Trinket Is My Sweet Baboo

Between this picture and the one from couple weeks ago, you see all the humans that Trinket would allow to hold him. He's all Chihuahua in that regard, two people dog, no more. Our faithful pup he is.

The Pill War II

Let review what we've tried for Trinket so far for his pill taking:
1. Provolone cheese (too strong)
2. Pill pockets (too doggie)
3. Turkey deli meat (too whatever)
4. Liver treats (gag)
5. Plain toast (too crumbie)

Here is the latest routine (it's been working for the past couple of days, so keep our fingers crossed it's going to stay working):
1. Dad gets a vanilla wafer cookie and break it into four pieces -- one half and two quarters
2. One quarter goes to Trinket
3. One quarter goes to Bucky because by now he knows Trinket gets treats and he can't miss out on it
4. Dad puts a dab of peanut butter on top of the half cookie and quickly sticks the pill in the middle of the peanut butter
5. Trinket gobbles it up
6. We wait and make sure he swallows, cause sometimes that rascal does spit out the pill and we have to start all over.

Bucky says he'd prefer the pill pocket, thank you. Wait, with some of that turkey please. And liver treats. On a piece of toast. Might as well have the cookie and peanut butter. With cheese on top.

Humming Birds

Last week I was at a home with a large orange tree for Village Harvest. My friend Pat pointed out that there was a humming bird nest on one of the branches. I really had to kick myself for not having my camera with me, cause from the ladder we could see the little chicks in the nest, little yellow beaks and all.

Then Pat told me this lovely story how she saved a humming bird chick in her own backyard. Apparently the nest fell apart after a rain storm, and one of the chicks fell out. She put the chick in a tiny Christmas basket and hang it next to the original nest. Luckily mom-bird fed both chicks till they flew the coop. Pat uploaded all the pictures of the chain of events here.

Enjoy!

The Pill War

Trinket has been very healthy all his life, so we never learned his pill habit -- as in, how difficult it is to make him take pills. We know he's a picky eater, even has to sniff test his water every morning, as if from day to day the filter might just change a bit, well I guess that could be true. When he was a baby I used to hand feed him kibbles, or give him table food when he refused his meals. He's our first born, what can I say.

Last week Dr. Larsen prescribed couple of meds for Trinket -- Enacard for the heart, twice a day, and Torbutrol for breathing, as needed. That's at least two meds a day. First we did fine with cheese, good Provolone cheese. Did that for four days until Trinket turned his nose at it -- too strong, I'm a little dog after all. We ran out and bought pill pockets, which worked magic for Bucky. Did that for another four days, until Trinket started spitting the little balled up pocket out, no like it, want real food, this is for dogs.

Trinket's Dad is a big guy at six foot four, I mean he's A LOT bigger than the little dog. When Trinket gets nasty about things like taking pills and I don't feel like fighting those sparkly little canines, we bring out the big gun. Trinket and Dad settled on a pill routine something like this:

1. Dad brings out a pack of deli meat and offer Trinket a little piece.
2. Trinket: Yum, turkey, good stuff. Can I have more?
3. Dad gives Trinket another piece.
4. More?
5. Dad quickly wraps the pill in a piece of turkey, before Trinket figures out what's going on.
6. Trinket happily eats it.

Stay tuned.

Little Dog with a Big Heart

Trinket turned 15 in January, that's pretty old. He still acts like a puppy for the most part, runs up and down the stairs, stands on his hind legs and begs at the table, chases away cats and squirrels in the back yard. He doesn't hear nor see very well any more, which just makes him a bit more reasonable.

In the last couple of years his breathing has been getting noisier, especially at night. Sometimes he hacks as if imitating a cat coughing up a hairball. We thought we should consider sending him to the circus. He doesn't like visiting the vet, and we let him be.

Last weekend Trinket started hacking on and off rather loudly, more frequently than before, and worse at night, much worse than anything we'd seen. We called the vet and she said it might have to do with his heart since she detected heart murmur before. We took him in right away. Dr. Larsen managed to get couple of X-rays of his chest without any drugs, just a little cat muzzle. (Did I mention Trinket doesn't like her? He really shows it, physically.) The X-rays show Trinket has enlarged heart and collapsed trachea, both problems that we had a sense that existed, but now aggravated by old age. We got medications to help his breathing.

It's been three days since we started the medications and so far so good. We are all getting some sleep. Trinket is rather liking the pills routine, which involves a piece of cheese and some scratches behind the ears. 

Keep your fingers and toes crossed Trinket will maintain his health and snuggle with us for many more days and weeks and months.