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And the ever so dainty Breeze is done with this photo shoot.

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And the ever so dainty Breeze. 

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And master rooer, Angel. He likes to chew on it a little before really letting go. Love this dog.

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Willow is a roo-er. I love listening to it. It never gets old. To the point where I will play a video of greys rooing from Youtube to get her going. I can't tell you how pleased I was to find out Angel is as well. And he will do it to the sound of sirens. I of course encourage him. "What do you hear?" Heh.

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"Did you say 'snackie'?" And in fact, I did, just to get her ears to go on alert. Success.

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And the most adorable girl. Shhhh - don't tell Dru or Willow, they think they hold that title.

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The most adorable boy.

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She's relentless when it comes to snackies and she knows I'm bribing for cute photos. Guess who got her fill?

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And my favorite yet. Great message that works so well with the photo. Mad props to OH! Happy Greys for this one. 

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Photo spread number 3 for OH! Happy Greys. Look at those bedroom eyes...

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That's my boy! Hamming it up for the camera.

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Angel has recently been working on a modeling career. He's been featured in a number of images by OH! Happy Grey. There is a reason he's nicknamed "Handsome". 

Though it's not readily apparent in this image.

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Willow. She just turned 9, but she sure doesn't behave that way. This is her "I'm ignoring you because you haven't said the majic 'snackie' word" look.

ANOTHER RETURN

It is amazing to me how quickly time passes. I have a hard time believing that almost  3 weeks have gone by without a post. During that time we've had a couple of greyhound health issues.

Dru had a seizure. She's OK now, but we are not sure what caused it. The only way to find out is to do a $3,000 cat scan and unfortunately, after the vet bills (and my medical bills) accumulated the past 6 months, it is way out of financial range.

Then this week, Breeze split the webbing on her foot. It was finally stitched up yesterday by my normal vet, after I walked out of the emergency vet office just before the surgery the previous night. During the exam by the emergency vet, she pushed up on the split webbing and I watched as the tear spread from just the bottom of the webbing all the way to the top. When my normal vet was working on it, he said the webbing was too damaged to repair it and he would have to stitch the sides and leave the toes free-floating. (my not- so-technical terms not his)  To know the first vet contributed to the damage fires me up.

Anyway, to greet you back after our hiatus - Breeze after surgery yesterday. Feeling the effects of the drugs. It was an epic drool. She would be so upset if she knew I posted this to the internet. ;)

SHAMELESS PLUG

I know you are wondering why in the world there is a non-greyhound photo on the blog. Did you check the banner to be sure you had clicked over to the Cult blog? 

Just wanted to invite those of you in the area to visit me at the Fiesta de la Primavera at the Holy Trinity Monastery in St. David, Arizona (an hour south of Tucson) this weekend. It is a perfect get of town escape for the Mother's Day weekend. I will be set up (that's right, on location for the first time in a few years) and selling prints and note cards. Including the greyhound note cards (there's the greyhound tie-in :) ) The are is very picturesque. The photo below, which will be available for purchase, was taken just north of the Monastery. See you there!

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I took this photo, not because the composition looked good (though I think it does), but because there is actual touching and sharing of the bed. I needed proof so I know I didn't imagine it. 

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And the chase continues...

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And the chase is on!

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"But Mom, I don't wanna go home." This was just before she flopped to the ground threw a temper tantrum about having to leave playdate. 

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Micah has some serious hops.

NOSE DRIPS

As mentioned, I've had a wee bit of fun with Instagram lately and I've been looking at new ways to shoot the dogs. In photographs, people. Sheesh. 

Breeze had her oh so delicate schnoz hanging over the couch the other day. I, in all my infinite wisdom, though to capture her from below. All was well until I noticed the lightly trembling nose drip clinging tenaciously just above me and my camera. 

There was a rapid reassessment of my location and an adjustment in position.

After which, I was able to capture the aforementioned threatening nose drip safely.

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I always wonder what they are thinking. Though in this case, it is probably "To respond when she calls or to continue ignoring her? That is the question."

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Mahalo and the squeaks I use to get their attention when shooting photos. Well, as you can see, it worked. 

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Mahalo in his leather.

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A couple of guest hounds on the site for the next few days.

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Me and my shadow. Well and Angel's shadow also...

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Mr. Handsome wondering when we are getting up to go for a walk. And the tip of a roaching greyhound's toe in the background...

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A little urban exploring with the dogs. Please notice, I didn't make any unflattering comments about the size of Angel's butt.

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WE HAVE SURVIVED

Hello blog. Nice to see you again after our extended hiatus.

The "I Have Survived", Gloria Gaynor song is the new anthem in the Cult house, for both human and dogs.


In the past 4 months we have survived:
-A house sale
-A move (across town) with related packing, yard sales and cleaning
-A sister's move (to Chile) and my father's move (across the country) and related packing, yard sales and cleaning
-A severe illness
-A surgery (unrelated to the illness)
-The gem show
-A poisonous spider bite
-And the dog issues, which include: A lacerated pad (Breeze - requiring surgery), the reopening of the pad after it healed (Breeze - another surgery), corns (Breeze), a fungal infection (thought to be Valley Fever, but turns out it may possibly another fungus) in 2 dogs (Angel and Dru - 3 primary vet visits before diagnosis and treatment) now requiring daily meds, limping which was diagnosed as severe arthritis (Willow), and a rabies scare involving all 4 dogs after they found, and most likely played with like it was a squeaky toy, a dead bat in the new back yard. (Thankfully the bat was so mummified it couldn't even be tested for rabies and the dogs were all current on their rabies vaccines. Though they still had exams and a new set of rabies boosters.)

-And we have found Instagram. Oh boy. A bit of an addiction, that.

Add it all up and it equals - no new postings since January.

So a few Instagram shots, to get back in the swing of things.


The boy, Angel, (center) feeling like his old self again. Dru to the right, Breeze to the left and Willow hiding in the back.

The boy on the left and Breeze on the right, sharing the bed. A minor miracle.

Breeze. How is that even comfortable?

Breeze (left) and Angel (right)

If you are on IG you can find me as @backcountry_photos.

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There's nothing like the joy of a greyhound with a new toy. Though she looks like she has captured a tiny elf and is making off with it. Returning to her dark lair. Dun dun dunnnn.

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I've been making weird squeaky noises at the dogs long enough for maxim ear effect and head tilting, you would have thought they would know there isn't a mouse or injured rabbit in my closed hand. Or, more likely now that I think about it, they have already figured it out and simply pose so I can get the shot I want and stop bothering them so they can go back to sleep. Yah, that's probably it.

VALLEY FEVER - A SCURGE IN THE DOG WORLD

The Boy in his comfy place on the couch before his bout with Valley Fever

About 4 weeks ago, I noticed Angel was coughing just a little, usually after he drank or ate. For a week he seemed fine. Then I noticed he was a bit lethargic. Now that’s saying something for a greyhound, since he sleeps most of the day away anyway. Then I noticed he had lost weight. Then the shaking started. While he was shaking I was petting him to sooth him, and I noticed he was as hot as a furnace. Then he stopped eating. This all happened within 24 hours. The next day, when went into the vet he didn’t even hang his head out the window when I had it open. He was not the least bit interested in anything but lying down.

They kept the office open late for me because I was working until 5. Saying, “if you are concerned enough to call us, you should probably bring him in, especially with the holiday coming up.” They all noticed something was wrong the minute we walked through the door. After the exam we had x-rays and blood work done. I rapidly learned The Boy is a bit of a pansy when it comes to needles. Yes, there were greyhound screams of death involved.

The bloodwork wouldn’t be available until the following Wednesday, due to the New Year’s Eve holiday. The x-rays showed possible nodules on his lungs, but nothing concrete. So we got a steroid to help his appetite and an antibiotic.

We got through the weekend and holiday, with him maintaining, maybe declining just a bit. We were the first clients in to the vets for 2013 and since we ended 2012 as the last patients they had, I thought it only fitting.

The Boy had lost another 4 pounds. The blood work came back perfect, the Valley Fever titer – negative. New Doc went back over the x-rays on a consult with Old Doc. He might have a very slightly enlarged heart, but that should not be cause for concern. Another set of antibiotics and sent home with explicit instructions to watch him closely for any signs of decline.

I watched as he maintained for 2 more days. Then Friday night/Saturday morning he nose-dived and Saturday morning brought evidence of a very sick dog. His eyes were only partially open though he was fully awake and he couldn’t focus. He didn’t seem to be able to get his legs to function. He would start to do a full body shake then stop like it was painful. At first I told myself that I was being paranoid and dreaming things up. Then I trusted that I knew my dog and there was something wrong. A call to my vet’s cell phone (yup, I now have my vet’s cell phone number.) resulted in a left message, understandable for very early on a Saturday morning. It was now decision time – take him into an emergency vet where they don’t know him and don’t have his records or wait until Monday to take him into my vet.

He lost about 10 pounds in just a couple of weeks.

One long look at him and the decision was made; emergency vet. The more I watched him the more worried I became. He didn’t get up while I got dressed. He didn’t get up when I picked up my keys and walked out the door to put blankets in the car for the ride. He didn’t even get up when I jingled the leashes. Completely out of character. I did finally to get him to the car and we were off to the emergency vet. Somehow managing to get there without getting a speeding ticket. Yay me!

After a full exam, they suggested a whole new round of blood work and x-rays be done. I was all for it. Figure out what is wrong with my dog. An interminable 2 hours of waiting and finally the diagnosis was in – Valley Fever.

We were released with new meds and instructions for care. My sister, who was my support at the vet’s office, came to my house and cooked The Boy chicken and rice soup and brussel sprouts. She said he needed his nutrients to start getting better. She has a thing for him. Shhhhhh, don't tell her puppies.

Waiting for organic chicken and rice to be done.

Now two weeks later he has put some of the weight back on. He is barking at me again. I didn’t realize he had stopped, until he barked at me when I got the leashes out this week. It used to be something I tried to get him to stop; now I encourage it. He’s been dancing in circles when he is excited and standing in the kitchen when I am warming up his chicken and rice soup. We have been going on very short walks. We can’t do much because he gets worn out easily. We had a follow up appointment yesterday. We are staying on the same course of treatment with another follow up in a few more weeks.

For those of you not familiar with Valley Fever, it is disease caused by a fungal spore found in the dirt in the American Southwest, and is really prevalent in Southern Arizona. It’s estimated that about 1 in 3 dogs in Southern Arizona will be infected with VF. The fungus grows in the dirt, then when it matures, dried strands remain until the dirt is disturbed; often by construction, winds, walking, or for dogs, the classic is digging. Once disturbed the strands break and release spores which then become airborne and are inhaled by dog (and also humans). Those little buggers then take up residence in the host and grow up into mature spherules that then burst and release hundreds of baby spores which then can each grow up to do the same thing. They love to attach themselves to the lungs, though the disease can settle into other parts of the body, in particular, the bones, as well. The host can become quite ill, and symptoms usually start with weight loss, fever, coughing, lack of appetite and lack of energy. It can progress to swelling in the limbs (causing lameness), seizures, ulcerations, and heart failure. About 70% of dogs that are infected never get sick and those that get sick can present with different levels of severity.

It is not contagious, but it is nasty. My friend, Joe, lost one of his greyhounds to VF last week. It presents very similar to cancer and that is what they thought she had until the bloodwork came back. She was older (12) and couldn’t fight off the infection. We are lucky to have caught it early. Now it is a waiting game to see how he responds to the medications and treatment.

The Boy on his way to recovery and being spoiled rotten.

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The boy is on his way to recovery after a very nasty bout with Valley Fever. (more on that later) Now that he is feeling better, I think he is milking it just a bit for the attention. At least I hope he is.

Thanks for the tips for loading photos. Sue, I found your suggestion of switching to HTML the easiest.

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We've been away from the blogging community for a while now as we work to settle in to the new house and deal with a whole slew of greyhound injuries and illness. (More on that later). I thought I would have Breeze, her Chiclet teeth, and monstrous schnoz steaming up the lens welcome us back to the interwebs.

Hi interwebs.

Just a quick question...is anyone else having a hard time uploading photos to their blog? I had to sneak in the back way, by posting the photo to the Picasso site rather than just uploading them from the "insert photo" link on the Blogger site. Have I just been away for too long and this is now how it is done and there isn't an option to load photos directly from your computer as before? Or is Blogger just coincidentally down the first day we return? Thanks for any help on this.