Getting my head above water

I'll be back when I've managed to do that.

(P.S. This is Webber, the small, gorgeous frog that lives under our (Webber) barbeque cover. He took a quick swim in the birdbath today. Photogenic little guy, wouldn't you say?)

Incentive

It's that time of year here again. Time for the goat boys' - Pete and Reggie's - annual CDT (clostridium perfringens types C&D tetanus toxoid) vaccinations:

Pete was immediately suspicious when I asked him, via collar-grab, to "please come here":

The vaccination process was threefold. While my son, Aidan, was holding, the goat boys were cookie-chewing, and I was injecting:

No muss, no fuss. It has never been so simple:

Life almost immediately returned to where it had been just moments before:

"Might I have some more, please?":

I highly recommend Trader Joe's animal cookies for all your goat injection needs.
:-)

The pup comes home

When I posted about Roxy's surgery early this (gosh, it's after midnight, I guess this makes it yesterday now) morning, I had made a conscious decision to "put it out to the universe" (to borrow a phrase that my mom uses frequently) that I needed some support. While I appreciate the idea behind this particular phrase, I've always intensely disliked the way it sounds (which always makes my mom laugh when I tell her this), and so I never, ever use it. Which is why it's kind of funny now that I just said it. And also that I'm going to continue talking about it.

But in reality, for me today, it made sense. "Putting it out to the universe" - for me - meant sharing it with my blog world. It was my way of asking for support and comfort from a source that has frequently come to my aid.

(Roxy leaving for the vet clinic this morning:)

(Roxy being brought to me after her surgery:)

(Roxy's ride home:)

It's hard for me to express how comforting it was for me to know that other people, at least for a moment, had Roxy in their thoughts and were wishing her well. To then receive all the wonderful comments of support and friendship so many of you sent me... these soothed my heart and eased my furrowed brow. Thank you so much.

My pup is back home and resting comfortably now:

Thank you for helping us get through today.

Special thoughts for my pup, Roxy, please

My sweet farm pup, Roxy, is having surgery today:

A week ago last Sunday, Roxy hurt herself. She ran out the door on all four legs to chase a trespassin' dog off our property and, when she came back, she was using only three legs. This is how she has been ever since.

We went to the vet:

He diagnosed her with a torn ACL (anterior cruciate ligament) in her left rear leg.

She had to have blood drawn to make sure her liver was functioning well enough to tolerate pain meds:

We went to another vet for a second opinion:

Final diagnosis: A torn ACL (More accurately, it is known as the CCL in dogs: the Cranial cruciate ligament) as well as a luxating patella (a dislocating kneecap).

She will have something similar to fishing line wrapped in a figure-8 around her leg/knee to stabilize it and allow for healing. For her dislocating kneecap, she will have something called a sulcoplasty which involves deepening the trochlear sulcus, the groove on which the patella (kneecap) normally sits. Apparently, a bone saw is needed for this procedure and, wow, I really hate thinking about this.

Her surgery is scheduled for mid-morning today and, by late afternoon, I should be able to pick her up. But, jeez, my poor girl. Recovery time, from start to finish will be almost 6 months!

For a dog who just wants to either play ball or walk her goats, this is going to be a rough time:

To make matters worse, I noticed on Wednesday, she really needed a haircut. She hates haircuts:

Knowing that it wouldn't be wise to take her to be groomed post-surgery with sutures and all, and recognizing that she can't wait 6 months before getting her next trim, I took her in yesterday. Here she is "before":

And here she is "after". Notice how she's barely placing any weight on the toe of her left rear leg?:

We're going to get that leg all fixed up for you, my sweet girl:

But I'd still really appreciate any kind thoughts you're willing to send our way for her surgery today.

She would like to get back to her farm duties as quickly as possible:

Without the ribbons, of course:

What a difference a day makes

The change was drastic and significant.

Yesterday, in a foggy, 48 degree rain, I donned long underwear beneath my thick farm pants to feed the critters:

It rained almost the entire day:

Honey spent the better portion of the day cruising the perimeter of the house under the cover of the eaves:

Then today happened. I squinted up at the sky and didn't dare believe what I saw:

By 9:45, it was brilliantly sunny, cloudless, and warm, warm, warm. Of course, being a bit of a skeptic, I still insisted on donning my long underwear, thick jeans, etc., etc. But the layers started peeling off by 10:45.

Not that I'm complaining.
Seriously.

It was bliss.

For everyone:

It almost felt like a holiday:

The daisies chose today to begin blooming:

Everybody got a bit of pasture time:

Kai was very comfortable with her new haircut:

Pete & Reggie even felt like playing a game they haven't been interested in since last fall... "Steal Danni's Stihl hat":

Pete took the game one step further today and taunted me a bit:

Tomorrow is supposed to be even nicer. Picture me smiling.

I'm thinking some warmer weather will help Chester lose his Neanderthal brow:

I'm also thinking, "Man, my legs are white!":