Up Early And On The Go

Yesterday morning we were up very early, or at least early for us, and on the go all day. The alarm went off at 6 AM, and by 7:15 we were out the door. Our first stop was at West Alabama Animal Hospital in Carrollton to have Alli spayed. Doctor Lowe and his staff there are great people who came very highly recommended.

We took her there to get her checked out and all of her shots the day after we got her, which was a month ago today. She seemed awfully skinny to us, and when they weighed her she was at 52 pounds. Since then, we have been trying to fatten her up a bit, though she is a picky eater. I think she gets that from me. But it seemed like she was putting some meat on her bones, so I was surprised when they weighed her yesterday and she was 51 pounds. Doctor Lowe said that’s not uncommon for active German shepherds, especially under the age of two.

From there we drove 180 miles to Mendenhall, Mississippi, stopping for gas and a quick breakfast at an Arby’s soon after we crossed the state line. Readers who have been with us a long time will remember Terry’s cat Sasquatch, a lynx/manx/himalayan mix polydactyl who had a total of 32 toes divided up among his four feet. I’m not much of a cat person, but I will have to admit that he was amazing. It broke Terry’s heart when he passed over the Rainbow Bridge.

On our trip to the veterinarian with Alli the first time around, someone came in with several kittens and Terry wound up adopting a cute little black girl who she named BeeBee. But she had always said she wanted another polydactyl and even before we got Alli or BeeBee I had been looking online for one for her and found a five week old seal point Siamese for sale in Mendenhall. We went down to look at her then, and Terry decided that she wanted her, but we had to wait until she was old enough to leave the litter. Yesterday was the day, and that was the reason for our trip. Mai Lyn is a cute little girl with multiple toes on her front feet, although we haven’t been able to count them yet. She was a bit shy when I tried to take her picture, and BeeBee didn’t seem happy to have a newcomer in the house, but Terry says they will bond quickly.

On our way back home, Terry took a picture of a sign for a town in Mississippi named after me. Did you know there is a town called Chunky?

It’s near the Chunky River, where people my size strip down and go chunky dunking instead of skinny dipping.

We got back to the veterinarian’s a little after 3 PM and Alli was ready to go. She came through her surgery just fine but was obviously worn out from the experience. Doctor Lowe said he doesn’t use a cone on dogs because they usually drive them nuts and it’s better to let them heal without it.

It’s not uncommon for dogs to throw up after surgery, and even though she had not eaten anything since the day before, Alli managed to do that while at the vet’s office, again when we put her in the van, and once more later on at home. She was pretty lethargic all evening, which is to be expected, but hopefully, she will be on the mend soon. She’s got a brand new kitty to welcome to the household!

And finally, here’s a chuckle to start your day from the collection of funny signs we see in our travels and that our readers share with us. When my friend Jim Harper sent me this picture yesterday, I told him we certainly need one. Maybe we need to dump in a couple of truckloads of Clorox. It might help!

Thought For The Day – Not my circus, not my monkeys. But I do recognize the clowns.