Before my blindness, I had 3 main goals in life, the first is to get to the other side of the fence, the second is to eat anything I can, except my dog food and the third is to have every human being love me. This combined with the mischievous personality of keeshonds has made for a very exciting life. Here are few of the adventures. We were visiting Dave and Wendy and their keeshond Dakota in the mountains. They went out to dinner and left Dakota and I at home. We were in the 2nd floor bedroom window barking and I leaned forward and the screen fell out with me on top of it. It was a fast trip down to the driveway. Lucky for me, I just sprained my front leg and had to wear a cast for 4 weeks. The ride was fun though, especially the wind blowing through my hair. I also enjoyed the time that I pushed the kitchen wastebasket all the way into the living room (through 2 other rooms) with out spilling it. Of course, once I got it in the living room, it was time for a snack. When Dad came home he didn’t notice anything until later that night when he went into the living room. He just looked at me and laughed and asked how did I do that. That was the last time I was so neat about it, now I leave a trail. One of the nicest things was one day when dad and I were walking. Another couple was out a stroll and when we came close to them I did my usual thing of running up to them, tail wagging 100 miles an hour. The woman petted me first then her husband. As we were talking, the husband said that I was first dog he had petted in a long time. He was afraid of them but I looked so nice and had such a friendly face that he knew it was OK. Boy was I proud of myself Dad got a new job in 1997 and he had to go to work in Denmark. Beth stayed with me the 1st year. She was very nice, except she had 2 cats and we fought sometimes when no one was home. I ended up having two corneal ulcers and operations as a result. I still haven’t learned about cats. Sheila stayed with me the 2nd and 3rd years. She tried to teach me how to behave. I always behaved for her but whenever Dad came home, I acted like I didn’t learn a thing. Dad used to come home every 2-3 months for a couple of weeks, but I still missed him. He kept the picture of me with my cast on at his desk in Denmark. Dad came home for good in November 2000. While he was gone I developed allergies to grass and even got a piece of grass caught in my throat. Dr Clyde had to operate on me to get it out. I am now on allergy shots. Sheila used to be a vet tech so she knew how to give me the shots. Dad didn’t. He had a hard time giving them to me at first, but once he got the hang of it, everything went well. My rear knee didn’t age very well and Dr. Clyde recommended ACL surgery. In June 2001, I had that surgery. When Dad picked me up he was kind of in shock. I was pretty sad and my whole back left side was shaved to the skin and had all this antiseptic on it. I was pretty upset the 1st night and kept dad up. Once he picked me up and had me sleep next to him on the bed everything was cool. I usually like to sleep on the floor but I needed to be next to him. He made me start walking after a week and now I am as good as new, sometimes I think I am a puppy again. In September 2001, dad decided we needed a new family room and a renovated kitchen. I liked the workmen but they took too long. It was pretty stressful. As a result of the stress, Dad was diagnosed with diabetes in January. He went to all these classes at the hospital and learned a lot about the disease. That helped because in February I became diabetic. Dad is very good about my shots. I am a difficult eater so at first I ate the Hill’s W/d but after a couple of weeks. I couldn’t stand the stuff. He tried Eukanuba glucose control but that was boring too. He then tried some home cooked meals such as a mixture of ground beef, broccoli and the Eukanuba stuff ground to powder. Then he tried a mixture with chicken that worked for a few weeks. I went to bed on the night of July 5th and everything was fine, but when I woke up the next morning I couldn't see very much and was bumping into everything. Dad took me back to the opthamologist who confirmed that I was about 90% blind from diabetic cataracts. It happened so fast I didn't understand it and got depressed. I stopped eating food and after a few days Dad tried some glucerna. I really liked that, it was like having a milkshake. Then it gave me the runs so I stopped drinking that. Dad then tried giving me some scrambled eggs and cheese in the morning, and a hot dog at night. I really like that and have been eating that for about 6 weeks. For a snack I like some pepperoni slices and some cheese. Dad wanted to make sure my health was good before deciding on cataract surgery. Dr Clyde noticed some things in my blood work so I had to go for an ultrasound where they found some stones in my bladder. I started on that medicine and am feeling really good right now. At first I had some bad accidents as the medicine was working, but nothing recently. I am getting used to my blindness and move around our house and yard really good. I also know the route for our walks. Dad put these carpet treads on the stairs so I go up and down the stairs 10-20 times a day. I love my dad and I know he loves me. He didn't think that I saw him looking at me while I napped (now I just imagine him doing it). He just looks and smiles. He’s told me he can’t imagine how anyone could have given me up.
Roy and Cookie |
