sights, sounds, and sensations

As I sit here doing my homework, I hear a funny sound. Accompanying that funny sound is an odd vibration on my foot. Of course, it is my Sally Sue snoring herself into Nirvana.

The sights, sounds, and sensations of my little pug dog are wonderful and essential to the consistency of my life. Often, as I work feverishly to complete loads of homework, I tune out everything around me. My children will come to me for something, and I will screech out, "Not now! Don't interrupt my thought process!" Finally, when I finish, I look up, re-orient myself (oh. yeah. I am home. okay. resuming mother role now...), and discover that I have chased them all away with my intensity. Except one. She is lying by my side, loyal, true, loving, and...snoring.

Perhaps that is her coping mechanism for my tense isolation into homework. She just sweetly snores the time away. Then, when I have completed my work and can re-join the land of the living, she has but to awaken and all is well.

The life of Sally Sue is indeed sweet. And, luckily for me, she makes my life sweet too. The sweet life of Sally Sue and LizzieBob. What a pair!

delightful dog

I love my dog.

I come home from a really rotten weekend at school, and she's right at the door wagging her whole body with delight. I feel sick and she's on the bed right at my side. She is a wonderful, sweet, little bundle of snoring, wiggling, wrinkled, roly-poly delight.

I'm so blessed.

the shabby Chic

A pug's life isn't too shabby. It is the ultimate definition of shabby chic! Sally Sue sleeps on the bed (under the covers if it is very cold), she sleeps as much as she wants, she eats in a pink bowl with "DIVA" written at the bottom, and she pretty much rules the roost. She hollers if anyone goes outside without first asking her permission, and she chases the cats if they are begging for tidbits more successfully than she does. She loves to cuddle, snore, eat, and chase the cats. Ah, the bliss of a pug's life. She makes me smile.

Just a quick update on Sally Sue: she is snoring sweetly on the couch next to me as I smile over pictures of her on the computer. She is such a doll. She is always delighted when I come home from anywhere (even if I just went out to check the mail), and she thinks I am the BEST. At Pet Therapy last week, someone exclaimed that pugs were the ugliest dogs ever! I and my visitng partner, Jenn (who also has a pug: Mr. Quincy) and I were taken aback. Jenn said, "What? Ohhhh noooo, pugs are the cutest!" We didn't quite know how to respond! After we left the area, we hugged our dogs.

Please don't say my dog is ugly, even if you are thinking it. Just keep that WRONG opinion to yourSelf!

Much love!

Liz and Sally Sue (THE cutest dog in the universe, THANK YOU very MUCH)

Harmonious Health and Happiness

Wow, it's been a long time since I posted about Sally Sue! I'm sure you were all waiting for the next post about sweet Sally Sue (eye roll) so here it is!

Sally started to not feel well during May. I rushed her to the e-vet (thank you All Valley Meridian for an amazing 24/7 hospital), but they couldn't pinpoint why her tummy hurt. X-rays and lab work were normal. They gave her a woozie-doozie poke full of painkillers and sent her home. After a week or so, she just wasn't perking up to her usual self, and I continued to be concerned. She was extra lazy (more so than her usual sleep-on-the-bed-round-the-clock self), and kept groaning when I picked her up. I popped her into Dr. Pilcher at Indian Creek Veterinary Hospital in Caldwell, and once again, her lab work showed nothing amiss. However, he and I both suspected that she had pyometra (a uterine infection). Since I was planning on spaying her anyway, we opted for the next day. Sure enough, after the surgery was over, Dr. Pilcher confirmed that the beginnings of pyometra were present.

Now only a week after her surgery, I am happy to report that Miss Sally Sue is rapidly returning to her happy, bouncy, playful self. She is SUCH a joy. How many people can say that there is someone in their life who is happy ALL of the time?! Well, I can! Her name is Sally Sue; pug extraordinaire!

Sally Sue will be attending the pug play group this Saturday, so she will get to run and play and snort with many other curly-tailed friends.

It's fantastic to have her health and happiness in harmony.

Go faster, Mommy!

Today Sally's helmet came in the mail! I was so excited to try it on her and go for a ride. It looks so cute; unfortunately, it slips off her head very easily. Does anyone have any suggestions for keeping it in place? I bought it to really protect her head in the event of a little bicycle crash, but if it is slipping off while doing nothing it certainly isn't going to protect her piggy brains. Nevertheless, I strapped it on her and off we went on our ride for today.

As we rode through the neighborhood, I stopped and talked with a friend for about twenty minutes. Sally became quite restless in the basket, and so we rode on. The wind was blowing quite heartily today, and I was having a hard time keeping up a decent speed. Several times, as I slowed down, Sally turned around in her basket and just gave me this LOOK. I couldn't believe it! I was pedaling as fast as I could into the wind, but it was simply too slow for her! She was so active in the basket that I had a difficult time keeping the handlebars heading forward. She even stood up (heart attack!) in the basket and put her front paws on the edge as she looked over the front wheel. I screeched at her to SIT DOWN. She did, but she just kept throwing me these....GLANCES....over her shoulder.

Okay, so next time I won't stop and visit anyone! Apparently bike time is "SALLY TIME" and I had better go as fast as I can to make the experience full and complete for her. (pant pant pant.....that's ME not her!!)

Bicycle Buddy

Trying to be healthy, I got a new bike this year. It is a Specialized and more conducive to street riding than my old Raleigh mountain bike. My husband took it into the shop for new tires,a tune-up, and a basket for my little road buddy, Sally Sue! I made a cover for it, and she sits in the basket while I ride my bike (she is harnessed in for safety!). We have so much fun! Her ears flap in the wind and she smells everything and looks around. She is so cute! For her, riding in the basket is the ultimate "head out the window" experience! I just wish I could find a little doggy bike helmet for her added safety! Oh, how I love my precious piggy girl! I'm so lucky to have her sweetness in my life.