Yesterday I posted about my vacation and showed a picture from last year's Strut Your Mutt with the Animal Welfare Society. That created a snowball effect of browsing through pictures from that event last Fall. I couldn't help noticing how much my dogs have changed in a single year!
Parker was... uh... a bit thinner last year. I'm not sure if he was just having an adorable day, but look at that face!
Behavior-wise, Parker was much more of a wild man. He loved to play with new dogs, but was a little slower to listen when I needed him to. Now Parker is a total suck up when it comes to obedience, but he isn't as quick to warm up to new dogs. He tends to prefer hanging with his pals rather than meeting new friends.
 |
| Last year with Ava |
 |
| This year with Napoleon. |
Then there is Skye. If you've been following this blog for more than a week, you'll know that Skye has had her fair share of health problems. So far only one set of problems has a name: vasculopathy. She's halfway through her first treatment for this, but so far there has been no improvement. In fact, her skin issues seem to be getting worse. It's one of those things that doesn't seem all that bad, since I see it every day. But this was Skye last year:
 |
| Look at all that fur on her head! You can see the scabs on her ear tips, but they're tiny! |
Sadly, this is Skye now.
 |
| Bald, bumpy, and scabbed. |
 |
| Skye's "bad ear" keeps getting worse. |
Behaviorally, Skye is a different dog. That wild, out of control psycho only makes rare appearances these days. She can pace herself, listen with distractions around, and she actually enjoys training. She is becoming less tolerant of rude dogs, but she will walk away instead of taking things into her own paws.
One thing that hasn't changed? Skye still rocks that killer pit bull bod- talk about athletic!
 |
| Last year's thunder thighs. |
|
|
 |
| This year's even more thundrous thunder thighs. |
It should be interesting to see what the next year brings. Will Parker turn a darker shade of white? Will Skye be a perfect angel, but be bald? Will Sinatra still be kicking around? It's times like these that I'm glad I can't see into the future.
you know, Maisie still has those two little spots on her ear where the fur fell out and one tiny, permanent scab just inside the ear tip. I took her to the vet when they first appeared and he said it was nothing. it's never spread or gotten worse and doesn't appear to bother her in any way. but I wonder if it's the same think Skye has...how did it initially present itself?
ReplyDeletehttp://maisieme.blogspot.com/
Wow, it has been quite the year, hasn't it?
ReplyDeleteIsnt it amazing how the change so fast?
ReplyDeleteKari
http://dogisgodinreverse.com
We agree, Parker is adorable. We did not realize just how scabby poor Skye is. I have probably mentioned it before, but Pauley has had luck with Happy Tails Spa's FurButter. It is a conditioner that sits on the skin for 5 minutes. It has really helped out some of his bad spots due to allergies. DoggyLoot sometimes has specials for Happy Tails Spa & you can get it half off. Love the pic of the three of you on the beach.
ReplyDeleteMaisie's mom: Skye came to the shelter with skin, eye, and ear infections, and the bald head. She was being treated for so many things, I think the skin healed as a happy coincidence. Then it slowly began to get worse over the Spring and Summer, although the ear tip has always been scabbed, and her tail tip has always been bald. Like last year, I'm hoping it'll improve over Fall and Winter, but it's hard to say.
ReplyDeletePJ: I'll definitely look into it. Skye is undergoing a round of medication to help stop the problem internally. Essentially her blood doesn't circulate to the skin cells very well, so they die, scab, and the next layer of skin cells starts the same process. But that won't necessarily help her fur grow back, so thanks for the tip!
Poor Skye. All our feets are crossed
ReplyDeleteBenny & Lily
Thanks for stopping by my blog. It's wonderful to get support from other pit bull lovers, especially those who are fostering. You all give me hope.
ReplyDeletePoor Skye. Skin problems sound so tricky. But you've done an amazing job training her. She looks like a wild one! Keep up the great work. Oh, and Sinatra looks like her brother.
Fabulous year in review!
ReplyDeleteHi! I've been following your weblog for some time now and finally got the courage to go ahead and give you a shout out from Houston Tx! Just wanted to say keep up the excellent work!
ReplyDeleteMy site how can i lose weight