A small flock of wild turkeys lives in a bush adjacent to my commute. It’s been a difficult winter so they have spent more time in the day gleaning the adjacent fields than in the past two winters. One morning they were in the field between the bush and the highway so I stopped for a moment. They didn’t care for my presence and edged away yet I was able to capture three of them.
On a recent sunny morning, hoarfrost clung to the bottom edges of our siding. I wanted to capture its delicate beauty before it vanished. A short time after this photo, all was gone.
I dropped Stella at the vet yesterday for dental cleaning. She was clearly displeased at being left there, trying to drag the vet tech out the door in pursuit of me.
A full blood panel and urinalysis were done before the procedure because she is a senior, almost eleven, and because of her weight loss from 35 lbs to 31.
The vet called to say that the bloodwork was fine, nothing to report. However sugar crystals were found in her urine. This was interesting because this was one finding during Kendal’s workup when he was so sick in late December. The vet delaying the dental work since it was not crucial to perform right away. He also recommended taking a second urine sample for comparative analysis, and because the first sample was possibly contaminated. The second sample revealed sugar crystals though not in the same high concentration.
Faye picked Stella up and brought her home, and we will try to capture a pee sample in a couple weeks or so. Miss Stella seems to be fine, has her normal energy and interest in things going on around her.
The vet also recommended further increasing Stella’s kibble. We recently switched all three dogs from the Acana Regionals cycle to Acana Senior, so perhaps I have not appropriately adjusted her kibble. Another factor is the colder winter than the recent ones, which of course requires expending more energy to stay warm.
In victory, have compassion for the vanquished.
photo from Yahoo! Sports.
Dropping Stella at the vet (Wallaceburg Animal Hospital) this morning. She’s got some gingivitis which teh vet will look at and treat. Other than that her teeth and gums are fine.
Also having a full wellness blood panel and urinalysis done. Stella is almost 11 and has lost about five pounds from her normal 35-36. Her appetite, energy, pee, drinking, interest in things are all normal. We’ve increased her kibble, and the only variable I can think has changed is the kibble itself (a switch from the Acana Regionals cycle to Acana Senior. She did test Lyme+ in 2012 yet has been asymptomatic since. So we want to try to find out what’s going on.
I’m a weather geek and enjoy surfing various forecast services. My primary soures are Environment Canada, The Weather Network, and the US National Weather Service. Intellicast and the Weather Underground provide useful information. I ignore The Weather Channel – too much breathless hype for me. I review the available forecast packages then make an educated guess at what will happen.
Today we had some sun and it warmed up to about 4 degrees, which melted some of the snowpack. Tomorrow morning we have a chance at snow and/or freezing drizzle which will make for an interesting drive. Dropping Stella at the vet for some dental cleaning, she’s lost five pounds over several months and about 1 1/2 since her last visit a month ago. Her standard weight is about 35 or 36 so it’s concerning.
Tomorrow afternoon and evening we could see heavy rain, possibly an inch or more. That’s a lot of rain to fall on our ten inches or so of snow. We might get a rumble of thunder. Then a cold front sweeps through during Thursday night bringing colder temperatures and winds possibly gusting to 80 kilometers per hour (around 50 mph). May our and our neighbours’ trees stay where and as they are.
I’m not Panicky or Freaking Out, weather like this is a part of life and of living in this part of the world. It’s good to be knowledgeable and prepared.
In June 2010 I had occasion to visit Estes Park CO with family. We stayed in a rental house in town. I learned that it wasn’t unheard of for elk to saunter through town. One day this elk wandered into the rental’s yard. After saying a few choice phrases I grabbed my camera and began snapping away. This beautiful animal was perhaps 50 feet away from me, I was astounded to see how this powerful, graceful, regal animal stood still for a minute or so, almost consciously posing while I photographed it. I was also quite cognizant that something could disturb it, sending it running in any direction including mine. Never saw one before and may never see one again. It was an almost magical experience and one I vividly remember.
We had about eight cm of snow overnight and stiff winds from the southeast backed to the southwest, whipping up some good drifts that we had to clear before I left for work. The sky cleared as I approached work. The moon welcomed the clearing sky by taking its leave for another day.
Taken with the PlayBook.
I have had trouble connecting the PlayBook to the laptop thereby backing up the 700+ photos on it. Today I finally came across a back door way to link and backup, thank goodness. I would not want to lose shots like this blush of dawn.
Won’t see anything like this tomorrow morning, about 10 cm of snow is predicted for tonight. It’s howly-growly out there as Faye likes to say, there is a stiff and gusty wind blowing now. Rain for Thursday.
Taken and posted with the PlayBook.
Nearly seven years later, I am still astounded that Achilles languished in the shelter for a year before I adopted him.
previouslytexan 