Izzie's Got Her Zip Back

We left our dear friend Connie this morning and hit the road again, although only after gassing up and getting the car washed.   We have stopped in Georgia for the night and Izzie has been racing down the halls of the motel as though she were a puppy again.  Since she's on a leash, I have to run as well. She's going to keep me young. I'm so grateful that the surgery has worked so well.  Tomorrow night will have us near Charlottesville, Virginia and spending a little time with Anne, a deacon from Maine who winters in Virginia and Izzie spending some time terrorizing Anne's two standard poodles, Desi and Luci.

Izzie, the Bad Habit Rabbit

Since Christmas I've been shuttling back and forth between my daughter's home and my son's.  Izzie has to do stairs at my son's but they are carpeted and she seems to do just fine.  It's more than four weeks from her surgery and she's beginning to take to walks again.  She doesn't want to go out in the back yard unless my daughter, Buttercup and I go as well.  At my son's she will join Zephyr and Eva in the back yard, but she's known those two dogs for a long time.  Eva came to visit us in Wyoming when she was a pup and Izzie, although four years old, was new to me.

Izzie is teaching Buttercup very bad habits.  My daughter and I went out to look for a red dress (they're going to a wedding in Colombia at the end of the month and was told everyone was to wear red).  We found some possibilities, but she's very tiny and the one she liked the best didn't come small enough.  I wish I had that problem. Anyway her hubby stayed home and when he came into the house, both Izzie and Buttercup were snoozing on the couch.  He took a picture which I will post as soon as he gives me a copy.  Izzie also has Buttercup hovering around the table hoping for food.  My bad.  It will take them weeks to recover from our visit.

This morning she and hubby are going to the garment district to look there for the dress.  Buttercup is going to doggie day care (so Izzie doesn't teach her anything else new while they're away). I'm going over to REI since I have a small rebate from last year and need some socks.

Izzie— Sunday Morning

The vet just called.  Izzie is complaining about being caged.  When they let her out to walk and pee and such, her tail wags and wags.  She wants to be around people.  In the cage "she vocalizes."  I assume that means she's either whimpering or barking. Probably both and she's very likely pawing the bottom of the cage. The vet said she would be better off at home since she's walking pretty well.  They will give me instructions on her care.

Instead of going to church, I'm going to go get her, even though I love the First Sunday of Advent. I finished Morning Prayer an hour ago, so that will have to do.

UPDATE:  Sunday evening.  Well she's home.  I had to wait a bit to pick her up.  I have no idea what they were doing.  The vet tech told me they had separated Izzie out from the other dogs and that she was quite a character.  She just needs to be around people.  I was shown how to do physical therapy with her.  We tried it out at the hospital and Izzie was less than cooperative.  Mainly it's massaging her back and back legs and working her legs four times a day.  She has two medicines she has to take.  One is prednisone and the other an antibiotic.  You should see her.  She has a rectangular bald patch on her back with seven staples in the middle.  I just took this picture of her battle scar.  You will have to click on it to see it in its full g(l)ory.

We took a little nap after we got home and now she's resting after a bit of food.  She won't let me out of her sight.  Her activities are supposed to be restricted, but mine are too.  She's worth it.  Right now she's resting on the floor at my feet.

Update on Izzie's Surgery

The vet just called.  Izzie is walking, although her back legs are a bit weak.  She has urinated, which is a good sign as well.  The vet said she didn't eat much and thought it might be the pain killers.  However, as most of you know, Izzie likes human food and she's not getting any of that.  Besides, breakfast isn't her thing (unless it's a piece of bacon).  A snack at lunch time and a good meal in the evening are more her style.

She will be on IV painkillers until this evening at 6.  They'll then give her pain meds orally.  I told them that she really doesn't complain unless it really hurts.  The only sign that I've noticed is that when she's in pain, she pants.  The harder the panting the more the pain. The doctor said she'd write that in Izzie's chart for the night vet.  They told me I can call at any time to find out how she's doing even in the middle of the night (I'm not going to do that—I've done too many 24-hour on-calls in the hospital to call in the middle of the night just for information).  They will call again tomorrow morning.

Cribbage, Pecan Pie and Izzie

Izzie and I drove up to Millinocket, about three and a half hours from here.  We enjoyed a nice Thanksgiving dinner with our friend Pat at her son's house.  Pat and I played some Cribbage afterwards and I beat her 2 out of 3 games.  I'm always amazed at how competitive I get when I play games.  It must be a residue from my childhood.  Of course back then we played Hearts after the Thanksgiving dinner, using two decks of cards because there were so many of us.  Canceling out the Queen of Spades so you didn't have to take it was always a time of great hooting and carrying on.  There was also a coffee table cribbage board that always had takers.  Somehow playing cards goes with Thanksgiving.  It's also a signal that a hot turkey sandwich or a second piece of pie will follow.  I had pecan pie.  I think it's my favorite, although I wouldn't turn down pumpkin or apple.

This morning I drove Izzie down to Scarborough for her surgery.  The vet called me later to say she thought Izzie came through it quite well. She also said there was a lot of material that had oozed out of the damaged disc that she had to clean out.  Izzie will be there until Monday.  It takes approximately four week for recovery.  In the mean time she needs to walk on level surfaces (no stairs).  Go outside only on a leash and if she is not supervised, she needs to be confined.

Izzie is a VERY stubborn dog.  She doesn't take to pampering very well (except for food).  This is going to be a tiring time and I do hope it's worth it.  I asked if she would be able to travel after a few weeks and the answer was yes.  So, at least right now, I plan on driving the two of us to California for Christmas.  Of course, the next two weeks will tell.

It's Not Cancer. Yea!

Thank you everyone for your prayers for my sweetie.  BUT I just got a call a few minutes ago from Izzie's neurologist.  The tumor under her tongue is benign.  I feel sooo relieved.  It's a good reminder that our eyes can sometimes mislead us and jumping to conclusions before the data are in is never good.  I'm grateful though for all of your wonderful concern.

Today Izzie was rebelling against my picking her up to get on and off the couch.  If I say "mommy help" she runs away from me as fast as she can go.  She has also decided to sit on the back cushions of the sofa.  Something she hasn't done in years.  Her back leg still doesn't function well though.

My friend David, from California, suggested that I give her Vitamin D-3 and for the last two days, I've given her some.  It can only help.  David's friend, who is developing Alzheimer's, accidently took 5 x 5000 IU of D-3 a few weeks ago and her ability to do complex tasks improved dramatically and quickly.  She normally takes 5 x 400 IU a day.  This led us to doing some research on the web as to the safety of such a large dose.  25,000 IU is still well within the safe amount, if not taken at that level every day.  Anyway, it's good for bones and muscles so David and I decided that Izzie should start taking 5000 IU to see if it would improve her back since we didn't think surgery would be an option.  I will continue her on it until she goes in on Friday morning.

Again, thank you all for your prayers for both of us.

Robert Whalley's "Poem for Monday"

My friend Robert Whalley (from All Saints' San Francisco and Berkeley days) now from Australia, will be ordained to the transitional diaconate in less than 15 days.  Bob is a wonderful, gentle soul and has spent a good part of his life as a college chaplain.  He writes beautifully and this poem from his blog, called Poem for Monday really spoke to me.  It seems I needed to hear the words of "stretching into the present."  Izzie's cancer has me off-balance and living in today is so important to get through this.

Poem for Monday
We don’t have to have a past today
Could simply follow the sun like certain plants
Face the light, turn to what is bright and warming; or, conversely,
Like a more delicate potted plant, move into the softer shade for the filtered light
Humankind cannot bear very much reality, nor should many other growing things.

Find the place that suits for this morning,
the ecology that supports enough growth,
(the life of significant soil), between reseeding (receding) and bloom.
But not being caught, rooted too deeply, in either of those beds.

Instead, stretch into the present like cats do, relaxing and
Letting the spine of the moment open like a shy smile,
An intake of breath, an increased delight, a touch of dancing
While you silently stay exactly where you are.

And all that carried history and expectation,
Heavy potential and the weight of undone deeds
Unfinished stories and long-dead parents and people
We never liked all that much; make it compost, treat it like dung.

To be left behind, discarded in a pile to decay, mulch,
To ripen into something that can feed new
Unthinkable, unspeakable growth that may
Bloom into possibilities in another spring


photo from Wikipedia.

My Isabelle

As Izzie has posted on her own blog, she has had a difficult time recently.  Over the last few days she really struggled going up stairs and got half way down and wouldn't move any further.  So I carried her down.  Then she whimpered whenever I picked her up.  We've been sleeping on the futon in the study since Sunday evening. I increased the medication she was taking for joint pain and swelling to the original dose, and although it helps, wasn't doing the trick.  I also noticed that her left rear leg would splay out when I set her on the ground.  But, once she got herself steady, she seemed to walk ok, if stiffly.

Yesterday she saw her vet again.  The vet thinks that a disk in her back is causing the problem.  She had an x-ray taken of her spine while we were still in Rangeley, and although at the time it wasn't really obvious, the vet here said she saw that one of the disks was not like the others.  She warned me that Izzie could get paralyzed if it broke.  Our vet thinks it's early enough to do something about it and give Izzie a few more good years. Izzie is now off her NSAID and on pain killers (she will probably need diagnostic procedures like an angiogram) and has an appointment this morning with a specialist.

Please pray for her and for me.  Izzie has been my partner in ministry.  She breaks the ice in a new parish and keeps vestries from taking themselves too seriously.  If people go on and on, she lets out a VERY loud snore which always gets a laugh.  She has also been known to snore in the middle of my sermons.  Which keeps me from taking myself too seriously.

I will update the blog when we (I) return from Scarborough.  When I posted this, the ad on the side was for "herniated discs."  Weird!

UPDATE: 2 pm (Thursday, 19 November) I just returned from the vet and the news is not good. Even though the disk is quite repairable and Izzie would likely come through that just fine, they discovered a tumor behind her tongue. The vet said it looked like squamous cell carcinoma, although a biopsy is needed to be sure. The vet said she would hate to do surgery on a dog that might live just 6 months or so and I agree. I will pick her up in the morning and she will get medication for pain for her spine and other meds and I will just wait and watch. I'm devastated and need to rest a bit.

UPDATE: 4 pm (Friday November 20)  Izzie is snoozing on the couch. She's on pretty strong pain meds. I am not to let her jump on furniture or go up and down stairs for the next four or five days and she has to be confined when I'm not around.  The only procedure she had was the injection of contrast media to look at her spine and a biopsy of the tumor.  They found the tumor when they were prepping her for surgery.  She seems to be her stoic, cheerful self, although very sleepy.  She shared my lunch (bits of turkey and ham from a chef's salad and ate a few treats when we got home.  She'll be on soft food for a while (a bit cheer from Izzie, since she detests kibble anyway).  I've decided to pamper her (even more) for as long as I can.  When she gets to the point where she can't eat properly or her back legs really go, then I'll have her put down.  I pray that is months off.

Hunter's Orange: Hiking at Dodge Point

The four of us took a hike at Dodge Point near the Damariscotta River. We bought sandwiches and ate them in the car because it was so chilly out. Just as we were about to embark on our walk, we noticed a sign saying to wear orange because there could be hunters in the woods, so I drove back to town (10 minutes) to Reny's (a Maine institution) and bought us each an orange watch cap and Izzie an orange band for her collar. Izzie's band doesn't show in this picture, her hair is hiding it. This is at the start of our walk. Fortunately I'm not in any of the pictures. I would imagine that my purple jacket with orange hat would make me look quite odd, or festive, depending on one's PoV. We should have gone home to get Izzie's pumpkin outfit (hah).

The air was was cold, and there wasn't much sun, but the woods were quite lovely. Grandson is supposed to go on a nature walk and collect things to share at school, so we found some birch bark, acorns, pine cones, rocks and red and yellow maple leaves. We will iron the leaves between pieces of wax paper to preserve them. He can take a copy of this picture along too. We can't take living things with us out of the woods, but pictures are a great way to keep memories alive. Izzie loves hiking and had a great time being off leash. I'm glad we found this place. I saw it while driving down the road to pick up a pottery chalice and paten for Rangeley's new deacon.

Damariscotta Pumpkinfest

Well, judging by the number of people walking downtown yesterday, Pumpkinfest must have been a success. The pumpkin boats raced and artists carved or painted pumpkins in front of businesses and they were quite imaginative. Izzie was a hit in her outfit. You can tell how thrilled she was to wear it in the picture on the left. She got her picture taken by so many people, she'll be famous around the country (one lady said she was from Colorado) and a man from Texas asked where we bought it so he could get one for his dog for Halloween.

The next photo is my son and grandson and Izzie on the way downtown. We'll take more pictures today.

The pumpkin drop is this morning. I have no idea what that means. It's also the last day that the homemade ice cream place (Round Top Farms) will be open until next summer. I do love their ice cream even though I'm lactose intolerant. They have vanilla lactose free ice cream, but some of the flavors are so tempting that I make sure I have Lactaid with me.

Cooking for Izzie

For those days when I'm too tired to cook, we've found a chef for Izzie.
I have given up trying to get Izzie to eat dog food. I have two books on cooking for your dog and since she just loves whatever I eat, I think her last years should not involve nightly fights (which she usually wins) over what she eats. Tonight she had roasted chicken, brown rice and some bing cherries (one of the few fruits she likes). This week we've had ground lamb patties, sweet potato, Swiss chard, pork tenderloin, sweet corn, summer squash (you get the idea) She doesn't like eggplant, though. I've been sprinkling vitamins on her meat and have seen a definite improvement in her ability to do stairs and jumping on furniture this past week. We had a good long walk today and she managed it without balking. So her dried food is just there for snacking, should she choose to want some.

Izzie was four when we became companions. I don't know much about her history before then, but it's been a real struggle for the past seven years to get her to eat anything except people food. There are a few veggies she doesn't like, but mostly if I fix meat or fish, something starchy and some veggies she will wolf it down. She really likes the cabbage family of vegetables and sweet potatoes. Pasta is her favorite starch, although rice will do if it has butter on it. One of the books said to give her equal portions of meat and vegetable and double that of starch, which is what I do.

Here's a recipe for Canine Lasagna that Izzie (and her doggie friends) like:

1 pound (minced) ground turkey cooked until browned.

1-15 oz. jar spaghetti sauce

some garlic powder (optional)

oregano (optional)

1 lb. elbow macaroni cooked

1 lb low fat cottage cheese

2 cups grated cheddar cheese.

Put a third of the spaghetti sauce on the bottom of a casserole dish (add oregano and garlic to sauce if using)

1. Top that with 1/2 the pasta
2. Spread half the cottage cheese and then half the cheddar on top of the pasta.
3. Add another third of the spaghetti sauce.

Repeat 1,2,3.

Cover with aluminum foil

Bake for about 30-40 minutes in a moderate oven (350°F)

I usually cut this into portions and freeze some for later use.

It's not bad people food either, although I prefer it with some onions cooked. Izzie tolerates onions quite well, but a lot of dogs don't. Izzie had an Australian Shepherd friend named Sydney that decided I was ok after I fixed her this one day.

Izzie Update

Izzie woke me at three am panting very hard and shaking all over.  I had given her the aspirin and muscle relaxant before we went to bed, but she was obviously in lots of pain.  I should have realized she really wasn't getting better when she walked right past the neighbor's cat when she went out to pee before bedtime.  Izzie couldn't walk down the stairs at that hour of the morning, so I carried her down, put her in the car and off we went again to the emergency vet.  I called ahead so they were waiting for us.  This time they did an x-ray, which showed that her spine was in good shape.  That was a relief.  Her back, is really quite sore, though and her tummy was full.  She ate a good dinner last night—the first in three days, and boy was she gassy.  They gave her an iv pain reliever and she immediately relaxed.  We came home with a strong pain reliever and instructions to keep her quiet for a couple of days.  Sure! Make a dog feel no pain and then try to keep them from running around.  She's sound asleep right now, which is good.

The nice thing about the trip down the mountain was I started out in the moonlight and about quarter to four the sky began to lighten and then the clouds turned pink.  It was really pretty.  I didn't encounter any moose—always a blessing.  Now just six hours later it is raining hard.  I am driving to Portland this afternoon to go to dinner and a symphony concert this evening, so there will be a lot of driving today.  Izzie is spending the night with one of her human friends. Please keep her in your prayers.

Trinity Sunday

I wrote this icon under the supervision of Master Iconographer Aleksandr Kharon in San Francisco.  Note the elbow of the right figure goes into the frame. When I drew the picture onto the base, it didn't quite fit in, so I cut off the elbow.   It took many hours and I refused to re-do it so Aleksandr carved the frame to contain the elbow.  I figure since the Holy Spirit does prod us quite a bit, making sure the elbow was visible was appropriate.

Isabelle did come to church this morning.  I had to carry her down the stairs, but by the time the first service started she slowly worked her way up the stairs from the undercroft and she seems able to go up and down now.  She wouldn't eat any cheese at coffee hour, but by the time we got home at noon she was hungry.  Things seem to be looking up.

We had an odd kind of sermon this morning.  I used materials from our Godly Play program to talk about the Trinity.  The way Godly Play talks about the Trinity is to use the Creation Story, The Faces of Easter (the life of Jesus) and Paul's Story along with the three large white felt circles from the Baptism Story.  I put a narrow table in the center aisle and used it to place the story of Jesus' life, told in a set of pictures on wood.  Then I took out the Creation story, also a set of pictures on wood and as I described each card, I asked people where in Jesus' life would this particular card fit.  We came to a consensus as to where each card would go.  Did the same thing with the story of Paul.  We had to move pictures around and what we ended up with was an interesting tangle of related stories.  Over all of that we put the three overlapping baptismal circles, representing the three members of the Trinity.  I doubt that anyone came away with a better understanding of the Trinity, but it was lots of fun.  One person said they were such a visual person that they really appreciated a sermon that was more visual than aural. 

A community chorus is starting up in town.  The first rehearsal was today. They will be rehearsing Sunday afternoons at our church.  The theme for the first concert at the end of August is appropriately "mountains, rivers and wind."  I was hoping for an earlier start to the group (like last year), but it wasn't to be.   Most of the pieces they're doing are more in the popular vein, but they are doing In Stiller Nacht by Brahms. I've always found that being able to sing in a group satisfying for the soul.  Maybe in my next town there will be a group to sing with.

Then it was off to the Baccalaureate service, held this year at the Roman Catholic Church (the four churches in town, rotate the service).  I read 1 Corinthians 13.  It was a short service, but very nice.  We have two young women in our parish graduating.  This is one of the largest senior classes in a while, with a total of 20 young men and women.  I know that one of our young people is in an earlier grade and they have just 10.  The school itself houses all children in the area from kindergarten to grade 12.  The parents do a lot of fund-raising so they can have the "extras" that living in a metropolitan area would provide such as trips to Boston or New York to go to museums or plays.

All is not well with Isabelle

This morning Izzie would not get off the bed and come downstairs.  After about an hour I went up to see what was up.  She was lying there looking pitiful.  Didn't seem to be running a temp.  I picked her up and she yipped.  She walked to the stairs with me and then turned back to the bedroom.  I got her to come back to the stairs and tried to pick her up again, but another yelp and I decide to see if she would follow me down, which she did very slowly.  I let her out into the back yard and she just lay in the cool grass, then moved under the stairs to the deck.  I got really worried when she wouldn't come back up the four steps, so I called the emergency vet.  I had to help her into the car and she lay on the floor the whole two hours it took to drive. She didn't want any water.

The vet decided it was her back.  Isabelle doesn't complain and the only clue was she turned and flinched a bit when poked there.  She does have a bit of arthritis and 81 mg. aspirin usually helps, but I was told it wouldn't help her back that much.  She got an injection of pain killer and some pills (muscle relaxant) to take for a week.  If that doesn't work she'll need x-rays to see if there's a tumor there.  Again she just lay on the floor of the car all the way home.

When we got home she went under the bed.  She's just come out, but is now sitting at the top of the stairs and doesn't seem to want to walk down.  The doctor says she needs to loose weight slowly.  She's at 27 pounds and she should be around 20.  It's going to be hard at coffee hour, since she loves cheese and everybody gives it to her.  I think a few plain dog biscuits will have to do.  I've also been told to give her MSM and cook for her, but give her vitamin supplements. She already eats "Happy Hips" (chicken jerky with glucosamine and chondroitin) She'll like the cooking bit, since her favorite meal is roasted chicken, pasta and broccoli.  

I think I need to carry her down the stairs: she's whimpering.  I promised her a little walk, but still had to carry her down the stairs.

Prayers for Isabelle.  Please.

Izzie's Birthday

Today is Izzie's Birthday.  She's eleven. Greetings accepted on her blog: Ruminations of a Church Dog.

Road Trip

Izzie and I had a good time driving back yesterday.  We had a nice view of Mt. Katahdin, Maine's highest peak. There's still snow on the mountain. It was early in the morning and the sky and water were almost the same color and there was little wind.  You can see the mountain in the top picture a lot better if you click on it to enlarge.

Izzie loves road trips and is a great companion.  Looking out the window, especially on the driver's side is her favorite thing.  We don't drive with the windows down, however, and she has a seat which allows her to look out the passenger's side and NOT jump on my lap.

Saturday Thoughts

Our retreat went well.  The group worked hard on re-defining their mission and came up with a wonderful piece of art work to describe it.  The collage shows God at the center of all they do with rays going out to a diverse community and butterflies.  Their mission is to be catalysts for the diocese in developing and supporting lay ministries. 

Doorman Priest posted a video about global warming on his site and it generated a lot of comments.  For those of you who don't usually go there I highly recommend this.  It goes with my post earlier this week on how "ice out" has gotten earlier over the past century.

I've been away for nearly three days and the pond that is less than 200 feet from the house is nearly free of ice.  Just a little is left at the far end.  I noticed that the lake has streaks of open water now.  It may be that "ice out" will happen before the end of April.  Also there is green grass beginning to peek up through the dead stuff and major growth in the bulbs.  Soon there will be flowers.  The daffodils and tulips are up in full bloom down the mountain.  The retreat center had fresh cut blooms on the dining tables each day and they were even cutting the grass yesterday morning.  It's nice enough this afternoon to sit on the deck and drink a cup of tea, in fact it feels downright warm.  I even ate my supper out there and so did Izzie.

Izzie had a good time at our friend's.  She wasn't at home when I got there.  The two of them were off playing dominos.   Izzie and Oscar behaved pretty well.  There was no chasing the cat up the stairs, only an ocassional sniff as they passed each other.

Good Friends

I'm going to have a very busy three days and won't be blogging.  First I'm celebrating our usual Eucharist and healing service.  Then after a bit of office work, I drive Izzie an hour to get her hair cut.  That takes about two hours, so I have time to pick up the supplies I need for a retreat I'm facilitating tomorrow and Friday.  Our Committee on Baptismal Ministry wants to rethink its mission and develop some ideas for the future.  After that I drive Izzie to one of her/our best friend's (in Maine) home to spend the next two nights.  She gets royally pampered.  When we get out of the car her tail goes like crazy and she runs up to the front door.  The only one who doesn't like her visits is Oscar, the cat.  They "tolerate" each other.  You see our friend got Oscar after she became friends with Isabelle and they both claim her as their very own special person.

Our friend is developing problems of old age.  Her memory is still ok, but it is failing and now she is developing osteoarthritis.  This lady is so full of fun and good spirits that we all hate to see this happening.  Izzie will be good company for her and I will get to spend one night too. She needs our prayers.

Prayers for our retreat as well.  The weather forecast is for rain today and tomorrow with sunshine on Friday.  This coming weekend is supposed to go up into the 70s and maybe 80s for the first time this year.  YEA.

Enrich, Lord, heart,
hands, mouth in me
with faith, with hope
and charity,
that I may run, rise,
rest in Thee.                George Herbert

Izzie's New Hero

Izzie's got a new hero.  Check out the story on her blog. Izzie loves to wander but there's no way she could take down a baby goat. Anyway goats don't run wild here.  She's more likely to run into bear, moose, deer and bobcat and some of those might like her for lunch.  And swimming isn't her thing either. It's a good thing Sophie Tucker lives so far away though, the old dog might learn new tricks.

Posting for Isabelle

I posted something for Izzie on her own blog.  You can find it at Ruminations of a Church Dog Right now she's sleeping on my foot. She does that to make sure I don't somehow leave without her knowing it. She does have abandonment issues. I probably would too if I'd been given up for adoption twice, once at two and once at age four.  She really hates cages.