Happy Birthday, Bingley!

Today is not just any birthday for our favorite boy Greyhound. Today is Bingley's TENTH birthday! A ripe old age for a Greyhound. He is celebrating, doing what he likes to do during the middle of the day: snooze on the living room love seat. This evening, things will liven up a bit and he'll take a few circuits around the living room, and might even toss the odd stuffed toy in the air. We have it on no less authority than our trusted dog walker that Bingley is the liveliest ten year old dog he knows. Happy, Happy Birthday, Bingley. We are grateful to have you in our lives.

Lily Needs A Home

I received the forwarding of an email about an eight year old, female German Shepherd Dog mix, whose days are numbered in a Los Angeles shelter. If you, or anyone you know would like to provide a home for a deserving dog, please email me at portiasmom at live dot com

Happy (Official) Birthday, Miss Magic!

What do Magic and Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II have in common? They both have official birthdays. The difference is that Her Majesty knows the actual date of her birth. But the date of Miss Magic's arrival is lost forever. Furthermore, I suspect that there is some slippage in the date of Magic's "official" birthday, because I'm not at all sure about the precise date that she, two of her puppies, and the puppies' father were rescued from outdoor cages in the High Desert of Southern California by volunteers from Greyhound Adoption Center. A few days later, a third of Magic's puppies was also rescued. After we adopted Magic, I decided to place her birthday in July, the month of her rescue. But the precise date of her rescue eludes me. So it's sometime between the 13th and the 15th of July--as best I can tell. This year, Miss Magic's Official Birthday is today, July 15. She is officially nine years old today and wears her age gracefully. She still trots with a little spring in her step, and just yesterday, she jumped over some flower pots on the deck to be first in the door before the amiable Bingley, who only gets competitive about chasing small furry critters. As Mike Dougherty, Westminster Best In Show Judge and proprietor of Windsong, says, "Dogs are not for the faint of heart." Dogs bury themselves in the innermost parts of our hearts, and then they leave us with indescribable pain, because their life-spans are a fraction of human life spans. Some people react to that pain by refusing to ever have another dog. But for some of us, the only way to live with the pain--there is no cure--is to welcome another dog into our lives. Not as a replacement, mind you. There is no replacement for a lost dog any more than there is a replacement for a lost human being. But a new dog brings new joys and challenges and helps us to stop wallowing in our grief. Magic came into our lives after our traumatic loss of Portia. She is nothing like Portia. She doesn't look anything like Portia looked. She doesn't act like Portia acted. She isn't even all Greyhound. She's a "fuzzy", Greyhound-Scottish Deerhound mix. But as much as I mourn the loss of Portia, I would not have wanted to miss the company of Magic. Happy Birthday, Miss Magic! May you have a long, healthy life!

Home Again

Actually, we touched down at LAX around 6:30 am last Wednesday, July 3. Recent events cause me to express my gratitude to our wonderful El Al pilot(s), who brought our 777 in for a soft, smooth landing. I hinted at our destination, when I referred to the Canaan Dog, the only breed native to Israel. I think I might have spied one or two of them from the window of our bus in Tel Aviv. But actually meeting one face to face is still in my future. I am not a natural traveler. John will pack his bags and hop on a plane with no hesitation. I am a stay-at-home. Give me my dogs, my knitting, my chats with friends, and I'm a happy camper. But I had always assumed that I would go to Israel. Its history has been the running news in the background of my life. I can't remember not admiring that brave country whose creation and preservation has seemed like a miracle. If you are considering a trip to Israel, I urge you to go. I won't even try to describe all the experiences it offers. Just go and discover for yourself. While we were away, Bingley and Magic, once more, were cared for by Mike and Michelle Dougherty at the wonderful Windsong Spa for Pets. We are fortunate that we are a 15-20 minute drive from Windsong. But if you are within any reasonable distance and you need the best place to board your pet, Windsong is incomparable. Finally, on a sad, nostalgic note, it was four years ago yesterday, July 7, 2009, that the beautiful Portia's heart stopped beating during a bandage change while she was in intensive care for treatment of a gaping wound suffered in an attack on her, Bingley and John by a loose dog. Time has softened the stabbing pain we felt at her loss. Bingley is still with us and Magic entered our lives November 20, 2009. Portia was irreplaceable, but we would not have wanted to miss our Magic. The very thought of her makes me smile. A lady to her toenails. Quiet, opinionated, and patient, but determined to get her way and have her say. Bingley, remains the sweetest tempered dog I have ever had. A reliable greeter of house guests and anyone he encounters on walks. Everyone's BFF. (Except, of course, for small hopping or scurrying creatures. You can take the dog off the racetrack, but you can't take the chase out of the dog.)

Vacation

Friends of Portia is going on vacation. Hope to be back blogging the second week of July. Perhaps I will have seen my very first Canaan Dog. I'll be looking for one.

Bingley Report

Many, many thanks to all who prayed for Bingley or sent good thoughts his way. He is now completely recovered from his gastroenteritis attack. Although frightening, it did not reach the extreme level that it sometimes did in the past. He continued to drink water while he was ill and that made all the difference. We are happy to say that we have our Bingley back.

Bingley's Troubles Return

More than once in this blog, I have discussed Bingley's delicate intestines. Before rescue, he was one of five racing Greyhounds purchased by a compulsive gambler, certain that if he had his own string of dogs, he could make his fortune. The inevitable happened. The gambler ran out of money. He ran out of dog food. Maybe he didn't even bother to give the poor dogs water. When the rescuer from Greyhound Adoption Center opened the dog hauler containing the five dogs, there were three survivors. Bingley was one of them. Shortly after we adopted him, he began to have frightening episodes of hemorrhagic gastroenteritis. If you have never witnessed a full blown attack of hemorrhagic gastroenteritis, take a moment to thank your lucky stars. Bingley's episodes recurred over two months, and we were in great fear of losing him. Ultimately, Dr. Candy Lewis, THE sight hound specialist of San Diego, put him on a prescription diet and "as much liquid Pepto Bismol as he needs". No treats. No exceptions. Since that time, Bingley has been healthy most of the time, but he has good and bad days and, occasionally, he will have an episode. It's been a long time since his last one, but late Thursday night, after waking me to go out, he stomach began the ominous growling and gurgling associated with his intestinal distress. Yesterday was not a good day. But he brightened up a little yesterday evening and has eaten a little today. He hasn't stopped drinking water, which is good. So far, this episode is mild and he seems to be slowly improving. I'll keep you posted. Meanwhile, say a prayer for our boy, if you are inclined to do so.