I'm putting this here cos it's a little health, a little behavior and generally just an update.
He had a vet check up this morning on his eyes -- generally the vet is very pleased. Another step weaning down the pred eyedrops (just once a day), stopping the pressure drops (who knew but a LOT of what they do with cataracts is to prevent glaucoma - big learning curve for me). He still has to get the salt ointment (there's still some edema/swelling in the eye because that one eye was SO traumatized by the surgery) but likely will be on that for many months more.
I readily admit I was a total dumbell about all of this. His body literally had to learn to 'see' all over again -- the last 2 weeks we have been giggling because he had such a MARKED preference for red, hot pink, or neon orange toys. We didn't do anything hugely scientific -- but he was going out of his way to FIND really brightly colored toys. He is compelled, when you are going thru the house with him, to drop toys at your feet, zoom to find another one and drop it ... and repeat.
David laughed Sunday "Just between the bedroom and the kitchen Charlie has brought me FOUR toys ... and they were all either red or orange!!"
Apparently when he had the cataracts the black & white and brown/monochromatic/dark toys and he really only saw "shadows" he chose those largely because he could more easily see the contrast of dark/light maybe?
The last day or so I'm seeing him play with the favorites again -- sort of once again embracing "toy" for TOYZ SAKE. LOL The one thing that has remained constant since we picked him up at the end of October was this dog's incredible LOVE for toys. You bring them to folks, you toss them in the air, you play games with them under your own feets, you try to get Luna 'n Tink to play wif em ... and going to find MORE toyz is always a good thing!!
But ... hmmm ... whoever the heck this DEbbie chik is -- please tell her to GO AWAY!!!! If she's the one bringing rain we GOTS ENUF!!
Bless him -- he isn't just freaked by thunder & lightning (in fact I've had other dogs FAR FAR more storm phobic).
But Charlie? He literally will plaster himself against which ever one of us he can find when he hears rain on the roof!! Sorry -- water coming form the sky is just NO good. Baths? They're ok. Lakes? No problemo.
But the sound of rain? Bad juju -- And it's a difficult one to desensitize because he senses the rain long before we do -- He smells it I think and he may feel the electrical change in the air -- it's so danged humid right now it's impossible to tell.
I'm going to try to find some rain and storm sounds and see if I can play it for him -- but his anxiety increases BEFORE you can hear it. But it's hearing it that truly ramps him up.
But it honestly may be a good thing about "Debbie" -- because it has rained for SO long now and he sees it dry off outside and it's no biggie. It just rains again 10 minutes later.
Any suggestions welcome.
He's doing very well -- his "joie de vivre" -- sheer joy of life -- is wonderful. Lots of folks have asked me "how's Charlie" so I thot I'd just do a general update.
I suspect he's being tutored by Luna in readin 'n typin ... she's certainly been into "stuff" enough in the past week. I'd like to at least pretend there was some method behind that no-where-near-full-moon-madness going on if we're out.