Meningioma Monday...

8-9-99--6-11-12

In honor of my boy...

"A dog doesn't care if you're rich or poor, educated or illiterate, clever or dull. Give him your heart and he will give you his."--John Grogan

It is with a heavy heart that I share my Koufax passed away peacefully today. 

I was lucky to have such a wonderful big lug of loyal love enrich my life for the last 12 years & 10 months.

Koufax was a companion and my champion canine caregiver encouraging me every step of the way during both of my meningioma recoveries.

He was an easy subject to often write about with his quirky ways.

http://www.lizholzemer.com/upload/Koufax%20My%20Crutch.pdf

http://www.lizholzemer.com/upload/Healing%20Hound.pdf

http://petphotographerrowe.com/doc-koufax-reunion/

I always appreciated your support when it was my turn to take care of him the last several years when diabetes and blindness throw a few more curve balls our way.

We both were damn lucky to get second chances.

Koufax...

"A dog doesn't care if you're rich or poor, educated or illiterate, clever or dull. Give him your heart and he will give you his."--John Grogan

Today I'm grateful for:

*Koufax's 12th birthday.

Happy birthday my loyal lug of love!

Hit the Paws Button...

Ah the life of a dog. What could be better than engaging in play time, pausing for naps and partaking in a tasty treat only to start all over again?! Our four-legged friends remind us that it's acceptable to hit that paws button more often and relish what is easy to miss out on.

Today I am thankful for:

*Dogs, especially my own.

Sometimes you just need a photo...

or several to best express what you're trying to articulate.

Brother and sister reunited. Lab lovers and dog owners alike will understand by the expressions in their soulful brown eyes and happily panting faces right down to their nearly identical matching black birthmarks on their tongues.

Meet Koufax and Doc, a brother-sister reunion at its best.

Canine Connections

I love the first day of a new month because it's a chance to start over and set new goals for the next 30 or 31 days. It's also a reminder to slow down, reassess and ponder this existence called life. Like Forrest Gump once professed, some days you just don't know what you're going to get.

Today was one of those such days.

The encouragement of a friend led me to enter a canine contest describing my dog's inner self in 100 words or less with an accompanying photo for a chance to win a photo session. Hey what did I have to lose? After all, I've penned many a thought about my 10 1/2 year old yellow lab, Koufax. I've been taking more photos of him than unusal ever since his diabetes diagnosis six weeks ago to capture, well the obvious.

So entered away I did.

Jaime, the contest sponsor followed up with an email noting how she was a lab mom as well and the uncanny resemblance of her dog to Koufax. Of course, hers was also 10 1/2 and wow, wouldn't that be weird of her Doc and my Koufax were from the same breeder.

Nah. What would be the chances?

Well that led to a flurry of emails inquiring about the exact location of breeder, Doc and Koufax's birthdates, shared health ailments...

I sensed a huge discovery just moments away from being revealed. I was giddy with excitement over the prospect that Koufax had a long lost sister he could reunite with.

We both unearthed the pedigree paper trail we'd held on to all these years.

The flurry of back and forth emails continued.

Would you believe, they both in fact had the same breeder.

Mismatched mother's names though.

Jaime emailed back, "So close."

Wait. Hold on.

Sire.

Rascal.

A playing-the-field-busy rascal indeed.

BINGO!

We have a half-sibling match.

And a ten and a half year reunion in the making already planned.

Doggone It

Doggone it.

I'm reeling from another devastating diagnosis. Ten years ago it was my own--a meningioma brain tumor. Now it's my dog's. My firstborn. Koufax my crutch. The yellow lab who cheered me on and encouraged me during my brain surgery recoveries. He nudged me to get off the couch. Always reassuring me that I wouldn't be alone on this journey.

Three days ago I sat in the vet's waiting room doing that agonizing wait thing associated with all waiting rooms. Waiting for what? My world to collapse again.

The gut just knows when something's not right. Been there, done that too many times. With myself, my kids, now Koufax.

The long face.

Weight loss.

Insatiable thirst. In winter?

Such a sudden onset too.

I lost track of how many times I swallowed my heart. Eyes welling up over and over again preparing myself for the worst case scenario.


One word.

Diabetes.

Followed by another language I'm quickly crash coursing-- blood glucose curves, insulin, ketones....

What was that?

Needles?

Twice a day?

It's manageable.

So many questions. The answers are carefully explained, but I can't retain what I know I need to know. To remember.

How does a healthy eating and active dog get diabetes?

More common than you'd think.

For Koufax, simply a case of bad luck. That's the thing with Koufax and me, it's always been that way.

Meningioma.
Epilepsy.
Lipomas.
Thyroid.
Diabetes.

We'll stop now, thank you very much.

Now it's my turn to be Koufax's crutch.

My Loyal Lab

You're my first son and have been my companion from an early start in life.
Thank you for your love, loyalty, and quirky moments that last 10 years.

http://www.lizholzemer.com/upload/Koufax%20My%20Crutch.pdf

Monkey See, Monkey Pee

Dogs do it like our yellow lab, Koufax.

He does it every day to mark his territory.
It's his way of reminding the other dogs who meander by that he is king of the cul-de-sac.

And now my lil' man who I've always affectionately called monkey is following suit.

Apparently one of Hunter's preschool classmates decided to shower the playground slide during recess. Naturally, like all curious boys who want to be just like their friends, Hunter imitated his pissing pal.

Monkey see, monkey pee.

I have to admit, it wasn't easy containing my laughter when the school administrator informed me of this oh so serious transgression.

I can recall many a times when nature's calling (mostly while out in nature by the way!) was an urgent matter. I don't think I'm unlike other parents who encourage their sons to unzip in the name of spelling relief. Trust me, if us gals could do the same, I'm sure we would, but we know there's shame in squatting.

Today Hunter informed me of his new mantra:

"Pee inside, not on the slide!"

Nuts!

I love my nuts--walnuts, almonds, cashews...and all the varieties they come in. Salted. Toasted. Roasted. Raw. Organic.

I'm nuts about nuts, but not about the kind you can purchase for your fur baby.

Yes, who knew that all this time my 9-year-old lab, Koufax has been missing out on a synthetic pair of his very own nuts. I thought I was being a responsible pet owner when I had him neutered in his puppy hood. Apparently not.

When I had the dirty done on Koufax I could have invested in a pair of life like testicles. They're called neuticles. If there's silicone implants for broads why not testicular implantation for hounds. Makes sense to me because it's obvious that I've probably scarred him with humiliation every time he's had an off-leash park date. Or anytime he's gone to scratch and readjust his crotch, he comes up with nothing every single time.

A shame I wasn't aware of silicone sacs years ago when my husband went under the knife. Wonder if there's a male version of neuticles as well? Maybe I could have taken advantage of a 2-for-1 offer?

NUTS!