My funny dog

Paisley Ruth Johns...
This dog gives me so much joy :). I had the typical frustrations with chewing and other puppy behaviors initially, but at almost 17 months now, she has become a really fun, sweet companion. I lamented for a while how small and skinny she is, and calling her a runt, but she's actually a great size at 55 lbs. Big enough to be a substantial dog and cuddle with me - small enough that I can still pick her up to put her in the bathtub by myself.

She has gradually taken more territory in my house (much to my mom's chagrin, if she knew about it!). She was first allowed only downstairs, and I kept a baby gate at the stairs all the time. She still gets crated when no one's home (except maybe a short evening trip to the grocery store), but she gained access to upstairs, to my room, eventually to my roommate's room, got blankets on my futon for her to sleep there, and then finally got a special blanket on one half of my bed so she can keep me warm these winter nights.

She generally stays wherever the people are and follows the people anytime they run upstairs to get something, or run back downstairs to check a pot on the stove, or make any other move that threatens to abandon her or provide an interesting event elsewhere. Whenever I'm finished downstairs for the night, she races me to the top of the stairs, turning to face me from above to say "can't catch me!" Then we go into my room, and she hops up on the futon, turns in a circle and plops down with a grunt or a sigh, while I go about whatever I'm doing - checking email, picking up clothes, getting ready for bed, talking to Wade.

She usually dozes there for a while (especially if I'm staying up for a while), and goes through various cycles of REM sleep, where her eyes twitch and paws move like she's running, and she lets out random squeaks that sound like a boiling teakettle. Then when she gets bored of lying on her side - or she's just soooo uncomfortable like that, she'll roll on her back, stretching her legs out in the air and turning towards the back of the futon. And then just lie like that for a while - silly as she looks with her little tummy and privates exposed and her feet way up above her. That's where the picture below comes from. I also love when she stretches out completely and she's so long she pretty much takes up the whole length of the futon, from front paw tip to hind paw tip.



When I get closer to actually going to bed, and I might climb in the sheets still talking to Wade or even turn the lights out, and Paisley takes that as her cue to laboriously lift herself from the futon, put her front feet on the floor, stretch her back legs behind her still on the futon, groan, and hop up on her blanket next to me on the bed. Then she just passes out asleep again, like she is just exhausted from another long day.


Last week, I noticed some weird scabs on her neck and took her to the vet to investigate. Turns out she had a yeast infection in her ear, and the scabs were probably the result of scratching at the ear. So poor little girl had to have part of her neck shaved (where they were looking at the scabs) and she did NOT like that at all. Then they did a thorough cleaning of her ears, and prescribed an oral antibiotic and an ear drop antibiotic for me to give her for 2 weeks, as well as an ear cleaning solution to use more regularly in the future (oops, bad mom!).

She has to take the 2 pills each twice a day, and the drops twice a day too, and I'm so proud of her for how well she has done. I hide the pills in her food, and sometimes she eats both unknowingly, usually just one. The pill she left I drop down her throat manually (yes, exactly the way that sounds), and she gags for a second and then swallows. The ear drops she also doesn't love, but she lets me get close enough to put them in and then looks at me pitifully while I hold/rub her ear for 30 seconds while it soaks in. And then shakes vigorously when I let her go.



So here's to Pais getting better (and better and better!).