Kathy was working in the yard today and came around to the front to find Clyde in the “sitting down” position (down in front and back) shaking all over. He looked very worried and could not respond to anything Kathy said.

Kathy was frightened, worried that Clyde had eaten the giant grub she had dug up when planting azaleas. She feared the grub was poisonous. She also thought perhaps Clyde was having a heat stroke from being in the sun, so she ran to get him some water. Stout followed her and was quite happy to drink some of the water Kathy set before Clyde. Stout was not at all concerned about his brother who was shaking violently and started swaying back and forth.

Kathy was very scared, and called me, leaving a message on my cell phone. She was able to coax and drag Clyde into the van to get him to the vet. By the time they arrived, he was fine.

The vet believes Clyde may have epilepsy, and that there is no way to predict whether he’ll have more seizures or how often. If he starts having them too frequently, Clyde will have to go on daily medication for the rest of his life.

Poor Clyde. He was scared by the whole thing. A blood test is currently underway, and he is enjoying the remnants of the valium shot the vet gave him “just in case.” I think it would have been better to give the valium to poor Kathy.

In a related conversation with the girls this evening, Kathy talked about the giant, long, white grub and how gross it was. She said it reminded her of a male body part. I objected strongly and cautioned she should not be making such associations for her young girls. Kathy thought at this point in their lives, she is fine with them having such associations. Grubs and I get no respect.

Ted found a little (puppy) version of Katie. Kathy is amazed how much the puppy looks like Katie. Mary Claire played with Big Kattie, Little Katie, and Cleo while DC and I helped Ted cut down a tree that was threatening the house. The good news is that the tree fell exactly where we wanted it to. However, if you see a good buy on a bench swing frame, do give Ted a call. More photos of Katie here.

The Husqvarna performed well. Started up on about the 5th pull thanks to Ted’s recommendation to close the choke after a few pulls. Where was he a few weeks ago?

The three of us with Clyde stopped by Dad’s on the way home to drop off the Anna Maria photo CD. Dad treated us all to grilled dogs, burgers, and icecream. None for Clyde, though. Birthday is over.

Photos from Clyde’s first birthday party. His dinner included a rice, chicken, and banana caserole spread out on the special red plate that reads “You are special today.” He also got icecream with a dog cookie.

This morning, right before it rained, I was looking out the kitchen window and I thought I saw a cat with something white in it’s mouth coming out from our back yard, right next to the Sharp’s fence. I went out on the deck to look at it. Charlie was already on the deck. It turned out to be a possum. I tried to get Charlie to look at it, but she didn’t see it. We ran to the front porch just in time to see it out on the street and heading for the Homolak’s back yard. I whispered squirrel and Charlie ran after it. She got within 2 feet from it, sniffed, and the possum ran and Charlie came home. She’s not much of a hunter.

[Nicole writes:]

Well, I didn’t get picked for Fine Arts in the Fashionata. I was picked for Literature instead. Oh, Well. Charlie is upstairs in Mom & Dad’s room with her bent out toe in the air. Poor Pup.

November 15, 1993

1234 Rae Place

Lawrenceville, GA 30244

Dear Karol,

We enjoyed meeting your group. We talked about each one on the way back. We also wanted to let you know that Kisser is doing well. She is adjusting much quicker than we thought she would.

She did good on the trip down. She got a good walk around a Wendy’s we stopped at. She walks very well on the leash. At one point we turned around to look in back and found Kelly, Danny, and Kisser were all fast asleep. We didn’t have to use the paper towels.

We got home late Saturday night, but gave her a tour of the yard so that she would have some idea of what was outside before going in. Getting home late was probably a good thing because we could put the kids to bed. Less chaos.

She spent the first night at the foot of our bed without a complaint.

Sunday was a big day for her. We had several family members come by to meet her. It was warm so we all conversed in the back yard while the kids played. Kisser, nervous about all the people, found a good spot to observe. She seemed torn between a desire to play and her caution.

She soon warmed up enough to let one or two people come up to her.

By the end of the day, she seemed to trust the two adults, tolerate Danny (6) and Nicole (11), and to be curious about Kelly (1). While we ate dinner, Kelly took one of her books over to Kisser and read it to her.

Kisser is very good about going into the back woods to do her business, and then coming back when called.

The kids were home from school on Monday. The two oldest gave Kisser several walks. She does such a good job walking at your side. But by the end of the day, Kelly was her favorite. Kelly played with her much of the day, sharing her toys, stacking up throw pillows which Kisser enjoyed sleeping on. And when Kelly found Kisser’s bag of food and brought her a few pieces, they became best buddies.

Though she is a wimp (for now), she did manage a couple of growls. One was when Nicole tried sneaking down the steps and sneak up on Kisser. Kisser couldn’t see who was coming, but she sensed something unusual. We pet her and let her know it was o.k., and then we cautioned Nicole and Danny that you do not sneak up on animals.

Another time Danny came scooting into the room, pulling a jersey over his head. He must have looked like a headless monster coming into the room.

Otherwise, she is very tolerant of the kids and even fascinated with Kelly. She has even let Kelly take food from her dog bowl and feed her. We let Kelly do this once because we wanted to make sure Kisser was not over protective of her food.

Right now she and the kids are fast asleep. They seemed to have worn her out.

Included is a map to our house from I-85. You and any of your gang are welcome to visit any time.

We’ll keep you posted. Thanks again for all of your help, and especially for the time and care you put into making Foxseas Starkist Tuna such a promising Vizsla.

Sincerely,

Jeb & Kathy

Today Kathy called me at work with a problem. She was painting the front door light green. While she was painting the door, apparently Danny picked up the paint-laden lid and went over and painted Tiger, the cat that lives next door.

I asked Danny about it on the phone. He said he did it. He’s an honest kid. Couldn’t tell him how funny I thought it was, of course. Wish I had thought to paint Tiger light green.

I told Danny that he and Mom would have to give the cat a bath. Didn’t tell him that painting the cat and giving it a bath was like hitting a double.