Ruby the survivor, Mollie the brave and we transport our children back to the 1970's (before health and safety)

Last year Sue got in contact about Ruby who she had from Dolly's Cavapoo litter born 9th August 2010, at first it was to just tell me that Ruby was a lovely dog, but she had been ill with a stomach upset, which Sue at first thought she was getting over and asked me for any tips I might have on getting her back eating, but during correspondence, Ruby became very ill again and eventually was admitted to veterinary hospital and went to being critically ill and Sue even considered whether she should let her go, as she was concerned that she was suffering so, but Ruby pulled through and today I got an update, which as you will read is a bit of a double edged sword. 

Hi Jane,
having read one of your recent blogs,I have to tell you that Ruby also has a heart murmur.Remember when she was so desparately ill last year,the vets picked up a murmur,which your vet thought could be because she was so ill.Well when she went for her recent booster,the vet confirmed that she has got a murmur.....the illness has changed her a lot,once a confident dog,now suspicious of strangers,and very protective of me and the house.Understandable really.However,apart from a sensitive stomach,she is fully recovered,lively,playful ,and full of energy.,and very loved by all that know her....I am thankful that I persevered with her treatment at langford hospital,she is the only dog that survived from probably being poisoned,not confirmed,but eight dogs died after walking in a local field,here in Frome.I still enjoy your blogs,your love of dogs matches mine,and I wish you well with your forthcoming litters in 2015....
Best wishes ,sue leal.ps.ruby was born in august,2010 ,her mum was Dolly and Rollo her dad.I was the lady that looked after dogs in my home.

I have included three links below from the Frome Standard which are articles wrote at the time about dogs mysteriously being taken ill with the same symptoms and dying after walking in a certain area.
http://www.fromestandard.co.uk/Latest-Frome-dog-death-mystery-fields-near/story-19717968-detail/story.html

http://www.fromestandard.co.uk/8216-Dog-8217-s-death-rail-line-walk-left/story-19693301-detail/story.html

http://www.fromestandard.co.uk/Frome-dogs-fall-ill-railway-walk/story-19912735-detail/story.html

Ruby is a lucky dog, with all the other dogs at the time taken ill dying, she must be a fighter. The double edge sword though is,  as you might of guessed, she has a heart murmur. This murmur was first heard when she was very ill and was thought to maybe because she was so ill (often heart murmurs occur when the body is put under severe stress) and I'm inclined to suspect that being so ill may be still the cause of onset and if the murmur is from the mitrial valve not closing flush and is MVD, with Mum being seven without MVD onset and her Dad, Rollo being eight and in full health, this onset at the age of four may be caused by her being critically ill and having a lot of stress on the heart, so hopefully this may mean any further progression, with also taking into consideration her parents health history will be very slow. Thanks Sue for updating me on Ruby, really glad to know she has done so well, after being so poorly.

Next tonight to say, "Hello !" is Mollie, who is from Smudge's litter born this year on the 24th February.  Thanks Rhian for letting me know how brave Mollie was with all the fireworks going off, I'm sure Bobbie being so good also helped her to not be worried about it all, along with your calm manner as well. 

Mollie

Hi there Jane 

I just had to send you an email to let you know how Mollie coped with the fireworks last night. She didn't just cope she was amazing. We made sure we were home with her and Bobbie before it got dark, but to be honest we were surplus to requirements!!!! Bobbie didn't hear anything (as he has gone quite deaf) and Mollie - well, what can we say. We tried to keep her in the house but she decided she wanted to go outside, and so we let her out expecting her to run straight back in when the bangs went off, but did she - like heck, she was standing out in the garden completely oblivious to all of the bangs and flashes etc going on around her. She went out at least four times and each time I went to check on her she was just walking around as if it was daytime and quiet. I wondered if her siblings were the same, would be interested in hearing how they coped. Have sent a couple of pics to show how stressed she was!!

She is still absolutely adorable and really wicked, her favourite game is bringing slippers or shoes from upstairs, and we find them all over the house. She still sleeps in her cage until around 7 30 when I let her out for a wee and then she runs upstairs to our bedroom and jumps on the bed, she then goes back to sleep for half an hour. 

Love the photos from Halloween by the way.  Also wanted to check with you when we start feeding adult dog food to Mollie, is it 12 months ? She is still on puppy food at the moment.

We are still reading your blogs and picking up tips and loving the photos of all of the other pups. Was interested in reading the blog regarding Alfie, from Millie's litter who is now over 5 years old,  but he sounds as if it isn't having much of an effect on him and he is still enjoying chasing the rabbits.

Congratulations on the hula hooping Jane - well done.

All the best
Rhian Russ Bobbie and Mollie

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I emailed Rhian back about the changing onto adult dog food, as I look to do this with a small/medium sized dog around 9 months old. I also thanked Rhian for the hula hooping congratulations (I recently learnt to hula hoop again, taught by my seven year old daughter) and told her that I also surprised our oldest daughter this summer, showing her I can still cartwheel and do handstands with the best of them. Thanks again Rhian for the sweet photos of Mollie and update on her.

This last week for some being Guy Fawkes aka Bonfire night will of been a nightmare if you have a dog that is frightened of fireworks. Living in a rural area, fireworks have never been an issue until a couple years ago our new neighbours (retired doctors) across the lane from us let off fireworks on Guy Fawkes night, luckily our dogs seem to be okay about it, barking at the first sudden unexpected bang and flash of light, but then not really concerned by it. We have shooting around us during the winter, sometimes twice a week, so I guess they are used to loud bangs from that. 

Tonight we sort of had our own fireworks, taking the children back to my rather naughty childhood, running with my five siblings. Now anything I say from now on I must warn is dangerous to do and should only be carried out by an adult brought up in the 1970's. If a health and safety evangelist and lacking in a sense of humour, you best look away now.
Every Guy Fawkes night it seems to of become tradition to tell our children tales of our childhood experiences of Guy Fawkes night and the one tale that my children like me to repeat each year, is the year my Mum decided we had all been so naughty, we would not be going to any fireworks displays. 
We had other plans though, if we could not go to the fire work display, then we would bring the firework display to us. Darkness fell and we soon got a little pile of stuff to burn erected, what we thought would be out of view of the house in the field.  We were called for supper and  then after supper, we had about an hour before Mum would wonder of our whereabouts. Now we had not got any fireworks, but we were to solve this problem, thanks to watching those Public Information films. We knew from Public Information films that aerosol cans blow up quite spectacularly especially the higher the alcohol content. See in the 1970's children did not realise these films were about safety, we thought they were like films, on what to do if you get bored, remember, we didn't have theme parks back then or the internet. Lol 
Now to acquire aerosol cans. Trayne Farm where we lived was a farmhouse built into the hill, so the back of the house was below ground level, so we could get in the back of the house easily through a second ground window, by just being legged across the gully between the house and the field, out back of the house and we would land in Mum's and Dad's bedroom. Our Mum is one for airing the house, so unless minus temperatures, her bedroom window would be half open. That night I remember entering the second floor of our home like the secret service, adrenalin pumping. In the 70's woman really did use a lot of hairspray and my was that stuff really flammable then, my Mum's bedroom was like an Aladdin's cave of flammable aerosol cans.  We managed to find a can for each of us to lob onto the bonfire, so left, with parents none the wiser. We got the bonfire alight and once burning well we decided that we would each take it in turn to run past and lob our can on to the fire. I would of been about seven at this time, being the youngest. In one hand I should not condone our actions, but on the other I must admit what fun we had that night, until the inevitable happened, Mum heard the bangs. Believe me the biggest risk we had not calculated for was our Mum finding out. Lol
Last weekend we took our children to Atherington village firework display which is a lovely community event and the children all go off together and the adults get to catch up with each other. Always laugh when the fireworks finish and you get a hub of people who rush to leave, like their life depends on it, we see the last firework as  a chance to get back to catching up with old friends, you got to slow down when your in North Devon, else you will get indigestion. Any way lets get back to the job at hand. Tonight we took (as if in a time machine), our children back to my childhood and lit our bonfire and, lets not call it lobbing aerosol cans on a bonfire, but we let our children conduct a scientific experiment. What is more flammable de-icer or deodorant ?   We used two half filled cans of de-icer and compared them to two nearly empty cans of Dove mens deodorant. I think deodorant won, just by the reaction the children made to the bangs and flashes of light.  The dogs were present during this and seemed totally unimpressed by the going on's. I must stress ending this that throwing aerosol cans in bonfires is very dangerous and should only be carried out by trained professionals aka children brought up in the 1970's. Lol
 

Henry enjoys the bonfire

As I post this on remembrance Sunday and one hundred years from the year the First World War started  ( "The war to end all wars" ) let us end on this,

They went with songs to the battle, they were young.
Straight of limb, true of eye, steady and aglow.
They were staunch to the end against odds uncounted,
They fell with their faces to the foe.

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning,
We will remember them.

They mingle not with their laughing comrades again;
They sit no more at familiar tables of home;
They have no lot in our labour of the day-time;
They sleep beyond England's foam
                                                      Laurence Binyon ("For the Fallen")

"Lest we forget"