

Alas, I'm the one who had to go to a new place--that solitary confinement place.  The vet techs tattled on me to my mama who was in Key West and mama was mad.  After my exile was over and the parents came to take me home, they were glad to see me, of course, but I got quite the lecture, let me tell you.

This is how interested I was in the "don't bite your sister" lecture.

Nope, still not caring

Mama told me if I didn't straighten up, she'd make me stay by myself at home, too.  She wouldn't let me play with Sadie (Sadie made a big deal out of acting afraid of me; growling when I'd get near her.  My parents took her side, of course.)  Then mama told me that fighting dogs don't get to go to the dog park anymore.  And she said, biters didn't get to play with the baby cousins any more.  Okay, I was starting to take this a bit more seriously.   I love the dog park.  And I love playing with the babies, especially when they have food.  I figured I'd better re-think this whole situation.

Pondering the severity of my actions.  Perhaps I did overplay my hand just a bit.

Mama and daddy still love me.  They still pet me and hold me and give me all sorts of affection, but they also make me look at Sadie's ear (it really does look a mess...I guess I didn't really mean to hurt her that badly.)  Sometimes Sadie tries to scratch her ear and that hurts her and she cries; I feel pretty bad when that happens.  I have decided that perhaps I did overreact when I jumped on Sadie like I did.  I only meant to show her what a tough girl I am and to make sure she understands that I'm still the alpha dog in the family.  I didn't intend to get vicious with her.

I've apologized to Sadie and invited her to play, but she won't.  I can still play with Lucy, but Sadie won't play with me now.  That makes me sad, but I have no one to blame but myself.  Mama says Sadie's ear is healing up and I'm glad for that; maybe when she feels better, she'll see fit to forgive me.  Mama says she is going on another trip next month, but daddy can't go because he has to stay here with me.  She was planning to check out a really nice kennel near here with a POOL and everything, but she says now I won't be welcome so I'll just have to stay here at the house with daddy.  I guess I made a mess of things this time, but no one can stay mad at me forever--I am a corgi, after all!

Here I am, looking so cute they can't stay mad for long.

That's all I have for this time, folks.  I'm hoping next week I'll be able to tell you that I've been forgiven for my sins and that Sadie and I are friends once again.  I am happy that I have a mama and daddy who love me even when I'm a little bad.  Some dogs get thrown away when they do something bad, but my parents won't ever do that to me and they'll never stop loving me.  Yes, I am a very lucky girl.

Til next time, take care and keep your tempers under control!

Love ya,

Lily the Corgi

This is the ear I chewed.  This side just has a couple of holes--the inside is where I really gnawed.

Fraidy Sadie

Sadie, showing a gross case of "crap neck."

Hi, all; Lily the corgi here.  Last week I told you a bit about my nosy beagle mix sister Lucy, so I figured this week I'd give equal time to my sister Sadie.  Sadie is beautiful and has the softest fur; her ears are like pure silk.  She is a very playful dog but also likes petting and snuggles.  Sadie is a sweet girl, but she is, well, different.

Years ago, my mama decided to go to the local animal shelter and look at dogs.  She saw Sadie there and thought Sadie was very nice, but a family was looking at Sadie so mama went home without a dog.  A few weeks later, mama and daddy's gorgeous husky boy, Alexei, died and the only remaining dog was sad and lonely.  After a few months, mama went back to the shelter to look at a companion for the dog-widow Colleen and, lo and behold, there Sadie was still waiting. 

The shelter people told mama that Sadie had been a puppy living in a small town nearby with her feral canine mama.  No one ever said what happened to the mama, but someone managed to catch Sadie.  Sadie was very shy and nervous; she had never been around people and had no idea how to behave like a normal companion animal.  While Sadie quickly learned to love and trust mama and daddy, she was super-scared of everyone else.  When Sadie would get stressed, she would give a look my parents call "the crazy eye."  Looks something like this:

When Sadie starts to pant and shows the white of that "crazy eye" you can bet she's about to flip out!

Here's another crazy eye--we had guests in the house and she was nervous!!

Sadie has some other odd behaviors as well.  One of my favorites is what my parents call "crap neck."  Somehow Sadie goes out into the yard and manages to roll her neck in poo...not her leg, not her belly, just her neck.  It makes my parents nuts!  Makes me chuckle.  The odd thing Sadie does that makes most people laugh is her impression of a sealaroo (that's a cross between a seal and a kangaroo.)  When Sadie is excited, she hops on her hind legs like a kangaroo while clapping her front feet together like some sort of demented seal.  

Some of Sadie's behaviors are just a little sad.  When lots of family and friends are around and everyone is having a good time, Sadie will often put herself in a safe, secluded spot like the utility room or hidden beside the bed.  She really is just too afraid of all the people and play; it sorts of hurts my heart to see her so very scared.  Sadie barks a lot because she is so worried about all the things going on around her.  Sadie treats food as if she were a concentration camp survivor--she will eat and eat like she thinks she'll never get another meal.  For whatever reason, Sadie is afraid to drink water at home--I somehow picture her as having been captured while having a drink and so she never feels comfortable drinking again (I have no idea if that happened or not; it's just a scenario I can see in my abundant corgi imagination.)  She has actually gotten much more bold about things over the years, but she still earns the title "Fraidy Sadie."

Sadie bravely sitting beside human cousin Kathleen (notice she's still doing that nervous panting.)

So as you can see, I'm the only normal dog in the household.  It's a curse, trying to show others how to behave when they don't seem to have any concept that they are strange!  But as the resident corgi, that's my job and I will continue to execute my duties to the best of my abilities.

Just to let you know, mama and daddy are planning on a vacation later this week, so it will be a couple of weeks before I'm able to blog again.  I'm pretty bummed that I can't go on this trip because mama and daddy, Aunt Cathy, Uncle Roger, Aunt Vicky, and a batch of cousins, including the babies, are going on the trip together.  Sounds like a huge amount of fun.  That's okay; I'll just be here waiting for their return.  

Til next time, love ya!

Lily the Corgi

Fraidy Sadie, rocking a summer haircut.

The Adventures of Lucy the Nosy

Lucy found this while looking through a grocery bag.

Hi all, Lily the Corgi here.  This is a painful thing for me to tell you--I have failed.  As you know, I am the alpha dog in our household.  This means I am responsible for keeping all family members--human and canine--in line, walking the straight and narrow, on their best behavior.  For several years, I performed these duties admirably and we were able to live (mostly) in peace and harmony.  

And then, there was Lucy.  Lucy came to us from the local animal shelter.  In the adoption advertisement, Lucy was shown as a beagle/corgi mix; now I have my doubts she is corgi, but her personality is certainly beagle!  She is a very sweet and snuggly girl, loves to play, loves to eat.  She loves to go around with her snout to the ground, sniffing at everything as she goes--typical beagle behavior.  Lucy doesn't cause fights, doesn't steal food from her fur-siblings, though she does tend to bark excessively on occasion.  

But Lucy has a very annoying trait; she is too nosy for her own good.  Lucy's beagle snout leads her to interesting and often inadvisable situations.  Lucy gets into things that are not her business and could even be bad for her; she eats what she shouldn't eat; she does what she shouldn't do.  I've done my best to keep her in line, keep her distracted, keep her safe, but there's only so much a corgi can do!  Let me give you some examples:

At the top of the page, you'll see the results of Lucy's taking a dive into the grocery bags that mama was bringing in.  She got in it and dragged out a box of brownie mix--brownie mix!  What normal dog does that?  A steak, yes.  A cookie, maybe.  But a box of plain old uncooked brownie mix?  What was she going to do with it, bake?  I've tried to teach her to be more discerning in her tastes, but to no avail.  I'll be over here, waiting for a proper snack while Lucy tries to turn on the oven.

Lucy and her interesting choice of headwear.

Here's another photo of Lucy after getting in to something she shouldn't.  Mama had used a paper bag to absorb something greasy and then threw it in the trash can.  Lucy rummaged around in the trash, got the sack and, in attempting to lick crumbs out of the bottom of the sack, got her head stuck.  Lucy pranced all around the kitchen, shaking her head and trying to fling off the paper sack.  Mama took the time to get the camera and snap a picture instead of helping Lucy remove the paper sack.  Eventually, mama was afraid Lucy would crash in to something so she took the sack off the goofy thing's head.  I always put on a fine example of dignity and grace, but as you can see, Lucy doesn't follow examples very well. 

Mama tries to keep the trash can up out of Lucy's reach, but sometimes it has to be out where it can be used, am I right?  A few days ago, Lucy took advantage of an unguarded trash can and, with ninja-like quietness, helped herself to a big old pork chop bone.  Now, I would be happy to feast on a pork chop bone myself, so I can't fault Lucy for being lured toward it, but it is just uncivilized to go dumpster diving in one's own home.  So anyway, Lucy sneaked the bone onto mama and daddy's bed; mama discovered what was going on when she heard Lucy crunching.  Mama grabbed the bone and then spent several days worrying about the condition of Lucy's stomach and intestines.  I'm happy to report that no ill effects resulted from this dietary indiscretion.

 Lucy nosing around in the swimming pool before it was even filled.

Lucy gets in to everything; mama calls her "nosy Rosie."  The other day Lucy made it her business to tear open a box that came in the mail and toss mama's new bras across the floor.  Lucy was wearing them before mama even got a chance to to take them out of the box!  While mama was working on the computer the other day, Lucy walked across her to take a nectarine pit out of a bowl on the table beside her.  Did Lucy really think mama would just let her walk off with a nectarine pit?   This past Easter mama ended up putting ALL dogs in the house because Lucy wouldn't stop gathering Easter eggs!  Whoa, that's going too far; when your nosiness starts to affect my life, we have a problem!

Sigh...I've tried, I really have.  I understand it is a beagle thing to be ruled by your nose, but all dogs need to use a little common sense.  If you plan to steal food, for example, grab from one of the baby's plates!  If you want to snuggle in the parents' clothing, get something used that has their comforting smell on it.  Youngsters need to be willing to learn from their alphas.

Okay, I give up...right now Lucy and our neurotic sister Sadie was sitting on the couch, barking at HUMMINGBIRDS who are sipping from their feeder on our back porch.   I do love my sisters, but sometimes I dream of being an only child!

Til next time, everyone.

Lily the Corgi

Lucy, aka Nosy Rosie

Balls, Balls, Balls

(Come on, throw it!  You know you want to!)

Hi all; Lily the Corgi here.  So today seemed just the sort of day to do some deep thinking, and I've been thinking about balls.  Yep, I said balls.  My daddy thinks about balls a lot.  He watches balls on tv and types about balls on his computer and talks about balls on the phone with my Uncle Wayne.  Daddy goes off one night a week to play with a bowling ball and enjoys kicking around a soccer ball when he gets the chance.  Sometimes the little girl next door loses her ball over our fence and has to come get mama to rescue it for her out of the back yard.  Mama isn't as concerned about balls, but sometimes I hear her mutter, "Oh, balls," so I know she does care about them to a degree.

Balls have been around since ancient times.  I'm going to guess that round fruits, rocks, nuts, or other natural materials provided the first balls for play by humans as well as canines (Lucy used to play ball with little crab apples in our yard when we lived in Texas.)  Eventually, the humans began making balls out of string, leather, and wood.  In the modern world, balls can be made out of about any material and come in all shapes and sizes.  Balls are used in a variety of games.  I like games!

We have a number of balls around our house; some of them just lie around on the floor for anyone to pick up and play with at any time.  Others are specially made for the babies' toys and dogs aren't allowed to play with them.  Still others belong to mama and daddy.  They let us play with tennis balls and even allow us to try to push around bowling balls if we want, but there is one ball my daddy WILL NOT allow anyone to play with.  That ball came out yesterday to sit on top of the tv while the OU Sooners played football; daddy says this ball has special lucky powers and that he has to use it to help the Sooners win games.

(The special ball...I don't know why we can't play with it; someone already wrote all over it.)

Sometimes balls aren't even balls.  Sometimes other items are used in place of balls.  Our baby Cohen likes to throw his foam blocks so my beagle sister Lucy and I can fetch them.  I'm not usually much of a fetcher, but he's a nice baby and doesn't know any better, so I play along.  My late brother Claude the grouchy husky used to toss toys in the air and catch them; he didn't need a human to help him play catch.   Predictably, my neurotic sister Sadie is afraid of balls and won't play with a ball or any item used in place of a ball--though she will catch the occasional piece of popcorn thrown her way. Lucy is the most playful of all us dogs and loves to play with tennis balls; unfortunately, she ends up stripping the fuzzy part off the outside of the ball and then chewing the rubber stuff underneath into little icky pieces, often in mama and daddy's bed.  So Lucy has to improvise with other ball-like things to amuse herself when the parents take the balls away.

(Not really a ball, but it is round so Lucy enjoys it just the same.)

A couple of times, we've gotten to go to a ball game.  My human cousin Matt plays baseball in college and we've attended his games in the past.  We were mostly interested in the shade and the smells and people and not so interested in the balls, but we are always up for an outing!

Sometimes the minor league baseball team in Tulsa has "Dog Days" when dogs are actually allowed in the stadium to watch real professionals play ball.  Mama won't let us go to that; she says I'd be bothering everyone instead of watching the game.  That's just rude; I don't bother anyone--everyone is always happy to visit with me.

You know the kind of balls I really like?  Meat balls.  Mama makes those sometimes and they are SO tasty.  If I turn on my charm and give her my cutest head tilt with moist eyes, she'll usually cave and give me a meat ball or two.  Hmmm...maybe that's how I put on weight?

Daddy likes a ball team called the Cleveland Browns; they have a section of their stadium called the Dawg Pound.  I like how they combine ball and dogs, even if they can't spell D-O-G.  I think they will be my favorite team too. Daddy is sitting on the couch right now watching football; he says it's the start of the new season.  I think I'll go lie down with him and watch a little.  Maybe later, mama will make meatballs.   

That's all for this time.  Take care of yourselves and watch out for flying balls.

Til next time,

Lily the Corgi

(Waiting for Cohen to throw some blocks for us to fetch.)

Beating the Heat

(After a swim in the lake, mama and daddy insisted on washing me--a total waste of a good lake bath, I say.)

Hi, all, Lily the Corgi here.  Once again, I must apologize for the fact that I missed a blog post last week. We are still trying to get things back to normal here following our dog-health issues and mama has just not been able to get my blog done.  Anyway, I'm back this week to let you know how life has been treating us and to pass on a few nuggets of knowledge while I'm at it!

One thing that has been very odd this summer has been the weather.  We've had a lot of rain, but almost no storms, which is quite strange here in tornado alley.  The weirdest thing, though, has been the temperature; for the months of June and July, it has been WAY cooler than usual here at our house.  We dogs have been able to stay outside and play for hours and hours without melting.  Mama, who hates the heat, has even been able to enjoy the outdoors this summer.  But with August, normal summer weather came rolling in...ugh!

Today, our back porch thermometer read a nice even 100 degrees.  Sadie and I only go out when we simply cannot hold in our pee any longer; Lucy is a little more adventurous and wants to go out for a little while, but she barks to come back in pretty quickly.  This past Friday, we had a small disaster here at the house when our air conditioner failed.  Mama had gone to a funeral and my sisters and I were trapped in the house; when mama got home it was over 90 degrees and we were hot--literally as well as figuratively!  Daddy was able to get the A/C going again, but the thermostat still isn't working at its best; we've told mama she is not allowed to leave the house for more than an hour at a time in case we have any more of that super-heat in the house.

Anyway, all this has prompted me to talk to you about getting cool.  Yesterday, mama and daddy loaded us up and we went to the lake.  I'm a big fan of swimming in the lake so I was having a blast.  Lucy swims but she isn't as crazy about it as I am.  Sadie loves the water, but she doesn't want to be in water deep enough to float her--she wants her paws firmly on the bottom of the lake!  It was a great day; we came home all wet and bedraggled and smelling like wet dog and lake water.  Mama and daddy had to go spoil it all when we got home by hosing us all down in the driveway so we didn't "stink up the house."  How rude!  Oh well, even though their unwanted attentions robbed us of our great scent, we were able to retain the coolness of our watery adventure.

I've told you before about my love for ice cubes and mama has been very good to hand me a nice cold cube every time she goes to the kitchen.  That's always a great way to get a quick cool-down.  Probably one of the best ways to cool off in this evil summer weather is to plop down right under a fan.  Our house has a bunch of ceiling fans and Lucy and I love to stretch out under these and let the breeze blow across our ears, bellies, and faces.  There is just nothing better than a nice fan breeze against your tummy on a hot day.

(Mama and daddy's bed is right under a big old fan...Lucy and I enjoy the breeze .)

Wait, maybe there is something better than the fan.  Sadie and I are big fans (fans, get it?) of the tile floor.  Oh, those tiles are so nice and cool against our tummies.  I have no idea why, but Lucy doesn't enjoy the tile flooring...but that's okay and leaves more space for us!

Oh yeah, there is an even better way to cool off, but mama and daddy don't allow it much...ice cream!  Yummy, sweet, creamy, cold and wonderful ice cream is a big favorite at our house.  Mama and daddy never let us have ice cream very often, but now with Sadie's new diabetes diagnosis, we are even less likely to be given an ice cream treat.  Sigh...so sad.  I myself am happy to have ice cubes as a substitute, but the other girls don't like plain ice; mama sometimes gives us frozen chicken broth as a treat and that meets with everyone's approval!  Another pretty good alternative is watermelon.  We all like to gnaw those watermelon rinds to get every speck of that red fruity goodness.

(Sadie partakes of the summery goodness that is watermelon.)

I bet every dog has his/her own method of beating the heat; the important thing is to keep cool.  Heat stroke and heat exhaustion are dangerous to dogs as well as to their humans.  So, stay cool, stay safe, and stay tuned til next time, everyone.

Love ya,

Lily the Corgi

The Hits Just Keep A'Comin'

(My neurotic but beautiful sister, Sadie Mae)

Hi all, Lily the Corgi here.  As you can imagine from last week's blog post, life has been a bit rough here at our house this week.  It is strange to look around the house and not see old grouchy Claude anymore.  My sister Lucy the beagle mix seems to be the most upset about his passing--Lucy's sort of sensitive like that.

It was Claude's absence that led us to this past week's adventures.  For the last several months of his life, poor old Claude had been incontinent and he dripped pee on the floor.  Now, all of us girls in the household tend to be bossy, sassy, alpha type girls who always feel the need to overmark, so mama didn't think much of it a couple of weeks ago when Sadie began to pee the floor to overpee Claude's accidents.  But after old Claude was gone, Sadie was still overpeeing.  Our daddy had shampooed the rug several times so surely Sadie wasn't still reacting to Claude's problem.  Mama started to become concerned.  That very night, Sadie peed on the bed!

Mama had also noticed something unusual about Sadie's drinking habits.  As I've mentioned before, Sadie the weirdo is afraid of the water bowl at home--she loves to drink out of the bowl in the truck when we go on trips, but she is scared to death of the bowl in our kitchen.  Don't ask; I have no idea; she's just nuts.  But now, Sadie has been putting aside her fears to drink like a fish, even at home!

(Sadie loves to drink while traveling but has been afraid of the bowl at home--til recently.)

Shortly after that, mama was mentioning Sadie's problems to my Aunt Cathy.  Aunt Cathy is the mom of cousin Quincy the wiener dog who has lots of medical issues; she is also a pharmacy tech and sees lots of prescriptions for sick dogs.  Aunt Cathy still thought Sadie was fat, but mama insisted that she'd lost some weight for no apparent reason, too.  Aunt Cathy agreed with mama that Sadie's behaviors were suspicious as possible symptoms of a large health problem, so daddy took Sadie off to the vet's office for some bloodwork and a full checkup.  The vet found the problem immediately--Sadie's blood glucose read at 555 (normal is about 120 or so.)  Sadie is diabetic.

Diabetes is a fairly common problem in dogs, more so in females than males and in middle-age to older dogs. The treatment for dogs with diabetes is similar to that for humans, diet change and insulin shots.  So, now mama has to give Sadie a shot twice a day.  Sadie doesn't seem to even notice and I've seen that the needles are super small, but I'm glad they're not sticking me!  I had to give Sadie a low five because I like some of the diet changes; since Sadie needs to eat when she takes her shots, we are now getting fed twice a day instead of just once and I like that.  Daddy said the vet is ordering some special food for Sadie and I'm not sure how that may impact me, so that has me a bit apprehensive, however.

Mama says that now poor old Claude is gone it will be easier for us all to go to the dog park and get more exercise.  I like the sound of that because I like to go places; I am hoping they'll remember that it is August in Arkansas--hot and humid--and that I'm pretty short legged, have a double coat and have put on a few pounds.  Mama says exercise will help all of us stay healthier but color me skeptical of too much movement when it feels like a sauna outside!

So, now we have Sadie who has to have an insulin shot twice a day and Lucy who has to take pills for her seizures twice a day.  And there is me--the only thing I need twice a day is a good dog biscuit!  (Unfortunately I don't get that.  Mama does give me a nice ice cube as a treat and I love those, so I'm good.)

If your doggy starts to have changes in her fluid intake, weight, and bladder habits, a trip to the vet is needed. Our vet says it looks like mama and daddy caught Sadie's diabetes before any damage was done to her kidneys and that's great news!  I love my sisters and I don't want anything bad to happen to Sadie.  She's a bit crazy but she's ours.  My mama and daddy have been through too much stress lately but they say petting a dog is the best remedy for stress, so I know I'm being helpful through all this upheaval.  Despite my best efforts, I'm hearing them starting to talk about a vacation.  Hmmmm...

Til next time, everyone.

Love ya,

Lily the Corgi

(I'm a little upset that I've not been the center of the universe for the past few weeks, so I'll just lie here and show off my awesome drummies.)

Saying Goodbye

My late brother, Claude Martin Salamon

Hi folks, Lily the Corgi here.  It's been an eventful couple of weeks since I've written, some of it great and some of it horrible.  Let me tell you about it...

My mama and daddy have a whole batch of nieces and nephews ranging in age from 15 months to 29 years old.  My parents have always enjoyed taking some of the kids on vacations, but this year my daddy has a new job and not enough vacation time to take a trip.  So they decided to have a "Staycation" with some of the kids--the ones between 4 and 13 years old.  In fact, they had TWO Staycations--one week for the boys (Joe, Kyle, Connor, and Jake) and one week for the girls (Gabby, Alicia, Kathleen and Isabelle.)  Mama had planned a bunch of great day-trips to the water park, nature center, lake, car races, etc... for the kiddos to enjoy.

Well, right off the bat, there was trouble.  Less than an hour into the boys' Staycation, Connor got sick and threw up in my mama's truck; luckily, the mess landed on Connor and his booster seat and NOT on mama's vehicle.  My Uncle Mike took Connor home since he was sick so there were just 3 boys that week.  One day they saw an ALBINO SQUIRREL!  I wish I'd have been there--I'd have chased that guy until he turned even whiter!

Mama and the boys saw this albino squirrel in a state park!

Having the boys for a week was pretty nice.  They like to watch movies on tv while sitting on the couch, which means they are just in the perfect position to pet me.  At the end of the week, the parents came and took the boys away and left off the girls, plus Connor!  And so we started the whole Staycation routine over again.  The smaller children really like me, because I'm low to the ground and easy to pet and play with.  My sister Lucy is also a favorite since she is also short.  My neurotic sister Sadie allows a little petting sometimes, but she's not really a fan of kids.  And my grouchy brother Claude, who's been having health problems for several months, was just too tired to get up and move so he got more petting than he probably would have liked.

As the week went on, it became apparent that old Claude was having a lot more trouble getting around.  He had pretty much lost complete control of his bladder an bowels.  When mama and the kids came home on Friday evening, poor old Claude was just too tired to get up.  He even had to have his head propped up on mama's chest to eat--as a red-blooded corgi it is difficult for me to imagine being too sick or tired to eat! Our vet had told mama and daddy a few weeks ago that when Claude's problems progressed further, it would probably be the kindest thing to consider euthanasia.  Mama got hold of the parents and my Aunt Jennifer said she'd come get the kids that night.

Mama and daddy explained to the kids what was happening and there was a lot of crying.  All the kids spent the next couple of hours packing and hugging on Claude (and might I add, no one was loving on me!)  Then the kids left and mama and daddy paid extra attention to Claude while they talked and petted and cried.  The next day, Claude wouldn't even try to move his feet when mama would hold them--Claude HATES it when mama messes with his feet--and mama said she knew that was his way of telling her he was ready to go.  Mama and daddy had my sisters and me say goodbye to Claude, then they put us in our room while they gave Claude some ice cream and took him on a ride with the windows down so he could feel the breeze.  Then they went to the vet's office where Dr Lynch got down on the floor with Claude and gave him some medicine that made him feel all peaceful and well and new and healthy, but after that Claude couldn't come home to us; mama said he went to live in a much nicer place with Jesus.  I think his new place sounds pretty cool and mama said we'd all go there someday but right now she needed us girls to stay with her.

As you know, since I'm the head honcho around the house, I had to be responsible for keeping Claude in line through the past several years. Claude and I didn't always get along perfectly but he had his moments.  He and I had some pretty vicious fights over the years, and I know he could have really hurt me since he was so much bigger, but he never did.  Mama said there's a bridge made of rainbows and Claude will meet us there when we are ready to go live with Jesus, too.   I'm glad the old guy isn't hurting anymore and that he can see and hear again.  I wish mama and daddy weren't so sad about him leaving; I know they gave him the best care they could ever since they took him from that old animal shelter and gave him a nice home, good food and WONDERFUL sisters.

The old man just a few days before he died; you could tell he was not feeling well, but he still managed a smile.

Well, that's it for this time, everyone.  Take care of yourselves and give your doggies a little extra hug in memory of my grouchy old brother.  And Claude, I'll see you at that rainbow bridge someday, but for now I'm going to stay here with mama and daddy for a while.

Love ya,

Lily the Corgi

All of us on a squirrel hunt a few months ago.