Senior Care Appointments & The Week in Review

Tail wags, dear readers, it's me, Stormy. One of our favorite readers, Max of South Africa, had a special request. Actually his mom did, but close enough. Dave and I had our 6-month Senior Care appointments on Tuesday and Wednesday and Max's mom thought it would be interesting for others to know what all happens during those appointments. Great idea! We are all in the program and that whole "diagnose early" and the "preventative care" have a whole lot going for them! Maybe some of you can get your vets to start a program like this!

We've posted about the Senior Care Program from our perspective before - rather than us re-posting, it's worth going back and reading, if you're interested. Dave's version is here; my version is here. And for a run-down by the bipeds at our vet's (Kansas State University Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital), please click here. We don't want to be too redundant , so today I'll give you a look into our appointments themselves.

My appointment was on Tuesday. Other than actually having to hold still while there, the toughest part of the appointment process is that you aren't allowed to have breakfast that morning. I know. It's horrible! Mom took a few shots of us with her iPhone, so we'll share those. Not the best quality, but let's go!

Here I am with Beth, one of our favorite Vet Techs.

We were having fun, mugging for the camera. If it looks dark in there, it was. They had already dilated my eyes, so the lights were off for my comfort.

They did a bunch of stuff to me (again, please see the link above for details) and said for a 14-year old, I'm mighty healthy. One change for me is that both Beth and Dr. Nelson said I could use a few extra calories. Mom asked them how much I paid them to say that. Beth said, "$5oo." Shh! Beth, that's supposed to be our secret! Ha roo roo roo!

On to my favorite part of the exam...

That's right... cheese and crackers. (We never get cheese-in-a-can at home; Dr. Nelson insists on giving us some. We ♥ Dr. Nelson!)

What? No wine with the cheese and crackers?

Please don't mind my eyes. They put dye in them, and dilate them, and stick paper in them, and do all kinds of crazy stuff! But if you think mine look odd, wait 'til you see what they did to Dave.

Ha roo roo roo!

So, the refreshments always come at the end of the appointment - in case they need to draw blood or do a urinalysis or administer drugs that require fasting. You know, like if they need to sedate us to take radiographs or something. Anyway, once I had quite a few crackers with cheese, it was time to go home. I was exhausted when I got home - it was all I could do to engage Zim in a round of zoomies before taking a short walk then a nap.

Dave went to KSU on Wednesday. It had sprinkled a bit overnight, which made the surprise we both had that much more enticing: they are in the process of ripping out the grass and were at the "dig it up and mix cow manure in" stage. Here's Dave:

He looks miffed, doesn't he? See those brown-colored patches of earth by the building? Oh, how he wanted to go dig in that, roll in that, do whatever he could get away with in that. As did I. But would Mom let either one of us? No. Sheesh. What a party-pooper.

Anyway... I mentioned that they put dye into our eyes. One of the dyes turns things sort of neon yellow. If you just happen to grab a black-light because it's close to HOWLoween and you're playing around with a VERY patient patient, the dye becomes quite florescent. How do I know? Check out Dave:

Ha roo roo roo! Isn't that funny? (They have a portable black-light available in case they want to throw a 70s-themed party and to help with things like detecting ring worm.) Part of this staining process is also to help determine if the eyes are draining properly. And you know where your eyes drain other than through your tear ducts, right?

Ha roo roo roo! (I wasn't going to share Dave's glowing nose with you, but he thought it was pretty funny so he gave me the green light. Would that be a glowing neon green light? Ha roo roo roo!)

Oh, as a side note, the sort of red/orange thing about his eye is just a little staining from one of the other kinds of drops. Mom cleaned that up with some cotton balls and water. And all of the other stain comes right out - no muss, no fuss!

In addition to cheese and crackers at the finish, Dave's entire appointment was interspersed with one of his most favorite things in the world:

TUMMY RUBS!!!!

The pup is crazy for tummy rubs!

As per the rest of the week, Thursday, as you read, was a rainy day. Other than our morning walk, then a couple short jaunts, we pretty much worked around the house. Yesterday is when our weather took that lovely turn - the sun came out, the winds blew in, and the temps dipped! Ahhh... it was great! Ammy smelled snow to our north, but said we wouldn't get any. We had a great walk in the morning, then after lunch it was still cold and blustery. And you know what you should do on a day like that!

I just love it when the whole pack's together!

Me, too, Zim! What a great day!

More pix from that walk soon! (Left to right above: Dave, me, Ammy, and Zim. Dad is off-camera behind the redheads; Mom is behind me and Dave muttering about not being able to feel her hands.)

Anyway, pups and kit-cats, for those of you who are seniors - and even for you youngsters out there - please do check out the links and read about this great Senior Care program. Not only am I a cancer survivor because of it, but the rest of the pack members have benefitted from early detection and treatment and preventative care! Check it out, ask your vet about a similar program - and stay healthy!

Tail wags,

Storms