Posted on by Reflections of an Untidy Mind

Fynn Is Getting Old

Hello! I think I have excelled myself in the length of time between posts. However, I could not let another day pass without celebrating the old boy’s recent birthday.

I’m not referring to my True Love, but to our youngest member of the household, Fynnie Puss. Fynnie Puss is not actually a cat, but a Finnish Spitz, so that makes him rather like a cat in nature. He loves his couch, especially in winter.

The big news is that he has turned 10. Can you believe it? Here is a quick snap of him.

Not a bad photo, eh? The other big news is that I’ve got a new camera and I feel so relieved. I have barely posted a single photo taken with my other fancy new camera and that is because it is sooooo heavy. I can barely hold it for more than a few seconds. Most of the images are blurry because of my tremor so I have faced the reality that it isn’t right for me. I’ve gone back to Micro FourThirds and although I’ve only taken about 20 photos in total, I think this new camera will be much better for me.

So the moral of this story is that time passes, even for Fynnie, and bigger is not always better.

I hope you are all well, especially my friends on the other side of the world living in an inferno. In my part of Australia, Canberra, your discomfort (or hell?) means that winter has finally arrived. It is bliss, at least for a month or two before our hot weather arrives again.

Take care, everyone.

Kind Regards.
Tracy.

Posted on by Reflections of an Untidy Mind

Bright Star

I thought now would be a good time to repeat this post about my little dog, Ama, for she is now 12 and has been quite unwell again.  She recently spent a week in the vet hospital with severe pancreatitis and left with a diagnosis of insulinoma, an aggressive cancer.  She’s been home for two weeks now and is still quite bright.  Not at all like a dog on her last legs.  “Perhaps the diagnosis is wrong?” I entreated the vet on our last visit.  He didn’t think so based on a relevant blood test.  I still hold out hope.  That’s quite strange for me because I am usually such a catastrophiser.  In the meantime, we continue to enjoy her company and deprive her of cheese.  Life is so unfair.

*****

This post is dedicated to my little dog, Ama, who is not well.  So far we know that she has copper storage disease but not how bad it is or whether we can mitigate it.  I’ve not had much time for blogging lately as we’ve had a lot of medical appointments and I’ve been researching treatments, including low copper diets.  It helps to be informed when talking to veterinary specialists.  It also gives me something to do while I worry.

Ama

Ama’s birthday is this Saturday.  She’ll be six.  When I was looking for a pet name for her, I read that Ama meant born on a Saturday (in Ghanaian).  As she was born on a Saturday, and the name had a nice ring to it, we just went with that (plus we like to say Um-ah when she is naughty).  She also has a pedigree name – Eurabbie Taehti.  Taehti means Polar Star in Finnish.  Everything does seem to revolve around the little minx so it is fitting, but more importantly, she lights the way.

Here’s hoping that her star continues to shine.

Regards
Tracy

Posted on by Reflections of an Untidy Mind

All My Trials – As I Was Saying

My little Finnish Spitz, Ama, was diagnosed with copper storage disease a couple of years ago. It has been a long and difficult journey to restore her to some semblance of health, with her blood test results again causing concern as little as four months ago. A new medication was our last hope and, hooray, so far, so good. Her latest test results have shown a dramatic improvement. We can see this in her sassy attitude. The ensuing ruckus is never-ending.

About a year into her treatment, I spoke to the vet about how Ama’s treatment was bankrupting us. The staff suggested I put her on YT (or something like that)! What the heck? Is that a thing? Does your dog go viral and then all of a sudden people want to buy merch? I suppose I could make some Ama “fan” T-shirts or I could make a fund-raising calendar of her cuteness. Is that how people monetise their pets? Anyway, needless to say, we are not doing that, even if she is ridiculously cute and loud. Yes, I am biased.

Read more