Following Doctor's Orders

Friends, I spent Friday at the emergency hospital.  Yep, I even had surgery.  :::gulp:::   It all started on Wednesday night.  I was chewing on one of my bully sticks.  Dad said I had a small piece and then I swallowed it.  The folks thought everything was okay, but I knew something was wrong. I stood up and acted a little strange.  I just stood there.  I then got a drink.  The next morning, I was not feeling right.  I didn't greet Dad when he got out of the shower and I didn't say good-bye to him.  That is not like me.  Mom thought something might be wrong with my neck.  I tried to stretch my front legs and I couldn't do it.  She gave me a tramadol.  Later, we went for a walk and I was able to stretch and I burped a few times.  I felt better.  Then, a bee flew in my mouth.  Yeah, not fun!

 

Mom rushed me in the RV and gave me Benadryl.  I slept the rest of the day and felt better when Dad got home.  Friday morning, after Dad went to work, I got worse.  I wouldn't drink water and I was drooling.  Dad came home from work and I went to the emergency hospital where Scout went.  Yikes!

The vet didn't believe that I got stung by a bee.  We didn't have a body to prove it.  Mom told her to look at my mouth.  It was all red under my tongue.  The vet said they needed to run tests; blood tests and x-rays.  Mom was relieved when we found out it was not cancer.  The vet said she would attempt to look under my tongue.  She said if I didn't cooperate, she would have to sedate me.  I was good and she immediately saw the cut.  I had a cut under my tongue and it was infected.  No duh!

The vet recommended stitches.  She said we could try to let it heal on its' own but it would take a very long time since it was in my mouth.  Also, if there was any foreign matter in it, it would not heal. The folks decided surgery was necessary.  It turns out that the cut was much deeper than expected.  The vet did not find anything in the cut, but said there was a pocket and that something had been in it.  While she was in my mouth, she did a quick cleaning of my teeth.  Two of my molars fell out.  She said those molars do not have roots and fall out easily.  What?  No roots?

I didn't think the folks were coming back to pick me up Friday because when I looked at the clock, it was past Mom's bedtime.  BOL!  Then, I heard on the loud speaker "Joey's People are here"!  I waited and waited. It took them an hour to release me because the place was busy with emergencies.  Finally, I saw my folks.  I was happy but when it was time to leave, I wanted to go back to my crate.  It was fun back there.  Tons of action.

Oh, I was ticked when I got home.  I was only allowed a little bit of water.  I was thirsty!  I kicked my bowl demanding more water.  Mom gave me a little at a time, but not as much as I wanted.  I was not a happy camper.  The next morning, I was allowed water.

The doctor said I have to stay quiet for a few days.  Yesterday, I slept all day.  Dad had to work, so it was just me and Mom.  She kept the blinds closed, so it was dark inside.  I am on four different medications, so sleeping is pretty easy.

I roached for he first time in four days last night.

I am feeling much better today.  I have to have soft foods for a while. I am supposed to stay quiet and rest.  I wish it wasn't a holiday weekend. There is so much happening in the campground and I am stuck inside. At least I am feeling better.  Let me tell you, it hurts having a big cut under your tongue.

Mom says there will be no more bully sticks.  She said that last one was very expensive.  BOL!  I bet Scout is laughing that bully sticks have been banned from our house.  Actually, it hasn't been that much fun chewing them without Scout.

Eating a chopped up frosty this morning.

Joey,
The Greyhound Who Has Stitches Under His Tongue But It Doesn't Keep Him From Whining

The Dance - Dedicated to Raina

 

On Monday, another one of our greyhound friends earned her angel wings.  Raina was a beautiful girl.  Her Mom, Lisa, describes her as fiercely independent and always did things her way, even to the very end.  She was a picky eater and her Mom pulled out all the stops for her. Raina was a fan of frosty treats.  Raina was 15!  Yes, you read that right, 15!

Beautiful Raina

She liked playing in the snow. This was from this past winter 2014/2015.  Look at her go.

Relaxing in her bed.

She loved her Mom.

Such a striking pair!  Raina and her sister, Emmi.

Raina with stuffies.

Raina Will ~ Lets get it done - 12/12/2000 ~ 8/31/2015

Raina was loved and missed by many, including her sisters Emmi and Asia.  Even with all the sadness right now, her Mom said she wouldn't have missed the dance.  You may wonder what she means by that.  Well, Mom knew immediately.  You see, The Dance is a song sung by Garth Brooks.  Whenever Mom hears it she things of her Dad who died many years ago.  Recently, she started thinking of Scout.  Lisa, Raina's Mom, said that it is an "anthem" for all her greyhound angels.  We have linked a video to the blog, we hope it works so that you can hear this beautiful song.  Here are the lyrics, just in case our video does not work.

The Dance

Looking back
On the memory of
The dance we shared
'Neath the stars above
For a moment
All the world was right
How could I have known
That you'd ever say goodbye

And now
I'm glad I didn't know
The way it all would end
The way it all would go
Our lives
Are better left to chance
I could have missed the pain
But I'd have had to miss
The dance

Holding you
I held everything
For a moment
Wasn't I a king
But if I'd only known
How the king would fall
Hey who's to say
You know I might have changed it all

And now
I'm glad I didn't know
The way it all would end
The way it all would go
Our lives
Are better left to chance
I could have missed the pain
But I'd have had to miss
The dance

Yes my life
It's better left to chance
I could have missed the pain
But I'd have had to miss
The dance

 Raina, you are missed.  You were loved. We know you are an independent lady, but send your Mom a sign, okay?  I bet she will smile when you do.

Joey,
The Greyhound Who Thinks The Rainbow Bridge Must Be Something Special With All The Greyhounds That Are There

A Tour Of Wheatland

A tour of Wheatland?  Did we drive to Kansas without tell you?  No, sillies.  BOL!   Wheatland is the home of President James Buchanan.  When he lived there, it was surrounded by wheat fields and thus, it was named Wheatland.

Wheatland

 The folks said the tour was great!  The tour guide was dressed in period clothing and she was excellent.  She made the tour very interesting. 

Buchanan was the 15th President.  Historians say that his presidency was a failure.  Basically, he didn't do much.  He didn't want to deal with slavery and said that it was up to each state to decide. 

He was the only President to be a bachelor.  His niece, Harriet, served as the first lady.  The position wasn't called "First Lady" until she held it. Harriet's parents had both died and she and her brother moved in with their Uncle James when they were young.  She became his confident and very much a partner as far as his politics were concerned.  James had been engaged to Ann Coleman. She died a week after their engagement ended.  She overdosed on laudanum. Was it an accident? We don't know.  She thought he was having an affair and he wouldn't dignify her questions with an answer.  Her parents did not let him attend the funeral and it was then that he declared he would never marry.  There were/are rumors that he was gay. We ran across a blog today where the author was quite upset when he questioned his tour guide at Wheatland about this and couldn't get confirmation about whether Buchanan was gay.  Another tour guide commented on the blog post and told him that basically no one knows for sure. 

Buchanan enjoyed spending time with his "little" family.  His little family included his housekeeper, Esther "Miss Hetty" Parker, who lived with him for 38 years and his niece and nephew.  There was nothing romantic with his housekeeper.

Okay, so now on to the pictures. 70% of the furniture in the house belonged to the Buchanan's.

This is the dining room where they ate most meals.  The China belonged to the family.

These shade are original and were restrung only once by the housekeeper.

Harriet's writing desk. The guide pointed out that this piece of furniture was not practical due to the small space for writing.

The parlor.

Harriet's piano.

Buchanan's study.

The spindles on the staircase are different looking.

Fireplace in Harriet's bedroom.

Harriet's Bedroom

Prayer bench is under a painting of Harriet's two boys that both died.  Harriet married after leaving the White House. Her two boys and husband died fairly close together.

Harriet's doll.  It may have been a model for clothing designed for her.

James Buchanan Henry's room. This was the nephew's room.

President Buchanan's room.

Small tub was used for bathing.

After President Buchanan died, Harriet inherited the house.  She added a bathtub.

This is Esther "Miss Hetty" Parker's room. She was the housekeeper.

Esther "Miss Hetty" Parker

Warming Kitchen. Actual kitchen was not in the house.

Dumb waiter.

Outhouse

Inside part of the outhouse.  There was total seating for 8!

 The cost to tour the house is $10 a person.  Mom said it was one of the best house tours that she has been on.  The house is located in Lancaster, PA. 

Joey,
The Greyhound Who Is Not Interested In Old Houses

We Have A New Shade!

One of the things that we added to our old rig that we loved were privacy shades.  They were made custom for our rig right at our site.  You can read about it here:  We Have Shades!  Well, when we sold the old rig, that whole setup went with it because it wouldn't fit our new rig.  Our new rig came with privacy shades that are mounted on the inside, but we were not thrilled with them.  One of the problems is that they did not stretch all the way to the corners of the windshield and the sun still came inside.  Also, since they were on the inside, more heat came in than if they were on the outside.  The folks saw a system they really liked at a RV show in February.  However, it was pretty pricey, so they thought about it for six months.

The new system has magnets.  There is no drilling into the RV for snaps.  Today, the folks installed it.   The first thing you have to do it dry fit it to your windshield.  The shade comes with magnets sewn into it.  One person has to be on the outside on a ladder and the other person is on the inside placing the inside magnets to the windshield.  Let me tell you, those magnets are strong.  The instructions tell you that the magnets can jump 12" and they can.  Mom made the mistake of putting one in each hand.  She then had to ply the magnets apart.  So, Dad stood on the ladder holding up the shade and Mom placed the magnets on the inside of the windshield.  They then made sure it was exactly how they wanted it.  The next step was for Dad to hold the magnet that was sewn into the shade in place, while Mom took the adhesive strip off the magnet that she had and stuck it into its' permanent place.  It was basically an easy process. There was just one magnet that Mom had trouble with because she had trouble reaching it over the steering wheel.  She hit the horn and scared Dad.  BOL!

TADA!  Here is the new shade.

 The great thing about this shade is that we will never have to use a ladder to put it up. We just needed it to install it the first time.  A pole is used to take it down and put it up.  The magnets are the key to making this shade easy to put up.

This is the view from the inside. 

We can see out easily.

Here is the magnet on the inside of the windshield.  It is "permanent".  It is all the way to the top and you don't see it unless you are next to the windshield.

Magne Shade is the company that makes this shade.  We chose just the basic black because we thought that was perfect for our rig.  However, they do take photos and screen print them onto the shades.  My picture could have been on the shade!   I know when Mom first saw the shade in February, she thought about putting a photo of Scout and me on it, but then she thought if something happened to one of us, she would be sad.  Well, you know what happened.  I think the photo of Scout and me in our party hats would have been awesome though.  The saleswoman did say when you have a design on the shade that your view outside is not as clear. 

We have a neighbor who recently arrived and they have the Magne Shades.  I think they bought everything they sell.  They have the side windows, mirror covers and the tire covers.  We decided that the windshield shade was all we really needed and all our budget allowed.  We did get windshield wiper covers, but they came free with our purchase.

Our neighbors chose a pattern on theirs.

We hope we like the shade as much as we think we will.  Getting that ladder out sure was a pain.  We haven't played with it by taking it off and putting it back on yet.  We are making sure the magnets get a good hold onto the window before we do that.

Oh and Dad adjusted our awning today.  It now tilts down more.  The way it came, it just stuck straight out.  We planned on using it today, but it was too windy.  :-(

Joey,
The Greyhound Who Served As The Shade Reporter Today