Bad news bears, friends. I didn’t make it to the Forks Over Knives screening tonight. It was kind of a combination of things that kept me from going: crazy day at work, falling asleep the second I got home, Matt getting home super late from work (the theatre is 45 minutes away)…
Basically a lot of crappy excuses, but ones I’m OK with. It sucks I missed the screening opportunity but I’ll be able to see it in theatres in March, and I was able to donate to the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation, the benefactor of screening proceeds.
I’m sorry I lead you on, readers! Please forgive me while I eat my leftover French Onion Soup.
In exchange for your forgiveness, here’s some really cute photos:
All right, here’s another:
Another? You got it:
(This was the very first photo I took of Roxie. She’s seven now, with lots more grey hair!)
The Story of Roxie.
Let me tell you about my puppy. I adopted her in September of 2004 (not quite a puppy anymore!). She was about a year old and was living in a shelter after being found on the street. We believe she’s a smooth-coated Border Collie. She definitely has the brains (and the neuroses) of a Border Collie!
Right from the beginning, Roxie was different. I had never owned a dog before, so I didn’t really know what to expect. She was incredibly serious and calm for a dog, but at the same time was scared of everything. Any and all loud noises, especially FedEx trucks and thunder, strange people outside, sudden movements, a leaf blowing by, you name it.
Her fear was so profound that at times, she refused to go outside to go potty. I have carried this dog more than I’d like to admit. She would even let her fear override her hunger and refuse to eat. Her longest hunger strike went for a week; we had to have fluids injected under her skin to keep her hydrated.
(This photo was taking during her “sick week”)
I’ve sat up at night with this puppy, making sure she was OK during thunderstorms and loud wind. Her favorite hiding places were (and still are) under the bed, in the bathtub, and under the laundry tub. She likes closed in spaces and will squeeze herself into the tiniest spaces possible.
(under the driver’s side car seat once, in a freak hailstorm, and wedged between the toilet and the wall when she can push the bathroom door open)
Despite all this, she has a strong personality that shines through her fear. She’s incredibly loving (on her terms), smart, sneaky, playful (again, on her terms), and hilarious without meaning to be.
After trying every training technique I could think of, doing lots of research, changing her to the highest quality foods, calling an Animal Behaviorist (yes, they exist), and seeing only minor changes, I decided to try medication. We found a wonderful vet that made me feel comfortable with the decision. She now takes an anti-anxiety meds twice a day and it has made all the difference in the world.
With the medication and a pretty strict schedule at home, her fear calms down enough that she can act like a normal dog for a while. In my opinion, for an animal who’s life expectancy is much shorter than humans, I want her time on Earth to be as fear-free as possible.
When she’s comfortable and happy, she loves treats and bones (duh), rolling around in the grass, walking through the woods (not on the paved path!), looking for deer, squirrels, and rabbits, sticking her nose into snow, digging holes where she’s now allowed, trying to bite the gloves off your hands, eating grass, and swimming. You’d think she’d be scared of water, but no, she loves it.
Roxie will always be an anxious dog. Always. She will always be slightly uncomfortable around lots of people, will always need a small space to hide in when she’s scared, and will always sleep under the bed (don’t worry, it’s on risers!). She can be needy, annoying, and hard to live with.
Did I mention she’s wonderful? Because she really is.
She lives at home in Michigan, with my parents. When I moved to St. Louis, I didn’t want to shake her world once again and take her away from the one home where she finally felt comfortable. So she stayed, and I miss her everyday.
But she’s happy.
Have a wonderful Tuesday night! Thanks for reading.
Question: Any crazy animals in your life? Tell me about them!
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Awww….what a cutie! And good for you for giving a shelter pet the chance to have a calm, loving, stable home.
My cat, Lucy, is a little *too* calm and dignified. We try to encourage her to be crazy and playful, but she only does it when we’re not looking. That’s cats for you!
And Dear Stacy, she misses you as well.
What a sweetie!
And sometimes you have to take care of yourself and you don’t do things that you had planned. I think that’s okay!
Roxie is adorable.
Our Rufus (who we also adopted when he was about 1!) has terrible separation anxiety so I can relate. After hearing from the neighbors, we puppy cam-ed him with Skype (he stays in a crate because otherwise he has destructive chewing issues linked to the sep anxiety). He would cry for up to 5 hours after we left the house. Like Roxie, he’s on anti-anxiety meds now which seem to have calmed him down a considerate amount to where he is calm after about an hour. I feel the same way about the meds – it may be different for people who are able to work through their issues but for a dog who doesn’t understand… well… I think this is the best way to go when nothing else seems to work. We also use the “Thunder Shirt” which is an anti-anxiety wrap which squeezes their bellies a little bit and relaxes them (kind of like swaddling a baby). I don’t know how well it works but he loves clothes so he seems to like it. The same type of thing was actually just written up in the WSJ yesterday! http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703396604576088022525625918.html
I really must try your soup. it looks so good!
sadie, our jack russell at home is a crazy! she barks when people leave, chases light reflections off doors, and will only sleep in a cat bed. but we love her!
And Roxie is super adorable!!!
Haha we have six crazy animals and it would take me forever to talk about them…too long for a comment! But maybe I’ll do some pet intro posts in my blog, it looks like a good idea!
Thanks guys! Since Roxie is in my user picture, I thought I should introduce her
I appreciate all the comments!
Roxie is such a cutie! don’t we all get awkward around lots of people?
I can’t wait to adopt a dog one day.
Aww Roxie, you are so cute!
We have an orange tabby cat Woods who is what I like to call spunky. By that I mean he thunders around the house making lots of noise as he runs, jumps from window to window talking and looking at things. If he gets a little shock from static electricity (our humidifier seems to help with this–that is until he broke when he became obsessed with it and knocked it over) watch out because he may try to bite you!
We rescued him when he was just a kitten and while we have had our fair share of scratches and bites from him over the almost two years we’ve had him, we love him anyway
Omg, girl… I just loved this post and I read it with tears in my eyes because I have the same affection for my dog Linus (who coincidentally also lives with my parents). It’s so hard to part with our pets; they are just such a big part of our lives. My parents don’t really know this, but sometimes I see them just to visit Linus.
But what a sweet post. Roxie seems like a happy dog (and what a cutiepie!!!) and I’m so glad you took the time and gave her the attention to make sure that she is properly cared for.
She loves you very, very much
Thanks for these comments! It’s nice to hear about other “difficult” pets that we love anyway
I’m super late to this, but have to say what a doll! I’m glad you worked so hard to help Roxie through her issues. She sounds SO much like our Border Collie mix, Jack. We also have two purebred BC rescues, so I’m partial to your Roxie, of course!
Thanks Paula! I love border collies.