pet connection

I guess I wasn’t quite done blogging here yet. My sister just called me with a dog problem, and I thought some of you might have some good advice for her. Susie lives in El Dorado, a rural area just outside of Santa Fe, New Mexico. None of the homes in the area have fenced yards, except maybe for courtyards. Each home is on two or more acres. Susie likes to go for walks and just recently a dog belonging to one of the neighbors has started to menace her. She describes him as big–”more than 50 pounds”–and thinks he is a Chow mix.

So far, she has done all the right things, especially for not really being a dog person. The first time, she stood still, was careful not to stare at the dog and backed away slowly. She yelled for help but no one came out. She ended up just going back the way she had come to get back to her house. The next time, the dog waited until she was on the road in front of his house and ambushed her, running out at her and barking. She had brought bear spray with her this time. The spray seemed to startle him and he backed off to his house but was still barking at her, so she didn’t think it disabled him any. She sprayed it from quite a distance, though (15 feet, maybe), and unfortunately sucked in some of it herself.

Other people, including children, have been threatened by the dog. Animal control has been called but they’re on the other side of Santa Fe County and by the time they get there the dog is inside and the people won’t answer the door. The dog apparently belongs to the homeowner’s live-in boyfriend. The homeowners association has been notified and has gotten a lawyer, but so far the people have ignored demands to confine the dog.

I suggested that she get an air horn to blast at the dog but am otherwise at a loss if animal control and the HOA have already been notified and even a lawyer and the threat of a lawsuit haven’t made the owners budge. I don’t want to get a call that she’s been bitten or worse, and I don’t especially like the idea of her getting a gun and blasting away at the dog (at the neighbors, maybe).  Advice?

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Twyla is home. We picked her up at noon today. Her meds have been tweaked–more furosemide, as I expected–and some potassium supplements. She sees the cardiologist on Wednesday, and he may make further adjustments. Thank you all for your support and kind words, not just during this episode but all through Bella’s last years and recent death, and of course the happy times of Harper’s puppyhood and maturation into a smart, sweet young dog.

I have come to know many of you and consider you friends. I’ve learned a lot from and been entertained by the comments to my various posts and hope that you have in turn found them useful, thought-provoking or at least entertaining. I have just finished cutting and pasting all of my PetConnection posts since I began blogging here in 2007–more than 102,000 words–and it has been a fun journey down memory lane. I had forgotten a lot, and now I’m happy to have a record of so many of the things my dogs and I did, the topics that have interested me over the past four years, and even some of the trips I’ve taken.

My colleagues here on PetConnection and on the blogroll, some of whom I’ve known and respected for more than 20 years now, have been the best anyone could hope for. Their intelligence, passion, grace and writing ability have been an inspiration.

I hope we’ll all keep in touch via Facebook or Twitter, or maybe I’ll see you over on VetStreet. Happy trails!

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I feel sorry for veterinarians. It must be so difficult to be trained to save animals’ lives and then be told on a regular basis that owners can’t afford the treatment. Economic euthanasia, it’s called. Jerry still vividly recalls being at the specialty hospital with our Greyhound and watching a father have to tell his young son that they couldn’t afford to treat their dog. I would never judge anyone who’s made that decision, and I am grateful every day that I’ve never had to make it. But today, I hope that I was able to make a veterinarian’s day. I think maybe I did, a little bit anyway.

I had to take Twyla to the hospital this morning. When Jerry got up to feed the girls, he noticed that Twyla’s breathing sounded wet, and occasionally she was having a little trouble drawing breath. He didn’t think she should wait to be seen at our regular vet, so I drove her to the ER. Luckily, the timing and the traffic gods were with us, and we didn’t get stopped in rush-hour traffic and no traffic cops saw me zoom through a green light going 60 instead of 50. They took us right in–I had called ahead–and within a few minutes the veterinarian was telling me that Twyla was in congestive heart failure.

“You should know that once they reach this stage, the prognosis isn’t very good,” she said. “Do you want to proceed with treatment?”

I probably had a stunned expression on my face. “Of course.”

Later, she was giving me the estimate for two to three days of hospitalization, in something of a resigned tone of voice. I’m sure the voice in her head was thinking, “Well, now she’ll change her mind.”

She barely got the numbers out before I said “Fine.”

Then she smiled big.

Now I’m smiling, for a while, anyway, because Twyla is doing better. We might be able to take her home tomorrow.

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The best parts of the weekend in Washington weren’t liveblogged. Sorry, but it’s true. Spending a sublime evening with Christie on the roof terrace of the Kennedy Center and enjoying quality time with two dear friends in Maryland are just a couple of the memories from the weekend I’ll keep long after the content of any particular session fades away.

Then there was the lunchtime talk on Saturday, given by Seth Godin. Seth is one of the best speakers and thinkers out there these days. If you’re not familiar with him, I urge you to read his books, particularly “Tribes.” Additionally, if you ever get a chance to see Seth’s presentation in person, please don’t pass it up. He’s worth every second. Seth talked about how our methods of communication, and therefore how we interact with each other have been revolutionized in the past decade. He challenged the No Kill 2011 attendees to not wait for someone else to take the initiative in transforming their city’s shelter philosophy, but to be that visionary. There may only be one Nathan Winograd, but there is always room for the next Bonney Brown or Ryan Clinton to step up and grab the initiative. Why didn’t I blog Seth’s speech? I was too busy paying attention. His slide show alone is worth the price of admission. Also, I was eating lunch.

That brings us to the most important conversation of the weekend for me. Sunday morning, I joined Christie and Shirley Thistlethwaite (of YesBiscuit! fame) for breakfast at a downtown hotel. Shirley’s work on the ongoing tragedy in Memphis alone makes her an indispensable voice in the No Kill blogging community. It’s been more than a year since I composed a news roundup before checking in to see what Shirley’s up to first. She’s always working hard, staying current, and challenging the powers that be to protect the dogs and cats that are still being killed at an alarming rate from sea to shining sea.

Christie, Shirley and I talked about Seth’s charge to the conference, particularly in light of what is taking place in Memphis. Dogs and cats are dying, and it’s expected the webcam that afforded Shirley the glimpse into the horrors at the Memphis Animal Shelter will be shut down. My question was who is (or would be soon) taking the lead on the ground? I suggested that someone needs to “fire on Fort Sumter.”

Before the Civil War started, the question of slavery was on everyone’s tongue. The rumors of an impending showdown bubbled for years.  Harriet Beecher Stowe’s “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” woke the nation to the horrors of what slavery really meant to the degradation and destruction of innocent human beings. Still, until Fort Sumter was fired upon and the the war began in earnest, the issue wasn’t going to be decided. That one event finally lit the fuse. In Memphis, in New York state, and other regions of the country, innocent animals are being slaughtered daily, and we’re waiting for the battle to be joined. I’m a journalist, and I’d like to hope that over the sweltering weekend in Washington, I witnessed the kindling of a renewed fight against the forces of inertia, laziness and expediency. But if nobody steps up, this golden opportunity to make a difference is squandered. We can’t afford that, and most importantly, dogs and cats everywhere can’t afford it. They’re not just numbers. They’re furry balls of love, and their fate sits squarely in the hands of the people who listened to Seth Godin’s challenge on Saturday to stand up and take a chance.

Nathan, Ryan, Christie and other speakers sketched out the requirements for the next generation of leaders. Now it’s up to the No Kill 2011 attendees to heed Seth Godin’s challenge. They must create their own road maps. The resistance against change is intense and intimidating. Success will require much more than a love of animals. It demands a steadfast refusal to compromise.

Real No Kill progress from the new generation of shelter directors will depend on imagination, determination, compassion, and a stubborn resolve to not allow killing as an option. Only time will tell, and I’d suggest the place to watch today is Memphis. Has Shirley’s bright spotlight spurred real change? Will someone answer Seth Godin’s call? Will we see the next great success story to follow Austin, Charlottesville and Reno?  If so, we can pronounce this past weekend a triumph. If not, more animals will pay the price.

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My 16 year-old daughter was asked to write an impromptu speech in her rhetoric class about something that stirs her passion. She gave me permission to share this with you. I’m not so sure that all the traits she inherited from me are necessarily admirable. However, when it comes to her feelings about animals, I’m pleased and proud to report that the nut doesn’t fall too far from the tree!

“A dog, a friend, a keeper of all secrets, one who holds no grudges and does not judge. Have you ever said that your dog is your best friend? I don’t know about you, but I wouldn’t throw my best friend into the streets when times got tough. However, some people do.

First of all, we can mutually agree that the world is going through an economic crisis. People are forced to make life-changing decisions about what is affordable.

But then, is it the heater, the car, the cable television, or the dog that goes? (I know sounds crazy right?!) Sadly, this is truth. In these times of struggle a dog is commonly thrown out the front door. The minor case of arthritis suddenly becomes the dog’s worst nightmare when the cost of medication cannot seem to be met.

Priorities people, priorities! How do things that keep us lifted in times of struggle suddenly seem impossible to manage? Yes, if worse comes to worse, and you are a victim of the next Great Depression, you just might end up living on the streets in the middle of winter, shivering so badly you can’t even speak. However, in the midst of this cold darkness, at least you’ll have your dog by your side to provide you with the love and warmth you need to make it through the night.

The point I’m trying to make is that when times get tough and not everything is affordable, most people look past what is most important, when in reality, a dog is priceless.”

Photograph by Susannah Kay

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