Tuesday, November 12, 2013

Misty, Still Life


Afternoon Nap


Here's my sweet Misty, who's somewhere around 14 years old. We brought her home in 2003 from our local animal shelter. Now blind and nearly-totally deaf, she spends most of her day on her bed or lying in the middle of the kitchen floor (if I'm in the kitchen), next to the stove (if I'm cooking something), or on the living room rug (if I'm in the living room).

She needs a good brushing, but acts like she's being punished if I brush her with anything!

When she became blind, she stopped walking down the two steps to the living room. It took her several months to finally get used to the idea that she was blind and to become motivated beyond her fear to find us and navigate those steps. Now she's back to lying nearby, and preferably on a pair of my shoes, or on my stockinged feet.

Her favorite thing:
My shoes



Staying cozy


 In her younger years
winter 2005


At the top of the hill in the alfalfa field (in years past)
She always loved chasing butterflies through the alfalfa


Watching Campion on my Laptop
A Prior Pastime 

It is very sad to watch a dog become blind and deaf.  She seems well, other than the fact that she no longer has any interest in being outdoors. I'm wondering how much longer we will have this sweet dog with us.  She's definitely winding down.

Okay, I realize this isn't a very cheery post. But I'd say Misty is as happy as a blind and deaf dog can be. She doesn't sit around complaining about it. And now I need to go give her her breakfast of grain-free dog food and real chopped chicken. She deserves special treatment.

P.S. If I had known then what I know now, I would have always given her grain-free food. I think it might have prevented this blindness she suffers now. In fact, I think avoiding grains can help avoid a lot of health problems for our pets (and for us.)

***

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36 comments:

Elizabeth Edwards said...

i am curious - why does grain mess with us & animals? i need to investigate that. ( :

Trace4J said...

What a sweetie.
How special are our furry family members.
Woolie Blessings

Melissa said...

What a good girl! She looks like she is sweet staying close to you, that must be comforting for her.

Vee said...

She is a love. It is sad to watch a dog or any living creature begin to fail. As long as she still loves being with you, I think she is as content as she can be. That's a good sign.

Donna said...

She looks like such a sweet dog. Big ones can give us much joy, but they don't live as long as the little ones. We were lucky enough to have a Belgian Malinois, Buddy, in our lives for 1 week shy of 12 years.

Our furry friends give us unconditional love and they teach us to be better people!

Susie said...

That dog loves you:):) She's blessed to have a caring owner. I think all our food needs better labeling, pet and human...I do not want my food coming from China. xoxo,Susie

Christina Paul said...

What a dear precious friend you have and she seems so happy to spend her golden years with you!

Amy Burzese said...

Sweet doggy. Don't you feel loved?

Anonymous said...

YYYYYYYYYAY! I found you again! Oh Judy...how I've missed your lovely friendship & blog! What a wonderful pup...it is so nice when they have wonderful & caring owners. They truly are part of the family aren't they?

Bossy Betty said...

Sweet Misty! I can see how she could absolutely be in your heart. Oh those pets. We love them so.

Chatty Crone said...

I know how much your love Misty. I know she is as happy as she can be.

I want to know too about grain free- Disco eats grain free for allergies.

Hugs to you and misty.
sandie

Muffy's Marks said...

Misty is a good ol' girl. She is lucky to have you to care for her.

Cheryl @ TFD said...

What a sweetheart! She wants to be near her mama. It is sad to see our beloved pets aging and having health issues. She looks very well loved and cared for and is a very lucky girl to have you.

Grandma Barb's This and That said...

What a special part of your life she's been. It must be comforting for her to be close to you.

Suzan said...

I never understood why they put grains into the dry dog food??? It's not that a dog will graze, though occasionally Augie will eat grass.
My Augie is 60pds., almost 12 and he has slowed way down too. I feed him wet dog food in the morning. Leave a dish of dry food out all day if he wants to nibble on something and then I mix half a can of tuna or salmon in his dry food in the evening. If we eat baked chicken - I pull the skin off and mix the juices in the dry food. He always gets the meat (or skin or broth or juices) my husband eats mixed in with his dry food.

TexWisGirl said...

she is sweet and loved. it is so hard watching a dear pet get old. it never gets easier.

MadSnapper said...

so sweet, i have tears in my eyes looking at her on the floor all covered up and also snuggled at your shoes. it is because the shoes smell strong of us.. Jake loves shoes to. Baby is 12 and slowing down and i am dreading it...

Beth said...

What a sweetheart! You have taken good care of her.
We feed Fromm foods, family made in Wisconsin. I use a grain free one and like the fact that it's made in the U.S.A.

J said...

What a beautiful love story. Despite increasing disability, she only wants to be with her beloveds - as close as possible. Rescued dogs are so grateful. It seems that we can never do enough to assure them that they give to US too. I hope sweet Misty has a peaceful journey ahead. Thank you for loving her.

SImple and Serene Living said...

What a precious dog. The saddest thing about having pets is watching them wind down. How wonderful that she still loves being near you. xo Laura

Noelle the dreamer said...

She is blessed to have you! Loved your post Judy, thank you so much for caring.
Been there, done that in fact, and you could have described our Corgi!
If I am anywhere, so is he (hence we call him Shadow!)
Grain is out as well for Mac, boiled potatoes, green beans and boiled chicken or Tilapia is all his system can handle these days.
Hugs,

Terri D said...

She is precious and a very lucky girl to have you for her 'mom'. We have changed our cat food to one that has less grain and more meat (1st ingredient). I think it does make a difference. Thanks for sharing the photos, memories, and your love for your sweet pup.

NanaNor's said...

She is a beautiful girl! When we lived in Ca. our old Shepherd mix went blind and deaf-she tried and made do. You will know when your girls time comes. It is so hard when our beloved furbabies get old-hurt so much to lose them.
May you have many more days, weeks and months with her.
Hugs, Noreen

podso said...

This reminds me of how our dog was at the end of her life (14). It does sound like your dog is content. You'll know when the time comes.

And I love your wall map!

Deborah said...

My friend this is one of my favorite posts (no surprise, I'm sure) :-) Misty is the sweetest dog I have ever met. I know how sad you would be without her. She has been such a good dog for you and I hope she stays around for quite awhile.

Anonymous said...

I hadn't heard of the problems with grain either, I will read up about this.
Our beagle, who lived to sixteen and a half, was blind and hard of hearing in the end. She would bump into things, but seemed cheerful enough. We had to bellow to make ourselves heard.

Zaa said...

Love is all she needs… although this condition is sad..I'm sure there is comfort in her knowing that you are there for her….SWEET GIRL…and you have all those lovely doggie memories….HUGS

Zaa said...

Hey Beth … I just wanted to add that we now have opted to raw food for our dogs as it gives them more energy and is easier for them to digest… after all they are meat-eaters. I must admit it's a little more expensive ….but in my experience might even extend the life of the animal….Thanks for bringing this subject up …I do believe that it is something that many modern doggie lovers don't know …Hugs

Pamela Gordon said...

Aww, Misty is so sweet. She sure loves you and needs to be near you for security now that she's blind. Our old dog, Marshall, who lives with our son now is also almost totally blind and deaf. He's 13 and has arthritis in his hips. He's part Husky and part Lab and the best dog ever. Like you, we don't know how much longer he'll be with us. He still gets around pretty well even outside and uses his sense of smell to help him. Give Misty a hug from me, a dog lover. ;)

Amy, a redeemed sheep said...

Precious....

Stacey said...

Bless her heart and yours. I know how you feel. We had our dachshund 16 years and our lab about 10 years. They both progressed much the same way. The vet told us that they was geriatric and we should prepare ourselves for what could come at any time. When it did, it was so devastating. They actually died 8 days apart. We waited 3 years and just got another dog. She's 3 or 4 years old and she came from the shelter. We have a lot of learning to do with her. ;) I hope my response to your post doesn't sound too sad....our pets are like people that's all there is to it. We love them and miss them when they are gone.

Yenta Mary said...

Oh, this is so sweet! True love and devotion - she to you, and you to her ... :)

Magali@TheLittleWhiteHouse said...

She looks lovely. I know she has a happy old life. The best for her is to be near you, obvisouly.

Noelle the dreamer said...

Judy,
I had to come back to this post, so sweet! Is that a woodcooking stove in the kitchen (noticed the bin with the logs in front)?
Love it!

Laura S Reading said...

This is a very sweet post. I have a 15 year old dog that has diminished eyesight and is deaf. That does not mean we love him any less or treat him differently than the others. Well, maybe he gets a few special perks the others don't.

J_on_tour said...

Misty will no doubt still love your care and attention. It's great to know that Misty doesn't complain … a lesson for us all as we get older.

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