Choices

I'll get back to my 'Treating People Like Dogs' theory soon but today I wanted to talk about choices where our dogs are concerned.

Yesterday, Ginny who is 12 years old, had surgery to remove a mass from her chest.  The mass was involved in a mammary gland and was causing the nipple to leak a clear, brownish fluid.  That was the reason I chose to have the mass removed.  What I did not choose to do was have the mass sent to pathology to determine what it was.  While it would have been nice to know, definitively, what we were dealing with it also wouldn't have changed anything for me.  If it was cancer, I wasn't going to put Gin through chemo (assuming that might have helped) because she is 12 years old and, honestly, I can't afford it.  If it wasn't cancer, there's no guarantee she won't get cancer.  It's a non-issue - I'm going to continue to treat Ginny just as I always have; doing the best I can to maintain her health and quality of life.

Sam has gotten a lot of extra meds in recent months.  I'm choosing to give him these because, overall, he's still doing very well and his quality of life is really good.  However, in choosing to give him these meds I also had to weigh potential long term side effects; increased risk of bleeding, potential liver damage, etc.  He's 13 years old.  At the absolute outside limit, he might live another 3 years.  I don't think the meds he is taking are going to shave years off his life.  If giving him the cocktail of meds helps him have more good days than bad in the time he has left, then I choose to do that.

Today we have the most incredible things available to us to improve and lengthen our dogs' lives.  With all those improvements we also have a responsibility to make hard choices.  Those choices aren't always about the dog though.  Several months ago, I read a book called "Merle's Door."  It's a true story about a rescued dog and the long, happy life he lived with his rescuer.  Toward the end of Merle's life he starts having the kinds of health issues that a lot of old dogs do and the question of euthanasia came up.  His owner asked himself a series of 9 questions from the book Active Years for Your Aging Dog by Bernard S. Hershorn, DVM.  In addition to these questions, Dr. Hershorn also emphasizes that the dog's chronological age should never be a factor in the decision.  That means young or old, you need to ask and answer these questions honestly and make a decision based on them.  The 9 questions are:

1)  Is the condition prolonged, recurring or getting worse?
2)  Is the condition no longer responding to therapy?
3)  Is your dog in pain or otherwise physically suffering?
4)  Is it no longer possible to relieve that pain or suffering?
5)  If your dog should recover, is he likely to be chronically ill, an invalid, or unable to care for himself as a healthy dog?
6)  If your dog recovers, is he likely no longer to be able to enjoy life, or will he have severe personality changes?
7)  Can you provide the necessary care?
8)  Will such care interfere with your own life as to create serious problems with your or your family?
9)  Will the cost involved become unbearably expensive?

I think it's a great list of questions because it addresses both the dog's well being and the owners'.  In one way or another I ask myself these questions, or a version of them, every time I have to make a choice about my dogs' health.  They don't take the emotional element completely out of the picture but they do help mitigate it somewhat and allow me to make decisions based on what really is best for the dog - not just what will make me feel better.

I Have a Theory...

First, I hope you like the new, fall-themed look of the blog.  I loved the previous blog background and it carried me ably through spring and summer but, with the advent of cooler temps and falling leaves, I felt like it needed a change.  Thanks to Elizabeth at The Chronicles of Cardigan for the inspiration.  You'll notice there is a new quote in the header and another quote in the right sidebar.  I'm going to try to change these out regularly as there are literally hundreds of great dog quotes out there.

Now for my theory.  This is a theory I've held for several years.  It's one that UHM says I should never talk about in public but, UHM is a human resources professional so she has to say things like that.  I believe that all the principles you use to train your dog can be applied to managing people who work for you.  There, I've said it.  I think you should treat people like dogs.

I'll go into more detail in subsequent posts but, right now, what are your thoughts on my theory?

An Auto-Generated Email? Really?

Finally heard back from the company that flew me in for an interview over a month ago.  Today I received an auto-generated, anonymous email from a "Staffing Representative" indicating that while "many aspects of your background are impressive" there were other candidates whose qualifications were more in line with their current needs.  Oh, and I got this barely an hour after I sent an email asking for an update to the HR flunky who had arranged my whole trip, and, by the way, where is my check to reimburse my expenses for the trip?

I'm ok with not getting the job but, I really think if you actually bring someone into the offices to interview they deserve the courtesy of a phone call and an opportunity to solicit feedback if they didn't get the job.  See what the electronic age has done to us?

So, the hunt continues.

The Most Important Ingredient? Time!

I've been at it again.  Last week I baked off some pie pumpkins, scooped out the flesh, ran it through the food processor, drained/strained it and then froze it.  Now I will have fresh, real pumpkin to use in recipes throughout the winter.  Or, I can give it to dogs who need to 1) lose weight, 2) stop pooping, or 3) start pooping.  It really it a multi-purpose vegetable.

Today I made some fresh marinara sauce using tomatoes from last summer and zucchini from this summer.  Then I mixed it with some ziti and cheeses to freeze pans of ziti to be popped in the oven at a later date, when we don't feel like "making" dinner.

Later in the week I expect I will get more pumpkins and apples too that will need to be processed into food stuffs for the winter months.

Yes, I've done a lot of canning, freezing, baking, cooking, etc. this summer.  A few of you have commented that you are so impressed with that.  It's nice of you to say but, I have to share a secret with you....  NOTHING that I have made this summer takes any particular skill or equipment.  If you can boil water, follow a recipe and set a timer you can make all of the things I have made and make them just as well as I have.  The only ingredient I have right now that most of you don't is time.

When I was working full time, I very rarely froze, canned, baked or cooked much of anything.  When (notice I'm saying 'when' and not 'if')I return to work,  I'm not sure I will continue to do all these things.  Sure, UHM and I will still make supper for ourselves and, if I have a little time on the weekend I'll whip up a dessert that will last through the week.  But, I have to tell you that I am not entirely certain I will make the time to do all the things I've done this year.  It's takes a full day to can 20 lbs of apples into applesauce and pie filling.  If I only have 2 days off a week, I'm not sure I'll want to spend one of them doing that.

Still, those of you who don't currently feel like you have the skill set to freeze fresh green beans or make your own applesauce I would encourage you to try.  It's a wonderful feeling to sit down to a meal and know exactly where some of the items on the table came from and how they were made.  Plus, the flavors simply don't compare to anything you buy in the store.

First Craft Project

Last week I posted that I was looking for new craft projects to keep me occupied during the colder weather.  When UHM and I were out tasting apple cider and buying apples last week, we also stopped by one of our favorite antique stores, The Covesville Store.  Like most 'antique' stores, it's a mish-mash of nicer, truly antique pieces mixed in with thrift-store-type items that aren't really worth all that much.  While I was poking around in the store I found a box full of "vintage" cookie cutters and had an idea.  I bought several of them and today got around to trying out my idea.  Below is a picture of the result.

What do you all think?  It's a cross between a wind chime and a mobile.   If you saw it at a craft fair, would you buy it?  What would you pay for it?  Any suggestions on sprucing it up a bit?  I have some other ideas for something similar but need to spend more time on the mechanics.  Let me know what you think though.

I Pulled Out the Turtlenecks

First - no word on the job front.  Very frustrating.  For the life of me, I can't understand why a company would go to the expense to bring me in for less than 24 hours (over $1k) and then not call!  On the flip side, they haven't called to say take a hike either :)

This morning was the first chilly morning we've had.  I think it was around 42 when we got up and it never got warmer than the mid 60s today.  A really beautiful fall day!  And what do you do on a beautiful fall day?  Well, you convince your UHM to drive to the local apple cider brewery for a tasting!  We drove about 45 minutes south to Albemarle Cider Works and tasted the four varieties of apple cider they produced in 2010.  These ciders remind me a lot of sparkling white wines - not really my thing - but were all very good.  My favorite was the Ragged Mountain Cider which was the sweetest of the group.  They also had apples picked in their orchards available for sale.  We bought 20 pounds; a mixture of Suncrisp, Grimes Golden, Jonathan and King David.  The apples are actually grown by Vintage Virginia Apples.  They grow over 250 varieties of apples, many of them heirloom varieties.  Guess what I plan to do for the rest of the weekend?  Can applesauce and apple pie filling, that's what.  The pie filling recipe I have uses butterscotch schnapps!

Also in honor of the cooler temps, I made my favorite chicken pot pies; the filling includes artichoke hearts.  The recipe makes enough for 6 pot pies so I end up freezing 5 of them for future meals.  This recipe also happens to have one of my favorite pie crusts.  When I was a kid, my mom always made 'pie crust cookies' with the trimmings and excess dough.  We usually had sweet pies so the cookies would be sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar.  Tonight I tried something a little different, since I was in a savory mood.  I brushed the cookies with an egg wash and then sprinkled them with garlic salt before baking them off in a 350 oven until golden brown.  YUM!  A lot like home made crackers, only better!

Now that the cold weather is getting nearer, I'm looking for projects to keep me busy inside.  I'll probably can some more apples before the end of November and there will be pumpkins to bake off, puree and freeze too.  I also have a few ideas for inexpensive craft projects.  If you all have any favorite cold weather crafts (besides knitting or crocheting), please share.

If you'd like my recipes for canned apple pie filling or chicken pot pie, let me know.  I'm happy to share.  Time to dig into the pot pie.

200th Post!

In August of 2009 I published my first post on Life with The Horde.  A little over two years later, we're still here and even have another Horde member, Georgia.

I had really hoped that this post would bear good news about my job search but, unfortunately, I have not heard back yet regarding my interview down south at the beginning of the month.  Please keep thinking good thoughts for me.

Yesterday I took Moira to some agility run thrus at a place not too far from where we live.  She was a WILD dog but that's to be expected after an entire summer off from agility.  I was really pleased with her jumping though and she always came back to me so that's good too.  Part of the reason I went for the run thrus was  to meet up with Stacy Sties of Canine Icer.  Stacy is a local gal who makes neoprene wraps that can be used for applying heat or cold to various parts of canine athletes.  She also makes custom wraps that can hold  weights or rigid/flexible supports for canine physical therapy.

Stacy measured Sam for a pair of hock wraps to help him stay up off his pasterns a little more.  As he's aged, I've noticed him rolling back on his rear pasterns more and more.  This week I took him to the vet because he has developed an interdigital infection on one rear foot and some cysts on the inner edge of the other.  The hope is these wraps will help stabilize and support him a little better to take some of the pressure off his back feet.  At 13 I expect him to have some issues and arthritis is one of them but I could tell his feet have really been bothering him lately and this seemed like it might help.

Sam's hock wraps.

After only an hour or so they seem to be helping and he doesn't mind them at all.  The right one doesn't want to stay up where it should - may have to do with his bone structure and we might have to make some adjustments to it - but the left one is staying in place perfectly.  He should be able to wear them almost all the time so we'll see if there is any improvement in his feet and gait.

I know many of you have athletically inclined dogs who have suffered injuries that require the application of heat or cold.  I would encourage you to check out Stacy's website.  She has some standard sizes but will also make custom sizes - important with the corgis, of both persuasions, who have slightly different proportions.  Her pricing is reasonable, especially considering the personal attention and prompt delivery, and she's an agility and herding person too so she knows what we ask our dogs to do.

Hopefully, the next post will have news about the job hunt.