Friday's Favorite Foto: Kip

Kip's motto: "Always be prepared".
 

Have bowl will travel...

Wednesday's Weave: Yesterday's Mission

Last night I went on a run with my hu-man.  That in itself is not unusual, but last nights route was different -- we were on a mission.  You see, we ran to Kip's veterinarian's office to pick up Kip's medications.

Kip has had quite the life -- I have shared about him being a guard dog, before my humans took him in.  He went from being a fat outside dog chained to a shed, to a dog who was taken on walks...and eventually short runs...and invited into the house.  Kip has become an integral part of our family and as a member of the family his care and medical care are of utmost importance.

We have learned over the years that Kip is susceptible to tumors.  He has several benign tumors on the outside of his body, but two years ago he started "acting funny" and his vet diagnosed him with a splenic tumor.  My humans had planned to go to Italy to celebrate their 25th wedding anniversary, but Kip needed surgery and instead of going to Italy, they funded Kip's surgery.  Poor Kip, it turned out that he had a 10 lb. tumor removed from his abdominal region.

Kip was given medication and a 50/50 chance of "making it."  Well two years have passed and I am happy to report that Kip is still with us.  Yes he is showing signs of aging, and he has developed a rather large adipose (fatty) tumor on the right side of his chest that can't be operated on, (because his vet doesn't think he can handle the anesthesia or surgery), but he gets his multiple medications twice a day, and he is well cared for and loved on by our hu-mom and hu-man.

Our mission was an important one.  I'm thankful that I have Kip and will gladly run to his veterinarian's office to pick up refills of the medications that keep him going.  ~Zoe

Wednesday's Weave: Kip & Zoe

I love Kip.  He made the way for me to come live with my human family, and he takes such good care of me.  He has a gentle heart and takes his job of taking care of me seriously.  As you know, I was recently sick, and Kip kept me reassured that all would be better soon, by giving me kisses -- lots of them!

Well, I'm feeling better now and we're back to playing together.  I say the ball is mine...and Kip says it's his...

Hey, I've got to go...he's strong and I want my ball!  ~Zoe

Wednesday's Weave

Kip was living the good life with my hu-mom and hu-man, along with Goldie the cat and the chickens. Kip and Goldie roamed in the yard constantly, and the chickens dug and scratched around the yard during the day, but were put away into their chicken coop at night to protect them from the possums and racoons.

All were fine until the neighbor decided to replace the fence that separated our yards (unfortunately they neglected to tell my hu-mom and hu-man about it...) Anyway, they hired a work crew who came and tore out the fence and set about to replace it. Well the fence line is long and they didn't finish in a day, so they leaned something up against the railing. Well, at that time we had a neighbor who let their dog do pretty much whatever it wanted, and it decided that what it wanted was our chickens. So it pushed through the temporary barrier that was the fence, entered our back yard, jumped over the picket fence that surrounded the chicken coop, broke through the wire that enclosed the chicken coop and killed the chickens.

By the time my hu-mom and hu-man got out to the chicken coop, the dog was nowhere in sight and all that was left were chicken carcasses and the dog's collar and ID tags. My hu-man went to the owner to tell them what had happened and return the collar, and the human offered no apology and absolutely no remorse. I shared earlier how the chickens came to be a part of the family, so you know how much they meant to my humans, so I'll just take the opportunity to remind you that if you are a pet owner, you are the human and it is up to you to be responsible and watch, protect and train those who are in your care.

Sorry, I didn't mean to jump on my soapbox...okay, back to the story....

With the chickens gone, it was just Kip and Goldie to roam around in the yard and keep each other company. That is until my hu-man learned that his friends had "lost" their cat. They raved about how much that cat meant to them and how much they missed it. Well, the man ended up going away to heaven, leaving his wife all alone. My hu-man felt sad for the lady and offered our loving Goldie to her, to help her with her grief.

So after the chicken's demise and Goldie's change of address, Kip was all alone. Oh, my hu-mom and hu-man would invite Cadence (a yellow lab who lives down the street) over for play dates, but they knew it was not enough. Kip needed a companion, and that is what opened the door for me to come live with my hu-mom, hu-man and Kip.

Wednesday's Weave

If you are new to my blog, this is just to let you know that woven into my story is the story of Kip. So here we go with the 2nd installement of Kip's story...

When Kip came to live with my hu-mom and hu-man, he was overweight and in need of a good grooming. Poor Kip, he came back from the groomer with his glorious locks shaved!


Before I came along, Kip wasn't alone. He had Goldie (a cat that had also belonged to my hu-man's Mom and Dad),


and the chickens...


but the chickens are another story entirely. If you are really curious, you can read about them here.

My hu-mom and hu-man worried how Kip would respond to the chickens, and when they saw him laying on the ground with his paw wrapped around one of them, they were quite concerned! BUT, no worries. Kip wasn't trying to hurt the chicken, he was just "cleaning" it. My hu-mom says she wishes she had a photo to share with you of the chicken's soaking wet head, following Kip's "cleaning", but unfortunately no photos were taken.



Yes, Kip proved that he is a fine mix of steel and velvet. He is a great watch dog, but he is also a lover of his humans, cats, chickens, and now me!

Wednesday's Weave

Woven into my story, is the story of Kip – my brother from another mother…and father. Kip was my hu-man’s Daddy’s guard dog. Not much is known about Kip’s life, before he came to live with my hu-mom and hu-man, but I’ll share what I know.

Kip is a german shepherd mix – we know that because he has some German Shepherd features, black and tan coloring, curved tail, barrel chest, narrow hips, dark rimmed eyes, a long nose, and he’s huge! The other part of the mix is an unknown – people have guessed Corgi, due to his rounded ears and kind face, but that is something we will never know.

                  






 German Shepherd





            

                                              Corgi

Kip

I mentioned before that Kip was a guard dog. His job was to bark – and he did (and still does) his job well!

Kip spent his days and nights at his Daddy’s business. When my hu-mom and hu-man would go visit, they kept their distance from Kip – they were afraid of him! When my hu-man’s Daddy retired, Kip came to live with him and his wife at their home as an “outdoor” dog. When my hu-man’s Daddy went away to heaven, my hu-man swallowed his fear and went and let Kip off his chain….

My hu-mom says that right after my hu-man let Kip off his chain, he ran an errand and left her and Kip alone at the house -- my hu-mom inside and Kip outside – they still hadn’t met face to face. While my hu-man was gone, some “seedy looking character” came to the gate, and Kip went into action. He went to the front door, stood in front of it, faced the person at the gate and started barking. My hu-mom came to the door and her heart was changed. She knew in that instant that Kip meant to protect her and not hurt her.

My hu-mom and hu-man returned from that trip with Kip in tow. My hu-mom and hu-man were not what you call “dog” people, so Kip was an outdoor dog and wasn’t allowed in the house – afterall, dogs are dirty, smelly, sheddy and slobbery…or at least that was the perception.

Kip has become an important member of the family and I’ll share more about him in next Wednesday’s Weave.