Day 3060

I felt old and tired today. Why? I mowed the grass and went up on the roof to inspect for damage again. I'm either going to need to buy a self propelled mower or hire a lawn care service. Pushing this mower up and down hills is becoming harder and harder. I noticed something strange today. Even though I did quite a bit of walking mowing the grass, my fitness tracker didn't record any steps. I guess you have to be moving your arms for the step counter to work. When you're pushing a lawn mower your arms are extended straight out in front of you, holding on to the handle. I feel cheated. There should have been a lot more steps today.

Dash's boot fell off again this morning. He got alarmed at a dog up ahead and tried to turn around quickly. Unfortunately, his rear legs didn't leave the ground when he made this move and the boot twisted off. Once again, I couldn't get the boot back on again my myself and we had to finish the walk without it. Even though we didn't walk far, there was a raw spot on his paw when we returned. I've got to figure a way to get the boots on securely before we leave the house. I don't think there's another boot we could try. We're already using the most durable, best fitting boots out there.

I discovered more damaged areas on the roof this morning. Luckily, we haven't had any rain in a while and the roof was dry. I tried to contact the roofer again and this time I hit pay dirt. The roofer promised that his crew would be out at my house on Monday. I hope they can repair things correctly this time. I'm really getting tired of having to go up on the roof every week. I rarely use a ladder to get up on the roof. There is a decorative pattern of protruding bricks on one of the walls and I use these bricks to access the roof. Climbing up on the roof is almost like going to one of those indoor rock climbing centers. Like the heavy lawn mower, this is one more thing I'm getting way too old to mess with.

There was blood on the bedspread this morning. It didn't take long to discover that it was coming from Dash's mouth. He's had an infection on his lip that we've been treating with medicated pads our vet gave us. The medication doesn't appear to be working. When I looked at Dash's mouth this morning, the sore spot on his lip had gotten worse. We think this is a viral or bacterial infection that Dash picked up from spending so much time smelling things in the park. Mostly he smells where other dogs have peed. This is probably a good way to pick up an infection. Dash has more than enough wrong with him already, but I bet we're going to be adding an oral antibiotic to his list of daily meds.

I went back to the place where I had some tasty Eggs Benedict a few weeks ago. Unfortunately, the place has a new chef who decided to take liberties with the hollandaise sauce. Today's creation had something that could only be described as Mexican hollandaise. It was pink and very spicy. I didn't like it at all. Jeez. Why would you even think about messing with Eggs Benedict?

I watched Space X launch the new Block 5 version of the Falcon 9 this afternoon. At the end of these launch broadcasts, the on-camera presenter usually says something like "If you enjoyed this broadcast, come join us." Then there is always a web address for Space X career opportunities. If I were younger, I would definitely follow up on this. This is one of the few companies around that is actually doing something I believe in.

Dodger is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1675

What a difference a day makes. This morning Dot seemed fine. Now she's hooked up to IV tubes at the emergency vet. We still don't know what's wrong. The day certainly started out normally. Dot ate a good breakfast. We took a nice walk. It was just an ordinary Thursday. After lunch, I let the dogs out in the back yard to pee, and then Dot took a nap by my desk, just like she usually does every day.

I became alarmed when she didn't get up again. Instead of following me back and forth around the house like she usually does, she stayed under the desk, panting heavily and appearing visibly uncomfortable. When she still refused to move and wouldn't eat her favorite treats after I let her rest for a while, I called her vet. Actually, I called all her vets, because she has several. When an old dog refuses to get up and isn't enticed by food or water, you really start to worry.

After a quickly scheduled exam, which included x-rays and new blood work, we discovered that she had an unusually high while blood cell count and was running a high fever. This usually indicates severe inflammation or infection. There were no immediate explanations as to how her condition could have changed so rapidly, but everyone agreed that the most important thing was to get her fever down and get her on some antibiotics and anti-inflammatory medications. The vet thought that she might have a bacterial infection, a virus, or even pancreatitis.

Dot needed to be on intravenous fluids so she wouldn't get dehydrated, antibiotics to fight the infections, and pain medication to relieve her obvious discomfort. To get this kind of care, we needed to take her to a 24-hour emergency vet. She is resting at the emergency vet now. Her fever has subsided a bit and after further testing, we now know that she does not have pancreatitis. Hopefully we will know more when we pick her up in the morning to take her back to our regular vet. The emergency clinic is only open at night when regular veterinary hospitals are closed. I hate to haul her back and forth like this when she's sick, but there is really no choice.

Hopefully we will know more in the morning. It's possible that she might have a type of cancer that is undetectable in the early stages. I'm going to be optimistic though. I'm hoping that she has an easily curable bacterial infection that she got from eating something bad. All I know now is that Dot is very sick.

Riley is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day