Since I have been sick one of the biggest changes that I, and my fur-less parents have had to contend with, has been my appetite. In the past, only a month ago, you could talk me into doing anything by simply offering me a treat. I would catch toys in mid-air, roll over, do a perfect “stay”, and walk in circles – all for the promise of a morsel of something, anything – ( I’ve never been a fussy eater, but I think you got that).
I would drive my fur-less mom crazy by sitting next to her on the couch (yes I am allowed on the couch in the family room), and watching every bite of food go from her plate to her mouth. I wasn’t begging, you understand. I was just being very focused until she got the message that maybe she might want to share a bite of food with her oh-so-hungry dog. I’ll admit that it didn’t work very often because she would make me turn and face the television while she was eating. (Ha! I could still see her from the corner of my eyes, but she didn’t know that).
I especially loved pizza crust and spaghetti. I loved jumping up to grab the strands of spaghetti that my fur-less Mom would hold in the air to make me jump. She made eating it even more fun but my fur-less dad is from the “don’t-tease-her school” so he would just put it in my dish. Either way I was happy to oblige.
Now I’m not interested in much of anything to eat – not even the great home-made dog biscuits I gave you a recipe for a couple of posts ago! Not dog food, pizza, spaghetti, or even ice cream. I did manage to eat some of my fur-less dad’s chocolate chip cookies but my fur-less mom had to chew out the chocolate chips so that I would just get the crispy part of the cookie. I’m thinking it wasn’t too big a sacrifice for her because she loves chocolate.
My fur-less parents took me to the vet for a “Quality of Life Assessment” and they were told what I already know – that there will be good days and bad days. Just like humans who are sick, there are days that I feel like eating a bit, and other days I don’t. I’ve lost weight and my energy gets low after a walk but I still enjoy my walkies. I sleep a lot. I don’t know how much longer I have but I do know that I couldn’t have asked for a better home. I won the lottery the day I came to live in this house with them.
So, until next time, don’t forget to hug your pet today.
Taffy