"Hello It's Me"

Once upon a time there was this post: "We're going to BlogPaws!"

It was published in the middle of May and I was so excited to be heading to BlogPaws to meet new friends and old pups and learn all sorts of cool stuff so I could come back here and tell you all about it.

But then I came back from BlogPaws and worked every day for the next 6 weeks. Long days. Every day. (Well okay, to be honest, I did take Memorial Day off.)

Hmm. This "work" thing does not sound conducive to my play plans.

And then Bella got sick.

But then she got better.

And then the heat-waves started.

But we have air-conditioning.

And now I have had a nice recuperative vacation, Bella's feeling her Cheerios again and we are finally able to to get back to all those ideas BlogPaws helped inspire. I've got an overview of the event and some product reviews planned as well as a very special auction coming up.

But first I wanted to give a real quick follow up on Bella's health issues for everyone who's been wondering or worrying.

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When last we spoke, Bella was having tummy troubles that were exacerbated by the medication we were using to help treat a shoulder injury. Thanks to everyone who weighed in on that post because you all put my fears at ease and we did actually start her back on the Metacam for her shoulder once her tummy settled down.

I'm sorry, but I just love her crazy ears.

We started her on a lower dose as many of you said your veterinarians had recommended. She's had a few more bouts of diarrhea but no more vomiting (and certainly no more blood, thank dog!) and we've figured out how to work with the meds, our vets and her diet to maximize the pain relief without tipping over to upsetting her tummy. Whew.

When all is said and done, Bella's shoulder feels so much better she has started initiating play with me again and romping around the backyard. Our agility trainer has let her start doing the A-Frame again, raising the bar on some of the jumps and Bella's enthusiasm for the sport has returned in abundance.

Bella even did the teeter-totter in full last week. My camera kind of blew up so we didn't get it on film but I was so proud of our little girl that I replayed the two runs over and over in my head for days afterwards. Way to go, Bella. Way to go.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, I'm happy, healthy and ready to go.
So, we're gonna go now, right?

So that's where things stand right now: Bella is feeling better tummy- and shoulder-wise, mom is having what we call an "awakening" about priorities and life and we are all enjoying our summer together. Lots of exciting stuff coming up so thanks for sticking with us while we've had this kind of crazy Spring.

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On a final note, today is the 3rd quarter "Blog the Change for Animals" event for 2013. While I was unable to pull it together enough to participate, I do want to support the effort by shouting it out and sharing the Linky here.

One post I thought was particularly good was Something Wagging This Way Comes' "Puppy Mills Harm People Who Hate Dogs." I'm not usually swayed by arguments that require putting humans above animals to make their point but Pamela does a great job of laying out specific human reasons why puppy mills hurt everyone, why we need everyone to care and most importantly, how we can get everyone to do so.

Go. Read. Enjoy.

And thanks for visiting.

PS - Thank you, Todd Rundgren for the title of this post.

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