I am sick, and Mommy is sad and worried.

Hello, Pup Pals.

Many things have transpired since my last entry. Needless to say, I have been very busy living life.

First things first. A few weeks ago, I found myself listless and unwilling to eat. My walks - the one thing I look forward to each day besides cuddling with Mommy - did not seem to have the same appeal. Mommy noticed this, and discovered after a brief work-up that I have non-regenerative anemia. After many tests, it looks very likely that I have chronic lymphocytic leukemia.

Sadly, there is a relative paucity of survival data in veterinary literature, although if the initial studies are to be believed, this may be a treatable condition with indolent clinical course. Mommy is hoping for that. For now, we are awaiting results from confirmatory tests which have been sent away to UC Davis, and are taking things one day at a time. There are pros and cons to Mommy being a pathologist herself. Pro: she understands what's going on. Con: she understands what's going on.

I suppose as a dog, I live relatively in the present, which Mommy says is a small blessing. I have noticed much in the way my pawrents lavish me with love and attention lately. I shall soak it up.

Please have me in your thoughts, Pup Pals.

Sincerely,
Telly

Happy New Year!

Another human year gone...where does the time go?

Fresh Corn

Today we went to the local farm markets in the area and Daddy bought us fresh corn, beans and locally raised lamb for dinner tonight.

I cannot wait until dinner: Winnie and I get to share a whole chop! My mouth is watering just thinking about it.

Grandma always says, "Low how soy" (translated as: leaking water from mouth literally, or salivating). Fresh lamb chops make me low how soy. A lot. It's embarrassing....

Neutered man body

Alas, pup pals. I used to be svelte. But now I have neutered man body...the same weight, but the shape and muscle definition is gone.

While I do not regret leaving my reproductive capabilities behind me, I lament the loss of my shape. Or maybe mommy's more bothered by this than I am?...

Diary of the Day! Yay!

Pup Pals & Dogster,

Thank you for visiting my diary and making my diary the Diary of the Day! I am so happy to discover that my random thoughts are not orphaned in cyberspace!

Sometimes the entries experience a lull (when things are busy, like when there is snow outside to play with, or when the grandpawrents visit) but I will do my best to keep my friends updated on the news and happenings in Telly's World.

Now, it's time for me to go outside to play!

Sniffs and wags,
Telly

Surgery

Pup Pals,

I had a tumorous growth on my bum, which fortunately turned out to be a benign growth (perianal gland or hepatoid adenoma). Unfortunately, these things are androgen-responsive, so along with tumor resection, I had to be neutered.

I had once had dreams of returning to Vancouver and taking a wife, fathering another litter of show pups, but alas, that dream is not to come true.

It has been over a week after the surgery, and I have recovered well. Many things good have come of this, including all of the extra love Mommy and Daddy have lavished upon me. Plus, I have discovered the e-collar is a powerful tool against Winnie!

And now, I begin my life as a eunuch....

Spring has almost sprung

Hello, Pup Pals.

After many months of cold and more snow, I think I can finally see the light of spring. It was a fair 15 degrees Celsius today, enough to melt the last of the snow piles for good!

I'm going to enjoy this warm(ish) weather now...

Telly

Crunchies

I have to start out this entry by saying that typically, I find it abhorrent that the humans give us this dry cereal while they enjoy sumptuous meals at a table.

Having gotten that out of the way, I must also continue to say the Wellness Duck and Rice is the most delicious dry cereal I have eaten. Goodness knows Mommy has tried feeding us all types, only to resign herself to preparing meals by the stock pot-load during weekends. But life has apparently gotten busy for her, and the cooking has gone by the wayside.

So enter Wellness Duck and Rice. At first, I was wary of it. But mixed with Evangers Pheasant or Venison, it makes a tasty meal. Winnie is in high praise of it, but then again, there is very little in the way of food that Winnie will reject (even if it is far beyond its expiry, sitting in a garbage dump).

So, Dogsters, I have a new-found enjoyment of "dry cereal" and have spared Mommy the extra chore of cooking for us weekly.

Telly

Ode to my birth mother

true mother
you perplex me:
how can one
who gave me life
abhor me so?
now we have found
an uneasy peace
punctuated by your poo.

Snow, snow and more snow!

Pup Pals,

I love snow. We got over 2 feet of it in the last week, and mommy has had to pull out my snow jacket so we can play outside for extended periods. Unfortunately, Winnie does not enjoy the white stuff quite like I do...when mommy takes out the leashes and snow jackets for our walks, Winnie runs away and hides behind the sofa, from which daddy has to extricate her (with a broom stick, no less). I have noticed that my sister is beginning to develop a winter bulge. I have heard her complain bitterly about this weather, and her longing to return to the mild weather of the Pacific Northwest. I do admit to missing those nice walks by the ocean. But personally, I prefer snow and sunshine to months of rain and gray skies.

Grab your snowboards, people! Winter is here!

Telly