Falling Asleep

Reading one of Pete’s posts about feeling old in the heat made me wonder what time folk over 70 go to bed. Until this year we used to be able to watch the ten o’clock news and go to bed at ten fortyfive -waking up with the alarm at 7am.

Then we started to go back to sleep after the alarm and wake again about 8.

Now hubby sleeps during the day and I fall asleep after every meal and then again at about ten past ten so I miss most of the news. I still fall asleep most nights as soon as I get into bed, except when it is too hot and humid or I am worried about something. Then it is usually 4am before I can drift off.

This weather has had a debilitating effect. It is hard to breathe and painful to walk. We have been kind to the dog and only taken him out early morning before the pavements get hot. I have sent off for some joint pills as he insists on licking his front lega all the time and we suspect arthritis. We bought him a new toy chicken and he loves to play with it. Anything to stop him sunbathing as he gets too hot and comes in panting. He can still jump onto the sofa but when he has been still for a while he has a tiny limp that soon goes away when he moves about. He was very ill for a couple of days but the vet sorted it. Our house is just too hot. It got to 80 degrees in the kitchen, with the door open!

I am getting bored with salad!

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The new old dog.

Well, Biscuit has moved in, and decided to take over the settee, although he does let us share it. He’s over weight and the only time he barked was when we started breakfast before feeding him. He looked at the cupboard where his food is kept and gave a little yap, as if to say, “What about me?” [That was his first morning with us – it didn’t take long, did it?]

He did cry in the night but I wouldn’t let him in the bedroom and he went quiet about 3am. He had an hour’s walk this morning and about 20 mins this afternoon. He’s 12 so he shouldn’t need more and he does pant a bit while he is out.

We’ll take him to the vet next week to have him checked over as we got him from a local resident who is moving house, not a rescue centre. I took a picture. He’s a pug/jack russell and , thankfully, has not got a squashed nose.

Funny peculiar Day.

One of those Sundays when there’s nothing you really want to do. We went for a walk this morning and did some clearing up this afternoon but then I went on line to search for a dog.

I found a possible one locally but when I filled in the form I couldn’t send it. I printed it off but they go so fast I guess we will miss out again. It is almost a year since we lost our terrier and we still miss him terribly. After fifty years with a dog in the house we can’t get used to being without one.

I know there are dogs needing homes all over the country but the centres want us to be within 45 minutes drive. I have been told to try the vets and the care homes. Perhaps I will but I would prefer to be able to decide whether we were the right people for any addition to the family. I trust the centres to tell us if there are likely to be any problems.

Life is so empty I am threatening to look for a cookery class – anything that helps me stay creative!

Harrogate

We have just returned from our weekend away at Harrogate. We had to stop overnight both ways as it was a long drive for oldies but we stayed withour son and his family and it was great.

The hotel was very nice and they fed us well but we hadn’t realised how hilly Harrogate is. Here on the South Coast it is flat and we don’t have stairs in our bungalow so our knees weren’t used to steep slopes.

As everywhere, there were closed shops but Betty’s was open and we queued for lunch and bought some fat rascal scones to bring home. ( They didn’t get any further than our son’s!)

On Sunday we strolled round the gardens – for two hours! Hubby went to look for somewhere he had stayed in the 1960’s but it had been knocked down in 1976 and rebuilt.

That’s our holiday for this year. We were glad to get home and will now continue our search for a four legged companion. The local kennels has a nine year old schnautzer, but I’m not sure about that. We usually get a mongrel.

Happenings

Today began with me going into town to deliver posters advertising the book launch of “Penny and the Poorly Parrot.” The owner of the cafe was very helpful and welcoming.

Then, this afternoon, the rescue kennels rang to ask more questions about our circumstances to see if we could take on a timid dog. We answered as well as we could but they had other interested parties. It will be sad if we cannot let it off the lead, but if there are a lot of interested people we probably don’t stand much of a chance. We would hope time would allow it to get more confident. It seems the only dogs they have in at the moment have been mistreated.

I am having trouble with my phone. When people ring me they can hear me but I cannot hear them. I have tried with and without the speaker button but it doesn’t work every time. A oneway phone is rather useless!

I hope you are all having a more productive time. Roll on July!

Dog diet

It is difficult not to spend all our time caring for the dog at present. Some days he seems OK and others he looks as if it is too much effort to get out of his bed.

In an effort to make his life more bearable I have been researching diets for dogs with kidney failure. It seems that, as well as the food the vet has prescribed,( which he doesn’t like) we can introduce more butternut squash and sweet potato ( which he does like) He has to have less meat and salt but he can eat egg, especially the white.

He is drinking more water without encouragement and loved the chicken I gave him yesterday, although he took the carrot out of the dish and set it down on the floor. He will eat rice, specially if I mix it with boiled fish. He seems to manage peas and potato but spends most of each meal time looking longingly at us as if he wants to share what we are eating.

None of the diets online seemed to give advice about sugar so he does get the odd piece of pastry or biscuit! I get the feeling his nose works better than all his other senses but while he still wags his tail when we talk to him I’m hoping his quality of life will help him stay with us a little longer.

Precious Pooch

Our little terrier finally had his back claws cut yesterday. The vet wouldn’t let us go in with him but he had been sedated so he went quite quietly. I was worried because he had an upset stomach. It is difficult to know how well or ill he is as his dementia makes him so lethatgic. We usually tell by feeling his nose. It if it is hot we change his meals to fish and rice and if it is cold we assume he is OK.

He is doubly incontinent, but only about two days a week. We put him in nappies at night. He still has a mental clock which tells him when it is meal times and loves barking at the foxes whenever we let him into the garden. They kept me awake until nearly three last night, howling out the front, but he is deaf so they don’t wake him up.

I have finished reading all the novels in the house so will have to start on the nonfiction or go hunting for some more. I think the railway station has a charity bookshelf but I am not inclined to troop down there as the covid warnings are so clear. Is looking for something to read a vital journey? I think not.

Back to my jigsaw this afternoon I suppose, although it’s not my idea of fun.

Dog tales

However bad the dog’s dementia is he still has a mental clock that tells him when it is time for his meals (12.30 and 4pm) He has just got out of bed to remind us that he usually has a little walk before his tea. Hubby was going to take him out until he realised it was raining, horrible, light, drizzly rain that seeps in everywhere and blows in your face.

His visit to the vet yesterday resulted in him sleeping all afternoon and refusing to go for his usual walk this morning. I don’t think he wants to leave the house any more. He’s still limping so there must be more wrong than his dew claws.

It was great to be greeted with a tale wag when we returned from shopping but if he’s got arthritus as well as everything else I don’t know what we will do. He’s eating his tea and drinking water but it has put a real damper on what was left of Christmas. I gave him fish and rice for lunch as fish is brain food. I guess we’ll just have to keep him warm and not force him to do anything he doesn’t want to do.

Just watching him makes us sad as he walks into a room and then looks about as if he can’t remember why he is there (just like a human?)

He’s due to go back and see the nurse at the vets after Christmas but I think the calming pills were a bit too strong for him. One can’t help being concerned. Maybe if the sun comes out things will seem better. At least we are not stuck in a lorry in Kent – which reminds me, surely we can grow lettuces and tomatoes in this country!