Beau

Beau & Sammy - the miracle puppies

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Sammy

I miss Beau so much. He always made his presence known. Even in the quiet of night he would be humming. It would sound like someone talking but it was his noise. He had hearing that was amazing, barking back to distant dog barks. Lady would rarely join in unless it was something close by. It is so quiet on our farm now. So silent. It is easy to say that it was a miracle that they lived at all after having mange so very bad. Sammy had it worse and died nearly a year earlier. 

There are still times during the night or day that I hear the neighbor's dogs bark, as if to call and ask, where is Beau, where is Lady. It is so sad. They would always alert me to any intruders, bobcats, coyotes, the neighbor's dogs or the wild hogs. I saw a dog on Letterman's stupid pet  tricks the other night. A dog named Parker was singing with the music of a soap opera on TV. He had a summer cut that was odd to see since he was a long haired fellow. I felt that I should have at least tried to cut Beau's long hair. If nothing but with a plain pair of scissors. Something. But he just lost his strength and was gone. 

There will always be the possibility that the stupid neighbor did put out poison along the roadway where Randy would take them for a walk. Lady was never one to over heat and she went almost a week after Beau did. My heart is still broken and I have to stop and cry.

Beau died today. A Thursday evening in the midst of a brutal heat wave that seems to go on endlessly. Over 100 every day. With his size and heavy coat, he went downhill so very fast. I haven't made any notes on him in over a year but once I stop crying oh so much, I will come back and add my thoughts. For now, this is all I can do. 

Oh Beau we miss you so much. Right now, it is a fight just to keep Lady alive. She is miserable and not doing well. Randy had to carry her to the water pool as she thinks she hates water. She had a better day today.

For Sammy, by Randal Holstine CLICK HERE

I just put together the item Randy wrote. I didn't get past the first paragraph and started crying like a baby. I had cried a bit off an on for the days since Sammy died. But this was different. Read it yourself and see. Guess this is all part of the healing and dealing with the loss. 

I did get Beau moved to his new spot in heavier shade. I did nothing but work on his space today. Made me realize that they had never had any toys. They had each other. So alike yet so different. Beau is so sad. He is still looking and waiting for his brother. 

When I brought them food, I would sing "dancin' and prancin' " and Sammy would dance around and around. Eager for his supper. Beau never did the dance, he let Sammy put on the show.

On the last morning just before he died, I went out to their A-frame and he was lying inside. When I came up, I said, Sammy. He couldn't raise his head or even open his eyes but he did a tail thump, thump. He heard me and responded but for the very last time. 

Sammy died today and I am broken hearted. It was Beau who had fleas really bad so I doubled up on his garlic. Then Sammy had a bad case. But with Sammy it was different. He had a most difficult time with the heat and couldn't eat but one meal a day. He was this way in past summers as well but the fleas were never a problem. He started really loosing weight and then wouldn't go for his walks with Randy. Beau lived to go with his POP and went every day without fail. He never had the problem with throwing up during the hot days. Only Sammy. Randy bought the 50 pound bag of DE and I powdered almost every day but this is all during the rainy times and every time the powder got wet, it was not effective. Sammy quit eating and drinking his water. It was only about 3 days and he was gone. We've begun digging his grave but will move Beau to a new spot by the new chicken coop. The new hens will need to be protected from Lady and her killing ways. It is not always easy to deal with the problems of the doggies. Sob.

Beau and Sammy spent this past winter hairless but made it through just fine. I did the mange treatment several times and it still needed to run its course and then the healing began. They had an occasional sore but I put antibiotic ointment on it right away.

All summer they have suffered in the heat just wishing they had no hair. Since I have switched to using garlic tablets instead of their more expensive supplements with garlic, they have done much better. They pills say odorless but I can sure smell it. They don't seem to mind at all. As we had over 3 weeks of days getting over 100 every day, they have come to enjoy getting their space watered so they could enjoy the cool wet sand. 

In the last two weeks, the temps have dropped and the rain has begun. They are much happier now and Randy has started taking them together on their walks. They have done very well and made Randy so proud of them. They are still great leaping puppies but pure silliness. They have each been able to escape their lines but never go far. When Sammy would be off with POP (Randy) Beau will get off to go and join them. They both mind so well and follow when called. 

There have been several times when Max has had a fit that one of them was off line and got too close to Lady. He threw Sammy into the Zinnia bed and held him down. Randy had to pull him off and put Sammy back in place. No more flowers from that bed. 

Our problem right now is that they have dug out the floor in their house. They need a plywood floor they cannot tear up. Though they do prefer the sand and being able to dig pits to fit their bodies. The supports are loose and the covering leaks. They don't mind getting damp now and then but winter is coming on and they need more protection. Randy will either be recovering it or building a new house. 

Kathy Vilseck (The Scrubbie Lady) had been asking for more pictures of the puppies. The are not little dogs anymore but are still ever so sweet. Beau is much bigger than Sammy but is the one who loves his head rubs. They are required before even food. Randy has been taking Beau for a walk every evening and he has been a perfect gentleman. I take Sammy who is handful enough for me but will take Beau if Randy cannot. They are looking forward to going as soon as they see Randy taking Max. He always comes first. 

There have been no signs of the mange although they have some bald spots. I keep any wound treated and they still get their supplements. Those help a lot with the scratching. They've grown too big for baths especially in the winter. I plan to be looking for a child's wading pool for that task.

Fortunately, the puppies both love the Wal-Mart brand of dry food that makes gravy. I keep some of the store brand crunchies out in case they get hungry. Beau always eats all of his and Sammy occasionally eats his. He eats so much less. I had to start giving him smaller portions when he'd eat more but then barf it back up. 

About 2 weeks ago, Sammy chewed through his wire. I don't know how long he was running free but that morning he had no appetite and was very tired. Scared me what he might have been into and the neighbor believes they killed his chickens so my first thought was that said neighbor had poisoned him. But he was fine. These are the puppies that had Mr. Rooster staying with them for a good long while. He knew he was safe with these guys. But we do like the idea that they think the dogs are as mean as they sound. When a neighbor idles his truck beside their yard just to make them bark, you must be leery of that person.

Randy will buy him the heavier wire like Max's. When Beau broke his wire, he had to go to a very heavy chain. Randy is working on ideas to let them loose in a yard where they can run. They will sure like that. They do so enjoy playing and make up the cutest games running from one side of the house to the other. The old "I see you, I see you" game. But they used to fight so much over any and all food, it was necessary to keep them apart. The A-Frame seems very large for two dogs but they sure enjoy sprawling and stretching. I have put pieces of carpet inside and have spots for their dry food. It is tall enough that I can walk in to tend the pups or retrieve food bowls. I wouldn't want a smaller house for them.

Some nights they silly barking dogs will bark all night long. We have a great number of wild hogs running lose, this is turkey season and they are very active as well as the usual raccoons, armadillos and possums. It is a busy place out there at night and their job is to tell all the other critters to stay away. They do a fine job. When I smell skunk, I do worry.

August 18, 2004 Update: I just sent a thank you to Byron Tumlinson for his method of defeating the mange. The grease and sulfur has done the job, only their paws show signs of any scabs (mange). He'd suggested bacon grease but I had to switch to lard since it was also recommended and we sure ran out of bacon. They are fair sized dogs and they were covered from head to tail and all parts needed tending. He'd suggested applying antibiotic ointment after the scabby stuff was soaked away in a bath. But I haven't had to do that. As the nasty critters die, the entire scab has fallen off. They are left with only fine, healthy skin. Even on their faces and ears, they now have fine fuzz. I had to look back at the photos below to remember that they are not a solid color and sure enough, the hair is coming back in its original colors. All the work was certainly been worth the efforts. The nasty smell of sickness is gone from them and from their room. They were crying and barking in their sleep and awake in pain! Now, that has stopped and they are sure happy puppies. What surprises me most, they mind me. I tell them to stay in their room and not to be around Max until they are healed, they stay in their room. Randy wants his shop back so we will be building a new puppy house this weekend.  They will get Max's old house and with some work, it will be usable again. Max has finally accepted the new house that Randy made for him so the old shaky framework can go to a new use. 

August 2004 update: About the time the last of their hair fell out, the mange set in. Yikes. They were getting under the shop and staying there so we didn't get to check them over very often. By the time we did, it was well set in and is taking lots of work to get it under control. Byron Tumlinson had graciously given me much instruction and encouragement in tackling the problem. I am still applying grease and sulfur every other day. The bad spots are beginning to soften and disappear. What a relief to see a few signs of improvement. The pups are indeed healthy and have great appetites. The want face rubs but those will be more when they are healed. Meanwhile, they have the run of the shop, inside and out but not underneath. I took the time to close up the bottom openings. No new photos until they are pretty again!

July 2004 update: I just went back and changed Sadie to Sammy since he is a boy puppy. Looking at the photos I had forgotten that they had a lot more hair when they got here. I had wondered several times if the person dumping them out had given them poison intending for them to die. The have responded to the bathing in special soap but their hair is thin and the skin is thick, heavy and old looking. They are gaining weight and seem healthy enough but look like a variety of hairless, wrinkly dogs.