Toby had to go to the vet to have some cysts removed. In the process, they also removed his fur.
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Now he looks an awful lot like me with patches of hair missing.
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Mom, stop trying to take my picture already.
It looks like I have nipples on my back, and I don’t want anyone to see.
Where Toby used to be.
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While we were at the vet’s office, I read to Toby from a copy of Poopiter that is in the waiting area. He seemed strangely interested when I pointed to the picture at the back of the book of Geordie and him sleeping. (Between nostalgia and the cost of the visit…I really teared up.)
The thought of my overcrowded bookshelf weighed heavily on my mind, yet it was painful to consider giving away something as significant as a book. Still, I forced myself to start the difficult task and set aside a few volumes that I no longer needed.
Then I woke up.
Crap!!!
So sometimes you dream of the devil, and sometimes you dream about cleaning bookshelves? (Humans are so weird.)
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A book everyone should have on their shelves is Dream Our World! Inside, Bitey and Toby visit the museum of their dreams as they view the world of art from a canine perspective.
Toby recently figured out where carrots come from, and I had to quickly harvest the whole crop if I wanted to have any myself.
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Carrots with Earth chocolate.
(Using the Vibrant Color setting on my camera didn’t change their appearance much at all, did it?)
When I sliced the big carrot into coins, they were as big as the palm of my hand.
Don’t worry, carrots. I’ll get to you next.
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Come see what my boys are up to when they are not stealing carrots. Inside Dream Our World, Bitey and Toby visit the Museum of the Imagination and view the world of art from a canine perspective. Dream Our World is fun for all ages!
Last week I had an appointment with my eye doctor. Unfortunately, the news wasn’t good. What I heard was:
You’re going blind!!
You have cataracts!
The Bell’s Palsy is irritating your eye!
You are diabetic!
Your prescription is off due to your blood sugar!
We can’t replace the lenses in your glasses!
Oh my gosh, did the doctor really say all of those things? No, but that is what I heard.
In reality, the doctor said that although my cataracts are worse than last year, they are still a young person’s cataracts. Also, they really can replace the lenses in my glasses despite me having rimless frames.
The other stuff has me upset, though. It appears that I have developed the familial inherited blindness. When I spoke to the doctor on Tuesday, the she didn’t think I needed to see a specialist about it yet, but after the week I’ve just had, I’m not sure. I plan to call her again this week. (The catch is that she is going out of town for a family situation and won’t be back until mid September.)
After checking my prescription, the eye doctor commented on how drastically different it was from the last time. What I took away from our conversation was that my eyes are acting like those of a diabetic. I had to go home and look up some of the terms she used, and it looks like I have had a number of diabetes symptoms….yet every doctor dismissed me when I talked about them. I am really confused because none of my blood test results ever came back that I have diabetes. Now I am afraid to eat anything. I feel like every carb is a threat.
One can’t help but be upset getting news like this. I know that it is possible that things may never progress or that as the BP improves, my symptoms in general will become less. For now, I fear that I will have another left turn coming up in my future. It seems like I’ve had nothing but left turns. I’ve had so many that I am constantly going in spirals instead of moving forward.
After two long and painful months, I might finally have an answer to what happened to me. Northerners will be nodding their heads in “Wasn’t it so obvious?” gestures while southerners will shrug their shoulders at what we’re talking about. Evidently I am a textbook case of Lyme’s disease.
Lyme’s disease is a stupid disease carried by stupid ticks that travel on stupid deer that for some reason we are not allowed to slaughter when they come waltzing into our yards. I haven’t been to any exotic locations or hiked in the deep woods. I am mainly in the yard and walking along the road in this neighborhood. Somehow while pulling weeds or playing ball with my puppy, a stupid tick bit me and gave me this stinking disease.
These blasted things can be pretty small when they climb up on you.
I was completely unaware of the bite, and I never had the tell-tale bull’s eye rash we are warned about. It turns out that the Luchadora red rash with purple splotches I had is actually more typical of the disease than the bull’s eye.
I wasn’t the only one to get a tick borne disease in the yard. When Toby had his physical in April, we found out he has anaplasmosis. Toby got lucky. Although he has antibodies, he didn’t show symptoms. Mommy on the other paw…all the symptoms.
I told you I was special.
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While northern dogs are now routinely vaccinated for Lyme’s disease, there is no vaccine for humans. When I asked the vet about this several years ago, she said that so far human vaccines just aren’t very effective. Treatment for Lyme’s is a course of antibiotics. I guess it is just easier to treat humans than to try to prevent them from getting sick in the first place.
Part of me is pissed at the way things went. If I had been able to see a doctor right away, I wouldn’t have had to go through months of misery (and exorbitant medical bills). I had a friend say something encouraging, though. She pointed out how much I learned from this experience that I wouldn’t otherwise know. That is true. I learned a lot of medical things, and I learned how to be annoying enough that people pay attention to you.
Nyah! Nyah! You can’t touch us!
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If you would like to help finance Toby’s and my campaign to rid our neighborhoods of Venison-on-the-Hoof, then pick up a copy of Dream Our World! At least part of the proceeds will go toward pressuring lawmakers into letting us sending these game vermin to deer-y Valhalla.
Come with Bitey and Toby to the Museum of the Imagination in Dream Our World where they view the world of art from a canine perspective and enjoy a day of unsupervised fun! Dream Our World (and other fine gifts) are available from my shop at L Bowman Studios.
If you would care to see what devilment my boys get into when I’m not around, pick up a copy of Dream Our World. Inside the boys visit the Museum or the Imagination and view the world of art from a canine perspective all while enjoying a day of unsupervised fun.
In real life I look even worse than in these pictures. My camera seems to want to color correct. I guess “lobster” isn’t deemed an appropriate color for a human.
Mommy says I have to tell everyone that she has never raised a paw to me in real life.
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To find out what other mischief Bitey and Toby like to get into, pick up a copy of Dream Our World. Inside they visit the Museum of the Imagination where they view the world of art from a canine perspective and enjoy a day of unsupervised fun.
Unlike Valentine’s Day, where Toby got me a gift more suited to his tastes, for Mothers’ Day he got me a gift I could actually use.
I can still chew on the shirt if I want to.
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Come with Bitey and Toby on a tour of the Museum of the Imagination as they view the world of art from a canine perspective and enjoy a day of unsupervised fun in Dream Our World.
When a new delivery driver started this route, she memorized every home that had a pup and left a Milk Bone on top of each package she delivered. It didn’t take long for all the dogs dog in the neighborhood to recognize the sound of her truck and bark like crazy whenever they heard it.
Toby can hear the engine a half mile away. If we happen to be out for a walk when it is coming, he will plant himself in the middle of the road to wait for his personalized biscuit delivery. He puts on such a performance that sometimes the driver has to stop traffic to give my little monster a Milk Bone. Woe to the dog several houses away that can see my boy eating his treat and yet is too far away to get hers!
And yes, Toby will climb the steps to get to his biscuit if he gets the chance.
What can I say? I am a sucker for Milk Bones.
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Would you like to see what else Bitey and Toby are up to? Then pick up a copy of Dream Our World. Inside the boys visit the Museum of the Imagination and enjoy a day of unsupervised fun.
The Adventures of Bitey Dog 