In response to my sister’s post…

Dolly Dog…
Photo by Deals

So, THE RUNT decided to post HERE about how I’ve apparently “dumped” Dolly on her.

I would like to start out by letting everyone know that I LOVE Dolly. I love Dolly a lot, actually. She is my “Number One”, my “Honey Bear”, my “Cashew” (yes, my pets have “pet” names…shut up). In fact, I love Dolly SO much that I sent her to stay with her “Mommy” (a.k.a. my sister).

See, Dolly is going on twelve years old. According to the weight/age chart at the vet’s office, this makes Dolly not just old or “senior” – but a canine geriatric.

This summer is particularly hot in Texas, and poor, little Dolly has been experiencing problems with the heat. It has literately been making her crazy (can dogs go senile?), and she started doing some bizarre things – like barking at nothing for no reason over long periods of time. One day, I came home to find her barking at a brick wall (and my next door neighbor asking me, “If that little, black and tan dog has an ‘off switch’?”).

The heat has also been causing Dolly to have problems…uh…“digesting” properly, and the vet recommended that I keep her cool, calm and indoors as much as possible – especially during the heat of the day – in an effort to prevent such attacks. So, starting in early June, I began keeping Dolly inside most of the time.

Well, normally this would have been the perfect solution, but Dolly (also due to her advanced age) is starting to experience some bladder weakness, and – despite the fact that I was coming home on my lunch break to let her outside to pee – was starting to have “accidents”. At first, it rarely happened, but as the days and weeks progressed, it began to occur more regularly. I knew the second I opened the door whether or not she’d had an “oops” in the house. If she hadn’t peed on the floor, she was waiting to great me at the door. Otherwise, Dolly was hiding under the bed - refusing to come out until the situation was cleaned up and all evidence thrown away. I’ve never, ever reprimanded her for her accidents – she was already doing enough of that by herself at the time. Plus, I knew she was upset about it, so there was no point in adding insult to injury.

Of course, it didn’t help that, after a couple of weeks, Dolly started refusing to pee when I let her outside on my lunch break (she’d look at me like, “I don’t want to pee there. The grass isn’t the right color,” and, then, in protest, she’d get up and go sit next to the front door as if to say, “I cannot believe I got out bed for this!”), apparently preferring to go on a walk instead. Well, that is until the walking got too hot for her liking. All of a sudden – in the middle of a walk - Dolly would refuse to go another step. She’d literately sit/lay down and do the whole “drag dog” thing until I finally relented and started back towards the house. Once it was clear that I was returning home, Dolly would jump up and trot on ahead of me - tail a'waggin'. So, essentially, I was now taking care of a dog with bladder weakness that refused to pee when “the facilities” were available to her.

Anyway, I’ve recently had to move out of my house temporarily while some repairs are being made (something I need to post about, by the way). I originally thought I’d only be out for a few days, but now looks like it will be closer to four or five weeks. So, in the meantime, I’ve been staying with anyone and everyone who will take me (namely, my mother, father and boyfriend).

Since Dolly presents a little more of a “maintenance” problem than Haskell and Gypsy Kitty (who are fine outside during the day), I decided to see if my sister could take her for awhile. After all, Dolly’s schedule and my sister’s schedule are identical. You know, sleep till noon, pee, eat breakfast, take nap, pee, watch TV, make dinner, pee, watch movie, pee, go to bed, repeat. Plus, Dolly does BELONG to my sister (and Dolly is ALWAYS excited to see her), so I thought it was a good idea. Luckily, my sister agreed, and I delivered Dolly shortly thereafter along with her “luggage” (which consists of Dolly’s kibble, joint medication, supply of treats, temperpedic mattress, fleece blanket, and doggie bowls).

Now, it’s not like I’ve abandoned or “dumped” Dolly or anything like that. In fact, over the weekend, I went to the vet and purchased more heartworm tablets and Frontline for her (not cheap, either). I also received this email from my sister yesterday morning:

“Hey. I'm guessing you're at work because that's what old people do, but I wanted to let you know that I am no longer ill (not that anyone cares). I also wanted you to know that Dolly only has about a few more days of food left and she smells. She is chewing on a bone right now because I was eating last night and she wanted me to give her what I was eating and I told her that she was getting fat, and then she gave me a look as if to say, ‘Ya...and you're not?’ So, she guilted me into going to the store today…”

So, I’m obviously still providing for Dolly in every since of the word. In fact, I even promised my sister that I’d bring more kibble over for Dolly tonight. What service! I’ll probably even end up bathing her, so she won’t smell anymore. All this for a dog that I love dearly (and spoil accordingly), but isn’t even mine.

Anyway, I just thought I’d post my side of the story (lest anyone think that I don’t always have my pets’ best interests at heart).

Layin' by the pool…
Photo by Deals