Dog days of summer

The end of the week is here and I realize that I haven't written a post since last weekend.  It's not that I haven't been busy.  Mostly I haven't taken any pictures.  Plus, the heat drags everything down, except Colby, who is out in the dogyard right now with Ana, Trooper, Molly, and Zachary, trying desparately to get someone to play with her. 

I became curious about the phrase "dog days of summer".  Dogs are not crazy about this weather, nothing is.  According to wikipedia, it has to do with the Dog Star, Sirius. 

Colby got neutered on Tuesday.  She's doing fine in most every way.  She has really learned the routine around here and goes downstairs and outside without a leash and goes to and from the dogyard without wandering off to see what else is around.  She is cute, sweet, and smart.  We now believe her to be a mix of Dutch Shepherd and god knows what else.  She is peeing in her crate at night, however.  I think that is mostly just an issue of age, she is younger than I may have thought, still a puppy and really can't hold it overnight.  And her crate is big enough that she can pee in one end of it without affecting her nice dry bed.  I just need to put papers down in there. 

The General was neutered last week and is fine, but his scrotum filled up and maybe got infected.  That happens so frequently with male dogs that I really should routinely put them on antibiotics immediately after surgery.  So he's been confined to the house again mostly, is on antibiotics and rimadyl, and it seems to be resolving itself. 

Ana went to CASPCA with me on Tuesday when I picked up Colby after her spay.  We met cats, quite a few of them, and her reaction seemed pretty good.  So I'm taking her to her prospective new home on Saturday, as a result of our visit last weekend. 

The General's posting on Petfinder has generated several emails and interested applicants.  One of them sounds promising and isn't too far away from where I'll be on Sunday, so we may do a home visit with him this weekend. 

Thor has been getting the pancreatic enzyme powder on his food for the last two weeks.  We are going to have a weigh in today and see if he's picked up any weight.  He needs a reverse Weight Watchers program for dogs. 

I'm taking Sparky to the vet today to update his vaccines.  Sparky doesn't really like being handled by anyone but me, so we may be in for some fun. I've been neglecting him and feel guilty about it.  He wants to get back to hiking. 

Between the heat and surgeries, I've been keeping Trooper, Ana, Colby, and the General in crates in my office all week.  That means a lot of dog juggling, trips up and down stairs, to and from the dogyard.  The General has stopped marking on his way through the house.  Ana won't come until I put a leash on her.  She needs to go to a home with women, and she is. 

With no new pics, I decided this morning to take some pictures of my container garden, which is still looking pretty good, with a few exceptions, in spite of the heat.