Gangley's 4th gottcha day!

  Four years ago I innocently added to a thread on greyhound gap asking which do you prefer, greyhound, lurchers or whippets. I said I love greyhounds because ........................ I love lurchers because ................... can't comment on whippets as I've never had one!

Less than 48 hours later Lisa (founder of GG) rang and said she needed a special home for a whippet, a well hard northern whippet I was told.

Eric went and collected her from Lisa's and we were told not to turn her into a southern wimp    for the first 6 months she spent her time looking out the window waiting to be rescued from these horrible humans that wouldn't give her human food, then she decided she would just have to stay and train us.

Gangley is one of a kind and dances to her own tune, she is the oddest dog I have ever had but we love her dearly and wouldn't be without her and sorry Lisa she is such a southern wimp now with her own wardrobe of jumpers for cold days and blankets to be wrapped up in

It's been an interesting 4 years Gangley you are such a complex little lady and 7.5kgs of pure attitude but we love you loads

Orin is doing well and is now allowed to have walks, back to vets to check him over tomorrow and then Wednesday he should have his stitches out.

Done another page of Sandy this time for Eric's christmas prezzie, still have 10 dogs to go!

Remembering Miss Sandy woo

the bravest dog ever! 3 years ago today and just 9 days after Ranger past away we once again had to let one of our beautiful hounds leave! They were such tough dark days for us and yet we weren't ever really able to grieve because Jim had just had his leg amputated again bone cancer and we were doing everything we could to get him to rally. Of course he did eventually find the will to carry on and lived for another 2 and a half years, breaking many records for dogs with osteosarcoma!

Here is Sandy's story.

At the weekend Orin managed to crash into the side of the bungalow resulting in a trip to the vets to get stitched up and even worse no walks for 5 days, boy does he hurt my ears with his protests when the others go out! Other hounds are all well but like me fed up with the constant rain and mud, our garden is just mud mud mud and wiping muddy paws and hurt my hand somewhat, roll on the summer LOL

sue x

Hand Clinic

Been to hand clinic and thank goodness my normal girl was back, she confirmed what I thought that the new knuckle joint is already becoming tethered by the scar tissue, post op it had good movement now it's poor! so exercises for that and exercises that Eric has to do on scars and a different splint this one is bigger so I can't use hand much as she says I've over used it (Eric had rather a smug look on his face having told me countless times to stop using it) and it also has a piece to pull index finger back straight has it has started to drift already. Feel totally wiped out now as it was all very painful and she thinks the pain I have is nerve damage which is what I thought so will just have to wait for it to calm down, back next Tuesday. 

Have managed albeit very slowly (using mouse with left hand is slow and tedious) to do some more layouts for Eric's Christmas prezzie.

Dill

Poppit

Rulu

Only another 12 dogs to go!
 
Sue x

Remembering Ranger

Can it already be 3 years since Ranger passed away!

For those of you who know me know that we were going through the worst of times, Sandy then Jim then Ranger all diagnosed with Osteosarcoma in a short space of time, Ranger never came home from the vets post amputation and Sandy only survived 7 weeks and passed away 9 days after Ranger and through all that terrible grief we had to somehow try and get Jim to rally as he was going downhill fast, a combination of losing Sandy and just not coping with his amputation. They were truly dark days for us but happily Jim did rally and survived another 2 and a half years.

Rangers story is here if you want to read it.

So today Ranger is very much in my thoughts although to be honest he never is far away, Ranger should have had so many happy days ahead of him, life can be very cruel!.

I enjoyed going out to crop Saturday and even managed to make a few simple cards but boy was I tired when I got home LOL.

Elmo, Twizzle and Belle seem to be forming quite a strong bond but Orin is very quiet and seems caught in the middle neither part of the old pack or the young ones, he's been so quiet this last week which is worrying although it could just be he's starting to act like a greyhound and snooze the day away, paws crossed.



Off to hand clinic tomorrow 8am eek! and Thursday back to dentist to have my tooth filled, talk about rotten luck, went last week for a check up and got the all clear came home and back of tooth fell off, bummer!

Sue x

Round up

 I have been trying for ages to try and get a photo of all 7 together not easy I can tell you

 guess I'll have to keep trying, there is 7 there but can't quite see some of them LOL. Mojo and Gangley arewearing their jumpers to keep them warm.

I've been trying to work out a time line of all our dogs, so from the point I started blogging it's easy but before that it's been really hard and has taken ages. I want to have it for the opening page of Eric's hound album I'm doing for Christmas, so I ended up going through files and files of digital photo's, Eric used to upload them and lets just say his filing system was interesting LOL. Anyway I came across some lovely photo's and this one of my dear Rulu taken in 1994 (so wish I still looked like that LOL), Eric used to say if you look at photo's of me you'll always see Rulu never more than 6 inches away.

Went to dentist Tuesday and discovered my lovely dentist of 31 years is retiring in January felt really sad and said my goodbyes and thank you, came home ate tea and the back of a tooth just fell off grrrr so I shall be seeing him again on Thursday after all!

Off to hand clinic Tuesday at 8am eek! hand is still ridiculously painful but not as bad as it was!

Hounds have been a real handful this week and poor Eric is not enjoying their walks, Twizzle and Belle are terrible on the lead and will need some one on one training! Elmo has had an eye infection but other than that they are just a bunch of naughty fun loving pups! course the older ones are super good. People keep telling us it will get easier well we would both like to know WHEN cos right now it's darned hard work and I can't even moan as the saying goes you made "you bed now go and lie in it" LOL.

Went to crop yesterday first time I've been out other than hospital and dentist, so good to have a change of scenery and chat, even managed to make 4 very simple cards, came home tired but happy!

Sue x 

ROUGH WEEK BUT ................

ONE IS FEELING MUCH HAPPIER BECAUSE TODAY

 I had stitches out, surgeon really chuffed with how it's gone, is as bewildered as me about the terrible pain but gave me more morphine and said to Eric make her have it.

He decided I didn't need to go into a plaster cast for the next 6 weeks, he's so pleased with it we've fast forwarded six weeks and gone into a normal splint with strict instructions to make sure it is allowed to rest, heal and fuse but move the finger so new knuckle joint doesn't set can't believe I've escaped 6 weeks in plaster woohooo, back to hand clinic every Tuesday but I can live with that and ONLY 6 DAYS TO GO THEN I CAN HAVE DRUGS.

We're having a Chinese tonight and tomorrow I shall start to get this eating back under control lol.

photo of before you can see how the wrist replacement joint that was put in in 1999 had broken and the whole wrist had fallen to onside

and 8 days later it's straight! of course the fingers will require a few more ops to straighten them out and get them working but i am as pleased as my wonderful surgeon

This was the left hand before 9 ops, the lump is the fluid build up trying to attack the leaking silicone which went on to cause the trapped nerves and ruptured tendons.

and this is the left hand now 9 ops and 3 years later, straight, not fully functional but so much better than it was, hope the right one ends up looking this good. lol

.Dogs have been brilliant all week and have been quiet and gentle around me.
Tomorrow the little collared dove we rescued earlier in the summer and Eric has spent 3 months nursing her back to health will go to her new life in an animal sanctuary where she can have more freedom in a large aviary as sadly her wing hasn't mended enough to fly, think we shall both miss her.

miserable and wallowing

that just about sums it up, I'm miserable and wallowing in  self pity oh and eating comfort food non stop.................. cannot get on top of the pain which is unlike me normally i am a tough old bird.

mouse control with left hand has improved a bit but is painfully slow lol. did have a little play yesterday and did this.

 rulu was my heart and soul and constant shadow, she was the result of a little coming together between my dog and my sisters so mum could have a dog, sadly for mum benji attached himself to dad typical. when rulu passed so suddenly i could barely function such was the shock, this is the first lo I've done since she passed away because it's still so raw but as i need to do her pages for Eric album i took the plunge.

off to hospital Friday, wonder what torture awaits me loo.

sue x

thank you

thank you to everyone who has sentme texts and emails.


op was long and much more done than expected, pain so bad eric had to ring surgeon and get liquid morphine which is only helping a little, nightmare trying to do anything with left hand which despite all the ops has poor movement and no strength does look nice though lol, going to be a long few months me thinks. hey ho no point moaning, dogs are rather liking me reclining on the bed and no chance of getting cold lol.
didn't have ga or sedation just nerve blocker big mistake as i had to lay on a very uncomfortable operating table for almost 2.5 hours wide awake.

finding it very hard to use mouse with left hand so need to practise, shall try and contact you all as and when i can but in the meantime thank you for all your good thoughts

sue x