Charlie Bones and the Dreaded Dizzy Spells

Yes, my soul, find rest in God; my hope comes from him. (Ps. 62:5)

It’s been a while since I provided you with an update about Charlie Bones and the effects of his head injury. Every few weeks since his concussion in March (which you can read about here), Charlie has a dizzy spell where he becomes wobbly and has trouble walking.

This week, he had a bad spell that started at ten in the morning and got progressively worse throughout the day. The vet has instructed me to give him a steroid pill when these spells start—the steroid will reduce the inflammation in his neck that’s causing his dizziness—but this time, the pill didn’t work because his neck had locked up. After a trip to the vet for an adjustment, he was finally able to keep his legs under him and move around without as much pain.

Each time this happens, I worry about my young puppy being in so much pain, just as I’m sure any parent of either furry children or human ones would feel. I want to make him better, but unfortunately, it’s out of my control. Continue reading “Charlie Bones and the Dreaded Dizzy Spells”

Update on Charlie Bones

And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus. (Phil. 4:19)

In my last blog post, I wrote about how Charlie Bones played so hard that he ran into a doorframe, gave himself a concussion, and had to spend the night in the puppy ICU. (You can read that post here.) Five days after that, he started having symptoms again—wobbliness, lethargy, and sensitivity to touch. He hadn’t hit his head again, but we had gone for a short walk. I worried that I’d allowed him to do too much too soon, and back we went to the hospital for more tests. Continue reading “Update on Charlie Bones”

Charlie Bones and the Puppy ICU

Charlie Bones on the way home from the animal hospital

Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go. (Josh. 1:9)

Last night, I took Charlie Bones, my Yorkie-schnauzer mix puppy, for a walk late in the afternoon. As usual, when we got home, he wanted to keep playing—the walk never wears him out and only seems to give him more energy. He brought his favorite squeaky ball to me to throw so he could play fetch, which we did numerous times. My house is small, and I was in my office, so I threw the ball into the living room. Charlie would chase it down and run back to me at full speed. On one return trip, he either misjudged the opening to the doorway or his paws slipped—whatever caused it, the result was that he crashed headfirst into the doorframe. He looked stunned for a moment, but then he resumed playing as if nothing had happened.

But within an hour, he began wobbling and having trouble walking, and when I approached him, he flinched and backed away. Something was wrong, so I loaded him into my car and drove him to the emergency animal hospital. That was only my second trip to the emergency hospital ever—the first trip was almost a year ago, on March 30, when I rushed my Yorkie, Lilly, there after she started having breathing problems. Continue reading “Charlie Bones and the Puppy ICU”

Connecting with a Stranger

And after the fire came a gentle whisper. (1 Kings 19:12)

A recent trip to JCPenney provided an unexpected opportunity to connect with a stranger. When I was checking out, I noticed that the employee was wearing a sparkly necklace in the shape of a paw print. I hesitated to say anything. My shyness still comes out sometimes in these situations, but I felt a nudge, then thought, Why not? What could it hurt? Almost everyone appreciates a compliment, right?

So I complimented her on the necklace, and she told me that she’s a dog mom. She mentioned that she doesn’t have any kids of her own, but her dog is her baby. I told her that I’m the same way—and then I showed her a picture of Charlie I pulled up on my phone. She, in turn, showed me a picture of her dog. We talked about how spoiled they are and laughed, knowing exactly what the other meant. Continue reading “Connecting with a Stranger”

Training Charlie

All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. (2 Tim. 3:16–17)

Having a new puppy means I spend a lot of my time training him. We’re working on potty training, walking on a leash, staying calm at mealtimes, and not nipping when he plays or wants attention.

A lot goes into training a puppy, and I know I can’t do it all on my own. Until Charlie has all his puppy vaccines, I can’t take him to a professional trainer, and I want to do what I can to help him establish good habits before the bad ones become his normal behavior. To do this, I watch YouTube videos, read articles, and talk to friends who have dogs. Continue reading “Training Charlie”