Well, another 4-day holiday from work has come and gone and I have just finished up another day at the office. Why does time drag so slowly at work, but fly by so fast when I'm off? A rhetorical question, I know, but no matter how much I try to savor my off time, it always goes by too quickly.
We did have some good news this weekend. Rock-It, our female whippet, finally earned her ASFA Field Champion title. The road to this title has been a little rough. Miss Rock-It got bumped by another whippet during her first year of coursing and subsequently became afraid to leave the start line. After a lot of singles running, and a lot of confidence-building flyball success, she eased her way back into open. She started turning in some placements and wins, culminating in her first place finish and completion of her title this past Sunday. Way to go, Rock-It!!! We do love you!
That's about all I have to report, with the possible exception of my pleasure at my php script which has, with a little tinkering recently, made me very proud. I'm not much of a coder, so I am quite pleased when my stuff not only works, but works well.
Hopefully, more to come later and I am hoping to be a more faithful blogger.
ttfn
Monday, November 26, 2007
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
Holiday Ramblings
Well, it's been a while since I've posted an entry. Work has been very slow this week, which in this case is good. We could all use a little breather.
My Border Collie Geordi just turned 14. Only a few months ago, the vet wanted to put him down. We were told he had neurological damage, probably from degenerative myelopathy (like MS in humans), a spinal tumor, or a stroke on the spinal cord. We had woken up one morning to find him hunched up and unable to walk. We took him to the vet and went to work. The vet called me around noon with this news and wanted to put him down then and there. While I was willing to concede that might be the choice we had to make, I could not do it just then. We had to take him home and give him some time. My husband Howard pointed out that Geordi had gotten his backside stuck under the bed the other morning, and could this be a back injury? Yes, it's possible, the vet told us when we went to pick him up. He didn't seem convinced though. A couple of doses of previcox and 48 hours later and Geordi was running around the back yard. Don't always believe what the "expert" tells you.
In doing some further research into Canine Disc Disease/Canine Degenerative Disc Disease, I have learned that this condition can indeed cause paralysis. I'm not angry with the vet, he was just basing his diagnosis on what he saw and offered to refer us to a veterinary neurologist for a definitive diagnosis. For a 40 pound dog at 14 years of age, we have decided to forego the trip to the neurologist, because it seems like a lot of cost to tell us what is wrong with him--which we think we already know--without being able to do anything about it other than what we are already doing, NSAIDs and restricting some of his activity (i.e. no more stairs!).
However, this, coupled with some recent observations, has led me to the decision to retire my little Cairn Terrier, Autumn from flyball. A friend of ours who has been breeding and coursing whippets was over the other day, and noticed that Autumn looked a little stiff. Later in the day, she noticed the stiffness was gone. The next day, she was running flyball in the backyard and looking very comfortable doing it. It was a bit warmer than the previous day. The following weekend at a flyball tournament, she was running very stiff and looked uncomfortable. Fortunately, there happened to be a vet on site who also did chiropractic and acupuncture. She noticed several places on Autumn's back/spine that needed adjustment. Then she found a muscle spasm in her groin that caused Autumn to yelp. The vet told me that because she did a quick adjustment on it, the spasm could come back. She advised me to continue rubbing it, especially before a race. During this rubdown, which was just before her last race of the day, she gave me another yelp of pain. Neither the rubbing nor the adjustment, not to mention the deramaxx I gave her made any improvement in her running. Now this is very unusual. Normally, Autumn runs very comfortably and often quite a bit faster after an adjustment. So, I was concerned enough to pull her from racing on Sunday.
This whole series of behaviors got me thinking that perhaps it was time to let her retire from this sport. After all, she was not like Geordi who lived for the game. Autumn played 90-95% for Mama and treats, and the other 5-10% for the enjoyment of it. She does have quite a good time playing in the back yard, but doesn't seem to get quite as much joy from tournament play. Anyway, the more I thought about it, the more I was sure this was the right decision. She is only 7 (8 in February) but at only 10" tall, she has had to jump 80-60% of her height for most of her career (U-FLI only came along in the last two years and NAFA only lowered their jumps to 7" this year). Running Veterans helps out the big dogs, but offers no breaks for the small dogs. This really seems unfair, because the big dogs generally never jump their own jump height anyway. For little dogs, Veterans needs to be a 4" jump height or lower. But anyway, that is a lot of jumping and stretching and landing for her little body. I don't want her to wind up in the condition that Geordi is--a balancing act between protecting his kidneys (already diseased) and reducing his pain.
So, my baby, my little heart-dog, with whom I have worked harder than you can imagine to get her to play flyball, gets to retire from the sport. I am quite sure that she will not be too chuffed about it. As long as she gets to parade around and get treats and attention, I think she will be quite content with the change. And, we can turn our attention to low-impact sports such as earthdog and tracking. It is a bittersweet decision, but I think it is in her best interests.
For now, I am greatly looking forward to a four-day holiday from work and time spent at home with Howard and the furkids. My reflections on this holiday will be thanks that Geordi is still with us and seems to still be enjoying life. I am thankful that all of my furry ones are healthy. I am thankful to whatever insight, higher power, or turn of the wind guided me to this decision about Autumn. I am thankful that my Dad is in remission from colon cancer, and that my husband and I are healthy, have good jobs, and a roof over our heads.
Happy Thanksgiving to all. I'm sure the dogs are already dreaming of turkey!
My Border Collie Geordi just turned 14. Only a few months ago, the vet wanted to put him down. We were told he had neurological damage, probably from degenerative myelopathy (like MS in humans), a spinal tumor, or a stroke on the spinal cord. We had woken up one morning to find him hunched up and unable to walk. We took him to the vet and went to work. The vet called me around noon with this news and wanted to put him down then and there. While I was willing to concede that might be the choice we had to make, I could not do it just then. We had to take him home and give him some time. My husband Howard pointed out that Geordi had gotten his backside stuck under the bed the other morning, and could this be a back injury? Yes, it's possible, the vet told us when we went to pick him up. He didn't seem convinced though. A couple of doses of previcox and 48 hours later and Geordi was running around the back yard. Don't always believe what the "expert" tells you.
In doing some further research into Canine Disc Disease/Canine Degenerative Disc Disease, I have learned that this condition can indeed cause paralysis. I'm not angry with the vet, he was just basing his diagnosis on what he saw and offered to refer us to a veterinary neurologist for a definitive diagnosis. For a 40 pound dog at 14 years of age, we have decided to forego the trip to the neurologist, because it seems like a lot of cost to tell us what is wrong with him--which we think we already know--without being able to do anything about it other than what we are already doing, NSAIDs and restricting some of his activity (i.e. no more stairs!).
However, this, coupled with some recent observations, has led me to the decision to retire my little Cairn Terrier, Autumn from flyball. A friend of ours who has been breeding and coursing whippets was over the other day, and noticed that Autumn looked a little stiff. Later in the day, she noticed the stiffness was gone. The next day, she was running flyball in the backyard and looking very comfortable doing it. It was a bit warmer than the previous day. The following weekend at a flyball tournament, she was running very stiff and looked uncomfortable. Fortunately, there happened to be a vet on site who also did chiropractic and acupuncture. She noticed several places on Autumn's back/spine that needed adjustment. Then she found a muscle spasm in her groin that caused Autumn to yelp. The vet told me that because she did a quick adjustment on it, the spasm could come back. She advised me to continue rubbing it, especially before a race. During this rubdown, which was just before her last race of the day, she gave me another yelp of pain. Neither the rubbing nor the adjustment, not to mention the deramaxx I gave her made any improvement in her running. Now this is very unusual. Normally, Autumn runs very comfortably and often quite a bit faster after an adjustment. So, I was concerned enough to pull her from racing on Sunday.
This whole series of behaviors got me thinking that perhaps it was time to let her retire from this sport. After all, she was not like Geordi who lived for the game. Autumn played 90-95% for Mama and treats, and the other 5-10% for the enjoyment of it. She does have quite a good time playing in the back yard, but doesn't seem to get quite as much joy from tournament play. Anyway, the more I thought about it, the more I was sure this was the right decision. She is only 7 (8 in February) but at only 10" tall, she has had to jump 80-60% of her height for most of her career (U-FLI only came along in the last two years and NAFA only lowered their jumps to 7" this year). Running Veterans helps out the big dogs, but offers no breaks for the small dogs. This really seems unfair, because the big dogs generally never jump their own jump height anyway. For little dogs, Veterans needs to be a 4" jump height or lower. But anyway, that is a lot of jumping and stretching and landing for her little body. I don't want her to wind up in the condition that Geordi is--a balancing act between protecting his kidneys (already diseased) and reducing his pain.
So, my baby, my little heart-dog, with whom I have worked harder than you can imagine to get her to play flyball, gets to retire from the sport. I am quite sure that she will not be too chuffed about it. As long as she gets to parade around and get treats and attention, I think she will be quite content with the change. And, we can turn our attention to low-impact sports such as earthdog and tracking. It is a bittersweet decision, but I think it is in her best interests.
For now, I am greatly looking forward to a four-day holiday from work and time spent at home with Howard and the furkids. My reflections on this holiday will be thanks that Geordi is still with us and seems to still be enjoying life. I am thankful that all of my furry ones are healthy. I am thankful to whatever insight, higher power, or turn of the wind guided me to this decision about Autumn. I am thankful that my Dad is in remission from colon cancer, and that my husband and I are healthy, have good jobs, and a roof over our heads.
Happy Thanksgiving to all. I'm sure the dogs are already dreaming of turkey!
Sunday, July 22, 2007
The Deathly Hallows
Well, I just finished reading "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" at about 1am this morning. I am still processing it, but I have to say that it was amazing. However, it was very hard to read. J. K. Rowling has been saying for years that this was a full out war and that there would be lots of casualties. However, when you actually experience them in the book, along with all the other atrocities committed by Voldemort and the Death Eaters, it really is difficult. I found myself flipping ahead a few pages in certain chapters just to make sure the main characters would survive. I've never done that before in a Harry Potter book. The only other book I can remember doing that was Phillip Pullman's "The Amber Spyglass" when Lyra and Pantalaimon were separated. I just couldn't stand it and had to flip ahead just to be sure. Needless to say, I cried quite a bit in this book, cheered in several places, and laughed in at least a few. That Rowling can cause such emotion in her readers is surely a testament to her skill as a writer, no matter what pompous naysayers like Bloom say. It's hard to believe the story is over. It has been a part of my life for over 6 years now, and while I will still go back and re-read the novels, it will never be the same as experiencing it for the first time. I hope that very young children and the generations that come after them will enjoy these books as much as we have, though they will never no the anticipation of years of waiting for the next book. Wondering what clues the author has left us, picking over and parsing each word, each new title, each piece of cover art. Goodbye Harry, and thank you for letting us share your magical journey. Thank you, Jo Rowling, for giving us Harry and his magical world.
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
Tuesday, August 29, 2006
Rock On
Rock-It absolutely rocked this weekend! She got her first flyball title and ran a 4.1 with a bad turn and a bad pass. She's definitely going to be an under 4 second dog. We even got her running in the right lane. I had so much fun running her! What a blast. I do need to get in better shape to run her as I have to do a lot of running myself.
Autumn also turned ina 6.9 second run. For a dog her size, that is pretty awesome. Skye did some nice run backs. We have to work on ball drive with her so we didn't even try to race her.
ttfn
Autumn also turned ina 6.9 second run. For a dog her size, that is pretty awesome. Skye did some nice run backs. We have to work on ball drive with her so we didn't even try to race her.
ttfn
Thursday, July 06, 2006
Dust
I have been reading the "His Dark Materials" series by Philip Pullman. I am a little over halway through the third and final book. I am quite caught up. In fact, right now I am finding it very hard to concentrate on work because I am so distressed about the fate of Pantalaimon. If you haven't read this series and appreciate a good book, especially in the fanatasy realm, I highly recommend you pick up book one, "The Golden Compass" or "The Northern Lights" as it is titled in the UK.
ttfn
ttfn
Thursday, June 29, 2006
The Evil Empire
Ok. So I'm a little pissed off at something going on right now and I want to rant about it. Merck, the company that brought us Vioxx, has developed this HPV vaccine. That's great and all-- a vaccine for cancer. But here's the thing that's pissed me off. They want the states to require this vaccine in order for children to be able to attend school. Bear in mind this vaccine is only approved for girls starting at age 9; boys wouldn't have to get the vaccine to go to school. Do I think this is discriminatory or just looking out for the health of children? Both, but mainly I think it if looking after the financial health of Merck. Remember, they brought us Vioxx--which had to be taken off the market because people died from taking it? So they are dealing with a lot of lawsuits and losing a ton of money. Maybe they should have tested more extensively before the drug was approved by the FDA. So, just how much testing do you think they did for this vaccine that costs $125 a pop? That's not enough, in my opinion. But, it's not just Merck doing this. Ever heard of a drug called Seldane? Manufactured by Hoechst Marion Roussel, Seldane was used for allergies, specifically hay fever. Here's a little quote I got from the UC Davis website ( http://www.ucdmc.ucdavis.edu/healthjournal/mar_apr_97_hj/articles/seldane.html) "For several years, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has received reports that in certain people, Seldane (terfenadine) is associated with a potentially fatal heart condition, ventricular arrhythmia. Those at risk are people who have liver disease or take Seldane with certain antibiotic and antifungal drugs, such as erythromycin and ketoconozole. Eight deaths have been attributed to Seldane use."
I used Seldane and Seldane D and while I was taking it experienced some pretty scary tachycardia (that's fast hearbeat and it's an arrhythmia). Just like Vioxx, people died from this drug and the FDA and the drug companies knew about it. I realize that with drugs for diseases like cancer or AIDS, you might want to push them through the approval process a bit quicker. And when I say cancer, I'm talking about treating cancer that someone already has. But with other drugs, we really ought to take some time testing, and retesting and then testing some more. Especially when they are to treat non fatal health problems.
But wait, you say, isn't cervical cancer a life-threatening illness? Yes, it can be if it's not detected early enough. Yearly pap smears can generally catch it pretty early. And it's fairly certain that those same folks who don't get a yearly gyn exam, won't go out to get shot with a $125 vaccine. But I'm not saying women and girls shouldn't get the vaccine. What I am saying is that vaccines are not without risks in and of themselves. I have a friend whose niece is physically and cognitively disabled because of vaccines and I know of plenty of cats and dogs that have nasty to mild reactions to vaccines. So, more testing and time is needed. Should the vaccine have been approved by the FDA and made available to the public? Absolutely. Should state and local governments cave in to pressure from Merck to require a vaccine in order for girls to attend public schools, absolutely not. Remember, we're note talking about mumps, measles or whooping cough here. HPV can only be spread through sexual contact. So, even if an 11 year old had it, none of her fellow classmates are going to catch it just by sitting in class with her, or even sharing a sandwhich or a first kiss. It's just not going to happen.
Parents and women should discuss the vaccine with their doctors and make their own decision. That's what I plan to do. The FDA and CDC should recommend it. But state and local governments should NOT require it for little girls and teenage girls to attend public schools. The only one to benefit from that is Merck. Remember, they have all those legal bills to pay from Vioxx. Imagine how much money they could make if all 50 states required a $125 vaccine! And just think about all those folks in this country without insurance. How would they pay for it? They won't be able to so it will come out of public health dollars which means our tax money will be going to Merck too. And that's why I call drug companies the evil empire.
I used Seldane and Seldane D and while I was taking it experienced some pretty scary tachycardia (that's fast hearbeat and it's an arrhythmia). Just like Vioxx, people died from this drug and the FDA and the drug companies knew about it. I realize that with drugs for diseases like cancer or AIDS, you might want to push them through the approval process a bit quicker. And when I say cancer, I'm talking about treating cancer that someone already has. But with other drugs, we really ought to take some time testing, and retesting and then testing some more. Especially when they are to treat non fatal health problems.
But wait, you say, isn't cervical cancer a life-threatening illness? Yes, it can be if it's not detected early enough. Yearly pap smears can generally catch it pretty early. And it's fairly certain that those same folks who don't get a yearly gyn exam, won't go out to get shot with a $125 vaccine. But I'm not saying women and girls shouldn't get the vaccine. What I am saying is that vaccines are not without risks in and of themselves. I have a friend whose niece is physically and cognitively disabled because of vaccines and I know of plenty of cats and dogs that have nasty to mild reactions to vaccines. So, more testing and time is needed. Should the vaccine have been approved by the FDA and made available to the public? Absolutely. Should state and local governments cave in to pressure from Merck to require a vaccine in order for girls to attend public schools, absolutely not. Remember, we're note talking about mumps, measles or whooping cough here. HPV can only be spread through sexual contact. So, even if an 11 year old had it, none of her fellow classmates are going to catch it just by sitting in class with her, or even sharing a sandwhich or a first kiss. It's just not going to happen.
Parents and women should discuss the vaccine with their doctors and make their own decision. That's what I plan to do. The FDA and CDC should recommend it. But state and local governments should NOT require it for little girls and teenage girls to attend public schools. The only one to benefit from that is Merck. Remember, they have all those legal bills to pay from Vioxx. Imagine how much money they could make if all 50 states required a $125 vaccine! And just think about all those folks in this country without insurance. How would they pay for it? They won't be able to so it will come out of public health dollars which means our tax money will be going to Merck too. And that's why I call drug companies the evil empire.
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