There are some movies that really put a lot of dust in the air and Marley & Me is definitely one of them. It’s one of those movies that I can personally relate to with my little doggy, Oreo. Both he and I have gone through some happy and sad times together and the movie definitely touches on a lot of those experiences we had.

If you’re reading this and thinking, “I love dogs! They’re so cute, and cuddly, and loving, and blah blah blah…” Well, this movie will definitely show you the not-so-cute parts of dog ownership—from the stuffed animal terrorism to Marley’s self watering of the living room rug. If you have never owned a dog, you’ll definitely will not feel any greater inclination to run out to your nearest breeder after watching the first 45 minutes of the film. Sure there will be a couple “awws” and “how cute” when they show Marley and those big puppy dog eyes, but that feeling of I-want-one will dissipate once Marley gets into gear and chews through the Grogans’ home.

Luckily for me, my experience raising the little poop machine wasn’t so extreme. Aside from chewing my brother’s waterbed frame, Oreo never really gnawed his way into puphood. Instead, his noriety stemmed from his desire to mark his territory—peeing on the couch, the kitchen table, the outside corner of every hallway, and even peeing as he raced up and down the stairs. Not all is to blame with Oreo though. He was fine before my brother’s two children were born, but once they arrived on the scene my parents’ banished him to his crate until I came home to tend to him. This pretty much opened the flood gates, litteraly. He had to establish his territory with the kids and watching them run around while he howled his little head off in his crate only made matters worse.

Those times are behind Oreo now as he’s living with Mary and I since we moved to our new home last year. With our little baby boy expected in March ‘09, I plan on being very delicate with the transition of Oreo accepting Jagger as another member of the family. I really don’t need him peeing everywhere and I love Oreo as a member of our family that Mary and I have started together.

What snorts like a boar, smells like bacon, and shits like a pig?

My little dog Oreo! When he had the bandage wrapped around his head (from the ear surgery) he was providing an interesting medley of night time acoustics. Turns out Oreo has a heart murmur causing pressure on his trachea. Hence the snore-fest. So twice a day he gets to feast on an assortment of feel good pills to help with the murmur. Which I just fed him along with his weekly Pellitol oitment in his non-surgery ear. The Pellitol smells like bacon which usually keeps him busy as he tries to get a lick of it.

After his walk, I gave him his usual cup of food and set it down for him to eat. He sat, five feet away staring at it. Moved to his bed and continued to stare from a distance. Opps! “Sorry boy!” as I pointed to his food to motion him too it. He slid tile to tile to get his food. This was something I trained Oreo a long time ago, to wait for his food until I say it’s okay. I’m actually surprised that he still remembers it. He continues to amaze me everyday. I love the little doggah.

Does your dog (or pet) do anything that continues to amaze you?

Oreo has had a nasty little cough the past week or so. As suggested by Dr. Terinin, I should use a harness rather than a collar in order to ease up on his delicate trachea. I’ve been trying to find the right one for Oreo and as a result I have several harnesses waiting to be returned. Fortunately I think I’ve found the perfect harness: Premier’s Easy Walk Harness.

Easy to Put On

Oreo can get a little fussy when he’s in an unfamiliar position. So one of the requirements for the harness is that it goes on easily. Being that he’s still wearing his Comfy Cone, other harnesses would require me to either take it off each time, or struggle to get it around his head/cone. With the Easy Walk, it has two clip buckles. One is positioned near his underbelly and the other is over his shoulder. With this setup, the first clip is similar to putting a regular dog collar on and the second clip requires getting the strap around his underbelly. In addition, the loops are color coded so that you can easily identify which is which.

No Sled Dog Pulling

Another interesting thing I found with the harness is that the D loop (for the leash) is located in the front. Premier claims that this helps in discouraging the “opposition reflex” — the tendency for dogs to pull harder and drag you when wearing a normal collar/leash. With Premier’s harness, when your dog pulls it steers him to his side and redirecting his attention back to you. I only walked Oreo once with the harness since picking it up today, and from what I saw it did just as Premier promised.

Wish Us Luck

The harness is as advertised, although for the bigger picture, I hope Oreo heals from whatever is causing his cough. We have an appointment this week with the vet for a heart echo. Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers for good news.

I’ve always been in self denial that Oreo is a senior dog. Every time I’m at Petco, I’m always indecisive whether to switch him to Wellness Just For Seniors or stick with the purple bag mix. I’m not implying he isn’t old — he’s an 11 year old cocker spaniel, the beginning of his senior years. Today I received some sad news that further confirms Oreo’s senior citizenship. He has a heart murmur, a common heart problem for older dogs.

It seems like it’s one problem after another with Oreo. All I want for him is to be healthy. So now we’ve got facial palsy (although this is supposed to be temporary), a heart murmur, and a nasty dry cough.

Poor boy. Daddy’s little puppah is no more.

The holiday season is right around the corner and I’m starting to compile my list of gifts for the loved ones in my life. Flipping through the recent edition of Dog Fancy, I saw some really cool gifts for my little Oreo.

What really surprises me is how far along some of these products have come. Years ago, dog toys were limited to bones, squeekers, and girly sweaters — Not that I’ll ever force Oreo to wear human like clothing! I’ll stick with different collars for now. And on that note, here is my list of really cool gadgets I am considering for the holiday season.

	Hduo™ Water Dispensing System $269.99 I once saw Mary fill Oreo’s bowl using our Brita pitcher. It struck me as a little odd since I always use tap water. With this, he can now drink the same quality water that we do — Not that water from the tap is harmful for him or us for the matter. Even better is that Mary’s father owns a water filtration company, so I can see this benefitting all of us.
	Buster Dog Food Cube $11.99 Oreo had a bit of a tougher time figuring out the Kong, although its erratic movement always peaked his curiosity. This cube looks like it dispenses treats much more freely and will keep Oreo’s attention for much longer. Until he empties it of course.
	SitStay Treat Lovers Tote $7.50 Oreo doesn’t really have any tummy trouble eating new foods, although I rarely feed him anything new. But everything in this tote is all organic with no meat byproducts. He definitely loves treats and at this price, it’s high on my list.
	Green Camoflauge Dog Collar $7.50 How can I ignore something camo for my dog? He’s already wearing a Rogz urban camo collar, but for me green camo is the best.
	Pet Gear™ Camo Dog Bed $19.97 Now that I’ve got the ball rolling on camo, you should have seen this coming. Oreo already has a bed, but how cool is this? I just need a reason to buy this without Mary saying anything [note to self: I wonder if Mary will read this far into my story...I probably shouldn't be typing this]

I’ve read some less than stellar reviews for Sayrebrook Veterinary Hospital, and to the countrary they get my thumbs up approval. The type of quality care from Dr. Terrinin and her staff is exactly what Oreo needs to help him get back into good health.

Oreo’s previous owners had given him subpar care and paid little attention to his health. I have spent the last year correcting any health issues — and it’s been quite expensive too! Although with the help of Care Credit, the financial burden has been somewhat alleviated. I’ve brought Oreo to this veterinary hospital at least once every 3-4 months to check up on his badly infected ears. And most recently his operation to close his ear canal has been quite a terrifying experience for a loving dog owner.

Dr. Terrinin and Dr. Ross have been doing their best to help with Oreo’s recovery. And apparently Oreo has received a reputation there with his not-so-friendly attitude towards people he feels will hurt him.

But after the operation, it seems that he’s been more friendly to strangers. And this is what the doctors had said said, in that he may be a whole new doggy as he’s no longer suffering from the ear infection. I hope so.

If any of you have had your pet in a plastic cone for an extended period of time, then you’re well aware of how incredibly sharp the edges become after a few walks outside. A couple of brush ups on your leg will leave your shouting at your beloved pet. No more of that — I introduce to you the Comfy Cone from All Four Paws.

The cone seals via 3 velcro strips, which is much easier than the tab design of the plastic cones.  It also has loops to secure the cone around your pet’s neck with his/her collar. Although I don’t really use it as you can comfortably wrap the cone around without worry of it coming off.

The front end of the cone is soft and has a reflective trim for those night walks. The trim wears easily especially when constantly rubbed against concrete/asphalt. But that’s a minor issue. 

Because of the soft material, it tends to smell after a while if your pet salivates a lot. I try to clean it everyday, but for you lazy people…sorry.

Pros

• Offered in various sizes from 12.5 CM to 30 CM. As reference, my cocker spaniel wears a 20 CM cone.
• Reasonably affordable from $12-$25.
• No annoying plastic cone hitting your leg.
• Can flap top cone back to allow your pet to eat/drink.

Cons

• Reflective lining wears easily.
• Will smell if not cleaned regularly.
• Sound of velcro tearing apart may frighten some dogs.

Can you believe that my little furball is 11 years old? You wouldn’t guess it when you look at him, with his active personality and and big doggy eyes. I guess his gray beard isn’t a dead giveaway and it looks so silly on him.

I still remember his first birthday party — beer, burgers, and nonsense. Of course what would Oreo’s birthday be without him running out the gate and trying to find him in a pitch black neighborhood. As they say, time goes by so fast.

So for Oreo’s birthday, I picked up a can of some Wellness Canned Chicken and Sweet Potato. I’m going to mix this in with his regular Wellness dry food. I hope he likes it. I’ll know if a few hours when he eats. I wanted to make him a dog cake, but nobody else is going to eat it but him. Plus he’s more likely to try to lick the candle than blow it out.

My silly boy.