Wednesday, May 31, 2006, 04:26
Charlie
I took Charlie into the vet clinic Tuesday morning at 10 a.m. for surgery to remove the lumps he had on his shoulder, hip and back of his leg. The vet who was doing the surgery wanted me to show him the spots, rather than mark them with a marker. I stayed there while they drew blood for the pre-anesthetic testing and while they gave him the pre-anesthetic shot that would "take the edge off." Then we put Charlie into one of the kennels in the back.
As I walked into the office area, I could hear him barking. I am hoping that as soon as I left the office and he could no longer hear my voice that he stopped barking. Charlie has quite a bark on him. When he's outside and sounds off, because he "sees something" (could be a turkey out in the hayfield, a deer on the neighbor's land, someone riding by on a bicycle -- anything at all) -- it is enough to bring you right up out of your chair, post haste.
I don't want to even *think* about Charlie barking in an enclosed area like a vet clinic!
I arrived home at 11 a.m. -- and then the wait began for the vet to call me back.
I was getting rather worried when he had not yet called at 3 p.m.
At a little after 3, the vet called. As it turns out, the lumps on Charlie's shoulder, hip and back of his leg were all harmless fatty tumors.
The vet was not so sure about a small growth on the inside of Charlie's ear, so he recommended that it be sent off to a lab for analysis. So now it's "wait and see" what the thing was on the inside of his ear.
I will be going into town to pick Charlie up Wednesday morning so he can come home and can begin to recuperate.
After the vet called, I went outside and did some more planting. The petunias, portulaca, marigolds, pansies, Bell peppers and a few tomatoes are all in their respective tubs and containers. So is the one geranium I could not resist (Violet Rose it's called.) My mother loved geraniums.
It was cooler out on Tuesday than it was on Monday. Only highs in the mid to upper 80s. Thank goodness. I have not recovered from sweltering on Sunday and Monday in the mid to upper 90s! Of course, after losing two days due to the heat, I'm behind on mowing the lawn again. I suppose I will have to rake. Oh, well. Isabelle and Kajun will LOVE that. They get to eat the grass clippings after they have dried out.
Juliette -- My little kitty cat Juliette is doing much better on the clavamox rather than the amoxicillan for the urinary tract infection. Within 12 hours of starting the clavamox, she was in and out of the litter box much less than she was before. She has to take the clavamox for 14 days. I'm not sure how long it will take her to forgive me about the medicine. I think the clavamox tastes much worse than the amoxicillan, from the way she reacts.
LeAnn R. Ralph
Tuesday, May 30, 2006, 03:59
Too Hot
I thought I was going to get some gardening done on this fine Memorial Day.
Unfortunately, it was 97 degrees in the shade this afternoon. The spirit was willing, as they say, but the flesh was weak. I did manage to get my portulaca planted this evening after it clouded over and cooled off a bit. And I got one of my tubs ready for the Bell pepper.
The weather report tonight said the last time it was this hot on this date was in 1934. Which, of course, was right in the middle of the dry years of the Great Depression.
We were supposed to get thunderstorms tonight. But as always, it rained by the Twin Cities and quit before it got here. A few sprinkles fell around 8:30 -- and that was it. "Dry weather drops" is what my mother would have called the few sprinkles of rain.
In the end, I suppose it does not really matter if the garden is not planted yet. It's too dry for anything to grow well anyway. And if it does not rain, our hayfield is not going to grow, either. I have already told my brother I want "first chance" at any hay he gets off his fields. I know Kajun and Isabelle will appreciate it!
LeAnn R. Ralph