Wednesday, January 24, 2018

Good Ole Dog Mia


There is no denying that my baby dog Mia is old. She's almost twelve, which is not young for any dog, but is particularly advanced in age for a large dog.

She's stiff and gimpy, thanks no doubt to some arthritis in her shoulder. I suppose this is a natural result of being the World's Biggest Collie (seriously, she's 80 pounds and looks like a mastiff up close) and having a very active life. She takes a pill for pain every day, as well as a pee-pee pill for incontinence.

She's pretty shaky in the legs, and is particularly unstable on the slick wood floors in the kitchen. Too bad, since that's her favorite place to be. She still patrols the kitchen for dropped food, but then retreats immediately to the stability of the rug in the living room.

She has a benign tumor on her eyelid. Fortunately, it's so cold here that when she stays outside during very cold weather--which she will do, even if it's below zero--the tumor will actually freeze off. I find this natural cryosurgery hilarious and joke that we should open a cryosurgery clinic. It would be so easy: Just go outside and expose your mole to the weather! Done!

She can't take any kind of heat anymore and starts panting when the house gets to 70 degrees.

But despite all these things, she's still happy and amazingly active. She's been trudging through the snow in the back field lately to get to the beaver carcass A. put out there to draw wild animals and study their tracks. He thought it was too far for Good Ole Dog Mia to bother with, but she was determined.

She still goes on walks, though we have to shut her in the house for her own good if it's going to be a particularly long one or if it's too warm outside for her.

And she still watches over the hairless puppies:


Or maybe she just wants to steal the blanket. Either way, she's still a good dog.


6 comments:

  1. Good for her , good for you. A real part of the family. You all are so lucky to have her with you.
    Hugs to a good doggy .
    Baby dog...sounds so familiar.

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  2. I am glad that Mia still enjoys and participates in family life! It's hard when they get old. Mary in MN

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  3. Not just good; the best. She'll be hard to replace if y'all decide to do that. Awesome about the eye tumor. Lordy, lordy, that's some cold ya'll are living through!

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  4. When I looked at the title to this post I thought "Oh No!" As I continued reading I realized you were just writing about appreciating her (thank goodness).
    What a SWEETIE she is.
    Perhaps all that healthy country living is attributing to her longevity!
    Linda

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  5. What a sweetie Mia is!!

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  6. Oh God Bless! I have also been a carer to a geriatric dog - but those collies can have a great life expectancy! I just love those pics of maternal dogs. BTW on your next post the 'sacred coffee' part made me chuckle - you are SO RIGHT! Europafox x

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