RIP Rusty

I really cannot write right now other than to say Rusty is at rest.  Yesterday was a very hard day for him.  He stumbled and fell every time he tried to walk.  His back feet had sores on top from being dragged around.  I just could not in good conscience hang on to him any longer.  I felt him telling me yesterday that he was tired of the struggle and he just wanted to be released.



We were fortunate to get the mobile vet to come out and attend to him here.  He passed from this life about 12:45 this afternoon, in his own backyard, lying on his own bed, and surrounded by those he loved and who loved him so very much in return.

Who are these skinny little fur kids?

Rusty would have been 15 years old on July 21.  He had a good life and was truly loved and outrageously spoiled.  And for all the spoiling on our part he remained sweet and unspoiled and pure of heart.


I am feeling a bit overwhelmed right now but if you would indulge me, I would like to put up a slide show of Rusty’s life in a day or so.  I think there is one dog in every dog person's life that is “THE” dog.  For me it was Rusty and he gave me almost 15 years of love and companionship.  I wish it could have been more.

Rusty has Wheels and I’ve Got a Cold

If you are a regular reader, you know the ongoing saga of my aging dog, Rusty, and his increasing lack of mobility.  Poor guy, he does his best but his hind legs just keep getting crossed up and tangled then he falls and he cannot keep up.  There are spots on the top of his rear feet where the hair has been rubbed off and the top of his nails are all worn down.  This is from dragging his feet and not being able to always walk on his pads.  It’s something like walking on your knuckles.  I bought him some booties but they just cause his feet to tangle more than they already do and make it harder for him to get around.

When I had my little Chihuahua years ago, she used to love to ride in a stroller.  I had thought about it for Rusty but he is so fiercely independent and also over 40lbs. so I didn’t think it would work for him.


  Yesterday we went to the lake and, after letting him out to sniff and pee for a bit and get his feet wet, I hoisted him into the stroller.  I expected a big struggle from him but to my surprise, he sat there like a good dog and seemed to enjoy the ride.  So here’s a picture of Rusty in his new-to-him wheels.


I kept him on a short leash in case he got any ideas but he never tried to jump out or acted like he didn’t like it.  Those red things hanging off the stroller handle are his booties.  He wore them in the water and was just barely managing to stay upright.  I took them off and hung them on the stroller to dry.  Miss Poppy, who is a tad lazy, was eyeing the stroller like, “Geez, mom, how does he rate?”!!!  So finally, we were able to take a good walk along the lake, rather than the few yards that we have been walking lately.

Last time I posted pictures of the sailboats in the marina Judy mentioned that all the sail covers were blue and thought a red one would be nice.  Well, here ya go Judy, Russ found one!!


There were also some guys out on paddle boards.  It was a great day for it as the lake was smooth and the weather warm and sunny.  I just don’t get the fun of standing on a board paddling around in the water though!!




Russ was also lucky enough to spot another Oregon alligator.  This species is not as rare as one might imagine, but you do have to look carefully to see them.


We also made a return visit to Hendricks Park.  This is a beautiful rhododendron and azalea garden and we wanted one last look before all the blooms had faded.  Most of the blossoms are already spent but we did find a few blooms left, along with some other flowers. 


This is a beautiful place to walk but, unfortunately, no dogs are allowed in the garden area. The paths and the dappled sunlight in this park make it a perfect place to take a stroll or just relax on the grass with a good book.



Our granddaughter, Bekah, came to visit this weekend and I spent some time with her making a new summer top.  I only did a small portion of the work.  I would say she completed 90% of it on her own.  She was feeling pretty comfortable with the sewing machine by the time she was done and she did an excellent job.  Unfortunately, Bekah had a cold and all that working together allowed her germs to jump all over me.  Used to be, I would never get sick but it seems my immune system just isn’t what is once was.  Now I am putting all my chores on hold and trying desperately to get better quickly.  We have two blogger couples that we are scheduled to meet with – one on Saturday and another on Monday and I don’t want to mess that up.  Vitamin C, zinc, Echinacea, cold capsules, hot tea with lemon and honey – it’s all on board.  All I am missing is the chicken soup and I don’t have enough energy to make a pot.  Maybe later cuz I gotta be well by Saturday.  Wish me luck!!

I Think I Saw Noah Float By!

After the longest May dry spell in 20 years (17 days), the rain returned to Eugene, OR today with a vengeance.  It was a nice gentle showery kind of day until mid-afternoon when we got a sudden deluge that threatened to float us all away.  The rain is expected to last until Friday when the sun is scheduled to make it’s next appearance.  That’s okay – at least I don’t have to do the watering tonight!



Yesterday was a mild, partly cloudy day and so off we went on a short adventure with our mutts.  We went to another park on the lake that we don’t get to visit much during the winter.  That’s because it’s closed ha-ha!!  Unlike Orchard Point, which stays open all year, Richardson (panorama above) closes for the winter.  There is a day use area and a campground there and the crowds are usually non-existent.

This is a great spot for a picnic – trees, table, BBQ, boat dock, and restrooms just out of view. 



Rusty did so well!  He did his little “shuffle and drag” all the way down to the water and he even got in!  He thinks he is swimming but in truth his feet were always touching bottom.





He enjoyed himself, even if he was exhausted by the time he made it back to the car.  And this is what the parking lot looked like when we left.


We also hung up the feeder I got for Mother’s Day.  However our hanging job was not very sturdy and the feeder was on the ground before we knew it.  Didn’t seem to stop the local wildlife from enjoying its bounty however.


Checking to make sure the coast is clear.


Enjoying a snack.


The End!

An Unexpected Blessing

First of all I want to express my sincere thanks to all of you who left encouraging comments on my post about Poppy.  Many of you had little tidbits of advice as well.  I sure appreciate hearing from all of you and the tips from those who have dealt with this problem are so welcome.  Yesterday was a bad day and Poppy was extremely uncooperative and hard to handle.  Felt like giving up but of course we won’t.  Thank you all.


We woke up this morning to NOT rain, but sunshine peeking through our curtains.  It was not expected so that made it a double blessing, as well as an unexpected one.  MUCH too nice of a day to sit inside and do chores, especially since the rain is due to return tomorrow.


We wrestled with Poppy for a while trying to get her pill and shot taken care of and then we took her with us to run a few errands.  Her urine test was still showing extremely high levels of glucose so we gave her a larger shot of insulin and did not want to leave her home alone. 


Poppy has had a bad infection in her foot and the vet has kept it bandaged.  To keep it dry, he taped a rubber glove over it.  However, after Poppy’s insulin shot and having an antibiotic capsule shoved down her gullet, I think she had had enough.  Although she is not normally a rude dog, I assume she was making her feelings known here.  Draw your own conclusions.



Our most important errand today was to get our new Lane County Parks Pass.  We get one of these every year.  For those holding a senior America the Beautiful Federal parks pass, the Lane County pass is only $15.  That is one heck of a deal as it provides free day use to any Lane County park that charges a day use fee.  Our favorite park at Fern Ridge Lake is a fee area so we get our money’s worth early on with that pass.  You may have read my blog earlier in the year about Harbor Vista on the Oregon coast.  That is also a Lane County Park so we get free day use whenever we go to Florence. 

So after that errand and a couple of store stops, we loaded up some lunch, threw the dogs in Therapy, and went off to the lake to eat lunch and take a little walk.

We had to park in the trailer area and can’t see the lake from there but it sure felt good just to take a ride in the motorhome.   As we were parking, I noticed a guy walking across the earthen dam at the top of the picture.  Before we got out of Therapy, he was down to the sidewalk telling us how he used to have a Lazy Daze and how much he liked it.  Of course we invited him to come on in and have a look and he sure seemed to enjoy visiting.  He was a nice guy and after having a look inside, he was off to finish his walk.



Surprisingly, Rusty wanted to go too and with a little help he was able to get into and out of the motorhome just fine.   His first priority was to see the lake.  Fern Ridge is as full as I have ever seen it.  We have had so much rain lately that there is standing water and near flood conditions in many areas.  Normally you have to walk DOWN the gangplank to get to the pier, but today it seemed like the gangplank walk was slightly uphill.



There were a couple of boats being pulled out as we walked by.  The wind was picking up and it was too choppy to have a smooth ride.  The waves were breaking near the sidewalk as Rusty went to inspect the water.



He decided the water was too rough for wading and then Poppy had to check it out.



After a quick check she too decided Thanks, but no thanks, and edged away from the water.



It took a lot out of Rusty to walk as far as he did and he was really stumbling by the time we got back to the motorhome, but he was a happy dog.  The moon was already showing over the park – such a pretty sight.



After a little drive we arrived back home.  I am happy to report that Poppy FINALLY had a normal reading on her urine test!  Now I have to watch and make sure she does not go too low but at least I feel we are making progress.  If we can just get her dosage regulated to provide the maximum benefit, we will feel so much better about everything.  We have again placed all travel plans on hold until we get this thing figured out.

For the first time EVER, Poppy lost control of her bladder in the car yesterday.  She was so embarrassed.  We have noticed a couple of wet spots in on the bath rugs where she naps too so I think that is a problem with the high blood sugar.  She drinks excessive amounts of water and what goes in must come out and she doesn’t always make it outside.  We cannot travel with her having a problem like that so we will just wait until things are more regular.  Her foot looks better this evening too so we have some hope of progress.

And just to show that things are starting to bloom here is the chilly Pacific NW, here’s a dainty little flower we found blooming at the lake. 



Do you think spring might be just around the corner for us in the cold, cold north too? 

Thanks All…

Thank you all so much for your comments and suggestions yesterday.  I did take it all to heart and am pulling a few things out everyday and finding new homes for them.  My daughter is trying to downsize too so she didn’t want much but she did offer a home to some unused picture frames!  So far I haven’t found anyone who wants the cassette tape storage cases, can you imagine??

I am glad no one suggested a garage sale.  I just can’t do those anymore.  So much work and then you make $200 and spend half of it on pizza and Coke for your helpers!  But the worst part is having complete strangers pawing through your stuff and offering you a nickel for something that in your mind is worth at least fifty bucks…and that’s not counting sentimental value.  Much easier to give it away and be done with it.  In my next life, I swear I am going to move every five years whether I need to or not!  Staying in the same house for 35+ years just makes it too easy to accumulate “stuff.” 

So not much else to report.  Russ had a doctor’s appointment today and the nurse was nice enough to include me in the flu shot dispensing, even though I didn’t have an appointment.  Glad to get that out of the way.

And now for some gratuitous dog pictures!  Ya’ll know how much I love my dogs.  I admit Rusty is getting a little clumsy and senile but he is still my boy.  He loves nothing better than to sit and watch the pool and the yard.  Most of the time he wants the sliding door open and he’ll lay on the carpet with just his paws in the doorway so I can’t shut the door.  Yes, I indulge him!  But yesterday the weather was not too hot and not too cold and he enjoyed just laying on the deck.  I had to get some pictures as I still think he’s a handsome older fella…








It seems so many bloggers have lost their pets recently and my heart breaks for each one of them.  I am so grateful for each day I have with Rusty and Poppy.  They truly are my fur kids.

Rusty is Home and more on our trip

First I want to thank you all for your kind comments and positive thoughts and prayers for Rusty.  We just got him home.  He was on IV fluids and antibiotics all day and seems to be doing better.  The vet thinks he maybe got some bad water but most of his tummy problems were likely caused from stress.  He said Rusty should not be traveling on long trips.  Even though he wants to be with us, it is painful on his spine and that in turn sets up a stress reaction and causes intestinal distress.  The vet said Rusty has great heart and lungs so he should be good to go until his back legs give out.  No way to tell when that will happen.  The X-rays show some marked narrowing in his cervical spine and that is no doubt pinching some nerves and causing some instability in his hindquarters.  He does NOT recommend surgery on Rusty at his age.  We will most likely stick closer to home this winter as I do not want to be so far away and leave Rusty with a sitter for months at a time.  He is more important than our travel plans.  We will still take some shorter trips when we can.  Rusty is fine here with Christopher (our long time house sitter) but I want to be able to get home in a hurry if he takes a turn for the worse. 

 Also, we have not had Internet or TV except the first night we were gone.  I was so sorry to hear of the tornado near Al's place in Canada.  Thankfully it missed Bayfield, but nearby Goderich had some bad damage and even one death due to the tornado.  Al has some pictures of the storm up on the last several of his blog posts.

I also read of the approach of Hurricane Irene.  Hoping for the best for all of our east coast bloggers.

I also read an interesting post from a lifelong PC user who just bought his first Apple iMac.  Mike seems to be a convert to Apple.  I'm still a PC person but I liked the info in his post.  And Rick talked about how to avoid roaming charges on the iPhone...so I got caught up on some good techie info.  Now if I just had an iPhone and an iPad I'd be in business!  I am still wondering what to do about internet when we travel.  And speaking of iPad, Kate sent me some great photos from her iPad today and she had some wonderful photos on her blog.  Thanks Kate.

And now, here's what I would have posted on Monday, had I had internet!

Sunday, August 21, 2011

We left the KOA in Culver and headed for the Deschutes State Recreation area for our camp-out with Russ’s family.  As we left the park we had a great view of Mt. Jefferson – another reason to like the wide open spaces of central Oregon.


Like Sue recently said as they drove up Hwy. 97 on the first leg of their trip to Alaska, there’s a lot of desolate country between here and anywhere you happen to be going.  But even that has it’s own stark beauty.

We passed through the little “Ghost Town” of Shaniko but it was too hot and crowded to stop.  It was only about a block long of old stores and such and there were several rigs already taking up most of the parking.

The town has an ice cream parlor…

…a general store…



…a post office, restaurant, and a few other buildings and that’s about it.



However, we did find a retirement cabin for sale that we could afford.



We bypassed the little town of Antelope, OR but it has a VERY interesting history…full of intrigue and malicious plots.  You can read about the  bioterror attack ... lots of drama for such a small town.

As we traveled we saw stunning views of Mt. Hood and Mt. Adams.  Clear blue skies made the mountains stand out in stark relief.

I set a course on the GPS for the Deschutes park we were going to.  When we got to Moro, the GPS said turn on 4th St.  Okay…did that.  We didn’t see a sign that said anything about the Deschutes Park, but the GPS said turn and so we did.  The first hint of trouble was the sign that said, “No Through Trucks.”  But it didn’t say “no motorhomes” so away we went trusting in Sam to get us where we were headed.  The road was a typical country lane, but it was paved and wide enough so we figured it was just the back way into the park…besides there was NO PLACE to turn around.

We continued on to Foss Lane as the GPS instructed and when we arrived we saw it was nothing but a gravel lane.  There was a house on the corner and a hayfield across the street and that was IT.  The GPS said 20 MORE MILES on this road to the park.  NO WAY...we could tell by dead reckoning that we were no where close to where we should be.  So, looking at the road, the clear area in front of the house, and the hayfield, we figured we had just enough room to turn around.  Russ started the turn, missed the mailbox, went a few feet into the hayfield, and OOOPS...no way could he continue the turn.  Nothing to do but unhitch the toad, get turned around, re-hitch and get the heck out of there.  

As we drove away, Russ waved to the old lady who had been sitting in her deck chair watching the whole process.  Bet she has something to laugh about all week.  Spread the joy where you can!

We were still looking for signs to the campground but didn’t see anything.  Made it to I-84.  I asked Russ to call his sister and find our which exit to take.  “Don’t worry,” says Russ, “You can see it from the road.  Besides, there’s bound to be a sign.”  Famous last words.  We crossed the Deschutes River and there was no sign.  In desperation I called Alice and asked her which exit to take.  “Number 97,” says Alice, “There’s a sign.”  Exit 97 was coming right up but the sign said Celilo Park” …nothing about Deschutes Park.  Took the exit anyway and THEN there was a sign – but it was after the exit and no way to see it from the highway.

But we were there!  And it was blistering HOT.  102 F, which is HOT in anyone’s language!  Don’t you just hate getting set up in that kind of heat?  And no sewer hook-up (which we knew) and no dump station (which we did not).  We were 1/3 full on both tanks so wanting to preserve our resources, we opted to use the camp facilities.  After all our wandering around looking for  signs, we were ready.
 
Remember back when there were restroom signs with actual WORDS on them like ‘MEN’ and ‘WOMEN’?  Now all they have are those funny little pictures and symbols, which can be confusing if you are old and in a hurry.  Russ saw the handicapped accessible symbol and thought it was a unisex restroom.  He kinda wondered why there were several stalls and no urinals but didn’t think too much about it.  When we took a walk later he was telling me how weird the restrooms were and I pointed out  the sign with the skirted stick figure on it.  “That means women,” I told him.  OOOPS!   He did say that someone else came in and used the facilities while he was in there but at least the stall door was shut and the person probably had no idea she was sharing with a man!  Oh well!

The campground was pretty enough, right on the Deschutes River and lots and lots of very lush grass.  They keep the sprinklers running almost all the time in one area or another and it looks like it would be a very nice place to stay.  But we just could not handle the heat.  One night was all we could take.  It was so hot I just was not even motivated to take out the camera and get a photo.  Maybe next time – like in the late fall or winter!

We are now on the Oregon coast at Fort Stevens State Park.  More on that later – I have gone on WAAAY too long.