Sick as a Dog X 2

Well, hell, we've got two sick dogs.

Of the two, Beano Boglen, our resident terrier, is down the hardest with symptoms of an upper respiratory infection, but Opal Hound has been wheezing and sneezing as well. Having multiple dogs is a lot like having multiple human offspring; if one picks up something, they all share it around sooner or later.

One of the conditions of fostering is that signs of illness must be reported immediately to the Humane Society (HS). Technically, the foster dog remains the responsibility of HS, including any necessary medical care. Additionally, any dog scheduled for transport to New York must pass a final health certification exam.

Opal--aka "Olive", aka "Elvira", aka "Li'l Sister"--is scheduled to board the transport a week from tomorrow, and final medical exams must be done by no later than Thursday. Five days.

Can't say enough about the quick response from Jan Herzog and Cheryl Miller. We had antibiotics for both dogs in under two hours early on a Saturday morning. Only time will tell now if Opal makes her departure date.

Oh, it's Saturday! It's Saturday!!

Dear Readers & Followers,

Almost bright and not that early this morning, the cry of the beloved spouse was heard echoing from our bed chamber....

AREN'T YOU GOING TO WORK!!!???

Right time, wrong day. Today is Saturday and my presence is not required down at the dealership. Today is a day for puttering and for tinkering, for playing outside with the dogs and for generally breaking out of the weekday seven-to-one routine. Saturday is, in short, a day for some things completely different.

Let's kick it off with a great big THANK YOU! to each and every one of you out there who have been reading, sharing and following Fostering Opal. This morning we topped 1,000 page views in the five days since this blog began. YOU did that!! And I can't help but believe that the more folks touched by Opal Hound's story, the more this rescue & fostering thing is gonna grow and grow.

We also want to give a big round of applause to JAN HERZOG, one of the top hands working without pay for the Humane Society of Wichita County (HSWC). Good Lord, with all the you-know-whos in Austin and Washington these days, HSWC and other not-for-profit-but-for-love outfits would be up the proverbial creek without dedicated folks like Jan. She primarily was responsible for saving Opal Hound from being put down and for hooking us up with fostering this sweet dog.

And we can't pass on the accolades without a shout out to P.E.T.S. Low-Cost Spay & Neuter Clinic. P.E.T.S. is "The Vet" for Beano and Annie's four--count 'em,  four!--cats as well as taking care of Opal's spaying.

Like it or not, the holiday gifting season is here. If you've got a list of impossible-to-buy-fors, don't settle for one more useless piece of crap they don't need. Rather, donate in their names to outfits like HSWC and the P.E.T.S. clinic. Believe me, your generous gifts could not be better appreciated nor put to better use.

I'll be over here grazin' while you're monkeying with that contraption...

Such a fantabulous day outside, we've gone "live remote" from the back yard, a.k.a. Miller's Cave, via our recently-acquired acer Chromebook. This is the first opportunity we've had to spend significant time outside the house, so we are trying out some new (to us) stuff for future postings here. As you can see above, we're still working out how to use ChromeCam! Excuse our progress, and stay tuned for future updates. 


Life's better outside. Get out and enjoy it!!