Sunday, August 29, 2010

Elvis' Absolute Favortist Treat...

...in the WHOLE world.

He loves popcorn. With a passion he loves it. Particularly kettle corn.

But now the love has ascended new heights.

Last night for our DVD Date Night, we popped the usual bag of kettle corn, but this time I sprinkled it with a topping of sugar, cinnamon and Cayenne pepper.

OHMIGOD. Elvis thought he'd died and gone to heaven. I got a couple of videos, but I need to get them edited and shrunk first. If they don't turn out OK, I'll take more next week, but suffice it to say Elvis has never tasted anything in his life that tastes as good as the sprinkled popcorn.

Sunday, August 22, 2010

Quick update

All is well here. :)

My mother came in from Dallas last Tuesday and left Friday morning, so we were busy doing family stuff last week.

Elvis is doing just fine. He handled the week's turmoil well, and he had Skeeter sleeping with him each night since the two cats were out and about. While Howdy has never gone in for a stare down at the crate door, Ollie was out for the first time, and we weren't sure how things would go. Didn't hear a peep out of Elvis those three nights, so all was well there.

As a quick note. There was a VERY unexpected check show up here a couple of weeks ago, and some much, much needed work around the house is going to be done. One of the main disturbances for Elvis will be new laminate counters going in in the kitchen. That means that along with the banging and strange people here, the Foodlady will be taking time out of the kitchen. There will also be other badly needed improvement projects going on...mainly painting...so that will also be taking up my time.

I'm hoping to have the counters, new sink/faucet in by late September, and the painting will be going on for probably a year (there's a room full of paneling that I have to tackle), but I will keep the blog updated with at least weekly updates unless there's a need for more frequent ones.

Friday, August 13, 2010

Whoa!

Whoa! Color me stunned.

My dad and stepmom came over for some cake today (yesterday was my dad's b-day), and, like normal, Elvis and Skeeter were crated initially until everyone got inside and settled. Then I let the boys out to join us in the living room.

Elvis wouldn't really come up to my stepmom, which was sort of surprising, but when I came back in the room from turning on the coffee, Elvis was up on the sofa next to my dad. Granted, Skeeter (and Randall) were both up there, but Randall said when he sat him down at the end of the sofa, he walked over to get between him and my dad. Surprising, but even more surprising was that Elvis sat there for the longest time while my dad petted him and scratched his ears and head.

Elvis was MOST content. And I was MOST shocked. Wish I could have taken a picture. This was the first time Elvis had ever done this with my dad.

Sunday, August 08, 2010

All is well in Elvis's world

Haley is well and truly out of season, and all is now normal with Elvis.

WOOT!

He's sleeping in his own crate in the den.

He's very much interested in racing Skeeter down the path. The competition focus has changed, which is excellent because I could see Elvis deciding he needed to defend his chosen lady, and coming out on the losing end if only because Skeeter has teeth, and I would have come down on him from great height.

He's interested in DVD Date Night popcorn, his morning treat (4 Cheerios), his breakfast, his dinner and our dinner. The Foodlady has, once again, come to rule his world.

He's not particularly concerned about Haley any longer. He checks her out a couple of times a day, but that's it.

And the constant leg hiking has stopped. I'd forgotten what a pain in the butt it was to have a stud dog around, but this brought it back into clear, sharp focus.

He got his heartworm treatment last Sunday, and there weren't any negative reactions.

So it looks like all is well. He's back to his normal routine and his normal meds and I, for one, am very grateful.

I'll probably not post an update until next weekend because I anticipate me doing a lot around the house in preparation for company.

Monday, August 02, 2010

Back to Normal

Or pretty much so.

Which is a HUGE relief!

Last night, Elvis slept in his crate in the den. For the last several nights, he's been in his crate in our room, which actually worked well from a sleep standpoint for me, but made the room a bit hard to navigate at night...even though we have a large bedroom, having a second crate in here that had to face Haley's crate was a bit awkward.

In the interest of a full night's sleep, I gave him 1/2 Torb and 1/4 Valium right before bed and then we put Skeeter in with him. Tonight, I hope to have Skeeter sleep in his crate, though whether or not I'll have to give Elvis any medication sort of depends on how the day/evening goes.

Last night was heartworm pill night. Elvis has been on treatment now for about 9 months. Eventually the adult infestation will simply die off due to age, and there will be no new ones to take their place. That is a two year process and, of course, dependent on how long Elvis is with us, but he's doing so well that we'll just keep on keeping on. As I've written before, there is a quicker method to ridding dogs of heartworm infestations, but with Elvis's many medical problems, I wasn't willing to go that route. This is the method that is easier on the dog, so while it takes longer, it's the best way for him.

I'll probably post another update later in the week unless things change here. It's so hot (today it's supposed to be 105), that Randall and I try to get things done in the morning and then spend the rest of the day in the house with the curtains drawn to keep the sun/heat out. And, of course, all the dogs' time outside is very limited...it's just far too hot for them to be out for any length of time.