I love this!

I saw this cartoon today and loved it so much I had to go online and illegally post it to my blog. It made me laugh so I wanted to share (if anyone is still reading my blog!). Willie is doing fine, skinny and loosing hair but just as cute as ever. Although I imagine other people may not think he is so cute, I joke that he looks like a skunk because he is loosing his hair in a line down his back so it looks like a white stripe, not so bad when he has a sweater on!

A whole new meaning to throw up!

I haven't blogged much because Willie's health has been fine so I decided that just about everyday with Willie is an adventure and certainly there are lots of stories to tell about Willie. So, I've re-energized the blog to be a day in the life of Willie, who just happens to have a brain tumor. As a side note...we visited my grandparents today and my grandmother mentioned that her neighbor died of an inoperable brain tumor that was located between the two hemispheres of her brain. I thought to myself, yes, I'm familiar...my dog has the same tumor. Then I thought, I guess there could be worse things than your dog having a brain tumor!

I learned a whole new meaning to throw up today. I was walking by the bed headed to the bathroom and Willie was whining to get in the bed. He is not too good at jumping that high as he gets older. I picked him up quickly as I walked by and kind of tossed him on the bed. I can not tell you how many times I've done this...countless times I thrown him up on the bed. Well, today as soon as he got the throw up, he threw up in the bed! It was just instantaneous, as soon as his feet hit the pillow he puked on the pillow then stalked off and puked on the duvet! You'd have thought I would learn my lesson about putting him on the bed because that is not the first down duvet that he has ruined. Luckily, I was quick thinking and put him down on the floor and picked up the cover before it was able to soak through the the duvet. It is a good thing he is cute (and sick) because it makes his behavior much more tolerable!

Nine lives...not just for cats!

When I started this blog, I figured that I'd be posting on a regular basis for a few months about Willie's health...I didn't think he'd still be around and doing as well as he has been, therefore warranting more postings than I had ever imagined. My last post "No News is Good News" still holds as there are no new developments. People still ask how he is doing and the best I can say is that he is doing well. He has his days where he just seems to not feel well, a bit lethargic, eyes glazed over and part of me thinks that is more about allergies then a brain tumor?!?! The last time I called to renew his prescription they said I'd have to bring him in for a recheck before they would refill again...and it is almost time for a refill. I imagine that they will figure out what I already know, Willie is a miracle dog. He has been known as the dog with nine lives and according to my calculations, he is working on at least his fifth so I think he still has lots of time left. He is getting older, has a harder time jumping up on the couch, holding his pee, a bit ornery at times, but what can you expect from a ten year old dog?!?! For a while we noticed quite a change in his personality and just within the past week or so he has been his old self again. I'll probably bring him back to LSU with in the next week or two and I'll surely post what I find out!

No news is good news!

I've had a few people comment about the lack of recent posts and I just wanted to let everyone know no news is good news. Willie is doing well, no further symptoms of a brain tumor which has led me to convince myself that he does not actually have a brain tumor. The only difference I've noticed is that he is really fat...his belly is huge!!! He constantly begs for food, crying and whining for it, like a junkie needing a fix. It is really kind of pathetic. I called the LSU Vet School last week for a refill (the second refill) of his prescription and they said the could refill it one more time and then he would need to come in for a recheck. Which I interpreted to mean..."Holy hell, you mean that little dog is still alive??? Maybe we should take a look at him!" I figured they were surprised he was still alive and maybe he should not be taking steroids three times a day for two months. I had already reduced his dosage to twice a day when the instructions were every 8 hours, and as you know that is a bit of a challenge when you work for a living! The first month, I'd come home everyday in the middle of the day to give him a dose every 8 hours but a month later when he was still kicking...I decided to cut back to twice a day. Now, he gets his medicine every 12 hours, and if we are home we would give it to him every 8 hours. So, when I picked up his refill the bottle said to give it to him twice daily. I'd imagine three daily doses of steroids may start to cause some sort of damage. Wouldn't that be something if Willie dies from liver damage instead of a brain tumor?!?! That'd be my luck! If he is still alive when we get close to the end of this bottle I'll bring him in and see what they have to say about my little medical miracle.

Dying Wish

We brought Willie with us to the camp in Grande Isle for the Memorial Day weekend. I was thinking if I had a dying wish it would be to travel, but probably not to Grande Isle, no offense! It was nice to see Willie outside of his element, which is the couch or the bed. He seemed to really enjoy himself and didn't complain too much about the 2.5 hour drive. He sat in his car seat like a good boy, not that he had a choice, the car seat attaches to his harness. He didn't pee in the car which was a good thing, I let him out when we stopped for gas. He stayed on his leash below the camp most of the time taking it all in until he totally exhausted himself and sprawled out on his side like road kill. My favorite part was that it was very windy this weekend, so windy we didn't get to take the boat out, and the wind would catch Willie's ears and stand them straight up...it was the funniest sight I'd seen in a while. As you know, Willie's adorable ears usually flop over and I learned that is not the case in a strong wind. It was nice to get out of the house for all of us and I'm happy to say that Willie may have got his dying wish, if his wish was to travel.

Willie could be a puppy model!

I received Willie's proofs today and I must say, my dog is adorable! One of my coworkers said that Willie should be a puppy model and I thoroughly agree. There are so many cute ones that it will be very hard to decide. I think it would be a bit much to have a ton of pictures of my dog in frames at my house and I'm not at all sure how I will decide. I love my dog and hopefully you will look at the pics and agree that Willie is totally adorable!!

I was also pleasantly surprised and almost moved to tears to learn that a friend of mine was so inspired by reading the Willie blog that she and her son decided to get a min pin. It is like Willie now has a name sake or a legacy that will live on after he is gone...isn't that exciting!!

Ready for my close up!

Willie and I went to have his picture made on Friday and it was fairly uneventful. The appointment was at 9am and I was at work for 10am. He was a bit of a challenge as he doesn't sit still for longer than a second so most of the pictures have me in them. That wasn't exactly what I had in mind, after all why would I want a picture of myself??? If Willie was better behaved then it may have worked out better. Cindy (the photographer) would say "On the count of three move your hand." and I'd move it and he'd be off. That is why most of the pictures I try to take of Willie are just a black and tan blur. Oh also by the way I'm chubby...so I really was not excited about being in the picture. I guess that is the sacrifice I have to make. Hopefully at least one or two will come out for me to choose from...I'll keep you posted as I eagerly anticipate my proofs!