Warning:
This is the type of blog entry that is the bane of the Internet: The Pet Story. The power of the Internet has given people who used to bore their friends to tears with tales of how fluffy responds to the sound of the can opener a new, larger, and even more disinterested audience. The Pet Story in a blog is a sure sign that you are dealing with someone who has nothing of interest to say to anyone. Sadly, the stories these people tell about captive mammals are often more interesting than their stories about themselves. That said, a dog falling on its butt in the dirt is kind of funny.
First, since I made mention that one of the dogs was not well, I’d best explain. Spike pulled up lame the other night. I didn’t see what happened, but he wasn’t using his left rear leg. He kept it pulled up way under himself. I couldn’t see any obvious injury, but when I tried to straighten his leg he snapped at me.
One thing I learned is that Spike is decidedly a right leg lifter. His tiny little dog brain struggled with how to raise his right leg while keeping his left leg up as well. He didn’t succeed in peeing at all on our first outing, even with me trying to lend what support I could. I’m kind of glad he didn’t let loose during those experiments; it could have been messy. Just picture a gimpy dog trying to hold up both back legs at once, and a concerned idiot trying to help.
On one occasion, though, he did manage to hold a handstand for about a second. With training and practice, we could be in the circus. More often, he just seemed to forget about his left leg and drop right on his ass when raising his right. Circus of the stupid.
So Spike’s on some kind of anti-inflammatory (for a 4.6 pound dog, I had to cut the pills in fourths) and is starting to put his leg down occasionally and he has learned to pee the other direction, but you can tell he’s not comfortable with that yet. Lefty, on the other hand, was sitting my my lap yesterday when I noticed a big ‘ol cactus thorn sticking out of his leg. Lefty seemed oblivious to it. He was playing and squirming as always. I tugged on the needle. It was really stuck in there. I tugged harder. No release. Lefty jumped up to find a toy for me to throw.
The next time we were out back, Lefty ran into another cactus while chasing a bird. (He hasn’t worked out yet that he will never, ever, catch a bird.) When he hit the prickly pear he yelped and jumped back. This time the needle wasn’t as deep and seemed to bother him more. I pulled it out and gave another tug on the first needle. No luck. It seemed like pulling it out was going to cause more harm than leaving it in. Finally last night I just cut the needle off to keep it from being driven farther in and decided to let Lefty’s body handle getting rid of the rest of it.
Other than that, the dogs have been having a great time exploring the wide open spaces in Northern New Mexico. But then, they’re dogs. They lack the imagination to have a bad time. Every moment is the best it could possibly be.
Hate to go off topic, but I can’t link to the pictures. And, I didn’t yet get to see the pictures of the train from the train by the train.
Dude, the pictures link is busted. Singleclick’s MySQL server is probably down.
However, pet blogging. My cat is so old…
You’re right, the photo galleries are plain busted. I’d phone the admin right now but I’m going to be hitting him up for a place to sleep in two days. I’ll email instead, and follow up with a phone call in the morning.
Meanwhile, you gotta watch out for those thorns on cacti and other succulents. Some of them are barbed like fishhooks and will just dig themselves deeper and deeper. One quote from a park ranger who got hit by one of the baddies: “I was lucky. It festered out in about a month. A lot of people I know needed surgery.” She also mentioned that nobody she knew ever got stuck twice by that particular succulent — once was enough to learn the lesson.
So keep a close eye on Lefty, and be glad we don’t have lechuguilla in Northern New Mexico.
This was definitely a barbed needle, but for all it’s bothering Lefty it can stay in his leg the rest of his life. Eventually he’ll grow a cyst around it, I expect, or it will someday break down.
Everyone smart enough, good looking enough or just plain lucky enough (and some people are all three) to have lived in Northern New Mexico has jealousy enjoyed your descriptions of its (insert your favorite item [e.g. green chili, tunderstorms, views, real people, etc.] here) enchantments.
Now, we can’t help wondering if the trip back to San Diego is the westward bounce that will give you the eastward momentum to get to TX, NC, and even the Czech Republic.
Are you going to Joey’s? You are welcome to stay here if you need as well. Although I honestly don’t relish the idea of having to say goodbye to you yet again, you might run into Jenn at karaoke night at Chumps…
I guess Bob was lucky!
Photo galleries are unbusted. Joe sensed our photo anxiety.
Carol Ann,
I can’t link to your email, but I desparately want to ask you. It seems that my cousin and I may be traveling to Denver via Durango during one of the upcoming holiday seasons (his wife is going to be doing her master’s in nursing residency during that season) I was hoping you might be somewhere near 5 O’Clock Somewhere during that time. I would love to stop through for drinks. My cousin’s degree is in American Lit, so I promise we would have good read wine. He also spent a couple of years in the Peace Corps in St. Lucia teaching, so he is way more interesting than I am. Jerry will tell you, my reading tends more to the ludicrous and pedestrian. I love Douglas Adams. Along with Walt Whitman.
Oooh, another glitch with the system — I notice the email link has gone dead for the most recent posts.
Melinda, I’ll be at Five O’Clock Somewhere from about the second week in December until a week after New Year’s. Gerald will be joining me about a week before Christmas. Pat will be joining us Christmas Eve.
Certainly you can stop by for read wine or Manhattans or whatever.
And now the link is alive again!
Aha, and so my ability to email you. Beware Carol Anne, you may have visitors. Not without warning. I promise.
Melinda, if you can phone when you reach Henry’s True Value in Tierra Amarilla, that will be warning enough.
BTW, Henry’s is an important place to know about. He carries hardware, sporting goods, fishing supplies, hunting supplies, farm supplies, seed, feed, groceries, drugs (the legal kind), and, most important of all, beer, wine, and liquor. He’s also open until 8 p.m. (7 p.m. in winter), which is late in these parts. And if you can’t do it yourself, he (or his sons or nephews) can do handyman work, plumbing, electrical work, you name it. One of his sons or nephews did the electrical work for Five O’Clock Somewhere.
Keith,
While I’ve always considered myself an “all three”, I also recognize that my life has been fortunate in a great many ways.
I sorry to read (based on your website) that your house remodel is still not yet done.
Maybe we need to send out Henry’s sons and nephews.
Picture of completed house remodel.
Property taxes going up?
Oh, Keith, such a drab facade. You’ll just HAVE to let me send out Henry’s sons and nephews to jazz it up a bit — they have very little work to do in Rio Arriba County once the snow starts falling. (It already is at Wolf Creek Pass.)