Friday, December 17, 2010

Managing

Here's the peanut butter and pill sandwich I give Desmond every morning. 

He's thrilled to eat anything that has peanut butter in it, so I don't even have to disguise the pills, two glucosamine pills and one pain pill.  In the evening, it's one pain pill.

Maggie, on the other hand, likes to examine everything before she considers consuming it.  She eats in tiny bites, and a pill doesn't fall in the realm of yummy for her, even if it's hidden in liver.

I forgot that (blocked is more like it) Maggie's stitched wound on her paw has to be managed.  Keep the bandage dry with a plastic bag over her foot every time she goes out.  Don't let her run or jump or go up or down stairs.  Don't let her lick the bandage.

Most people with dogs know stuff like that is more aspirational than directive.  I spent Monday evening making Maggie a great plastic bag thing that tied at the top, and it lasted, oh, about 5 minutes on Tuesday morning before being shredded.  Then her bandage was wet and I had to take it off.  (oh yeah, and go to work worrying that she was going to lick the wound back open).  We got through Wednesday with the wound uncovered before she reopened it and pulled a stitch out while running across the yard Thursday morning.  Now, I'm reapplying the bandage about 4 times a day, as she takes it off. I'm trying anti-chew spray to keep her off the bandage while I'm at work. I just want to get a good scab or something on it, so it'll stay closed by itself.  She's getting used to being re-bandaged, and I'm getting used to doing it to her. Only 8 more days of this!

On top of that, I have to feed Maggie a pill twice a day.  For her, it's a little peanut butter on the pill, shoved far down her throat.  Then peanut butter on my finger to get her to lick my finger, accidentally swallowing the pill while she's focusing on my finger.

I've been a little resentful of the time all this managing takes, since I'm also focused on trying to feel better myself from the accident, while worrying about money, frozen pipes in the country, getting the ATV and lawn tractor over here and selling them, getting a possible new(er) car.  Oh, and learning my new house.  The bathroom I take a shower in was 44 degrees this morning, in the cold part of the house.  Last Friday, I made toast and set off a smoke alarm.  It's not terrifying unless you realize that one of the smoke alarms is hard wired to something (ie, the fire department comes when the smoke alarm goes off).  That's why I was freakily trying to STOP the thing, and why I was so shaky after I ripped it from the wall and realized the one that went off is not the one that's hard wired. Whew. 

Yesterday I tested the 1960s-vintage oven and made sure several fans and the vent were on high, ... just in case.  (FYI, it works, but appears to run much hotter than the chosen temp.  Now I can make cookies for Monday's cookie exchange. Must pick something that's tolerant of being burned.)

Now, was there something about some dogs needing attention?

4 comments:

  1. Nothing like animals to give life to a place/home. Nothing like animals to require time you'd just as soon be using elsewhere. Nothing like animals to drain your savings account!

    Luckily, our dog hasn't required much medication over her nearly 13 years, but she's never developed a taste for peanut butter. We make mozzarella cheese sandwiches.

    Hope your body is well on the way back to normal by now.

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  2. OK...may be cheating, but my kids have made rice crispie treats with either red or green food coloring added to the butter/marshmallow and then rolled them into small balls for cookie exchange...I also find melting choc chips(or white choc) and stirring in peanuts or cashews, then dropping on waxed paper by small spoonfuls a good treat...both are NO BAKING REQUIRED!!

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  3. Jordan,

    I have a 1945 Hotpoint stove in my city house, and still have the instruction manual. They say clearly that when the stove gets older, it may need to be re-calibrated, and provide instructions for how to do that!

    I found through trial and error that I should turn the temp down about 25 degrees.

    My dog loves peanut butter too!

    Kate

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  4. Thanks for the ideas Karen Sue. I'll post pics of what I did later today or tomorrow. Kate - I still have the instruction manual too - I've started reading it a few times, but need to really go through it. Yesterday I set the temp 100 degrees below what it should be, and that seemed about right.

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