Shih Tzu Day 134 (Nov. 10, 2011): More Bone Wars

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Nigel, the shih tzu bone king

a shih tzu chewing a bone on the "pee" carpet after moving the training pads.Candy and Nigel had a long romp session outside this morning. After they came back in, they were squabbling so loudly over a rawhide chew flip that it frightened me. I thought for sure they were killing each other. I yelled (bad habit!), grabbed Nigel by the scruff of his neck and pointed him towards his dog bed. The demon shih tzu worked very hard to terrorize the female shih tzus today. He finally tired himself out and crawled back up onto the couch and snuggled up next to me to get some rest, while Flower and Dottie rested on the other side and Candy wandered around. If we had a slightly bigger couch, would all four shih tzus sit up here more often? I’m not sure.

two shih tzus squabbling.After all the shih tzus had rested, Nigel was back on the prowl, growling at Flower like a ferocious  animal. I think that was over a red and white mini rawhide treat. He is under the impression that anything on the floor belongs to him, even if he has to take it out of another shih tzu’s mouth and put it on the floor. He was fixated on Flower and wouldn’t look at me when I scolded him. Either he is slightly deaf or has selective hearing. Not ever having more than one dog before, I have no idea if it’s normal for dogs to growl so often at each other over bones and couch positions. ?

a shih tzu with half of a bone.I decided to move all the treat-type bones to shih tzu Central since Nigel is being so possessive. He definitely didn’t like it. He flew outside when I opened the door, and then he flew back inside, then back out and back in again, before finally jumping up on the couch and settling down. A little later, the three youngest shih tzus roamed around the living room, glancing my way every now and then, probably wondering if I was going to break out any more treats. After a while, Flower and Candy trotted by side by side, back to Shih Tzu Central.

Candy, Flower and Nigel were very excited, as usual, when John got home. They all started running around, but again, as usual, Flower hung back while Candy and Nigel ran to the door. Nigel did it with a rawhide treat in his mouth.

Shih Tzu Day 133 (Nov. 9): Flower’s Gold Star Visit to the Vet

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shih tzu vet visit

a shih tzu with tear stains.Flower had a vet appointment today with Clear Creek Animal Hospital. I wanted to talk to Dr. Lindsey about her blinking and watery eyes, to make sure she doesn’t have an infection particularly. I brought Nigel with me, to show Flower that vet visits don’t have to be terrifying.

Flower shook on the way to the vet, but was so much better than last time. She did poop when we got to the vet door, and only got a little on my pants. Her shih tzu companion  ran into the clinic and then ran around visiting everyone. Nigel had been there before for his sterilization and hernia surgery, so they all remembered him.

Flower was also much better in Dr. Lindsey’s office. She didn’t poop on the floor like last time and didn’t fight at all throughout her examination or try to jump off the table. The vet said that Flower didn’t have hairs growing in her eyes, a common reason for shih tzus to blink and have watery eyes. She also checked for blocked tear ducts by putting some dye in Flower’s eyes. She told me that if it didn’t go out her nose, it was a good sign that her tear ducts were blocked. None came out. She said the best thing to do would be to have her eyes flushed when she is under for a dental exam or for some other vet procedure.

I asked the vet about the tear stains caused by her watery eyes. I had already read that the reddish-brown tear stains (epiphora) are actually caused by bacteria and yeast growing on the wet skin caused by excessive tearing. We talked about what causes the excessive tearing. The vet confirmed that the causes include allergies (corn, wheat, soy, artificial food colorings, additives, preservatives), water minerals and genetics.

Dr. Lindsey mentioned Angels’ Eyes. I had already researched Angels’ Eyes, which is a beef liver powder mixed with a small amount of tylosin (tartrate), an antibiotic used in vet medicine. I hesitated getting it, because I wasn’t sure about giving her or the other shih tzus antibiotics. The vet said she didn’t know if it was good to take antibiotics forever, but that she hadn’t heard of any real drawbacks to Angels’ Eyes, which the dog must take daily. Ironically, I have an eye problem that requires I take a light antibiotic indefinitely, so I think it will be safe to give some to Flower as an experiment. I just need to find out who sells it.

The vet also mentioned someone telling her that they had tried corn starch on the stains. I have already tried that, but I should research more exactly how people use it. I didn’t try it for very long.

The vet also looked at Nigel’s eyes and confirmed that they were overflowing. While we talked about dog food, Flower lay down on the table next to Nigel. I knew I should have brought my camera!

post-vet treat

I stopped at McDonald’s after the vet visit, but Flower was too nervous at first to eat her share of the hamburger I got; I did get her to eat a couple of small pieces. Since she did so good at the vet, I also thought I would take her into a local pet store, Paws ‘n’ Play, with me. She was very good. I even walked walked her a little bit before I realized that she doesn’t walk on a leash! Once I realized that, I coaxed her to go a few more feet.

It was tough with both of the shih tzus, since I am not used to walking with two dogs. I kept getting tangled in the leashes. I also dropped Nigel’s while I was talking to a customer about sheba inas, allowing him to aggressively run after a big dog. I caught him before he could do any damage.

I bought Taste of the Wild bison and venison kibble for the girls to try, since it is grain free. Flower was very relaxed on the way back. After leaving Paws ‘n’ Play, she even lay down in the front seat with Nigel instead of sitting up.

Shih Tzu Day 132: Nov. 8

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Candy spent the night with us last night. She stayed in one place all night, and wagged her tail when I turned the light on in the morning. As soon as the Treat Man left, the shih tzus came alive. I can’t understand why they do that. It’s not like he is strict.

I cleaned up bile off the floor again this morning. I think this is the fourth morning. I read up on it today and it might be because they are going to bed with an empty stomach, so I will feed them a little right before we go upstairs.

Nigel decided to pull off my sock again this morning while I was petting Flower and Dottie. Later, while Nigel and Flower were scuffling, one of them bit my ankle, so now I have ankle biters. I think it was Flower. Flower and Nigel had a rough scuffling session again today. I guess she likes it that way! Flower jumped up on the couch after that and barked at Dottie when she tried to get up. Today she is Queen of the Castle.

I have been getting very frustrated with Nigel. I tried to give Dottie a pig ear and he practically took it out of her mouth.

Candy galloped across the floor and back, across and back, when John came in. Definitely a shih tzu rodeo tonight! When he came in, Flower went as far as the chair and stopped before turning back. Dottie calmly sat by me watching.

Shih Tzu Day 131: Nov. 7, 2011

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a female and male shih tzu.

Christmas is behind us, but I am going back in time to  try to fill in some blanks and add some pictures. I convinced Flower and Dottie to eat some apple pieces by putting peanut butter on them. Flower is looking very fluffy after her bath. The excitement for the day included a squirrel siting and romps between Candy and Nigel, Nigel and Flower, and all three of them.

 

 

Shih Tzu Day 130: Daylight Saving Shih Tzus

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two shih tzus on a bed. an extra shih tzu in our bed

I decided to see if Candy would sleep with us. I told Flower and Dottie goodnight and Nigel, John, Candy and I went upstairs. Candy’s shih tzu sisters must have been curious, because they came upstairs a little later. I had set Nigel and Candy on the bed, and Flower and Dottie came to the edge of it. Candy became  queen of the mountain. She leaned over the bed and growled at her sisters.

a shih tzu being bathed.

Candy didn’t attempt to jump down, like Dottie does, so I turned off the light to see what she would do. She stayed on the side of me, where I had set her. Nigel was laying between John and I, which is where he tends to lay, unless I move him. I fell asleep right away, but I woke up in the middle of the night. I’m a tosser, but when I went to turn over, there was no where to turn. Candy and Nigel were as close as bookends, and since they were on the bedspread, that made it even harder to turn. I woke up several times during the night, but tried to stay on one side as long as possible.

no Daylight Savings for the shih tzus

a shih tzu after a bath.

I awoke to Dottie’s moaning outside the door. The problem was that they were an hour early. We s

et the clocks last night for Daylight Savings. The furry alarm clocks didn’t recognize the hour change, so they came upstairs at their regular time.

Since I hadn’t slept well, John volunteered to get up and see if the shih tzus would let him feed them. It went well, except Dottie resisted going outside.

a wet shih tzu after a bath.

I asked John if Flower and Dottie tried to steal Candy’s food. He said they came over to check her bowl out, but Candy has figured out how to keep the other female shih tzus away from her food. She keeps her face in her bowl until she finishes eating!

All the shih tzus ran to greet  me when I got up. We decided three of the shih tzus needed grooming: Nigel, Dottie and Flower. Flower was the best when it came to

bathing and trimming. Dottie wasn’t too bad, but Nigel fought us again. We need a very deep sink for him, because he fights so hard to crawl out of ours.