day 210/365 kimo

day 210, a photo by Darolyn Hamada on Flickr.

I thought I'd give equal time to Kimo since I posted Yuki the other day. It was so sad, we took the dogs in to board them today because we go on vacation tomorrow! When we put their leashes on they got so excited because they thought they were going for a walk. Little did they know...I feel bad. I wonder what they're doing right now?  At least they're boarded together so they have each other.

day 193/365 R.I.P. snoopy

day 193a, a photo by Darolyn Hamada on Flickr.

Today was a hard day. My beloved Snoopy cat finally passed away. I got her from the SPCA when I started my 3rd year of law school in 1996. She was my companion, my study-buddy, and my baby. She died tonight at about 10:30 p.m. I think she was about 16-17 years old. She had a very very long life.

About three weeks ago, she was diagnosed with diabetes. She spent two weeks at the vet while they tried to regulate her glucose levels. They finally let her come home and we gave her insulin shots twice a day. She was also on a special diet for diabetic cats. The vet said she could become "undiabetic" because of the food and, if that happened, she could go into a coma after an insulin injection. I think that's what happened to her.

I was late coming home from work today, and we had a dinner with my in-laws and some out-of-town family. So I met Cassidy and my husband at the restaurant. My husband fed Snoopy and gave her insulin before they left. When we got home at about 9:30, she was laying down and jerking. So, I knew the end was near.

I am grateful that she held on long enough for us to say goodbye. I thought it would be important for Cassidy to say goodbye so she wouldn't wonder what happened to Snoopy. After a few gentle pets, Cassidy said her goodbyes, and then said, "when can we get another cat?" Hummm. I guess that's typical for a five year old.

I tried to look for photographs of Snoopy. Sadly, after Cassidy was born, I hardly took any of her. For some (weird) reason, I compiled this picture while I was in school. I was sitting on this huge bench in Napa, CA and I thought it would be funny for Snoopy to be around me. I don't know why I thought it would be funny. But I'm glad a found it.

Snoopy...may you rest in peace...I will miss you.

day 178/365 my cat is diabetic...

day 178, a photo by Darolyn Hamada on Flickr.

So last Monday, I took my cat, Snoopy, to the vet because she was bleeding from somewhere down there...not sure where, just sure it was from down there somewhere. After one week at the vet and multiple tests and x-rays later, I learn she is diabetic, oh, and she may have had a urinary infection. Oh, and did I mention that Snoopy is about 16-17 years old. So, she's OLD. After calling nearly twice a day for the last week, she was finally released into my custody and I was able to pick her up from the vet yesterday. Of course, they gave me a slew of things and instructions. One of which is to give her this ProZinc insulin for cats (even though it says "human insulin" on the bottle) twice a day, but only if she's eaten. And if she hasn't eaten, then I am not supposed to give it to her. Oh, and if I give her too much, she could go into an "insulin coma." Oh, and she could become "undiabetic" (apparently a medical term used by my vet) at any given moment and if "undiabetic" and given insulin, she could also go into an "insulin coma." So how am I supposed to know she has gone "undiabetic"? I am supposed to "watch her". And how am I supposed to "watch her" when I am working? Geesh! So needless to say, even though my cat is now a diabetic, she seems fine. She's eating, drinking, peeing (no blood), and purring...basically doing all the things a cat is supposed to do. So I guess we'll just wait and see what happens. Like I said, she's old and she's had a long and happy life.

day 143/365 the view

day 143, originally uploaded by Darolyn Hamada.

I wonder what Yuki is looking at? Is she planning her escape? Is she looking at a bird? Is she looking for Kimo???  Hum...

day 80/365 peek-a-boo

day80.jpg, originally uploaded by Darolyn Hamada.

Poor little Yuki. She got wet in the rain and got toweled off, but looked so cute, that we left her in her towel. Peek-a-boo!!  Surprisingly, she stayed in the towel for about 10 minutes!!!

day 63/365 kimo

I have two dogs. You would know it from my previous posts. But this is Kimo. He is the same breed as my other dog, Yuki, but freakishly large (probably 55 lbs v. the 18-20 lbs he is supposed to be). I like to say he's big-boned.  Kimo is a sweet dog and is certain to protect the family and our home.  Like Cassidy, he also does not like to be photographed.  Of the 20 or so pictures I took, this is the ONLY one where he didn't turn his head or close his eyes.  Getting him to look at the camera...that's impossible!

day 43/365 the soul

day43, originally uploaded by Darolyn Hamada.

The eyes are the window to the soul, or so they say. Yuki's eyes are so dark against her white fur...who knows what's behind them, if anything. Sometimes I wonder.

day 13/365 resting puppy

day 13/365 resting puppy, originally uploaded by Darolyn Hamada.

My puppy Yuki returned home from the vet yesterday. She had surgery on Monday to remove three stones from her bladder. The stones were huge--I'm told the size of golf balls! Needless to say, she is home now and recovering nicely. It's truly amazing--her incision looks so clean and she has bounced back to her normal self. Only she is resting more. Sleep puppy sleep!

day 10/365 pets

day10c, originally uploaded by Darolyn Hamada.

My cat Snoopy (her name is Snoopy because she likes to snoop) loves to drink water from the kitchen faucet. So naturally, I thought what a great subject to photograph with my new 105 mm/2.8 macro lens! I'm so excited for this lens. I bought it from a fellow ClickinMom. It's great so far, even though I've only taken like 10 pictures with it. I can wait to get out and experiment.  Here's my first experiment!

And, speaking of pets, remember how I posted that my dog, Yuki, was peeing all over our house?  (See here).  Well, I took her into the vet yesterday and discovered that she had 3 large stones in her bladder.  Poor thing.  The doctor wondered how she could even urinate with stones that large!  But Yuki never complained, never seemed in pain, and never seemed unhappy.  She's such a sweet, people-pleasing dog. Today, she had surgery to remove the stones.  When I called to find out how she did, the vet reported that she was in recovery and doing well.  Poor baby.

day 2/365 - Yuki

Yuki is my dog. She is a shiba inu. She is not starting 2011 off on the right foot. In fact, she's is flat out starting out on the wrong foot! You see, because of the new year, we decided to clean the carpets in our house. The carpets were not even dry yet when Yuki decided to pee on the carpet...twice! I think she trying to tell us something. We take her out for a walk twice a day, but still, she pees! What to do, what to do!