Posts from the ‘Bear’ category

Cool August night

YES!!

And rain, too!

August started with a whoosh of a cold front and then an afternoon, night and all day today gentle rain.

Hoo…I say HOO-RAH!

The forecast high today was 65F but it only made it to 60. I am ecstatic and dressed in fleece shirt and boots and long pants. AND, I even turned the heat on for just 15 minutes to take the chill and damp off…for Bob, you know :) !!

Rainy day Bob…

Rainy day Bear…

Rainy day me…

It’s ok. I was happy to sit at my desk and plug along at work while Bob and Bear snored.

In the wishful thinking department:

We started August cool and rainy
On Monday Bear and I saw a Cinnamon Bear on the game trail! ( we usually only see bears Spring and Fall)
Also on Monday, squirrels were working in the yard gathering stuff
There are a LOT of butterflies

Maybe it will be an early Fall …. maybe the yellow jackets will take the hint and do their Fall thing NOW!

A girl can hope….ok, a middle-aged woman can hope! I know Bear and Bob hope too!

Mr. Bob’s ear news… it is STILL going on. Last week we got an all clear from Dr. Clark via visual exam. To be on the safe side we continued the meds through Saturday. By Tuesday, Bob had the wobbles.

RATS.

DOUBLE-TRIPLE RATS!!!

We picked up more medication today and have calls in to 2 specialist clinics. We will travel either to Missoula or Great Falls or both this coming week.

On the plus side, Dr. Clark told me today that his gut feeling is that things look worse than they are. He was referring to my worry over Bob’s wobbly symptoms vs all other tests and as he said, his own intuition based on years of experience. As much as I try not to and KNOW that it does Bob no good to worry, it was so good to hear this. Bob is eating and drinking normally, normal output, he sticks to his normal routine and does not seem in pain.

So.

Onward!

The other good news is that originally, I was to pick up the newly washed and waxed Wild Thing today. That would have meant driving a fresh clean motorhome in the rain…on roads that had been dusty – resulting in yucky, muddy splashes. BUT…, the person working on WT called in sick and now she is to be ready next Tuesday AND staying in a nice garage bay at the body shop all this time. Another HOO-RAH! She should be home in time to load and head to whichever clinic(s) we need to go to.

It might not be exactly the getaway I had in mind, but we will get away and hopefully move toward full resolution of Bob’s ear infection. Dr. Clark does feel that is all it is…just bad, resistant bug or bugs. There is nothing to indicate anything worse.

The lastest wobbly Bob video…recorded for the veterinary diagnostic purposes.

Saturday morning lie-in

It has been hitting 90 during the day and forecast to continue. But the air is very dry so we drop into the 50’s overnight, making morning prime time to be outside.

By 8:00 a.m. this Saturday morning, we were back inside.

After breakfast, some of us went back to bed…

Most of us went back to bed.

At first separately.

But then together.

Saturday morning lie-in.

New days

It has been 5 months since Bear’s first TPLO surgery.

Three months before that things changed as we tried to resolve his lameness with rest.

And now, in what feels like a sudden change, we are resuming ‘normal’ activity.

I had been keeping the blinds drawn in all but the kitchen and the sliding door in the office so as to keep Bear from being tempted to jump up and see out windows.

This morning I opened everything.

The bedroom had been closed to Bear during the day. Now, it is open.

It feels like we have a new house. And it is larger and brighter!

The day cooperated by being beautiful, sunny and warm. The light, the vivid colors – everything seemed fresh and new.

We spent hours outside today. Bear had his first off leash time in 5 months. He followed me around as I did some yard work and then dug a cool spot in the dirt under a tree when I took a break and sat on the front porch.

All of that fresh air, a little more activity, a long nap and then the light of the late afternoon.

All day, it was different.

The 5 months were good months of healing and working together. It is an incredible bonding experience. I am happy we are at this point. If is surprising how it feels, though. I have been so focused on doing what we needed to do every day to progress that I never thought about what it would be like when we got here.

It is good.

New Days.

Nearly normal

Bear and I are just back from the vet. Bear had his 8 week x-ray and the 2nd TPLO is completely healed. Dr. Clark said it was “textbook perfect”. Happy Dance!!!

Bear was sedated for the xray as is the protocol at The Animal Clinic for TPLO 8 week check, so he is still a bit sleepy but glad to be home.

We will gradually add some running and jumping and muscle building exercise over the next weeks but for Bear, things are nearly normal.

***I took the photo before we went to the vet. He hasn’t done the “backward downward dog” thing for a long time. It looks even funnier in the chair but I’m happy to see him doing things he used to do. There is no more stiffness in his back end when he gets up from a nap or lying on the ground. All movement looks good and comfortable and I believe he has full range of motion in both knee joints. Hoo – rah!

***I rescheduled Bob’s ear re-check for Monday at the last minute. Got to thinking that it might be a bit much with both.

Friday night, nearly normal…time for pizza!

A change in the weather

The forecast from NOAA late this morning indicates we are in for a bit of everything.

The verbage for this afternoon, evening and tomorrow states that in addition to the sunshine giving way to clouds, two cold fronts will whoosh through…emphasis on the whooshing as high winds are forecast.

On the way back from town this morning, I could see the change happening: Blue sky and sunshine to the east was starting to give way to dark clouds.

The clouds were smoothing out with the promised wind.

Spots of sunshine dotted the peaks of the peaks that border the southern end of the Flathead Valley. A bit of lake occasionally reflected bright from some sun.

Now, early evening, it is dark and windy. It is hours until sunset but the black clouds and gusty wind signal a change in the weather.

**********************
Earlier this week, I took some quick video of Bear walking in the woods to show Dr. Clark when we go for our 8 week xray this coming Friday. It is a short, no frills video with a snippet of Bob at the end. It is very jumpy. I took it with my phone, walking behind Bear…in the woods. Still, it shows Bear walking comfortably and normally at a good pace over uneven ground. It is hard to believe that here we are – end of week 7 and starting week 8. Hurrah! And Bob’s ear has not puffed up so hopefully we are done with the Yoda ear part. I expect it will take some time to fully eradicate the yeast infection, though.

BearAndBobWalking0424 from Liz Summers on Vimeo.