In Loving Memory of our Dog Ellie

We said good-bye to our sweet Australian shepherd, Miss Ellie (aka Wiggle-Butt), on Monday, May 13th. She was suffering from Lymphoma and her quality of life quickly declined. We used Houston Mobile Vet so Ellie could remain in the comfort of home. Dr. Angela Donaruma and her assistant were great and I highly recommend them. Ellie went very peacefully with us there beside her. She had a good, long life of 15 or 16 years. We aren't sure exactly how old she was as we adopted her in 2001 from a shelter.

I'll never forget the day we went to pick up Ellie. We had been searching for a playmate for Einstein, our oldest dog, who at the time was four years old. Einstein went with us to get her and bring her home. Ellie had been at the shelter for around six months. As soon as we got her in the truck, we noticed she stunk pretty bad and she was covered in ticks. So the first thing she got when we got home was a bath to remove the ticks and get rid of the stink! The first thing Ellie wanted to do was roll in the grass! There was no grass outside (just dirt) at the shelter and she thoroughly enjoyed rolling in the grass at her new home as often as possible.

Her favorite thing was going to our ranch with Einstein (and then the other dogs too). As soon as we would arrive, she and Einstein would bark at us to go for a walk on our trail around the perimeter of the property. They had acres and acres to run but wanted to go for our walk! Ellie always had to be the leader, usually way ahead of us, stopping occasionally to let us catch up. She had the best time there, running as fast and as far as she could. She was really fast too! She could run circles around Einstein and then stop on a dime. They would chase each other through the creek that runs through our property and go swimming in the pond or find some old deer or cow bone to drag home.

Ellie loved people so much, every time someone in the vicinity was coming out of their house or car, she would want to go over and see them. She thought everyone was here to see her and give her pets. One time on a trip to the ranch with my husband, he stopped at the feed store to get some feed and hay for the horses. He left the window in the truck rolled down when he went inside the store. Ellie jumped out of the window and went in the feed store just talking up a storm to everyone. After that, she always had to go in the feed store and say hello to everyone. She was the sweetest dog. So full of love for everyone. 

She loved the country life and she loved the city life too, with all it's activity, people and her walks in the neighborhood. She loved our other dogs and was happy to give her position of alpha female to Cali once she joined the family. She was always sweet with the cats too. Ellie was a good singer. A fast licker. She loved to give kisses. 

She was so incredibly resilient. She went through a lot health-wise. She had arthroscopic surgery on her elbows, two surgeries to remove mast cell tumors, a splenectomy and tumor removal and then had  immune-mediated hemolytic anemia. All within about a four year span. It's no wonder she got highly stressed out going to any kind of vet clinic. Thank God for the recent advent of mobile vets. I'm comforted knowing that now she has crossed over the rainbow bridge, she is whole again, without the pain and suffering, running and playing with the rest of our pets who have crossed over.

We couldn't have asked for a better dog. Such a sweet angel. We will miss her a lot!

In Loving Memory of Our Cat Emma

Our sweet little Emma passed away peacefully at home yesterday. She had been under hospice care for the last couple of weeks. We're not sure exactly how old she was but our guess is at least 17. We "officially" adopted her nine years ago when we finally managed to catch her and bring her inside. We had her checked out by a vet along with being spayed, her teeth cleaned and two teeth pulled. We had been feeding her for about a year and a half on our front porch; at first once a day and then twice daily. She was a petite (weighed 8 pounds at her heaviest), scrawny cat with a very thin coat and a back full of scabs. She looked like she had been always living outside and that she had had a rough life. She just appeared one day in our front yard. We weren't sure where she came from but we suspected she came from a house on the next block over that had a lot of cats in the backyard. Those people had moved, the house had been torn down and a new two-story house was taking it's place. We put out some left over can food that our cats didn't finish and she showed up every morning to get fed. Eventually she started showing up in the evening as well so we fed her twice a day. She would only eat the food if we went back inside, out of sight. She was hungry, but she was not trusting of people at all. She would always stay several feet away and if you tried to get closer, she would back away. It took us a year and a half of feeding and talking to her before she let us close enough to pet her. 

Not long after we began feeding Emma, she showed up with a kitten. They didn't stay long and I never saw that kitten again. Then several weeks later in the middle of the night, I swore I heard a cat crying. In the morning I woke up to that sound again. The sound of a cat crying. I jumped up and went outside. I couldn't see a cat, but I could hear it. I couldn't believe no one else was looking for it, it was so loud. So I just followed the sound to across the street in a neighbor's driveway, next to the bushes and there was this tiny little six week old kitten just screaming his head off. I knew the people in this house or in the other houses near by did not have a cat and a kitten this small shouldn't be outside by itself. This is how I found Webster, our cat for 9 years. We believe he was Emma's kitten. He ended up getting adopted before Emma as we still hadn't been able to get close to her yet.

Once Emma recovered from her surgery and got acclimated to being indoors, she got to meet the other six animals; our four dogs and two cats. And although we had seen Webster and Emma together in the front yard more than once (like they knew each other) before we brought her inside, once she was in, Webster was the most upset by her presence. He really got bent out of shape that she was now part of the household. He acted afraid of her & would stay away from her. He did eventually get over it though. Emma was so sweet and passive to not only us but all the other animals. She was so happy and thankful to be safe, inside, and have steady meals. And she loved all the other pets. She never got in anyone's way, stole anyone's food or treats, picked fights or ever did anything wrong. Even if one of the other cats picked on her from time to time, she never fought back. She was happy to be part of a big family and to have a home. She got along with everyone. She was the best cat. She was even easy to litter box train. She didn't understand what the box with cat litter in it was at first, but all I had to do was put some dirt on top and she never, ever went anywhere other than the litter box.

When she was first brought inside and getting acclimated to the house, she was kept in a bedroom at the end of the hall. Once she was allowed access to the rest of the house, she came out into the living room and that's where she stayed for about the next six or seven years. She was always in the living room. She went into the kitchen to eat and drink and she went in the enclosed back porch that's off of the living room to use the litter box. She had a big cat tree that she spent a lot of time on. For whatever reason, she never went down the hallway and into any bedroom for most of her life here. It was almost as if she thought she wasn't allowed in that section of the house. Even though she was first kept in that section. We never gave her any reason to think she couldn't go down the hallway or into the bedrooms. All the other animals did. Most if not all of them slept in the bedroom with us every night. All but Emma. Until one day, for some (again) unknown reason, she went down the hall and started going in each of the bedrooms, looking around! We couldn't believe it! After she checked out all the bedrooms and discovered all the dog and cat beds in them, that's where she started staying. In each and every one of them. There wasn't a cat or dog bed that Emma didn't sleep in. She tried them all and there was a lot of them! She would change beds each time. She loved the variety but her favorite was the dog beds. She adored the dogs and liked to sleep cuddled up to them, if they let her. If she was in one of the dog's beds, they would politely sleep beside it or some where else. Ellie used to sleep with her on the couch a lot and let her snuggle in her long, thick hair. In the last couple of years, her favorite was to sleep in Cali's bed and Cali would sleep beside the bed, happy to give her bed to Emma. (And let it be known: Emma was the only one who could take Cali's bed and get away with it! Cali was the alpha dog.)

Once Emma came into our home, she never wanted to go outside again. She so appreciated having a home and being inside. She was allowed to go out if she wanted, through the cat door. Eventually she did go out for very short periods on the front or back porch with us. She liked laying in the sun for awhile. If we all went in & she was left outside by herself, she would get really upset and cry. She didn't like being alone and she didn't have to be any more. She had a big family and there was always someone around!

She was the only one of our cats who loved raw food. And I mean loved it! The first time I gave her some Rad Cat Raw Diet to try she acted like I had finally given her some appropriate food! She gobbled it down and wanted more. That's what she primarily ate for the last couple years of her life. Webster and Dusty would eat a little of it from time to time but Emma only wanted raw food the majority of the time.

Emma loved everyone and everyone loved Emma. She was the only cat we had that would not only stick around when other people came over but would ask them for pets. She was always patient with everyone, human or animal. She let me cut out the tangles and shave her when she stopped grooming herself. She let me dress her up in costumes. She was good at the vet's office. She never did anything she wasn't supposed to. She was one of the best cats ever. She was our little princess. Our little furry angel. We will miss her. Now she can be together again with one of her favorite dogs, Cali. 

Cali and Emma

Our 11th Anniversary

2002 - 2013

This month we are celebrating Cozy Critters Pet Sitters' eleventh anniversary! I was still digesting the fact that I've been pet sitting for a decade and now another year has already gone by. Time goes by so fast....

We are so grateful for all of our wonderful clients, both two and four-legged. We love meeting other animal-loving people in our area. We love getting to know each and every pet, caring for them and loving them as if they were our own. So many memories and funny stories are made over the years. But most of all, we love providing a great service: Pet Sitting! Looking forward to making more friends and memories....

Happy Valentine's Day!

In Loving Memory of Our Dog Cali

Our beloved dog Cali passed away in the early morning of New Year's Eve. She died at home, in my arms. She was 10 years, 8 months old. She lived two months after her emergency surgery to remove tumors, her spleen and a part of her liver. Though the cancer had already spread, in the hope of extending her time with us and keeping her more comfortable, I gave her an herbal mushroom extract that showed good results when given to dogs with the type of cancer she had in a recent study. After taking her daily doses she seemed to feel better. She started out having more good days than bad but then after a few weeks she started having less good days and her appetite got less and less to the point we could no longer give her the mushroom extract because she needed to take it after meals. She was kept comfortable and had the best 24-hour hospice care any dog could ask for. She knew she was deeply loved and was never alone. 

Ellie & Cali

Although most of our other animals gave her plenty of space while this was going on including her litter mate Duke; Ellie, our 14-year-old Australian Shepherd, stayed in the dog bed that was right beside Cali all night and the morning she passed. Interesting, since Ellie was the one to chase her off when she and Duke first appeared on our ranch that cold January day in 2003.  Now, Ellie was the one who stayed by her side during her last hours. Our sweet Ellie.

Cali was an amazing dog. Aren't they all? She was incredibly smart. We didn't realize just how smart at first. When we found her and her brother at about nine months old, they had never been inside a house or had any kind of training. They were country dogs. She was the hardest to train but ended up being the one who listened and behaved the best. We will never forget: Not long after we brought them home, we went out to eat dinner one night. With them not being totally house trained yet, we left them outside in the backyard and left our other two dogs in the house. They were about 9 -10 months old, each weighing around 30 - 35 pounds. We were totally surprised to find both of them in the house when we returned. How in the world could they have gotten inside the house? (This was before we installed a dog door.) We couldn't believe they could possibly fit, but they did -- they squeezed through the cat door! One of them (probably Duke) must have gotten stuck because the frame of the cat door had been chewed on. I have no doubt Cali decided they weren't staying outside by themselves while we were gone and had seen the cats going through the cat door. Cali was the leader. The brave one. She quickly became alpha female of the pack. Ellie, being the passive girl she is, didn't mind.

Cali became quite the little helper over the years. She was the one who tattled on the other dogs if they did something they weren't supposed to. When ever there was something she wanted us to have or know about, she would put it in the middle of our bed. Once, I found a butter knife there. Earlier I had left the house for a short time and there was a paper plate with a cracker and a butter knife on it that I had left on the kitchen counter. I had completely forgot about it until I found the butter knife in the middle of the bed. One of the other dogs had done some counter surfing and took the plate, knife and all to the backyard. That's where I found the paper plate. Cali returned the knife to me and let me know what happened.

Another time I found some small animal internal organs (perhaps belonging to a bird?) in the middle of our bed. I'm sure it was the remnants of a meal our male cat had caught. Thanks for the info, Cali....

When she dug up a buried (muddy) chew bone that she had been saving, she liked to show us her new found treasure by placing it in the middle of our bed. Needless to say, we always check the bed before turning in for the night! 

Duke & Cali

One time when we had all four dogs with us at our ranch, we were all sitting around taking a break when Cali disappeared on the other side of the barbed-wire fence. A few minutes later she returned with a deer leg bone, laid it down in front of the dogs. She did this three more times, bringing each dog one deer bone to chew on, including one for herself. She knew how to take care of her pack.

What was most impressive though, was that after she had observed Clifton (my husband) picking the pecans up in our backyard, she began bringing him a pecan every day. And only one pecan per day. As long as there was good, edible pecans on the ground, he would get a pecan in the center of our bed every day. Until there were no more. Then the next year, the same thing. One pecan per day. They would always be good ones too. (I have witnessed more than one dog sniffing out the good ones from the bad.) Every year, if there were pecans, we would get one per day in our bed. Sometimes we would crack them and give them to her, thanking her. She liked them too. We always thanked her for our gifts.

Cali's Toy Collection

One of the cutest things she started doing as she got older was collecting all the soft, plush dog toys and keeping them in a pile next to her bed in our bedroom. She didn't care so much about the hard rubber toys or chew bones or the ropes. The cute, soft stuffed toys were special and she was going to take good care of them. That meant hoarding them all and keeping them together by her bed. They were not to be placed in the toy basket in the living room with the other toys. No. These special toys were not to be played with by anyone but her. I finally put a toy basket next to her bed to neatly hold all of her prized possessions. It became a ritual every day after the dogs ate dinner for her to get one of her stuffed toys and bring it out in the living room for everyone to see, all the while crying and whining while she walked around, carrying it in her mouth. (Whenever she carried her toys around she whined. I always wondered what she was thinking as she did this.) We started calling them her "babies" and would make a fuss about each baby she would bring out to show us. I called it Cali's Show and Tell Time. She would show us one of her cherished stuffed toys each day, after dinner. Then she would put it back in her private toy basket. Even when she occasionally took them outside with her, she never left them outside. She always brought them back in with her and eventually put them back in their place. She cherished those toys and none of the other dogs would dare take them or play with them. They knew all the stuffed toys were claimed and protected by Cali. Even if I bought four new stuffed toys so each dog could have one, after they were through playing with them, they would all end up in Cali's basket. She had quite a collection. There must be 15 - 20 of them. Her favorite was the biggest one -- a dog with floppy ears.

Her Inside-Out Toy

She did this funny thing with one of the stuffed toys. She would always have just one toy that she would work on with her teeth, gently tearing a small hole in it, and then she would pull the entire toy inside-out, through the hole. That's how she liked it -- inside out. She liked the seams in the material. She would gently chew on the seams, never tearing it apart....just chewing. As if she was knitting or sewing with her teeth. Or like she was trying to take out each stitch, one by one, but in a fast, constant biting motion. She would do this for long periods of time. Content just to lay there, chewing gently on her inside-out toy. She would carry it around everywhere, putting it down to chew on it. If I picked it up and put it in the toy basket, out it would come! Once it got all dirty and I threw it away, she would pick another stuffed toy to chew a small hole in and turn it inside-out. It was like her security blanket. Only one of the toys she would do this too. All the others stayed in tact.

When Cali and her litter mate Duke were turning ten years old, we decided to have their DNA tested for curiosity's sake. (Read more about that here.) Once we found out they were chow-chow and blue-tick coonhound mixes, we started telling them them they were chow-hounds, chow-chows, hound dogs, etc. Shortly thereafter, Cali, whose ears had always been folded over (unlike her brother's ears which stood erect once he turned a year old), suddenly were standing erect and they never went down again. I thought it was the oddest thing that for the first ten years of her life, her ears were folded down. Then all of a sudden her ears were standing straight up and stayed up! I asked her veterinarian if he had ever heard of or seen such a thing and he hadn't. He thought that was weird too. We laugh, saying her ears stood up once she learned she was a chow-chow.

She was the alpha dog of our pack. She ran a "tight ship" and she enforced the rules. She was bossy. She was the brave one. The main watch dog. She protected everyone, including the cats. She would give the neighbor's dogs a piece of her mind if they should bark at our cats! 

She was a great singer/howler. The emergency vehicle sirens would really get her going and she would howl, head pointed straight up into the sky, until her heart's content. She could really hold a note for a long time too. Usually Ellie would join along with her. On a rare occasional, Duke would join the singing duo. 

She was a digger. She could dig a hole to lay in that was so big she would rest her chin at ground level and all you saw was her head above ground. 

She was a lot of things, but most of all she was incredibly special to us and we miss her so much! Rest in peace my little furry angel.

Hemangiosarcoma in Dogs

A few Saturdays ago, one of our younger dogs, Cali (age 10) was not feeling well and after taking her to her regular vet at MeyerLand Animal Clinic and having lots of tests done, it was discovered that she had a tumor on her spleen that had ruptured and was bleeding. We were referred to Gulf Coast Veterinary Specialists to have emergency surgery to remove her spleen and the tumor. Although an additional ultrasound was done at GCVS to look for more tumors before doing surgery, sometimes they just can't see everything until they get in there. It turned out the tumor that was actually bleeding was on her liver. A part of her liver, her spleen and the tumors were removed. Unfortunately, she also had other small tumors on her liver as well. Sadly, the test results came back as suspected: Hemangiosarcoma. The average survival time after surgery for this aggressive type of cancer is only a few months and Cali's had already spread. We were devastated.

We went through this same scenario before with our dog Ellie just two years ago. Ellie had a tumor on her spleen that ruptured and she had the tumor and her spleen removed. We were very fortunate that the tumor was benign. Then a year later, she ended up getting immune-mediated hemolytic anemia (IMHA) and she had to have a blood transfusion. We got lucky again in her case as it was determined her IMHA had a cause (mycoplasma) which could be treated. Ellie is still doing well today.

We are so grateful to Dr. Moss and Dr. Benjamino for all of their help with Cali. She's had a morning or two where she didn't feel as good but for the most part, she has been feeling good since her surgery, acting her usual bossy self. She's the alpha dog in our pack so there's a lot of bossing to do! . We are keeping her as comfortable as possible, providing hospice care and cherishing the time we have left together.  

When dealing with something like cancer, you feel so helpless. There's just not a lot you can do. In an effort to help keep her as comfortable as possible and to keep her around as long as we can, I automatically started going through all my natural healing books for pets . I looked up cancer in dogs and what type of natural things are good for that; such as probiotics, digestive enzymes, omega 3's, turmeric and Willard water to name a few. (All of which she is getting.) Another thing I had made myself a note about was the yunzhi mushroom extract. After doing more research on this, I came upon this recent press release about how this mushroom extract helped dogs with hemangiosarcoma lived longer. Then, within a few days, I got an email from one of my favorite holistic veterinarians, Dr. Karen Becker and guess what she was writing about? How researchers were shocked by mushroom study results! So I went to the link in the press release for the mushroom extract they used in the study under the brand name I'm Yunity. They explain about using it for pets here. Cali is taking 2,400 mg per day based on her weight. It can't hurt, so we're giving it a try. It might keep her more comfortable and maybe it will give us a little more time.  

Update: Cali survived two months after surgery and had been taking the mushroom extract for a month and a half. We noticed that after receiving her first dose of the day, she seemed to feel better. We feel fortunate to have had those extra two months.

Genetic Roulette

 I have been well aware of and doing my best to avoid genetically modified foods (GMO’s) for myself, my family and for my animals.  I recently came across this new documentary, “Genetic Roulette” which is an online movie that explains and summarizes all the potential hazardous effects of GMO’s on our food producing animals, our companion animals and humans.

Please watch this documentary, Genetic Roulette, and share it with as many people as you can.  We can all make this shift in awareness and improve the health of countless animals and people. Though the free online showing (during last week) is over, you can still view it online for a small donation of $2.99. It's definitely worth it and I highly recommend it. You can also purchase the DVD for the full price ($19.95) of course.

Thank you for watching this and sharing it and spreading the word.  Let us create a healthier, happier world where compassion, health and happiness are more important than corporate greed and government corruption.

A Dog's Compassionate Wish

I received this in an email from Allen M. Schoen, D.V.M., M.S., author of Kindred Spirits and founder of The Kindred Spirits Project. Thought it was great and wanted to share.