Ten years is a very long time to be on earth when you only weigh 16 pounds. But since I didn’t come to live with Mom until I was 6-1/2, maybe I’m really only 4. Mom seems to like that math – and honestly, so do I.
I may have had a rough start in life, but wow… what an amazing “now” I have. When I first came home, I had my big brother Charles (the Pomchi). I loved him very much – and I’m pretty sure he liked me too. (Which is great because he didn’t like most things.)
Charles and Jolie Sept ’22
When he crossed the rainbow bridge to that big meadow in the sky, my little brother, Bearnard (the Papillion) joined the crew. Beary and I are the bestest of buds and partners in all things fun (and snacks).
And, let’s talk about timing – having a birthday on Valentine’s Day? That’s basically winning at life. Extra love, extra cuddles, and probably extra treats. What’s not to love?
Here’s to another year of wagging tails, happy hearts, and being Mom’s favorite little Valentine. – Jolie Olie, the amazing Shih Tsu
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤ 
Tags: dog birthday, Dog People, DogBlog, DogDaz, lorian lipton, papillon mix, pet blog, pomchi, shih tzu mix, valentine's day
Charles, the mugwump (aka Charlie or Mr. Handsome), crossed over the rainbow bridge to the big meadow in the sky last Wednesday, June 28. Sadly, age took him from us. He was a trooper until the end. He would have been 15 on July 15th. We are heartbroken and miss him deeply.
Charles recused us on December 14, 2016. He was already 8 years old and we were his 5th home. You can read his gotcha day story HERE. Actually, you can read the many blogs about Charles just by going to the right-side SEARCH panel on the blog and typing ‘Charles.’ Tons of stories will come up.
Though he was 8 when he joined us he was with us for 7 wonderful years. I hope you will enjoy the retrospective from day one in the pictures below: From Dec 14, 2016 to June 28, 2023.
Charles in the dirt, as usual
This is the last video of Charles the morning of June 28. I kind of think of it as his way of gently marching through the meadow to the land of no pain, no blindness, where he can hear the birds once again.
Rest now our little man. You made an incredible difference in our lives.
NOT Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
Tags: death of a pet, Dog People, DogBlog, DogDaz, lorian lipton, pet blog, pomchi
You know ‘the look.’
“Please, Mommy can we just have some cookies?”
“Please, will you pet me?”
“How can you resist us we are so darn cute?”
“Play with me, Play with me!”
Resistance is futile.
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
Tags: Blog, dog, Dog People, dog rescue, DogBlog, DogDaz, Dogs, havanese, lorian lipton, Pet, pets, pomchi
Hey Charles, do you want a little WHINE with that cheese?
{Turn up your sound}
All he does now is whine and bark and make a fuss. Crazy old man!
Watch Jolie during all this. Sometimes it gets too much for her and she trots into the other room and goes into her kennel to get away for him.
We love you to the ends of the earth, Charlie, but really can you stop!
What kind of mischief did you get into today?
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
Tags: dog, DogBlog, DogDaz, Dogs, havanese, hungry dog, lorian lipton, Mischief Monday, Pet, pets, pomchi, whining dog
On February 17, Charles had a grand mal seizure. It was very scary for all of us. We started him on Phenobarbital, a drug that is used to treat seizures. He continued to have what we thought were smaller petite mal seizures every few days after that. The vet gave us Diazepam as a rescue drug for when the seizures happen, this was to try and stop what they call ‘cluster’ seizures (one right after another, which is common). But something continued to not be right. Even the smallest excursion was causing him to collapse. Was it the seizure disorder or something else?
You may not remember but Charles has a heart murmur and an enlarged heart. On March 7 we went back to the vet because of multiple collapsing episodes. She said his chest sounded OK and we should continue with the pheno as prescribed. Pheno can take several weeks to kick in. But…things still did not seem right.
I emailed the vet on March 15 and sent a video of him collapsing. Late afternoon, she prescribed a heart medicine called VetMedIn (pimobendan), which improves the efficiency of each heartbeat so that it doesn’t have to work so hard, in addition to the Pheno. I picked it up after work on March 16. I was worried about getting him to take it because it is a large pill for a little dog, so we decided to wait until the morning.
4 AM, Friday, March 17, before we could even start the VetMedIn, Charles went into congestive heart failure. His little heart was racing a million miles a minute. He was panting and wheezing. Off to the Vet we went as soon as they opened. On X-ray, the lungs showed fluid building up around the heart. The vet asked us if we were ready to make the very hard choice about his quality of life.
But… there was one other medicine that we could add to the mix and see if that could help – Lasix, a diuretic. We opted to give it a try. What was the worse that could happen since he already was so weak. We carried him up and down the stairs in the house; we carried him outside to the bathroom; we did not let him exert himself at all if we could stop him.
March 21 – SPRING – and he seems back to his old self. Hungrier than usual but stubborn and sassy and just being Charles. Now he refuses to be carried and wants to do everything by himself. Prayers are still needed, but right now we are extremely happy that he is still with us. Spring and medical intervention have given Charles a second chance. Bang those healing drums and thank modern science for medicines that work.
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
Tags: congestive heart failure, dog, dog rescue, DogBlog, DogDaz, Dogs, lorian lipton, pets, pomchi, seizure disorder, Veterinary medicine
Hello. Charles here at the Zoo.
So much has happened in just a month since Mom had to take a break from blogging because of her eye stuff. We have tons to tell you about our holiday season. For right now, I want you to know that everyone did very well and did not destroy too much – though the pesty cats did try and play with the balls on the tree and Mini terrorized the Christmas village. I have recovered great from my bladder surgery and feel like a young dog again which is really the most important thing. Health and happiness is my motto.
Christmas and Channukah collided this year (which means more presents for us). It was exhausting with all the wrapping paper to play in and the boxes and bags. What awesome fun it was having our young human family around for food and festivities (Mom says ‘young’ is a relative term now that the kids are grown). More people to give us cuddles and treats! (Maybe food and fun should be my motto?)
Mom made us sit for a ton of silly holiday pictures. What is it with these humans and their photo opportunities?
More stories and antics to come in 2023. Happy belated New Year, blog friends. We missed you.
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
Tags: Blog, dog, Dog People, dog rescue, DogBlog, DogDaz, Dogs, havanese, lorian lipton, Pet, pets, pomchi
Charles here – I am interrupting the Caturday post to bring you an update on my bladder surgery:
Everything is going great. The first day was hard and no one told Mommy to have ramps and things for me to get up onto the bed and couch and boy, did coming up the stairs hurt, But you know me, Mr. Biter, I would not let anyone carry me, even though the stairs were really tough.
I was not very impressed with the ramp Mom made from pillows, but Joile thought it was a hoot!
I am making Mom crazy with going out a great deal, but maybe it is because I am just getting used to not having that big bladder stone anymore. The Doctor called and said that it was a CALCIUM OXILATE stone. That is what we thought and there is not much we can do but stay on the special urinary diet we are on and hope no new ones grow.
Mom says I am licking myself too much and she is going to the store to get a baby onesy. That sounds awful.
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
Tags: bladder stones, dog health, Dog People, DogBlog, DogDaz, lorian lipton, pet blog, pomchi
Charles here: I just wanted to let you know that I am Ok and did very well with my surgery. The Doctor said I am a real trooper.
It is going to be hard for a few days until all the stitches heal but I should be as good as new, for an old guy. They aren’t going to get rid of me so fast. At 14-1/2 years old and 14 pounds, I plan to be around for several more sun rises.
The Dr said that the stone was so big and green and odd, that they are sending it to a lab to make sure it wasn’t some alien from outer space. Then maybe we can know what we can do to avoid more in the future.
I am having trouble with the stairs and don’t want anyone to touch me, so I am trying to bite people to leave me alone. It’s not that I don’t love them. Mom made me a ramp to get up on the bed cause I can’t even do my dog stairs. But hopefully I’ll be OK soon.
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
Tags: cystotomy, Dog People, DogBlog, DogDaz, lorian lipton, pet blog, pomchi, vet care
DogDaz Zoo 