I am so sorry.. The pain is still fresh for the both of us.. Your website is beautiful! He would be proud of it, I'm sure.. Remember that he will be with you during graduation. Right next to you, look for a sign, I'm sure you will see something today..I have to remind myself that Dad wouldn't want me being sad..He didn't like that..He would always try to cheer me up..Remember those moments.. I'm facing a birthday party on Sun. that I'd rather not have..But I'd have a very disappointed 6 yr old little girl if I don't do it..He loved the kids and the parties, the kids were his drive in life, one of them..He would drive 2 hrs each way to come and visit sometimes for an hour and go home..Christmas will be tough too... We had the picture perfect Night before Christmas ritual going on. He would read that story, I would put the cookies in place and hang the stockings. He would hang around while I wrapped the presents and he would help me eat cookies. Last Christmas he was sick and in the hosptial from the 14th to Jan 5th or so..Little did I know, it would be his last..I questioned it, but everyone said I was overreacting, he'll be fine..Then in April, they tried to take out the cancer and found all through out his body! I was right!!! I'm having my moments too...Good luck today.. Keep in touch. Heather

thanks, guys! considering how she looked the day after surgery (SO pitiful!!!) and after the first couple of days at home being pretty brutal for both of us, her recovery has been miraculous. i hope i never have to go through this again but if i ever do, i'll be back on dr. o'brien's doorstep. he is one awesome vet!!!

Since I have had more than my share of dog skin issues to deal with, I'll just tell you what I think. I'll go down a list to sort things out. *Your dog has a sore that has been there for at least a month. *Your dog is uncomfortable. *It does not seem to be getting better. *It seems to be spreading. *Your vet has tried medications. *Medications are not working. There are numerous reasons why your dog could have a problem. In my humble opinion, your vet does not know why. It's been my (and my dogs) painful, costly experience, that when a vet allows something like this to continue this long, and/or switches medication more than once, vet probably does not know what the problem is. After much frustration and money spent on stupid, completely wrong diagnosis, I learned the hard way to put a time limit on medications. Be specific about a date when you will start to see improvement. If vet cannot tell you, and again, want's to switch medications, he/she probably is shooting around in the dark and does not know what the specific problem is. All of this while you are spending money and the dog is in discomfort. I would consider consulting a "qualified" veterinary dermatologist. Skin issues tend to be separate from other regular veterinary issues. Before I do this, I would consider altering the dogs diet, one to a "hypo-allergic" food available from your vet. Lots of people and vets simply do not realize that diet can and does cause lots of problems. Your dog may be prone to a food allergy. Going this simple route could wind up saving you so much time, frustration and money. If you have not already, research the subject on Google. If this is your problem, you should start to see positive results within a short period of time, perhaps a month. Gradually switch to the new food over the course of a week or two. Feed nothing but the new food for at least 6 weeks. Finally. You need to scold your vet for allowing this to go on this long. State that this is completely unacceptable, and you are depending on vet to fix this, you want to know what is going to happen, how much itÂs going to cost, and when itÂs going to get fixed. If your vet cannot get with the program and fix things, find another vet. SG

For a while I had a Snapple bottle with a metal lid, in which I punched some nail holes. Worked great as a water sprinkler until, inevitably, I dropped and broke the (glass) bottle. If I make another, I'll use a similar, but plastic, drink bottle (the kind with a wide cap) and make the holes in the cap with a heated metal pick or something similar.