He still pees his pants

We are approaching the one year Gotcha day for Shane.  Shocks the hell out of me.  People say he looks like a different dog.  He should..he has gained about 6 pounds, lost at least a pound of fur, has pearly white teeth, his fur is white and he hasn't been bitten by a flea or slept outside in a year.  But who knew he'd still be here one year later. 

 I wish I could say his bladder had gotten bigger.  But in the year, I've learned that Poise pads are awesome and sold in bulk at Costco.  A diaper genie rocks at holding wet Poise pads and keeps your trash smelling like trash and not pee.  And Tinkle trousers are great and don't leak..even though they might resemble something from medieval times.  I promise he is not as miserable as he might look in this photo...I will get a standing one at some point..but he doesn't stand long.  He can't help that he pees his pants..he is old and never properly housetrained.

 So happy 1 year Gotcha day, Shane.  We will celebrate your 14 1/2 birthday in December.
Doc wants to know why we don't celebrate his half birthday..

Beach Bound 2013

It has been weird around here without Dante.  He was definitely not a wallflower and had so many health issues, that he was a large presence.  He was also always beside me and always underfoot.  But his urn is beside Henry's now and we are doing OK.  We had a party for him and burned his 'anti-poop' eating muzzles that he hated so much (but were SUCH a necessity since poop didn't agree with him and would come right back up).  It was a fitting memorial.

A few days later, it was time to pack up and head to Beach Bound Hounds this year. Kristen and I have gone 4 years in a row and try very hard  not to miss it.  The past years we have taken Cali, Dana, Stan and Jaime.  This year Kelli represented the black dog contingent.  We definitely missed Jaime's morning hoopty dances though.  It was fun having a young one again at the beach, though Kelli didn't seem too interested in the water.
it was hard to find a place for Kristen and I to sleep..

 Dana will be 13 in January, so she got to take it easy and not go to all the events. Stanley has a gimpy foot, so he kept her company when we did longer beach walks.  But typically, we did a lot of this

 The weather was perfect.  Mid to upper 70sF so the dogs would come out with us in the morning (under the umbrella) and we'd take them in at lunch for a break.  Then we'd usually bring them back out around 4. It even got a little chilly at night. 

 Dana would move out to the sun to get some warmth on her old bones.

Kristen, Stanley and Kelli

 Me, Cali and Dana

On Saturday, we had no 'planned' event for the evening so we stayed on the beach until the sun went down.  We lost our umbrella, but we didn't need it.  Stanley brought out the stuffie but dropped it pretty quickly.  Cali did not think the sheep needed to be outside so she held on to it for safe keeping.
Angelic Cali

Or not so much...

The final morning, everyone gathers on the beach. Typically, I get a shot from our balcony. But this year, we had a first floor room which was very nice and great for the older dogs..but the view wasn't the same.  it was worth that however to not have to wait for an elevator in the morning!  But we sat but for a bit and got some sunrise group photos.

 And a parting shot of Shiloh.  I was worried she'd grieve over Dante, but I think the dementia is just enough to make her not realize a lot of things.  So far she seems 'normal' for a 16 year old lady.