tonight the dogs were giving me such a hard time. bohdan kept rough housing with trillian and then looking at me. this usually means it is time for a walk. the sun is setting and it is when i have been taking them for their walks. but tonight i was going to give him a bit of a rest since he is still stiff.

so we went out into the back yard, and he started chasing trillian around, all out running. he was also chasing the tennis ball and bringing it back to me. it didn't last for very long, but it was good to see him run around.

i thought we would have an easy sunday, no long walk since bohdan looked stiff and sore from the walk at fort funston. i was wrong. we went to the quarry which is packed dirt and asphalt paths.

Bohdan walked a fair distance and then we turned around, he was eager to see people. he even stopped on his walk and watched a couple of women approach us. He was not in guard mode, he was just interested in seeing who they were.

He lay down for a bit but was easy to coax to get up and keep going... oh also he didn't lay down until he was almost to the car which was good, I guess that means I didn't push him too hard.

i am really proud of my dog. today after taking a few days off we went to fort funston with shari and trillian. the walk we took was about 3 times longer then the previous walk. he is beat, tired, unable to breath and we took rests along the way, but they were real rests.

not bohdan telling me he didn't want to go home. he was good with all of the dogs he saw, and did not growl or howl at any person, no lunging and people. I could tell that he as uncomfortable at times, but he just lay there and waited for the people to leave.

a few people wanted to approach us, but I didn't let them, I told them that he is not good with people he doesn't know, and he was fine and so were they.

trillian and shari helped us keep going. i told shari she could go ahead of us, but as soon as she and trillian started going on, bohdan got up and wanted to run to catch up, we trotted a little then we went back to a walk.

i gave him calcium when we got home, hopefully this will keep his muscles from tightening up.

this morning after i let both of the dogs out into the back yard i crawled back into the bed, as the dogs came back into the house, bohdan came and jumped up onto the bed and over me. this is only the second time that he has gotten on the bed on his own since he had surgery.

today i decided to take bohdan to fort funston, this is the first time after his surgery. he was very excited about geting the chance to see other dogs. we walked only half way around the shortest loop but he was eager to sniff, meet other dogs, and most of this was through dry sand and over hills.

once he decided to settle down i realized it was time to turn around and head back and not push him too hard. we have been home about 30 minutes now and he is sleeping pretty deeply. i think i wont take him on such a hard walk tomorrow but i will take him to fort funston again later this week.

his muscles need to be built up and his endurance built but we are moving right along.

so we went to the grass on saturday. "the grass" is shari's house in oxnard which sports a nice green lawn in the front and a very nice big flat back yard that is mostly grass.

bohdan loves it there.

we were maybe 15 minutes away and bohdan started whining, he had been in the car for nearly 6 hours so it makes sense that he needed to get out.

i was driving and when i pulled up to the house and let him out he ran around the front yard, better then i had seen him run in maybe a year. he is using all of his legs evenly and he no longer looks like he is paddling when he walks.

bohdan's progress is really good, now we work on endurance.

it is looking like bohdan is limping on his right leg (the good one).
shari says not to worry that he will be alright, but i worry anyway.

mostly cause i can't afford another tplo, but if he needs it i will figure out how it will happen. it isn't like he is not putting weight on it, or changing his activity because of it. so maybe i am just a worry wart.

we took bohdan and trillian down to the beach around 10pm tonight.
he walked and jogged the whole length of our normal walk. there
was a dog walking off leash who came to say hello and bohdan was very happy to see him and play. it was really nice to see him walking and being happy and playing.

he approached a stranger on the walk and didn't bark, growl or give him a second look, which was really good since this guy was hooded.

all in all it was very positive.

so here i am packing up the car getting ready to leave the dog behind with my friend maurice. bohdan doesn't know this. he is sitting at the door waiting watching me load the car just like he would if we were all going on a weekend adventure to southern california.

the puppy is anxious running around worried she will be left behind, but not bohdan he is confident with this scenario.

needless to say he was crestfallen when i told him the dogs were staying home.

6.5 months after surgery and i think i have my dog back. he is eager to do things, instead of just laying around looking after me he is following me around when he is interested in what i am doing.

he WANTS his walks... he is chasing the cats.

he gets up to see if there are treats for him in the kitchen. he is able to sit, granted it is a sloppy sit, but....

he is not graceful when laying down, but i am sure we will get there.

it is nice to see that i have my dog back... and we are on the right path. he is looking very good.

we made it another four weeks between visits to the chiropractor.
today was 4 weeks... when the chiro saw him she was pleased with the amount of weight that bohdan has lost. not sure if he has actually lost weight. but he is looking trimmer.

his back was in better shape, and she was happy to see him get up on his own. walking better, standing solidly on all fours... hmm what else, he is much more stable. He didn't growl at the vet at all or the tech.

now he is sleeping and seems to be content with how he feels. he is up and playing a whole lot more.

i was going to take bohdan on a sunset walk, we went to the park, it was full of people. oh did i mention that today was beautiful and clear and the sunset was looking good. so we drove to the beach. by this time bohdan is excited about the potential adventure and begins whining in the car. when we get to the beach it is crowded and there is no place to park. so i went to a new place.

we went to the quarry. bohdan wanted out of the car right away. when i let him
out he was ready to go. so we walked, it felt like more then we had walked in ages.

he was tired when we got to the car but it was good for him... oh and he got to see an aussie shephard, and say hello which made him happy.

tonight i was sitting on the couch reading... i had just settled back down after taking the dogs outside where i left them to play. i hear this bark... wooof woooof... it isn't the normal alert bark and i turn to shari and ask her if she thinks that is bohdan calling for me.

she says no they are just playing. so i keep reading.
trillian comes in and sits at my feet facing the outside, and bohdan barks the same bark again. as soon as i get up to go see what is going on, trillian takes off for the back yard.

when i get outside bohdan is up on the top tier of the garden and seems stuck up there, he jumps down one tier but i can see he needs my help getting down to the next level which will allow him to get to the hill of the yard and to freedom. the top two tiers are far enough above ground that he can't just jump.
when i get to where he is he lays down and hangs his feet over the edge, and just like i help him out of the car, slide the front end to the ground and then ease the back end, he gets to the next tier and is off and playing some more.

it is really amazing how dogs communicate.

bohdan had not been on a walk for a few days so i decided he should get a walk as early as i could so he wouldn't get upset when i took the puppy to her classes. we went to the little park up the street. it was just the two of us, he was so happy to be wondering around, he has gone from walk to get from point to point and having it be stressful to going for a walk, to smell things and adventure.

it is wonderful to see him getting better and stronger and his mood changing.

makes me so happy...

did i say i am happy?

bohdan has been so happy since shari got home. i am not sure if it is the remedies i have been giving him or he is just feeling better or he is happy she is home. whatever it is, it is nice.

tonight i took him to the park. there was a congregation of neighbor dogs out front on our way to the car and he cried and howled and made a ruckus.

i piled him into the car and up to the park we went.

he was however very happy and eager to wonder around. we ran around the park and did more walking then he has done in a long time. he rested very little and then we went into the car and home.

now he is home sleeping, very happily.

well i did it. i took both of the dogs out for their walks. bohdan went second,
and it was already starting to get warm. i took him in the car up to the park. i had scoped out the park while walking trillian and it was quiet.

as we got out of the car lots of families with kids were pulling up.
we walked around a little bit, and he even ran, his choice not mine.

then we rested in the shade. there was a toddler who wanted to come see him.
the father asked and i told him that bohdan was not good with children.
i decided it was time for us to head home. bohdan did not want to leave, as we passed the playground with the children he started whining, and crying.

we walked to the car and home we went.

we have not been out walking in a few days, there are people and dogs everywhere and i just have not felt like dealing. bohdan has been eager and really wanting to go out.

today as he got off of my bed, i heard him cry out, when i got to my room, he was laying on the ground holding his right leg up. i was able to manipulate his leg without any signs of additional pain. he was able to get up and continue
walking.

i can't tell if he is walking anymore stiff legged or favoring his right leg. he seems a little out of sorts, although when trillian and i went outside just now he came out as well, went to the bathroom and came back into the house.

i gave him, arnica montana 30c and ruta grav. 30c, i will do this another couple of times today.

i will also try to get him out for a walk, since trillian really needs one, she is harassing everyone and everything. guess i should get going with their walks.