Say a little prayer...

Lola was absolutely shattered after all the excitement of her big adventure yesterday (if you want to revel in David's embarrassing moment, click HERE :-)) and slept well.

Alan's new TV was being set up in his new sitting room this morning but when the technician removed it from the box he discovered a crack in the corner of the screen so he has ordered a new one.

Lola had a quick walk in our local wood with David (minus the conversation with Roger :-) to tire her out before our trip to Vet Creche in Glasgow.  We had an appointment with the lovely vet Dr Adele Fitzpatrick.  Adele is a vet who supports raw feeding and offers a raw feeding consultation, which we were keen to have to ensure as Lola grows, we are still feeding her a balanced diet.  She also offers titre testing where a sample of blood is taken and tested to check that a dog's puppy vaccinations have resulted in immunisation.

We arrived just before our 2.00pm appointment time with Lola being sick when the car stopped.  She was still happy though.  Adele was lovely and Lola very happy as Adele gave her lovely treats to nibble on whilst we chatted.

Lola was weighed (19.3kg) and I was relieved to note that she weighed the same on their scale as she did when we weighed her at home.  The raw feeding consultation was really helpful.  Reassuring in that a lot of what we discussed confirmed my understanding and I was able to get answers to four particular questions.  We also discovered we could be feeding her a higher amount than she currently gets.  I'm pleased about this as we both feel she is hungrier than she should be after she's eaten.

So all went well till it was time to take blood.  Lola trotted out the room happily with Adele to go to the treatment room (we were torn between being happy about that as it showed she had no separation anxiety and miffed that she went off without a backward glance) however, when they returned 10 minutes later no blood had been taken as Lola had been really frightened when the needle touched her neck and had snapped at them.  Oh dear.

Adele thought Lola would be calmer if we were there so David sat on the floor beside her and held her head up and Adele was able to get some blood.  She was absolutely fine afterwards and looked for more treats from Adele and gave her a lick, so all was forgiven.  

Looks like we have some husbandry work to do on getting her used to being handled to be examined.  

Back home and Alan had a pool session with David and Ashleigh.  He loved it.  Now his team are being trained we are hoping he will get at least three sessions in the pool each week with an extra one on weekends where Eleanor and Kenny are here.  

No time for photos today till this evening when I took some pics of Lola (surprise surprise)  with her chew ball.  Lots of new teeth through but the last ones still causing gum pain.  About 20 seconds after this photo was taken she was crashed out on the floor.  I think all the excitement of yesterday and today finally caught up with her.


Mum, six years since I held your hand and studied it in such great detail, every line, knuckle, nail,  knowing that it wouldn't be long before all I would have left of you was memories.  Suddenly conscious of every second and how utterly precious each one was.  How each second took us a second closer to me losing you and the unbearable pain of that thought, whilst knowing each passing second took you closer to no more pain and final peace.  Such selfishness on my part wishing another second with you and another and another, yet also wishing  you peace.  A bittersweet experience. 


And now I look at my hands and they are so like yours!  So much so I sometimes catch myself looking at them for minutes at a time because in those short moments it actually feels as though you are sitting next to me and it's your hand resting on the arm of the chair, especially if I am wearing one of your rings. It brings strange comfort.


Thinking of you today and everyday.  Love you xxx