Posts Tagged ‘chocolate lab’

A rescued dog with a lot of love in him and for quite awhile some serious issues; he was loving referred to in this blog as the neurotic chocolate lab; Duke went over The Bridge, August 19^th.  His final post is dedicated to ………….

What Duke Learnt – In His Own Words 

Eating a stick of butter off the kitchen counter makes your tummy ache 

When you’re scared good mummies take your head in their hands and tell you how handsome and smart you are 

My first Australian Shepherd sister Jenna took care of me & taught me important dog stuff 

Australian Shepherds are bossy and tell you that all the toys are theirs 

I got so sad when Jenna went away but then funny Mia came to live with us 

Wow, mom can get peanut butter to come out of these black rubber things and my dog chow to fall out of orange balls 

I don’t have to be afraid of TVs, candles, fireworks, foil, ball caps or thunder  

It’s kinda cool to have a cat friend who sleeps with you 

If I smile at dad when he comes home from work it makes him laugh 

The best thing about winter is my favourite blanket warm from the dryer 

Happiness is the dog park, dirty tennis balls, bison bones, my plastic purple squeaky toy 

For some reason it’s not ’helpful’ when I lick the dishes in the dishwasher 

Mom makes a really funny noise when I wipe my cookie crumb mouth on her black pants 

When you get old your head and body don’t feel good  

On Friday daddy was sad, Dr Jodi is talking softly; mummy took my head in her hands and whispered “You are handsome and smart and you’re going to see Jenna” 

What I learnt is I am loved ………… 

Thank you to Ringneck Kennels for taking in a once troubled young chocolate Labrador Retriever and then entrusting him to our care.  

For looking after Duke not only physically but mentally we are so grateful to Dr. Jodi Silvernagle and all the staff at the Animal Care Centre of Strathmore.   

A friend lent me this book as I am grappling with the mental and physical decline of my oldest dog. You will find though that you don’t need to own a pet  to be swept up in the story of Denny, an up-and-coming race car driver, his family and the events that reshape their lives.

Garth Stein’s book stands out among the overly long list of doggy literature and it doesn’t have the fluff of Marley & Me. It is a humans’ story as told by their dog Enzo. He proves to be a wise, funny and ultimately philosophical narrator. If like me, you prefer not to look at life’s bigger issues through a spiritual purple haze his worldview even if it is from ground level is refreshingly logical. The reader will find themselves thinking about an odd assortment of things from their thumbs to the big stuff like navigating life as though you’re on a race track, hence its compelling title.

This is one of those books that affects everyone differently which makes The Art Of Racing in the Rain a great book club choice. Published in 2008 it came into my life at the right time. Reading about living and dying from a dogs perspective enabled me to step back from the overwhelming heaviness of it all.

As he nears the end of his life, avid TV watcher Enzo is fascinated by a documentary about Mongolia where dogs are laid to rest high in the hills. While I cannot give that to the chocolate Labrador who has shared my life for many years; I can grant him this last summer to warm his aching body and perhaps bring some peace to a now cloudy mind. And I know that he too will tell me when it is time.

It was a cold Christmas and New Years’ here in Alberta with temperatures often in the -20′s. We however were comfortably ensconced at home having made a decision to have a quiet holiday season; wanting to relax, regroup and restore.

Needless to say this was not ideal dog walking weather so I stretched my imagination to keep them amused with indoor activities. Duke who is known to many of you as the neurotic chocolate lab recently turned nine and his long legs are showing the early onset of arthritis. His vet has just started him on a course of Cartrophen Vet which is of plant origin and not a steroidal anti-inflammatory.  There are four shots so we will see if it helps.  Mia, his 18 month old Australian Shepherd sister has no sympathy and continues to bug the hell out of him until he plays with her so he needs something!

The weather is particularly hard on the two feral cats who have adopted me or vice versa. I have my quota of indoor cats; anymore and I will be close to ‘cat lady’ status. So we built them a  shelter and ensure that they receive dry bedding, regular fresh water and food. No matter how cold and hungry it is my voice that they wait for first when I go outside. When I speak to them their bodies relax and ears perk up, next they want the fresh water and then finally they eat.

Whether soothing a frightened animal, talking to a friend or writing an article it is our voice and the words that we choose that carries the message.

Blogs are all about our voice, the words that we type convey the nature and style of the blog. One of the first things I ask my clients. What do you want to achieve with your blog? Do you want to post about business, life, lifestyle,  travels, writing?  The range is vast so in order to stand out you have to have a clear vision and goals for your blog.

So with that in mind we have changed the look of this blog to reflect more of what we are about. Imagine that you are  sitting in a café with friends discussing movies, politics, books, food and life in general. Life Deco is a blog where we aim to capture that same atmosphere. Drop by anytime all you need to bring is your favorite beverage. We hope that you will leave a comment for that will keep the conversations stimulating.

Thank you to Alanna Morley of  Alanna Inc for designing the Life Deco blog.

The majority of my coaching is done by phone which means that I don’t have to tidy my office or change out of my comfy shoes. So with a client coming over Monday at 9am I had to quickly go through my mental checklist to make sure that I was ready. Coffee pot on, files & books straightened into neat piles, quick dust, clean hand towel & fresh soap in the office bathroom, resources that she had sent me put into her file along with my notes, change shoes ……check.

Now while doing this Duke (aging, semi-neurotic chocolate lab) has been following me around. So I switch to the dog’s check list………walked, fed, water changed, toys at the ready and he didn’t look like an unmentionable body fluids where about to erupt from either end. So I stopped rushing and processing for a minute, put my hand on his face and asked him what his problem was. He then quietly leaned into me and let out a small contented sound. All he wanted was a few minutes of attention; to be stroked & loved…. this was a reminder to me that we don’t put love on a to-do list.

In between clients while I am writing or or doing administrative work I usually have a news channel such as the BBC or CNN on. This was the case when the second and  much more sombre occurrence happened this week. I am referring to the death of Neda Agha Soltan. The announcer quietly issues a warning about how disturbing the footage was.  At first I sat unsure of how to process the image that was unfolding before me thousand of miles away. Then I did the only thing that I could do, I stood. Alone and in the middle of my office I stood up in quiet homage to a young woman who would never see another sun rise and then I wept.

Yes, here it is the moment you have all been waiting for; a photograph of Duke, the neurotic chocolate lab. It is a far from perfect picture (I definitely didn’t photo-shop him in) I had to take it quickly before he realized that in exchange for the dog cookie the camera was going to take a piece of his soul.

My boy is not having the best of months, he was always a thin dog but his weight loss has recently become so severe we have had to subject him to numerous vet visits and medical tests including a somewhat costly ultrasound.  Still not sure what is wrong with him. We are starting to wonder if it is psychosomatic……… and you wonder why I call him neurotic.

Mia is 10 months old now and since we got her in July I have been amazed to discover just how many new theories are out there on the right way to raise a puppy. From what to feed; raw, kibble or vegetarian, when, if and what to vaccinate, when to spay, rabies shot yes or no and how to train; clicker, treat, dog whispering. Last week I spend more time deciding on the right style & color of collar for her than I did buying a new blouse.

Somehow we are getting through the first year. I have a great vet clinic and her breeder to guide me and when all else fails I follow my instincts. She is loving and happy and I can live with the fact that getting her to sit or lie down on the first command well that is still a bit on and off.

Being in the throes of puppy raising I decided to read Marley & Me by John Grogan and it had me laughing out loud. I admire John and Jenny for persevering. Chris & I had to call on a lot of patience when we acquired our chocolate lab. While I loving call Duke ‘neurotic’, in fact he came to us as a rescue dog and we went through a lot to get him to a state of near normalcy. It took years to socialize him and for us to learn what he could and couldn’t handle.  For instance the reason that there are no pictures of this fairly handsome boy is that he cannot overcome his fear of cameras.

Duke has finally realized that despite all his best attempts to end her young life that Mia is not going away. He is willing to play and interact with her from 8am -8pm, then he retreats to his bed with a do not disturb snarl at the ready. At 6 months of age Mia is an Australian Shepherd in progress. She recently started puppy classes where I tend to get more attitude than obedience.  Overall though she is the happiest of dogs so I don’t have the material for a Mia & Me book, but with that face maybe a bit part in a Disney movie?

As it is uncharacteristically warm in Alberta and there are no icy sidewalks to contend with we are able to continue our regime of 5:45ish am walks.  While Mia & I are ready to go at that time, Duke and beloved need to stretch, yawn and perform various masculine rituals before we can even get out of the door. As you can see from the pic, Mia is wearing her favorite scarf and her impatient “I’m ready to go” expression.

We made the decision, found a great breeder and got an Australian Shepherd puppy. What was I thinking!!!??? Actually Mia is wonderful but all that energy. I have surprised myself though, I am more patient than I use to be, laugh at her antics and quickly realized that the best thing to do was go with the flow and enjoy her.

I especially like the way that she has re-decorated the house. The living room is a delightful blend of PetSmart toy aisle accented with a few chewed up magazines tossed here and there for that splash of colour. The kitchen she has done in the wet look of upended water bowl. But nothing can surpass the bathroom now a trendy grunge look of toilet paper draped everywhere except on the roll .

House breaking is so much easier in the summer, as is her training and exercise. The blip is that the chocolate lab really doesn’t like her so I have to keep a close eye on the two of them. The back yard is fenced but I worry that he may try to push her through one of the few small openings or whisper in her ear that the little green unripe crab apples are really puppy treats. So I usually sit outside with them which has actually been a good thing. I stop slaving over a hot laptop, grab my book and relax for awhile. I have even strayed from my schedule, made my afternoon tea and herded them both outside. Quelle shock!

A friend of mine, UK Life Coach Lynette Allen is currently raising TWO spaniel puppies, she is using the Life Coaching puppy training method mixed with some timely cursing. While I am trying the Zen like ‘what the hell’ method mixed with expletives. Lynette’s blog is aptly entitled The Life Behind the Coach .

Here are some pictures of our new addition Mia on the Casselcreek Australian Shepherds website.

(For those of you who are new to this blog the Aussie in the picture with me is Jenna, we lost her to a brain tumor in May.)

I was out this morning walking neurotic chocolate lab (I’ll share his story another time). We live in a normal neighborhood where 97% of the homes are well kept with nice gardens but then there is THAT house; little lawn maintenance, overgrown shrubs you get the picture. What really gets me seething is that this who cares attitude spills over onto the sidewalk. Walking past the house one steps over cans, wrappers, paper coffee cups, grass cuttings from where he actually trimmed the grass growing through his fence but never bothered to pick it up and then there is the broken glass beside his curb. Now I am not saying it is all his but really, let’s have some civic pride here!

After plowing through this mess for the umpteenth time I went home grabbed broom, gloves and green garbage bag and cleaned up the potpourri of garbage. Sometimes enough is enough and you have to just do something. I wonder if he intends on thanking me?