A Midsummer Night's Update

"Boy, am I glad to be home from the vet!"

Another summer is upon us and Rilley is enjoying every minute of it...well, sort of.  He didn't seem to appreciate the unplanned visit to the vet in the last couple of weeks.  Always vigilant about his health since the brain tumour, we feared that he may have had a bladder infection (or something worse) as he had been having a few accidents around the house.  So off to the vet he went...actually, since Sara and I were at work, off to the vet our kids had to drag him...but not before collecting a "sample" (yeah, the kids were impressed with that).

It turned out that the urine sample was inconclusive as it was too dilute...we had also noticed an increase in the amount of water he was drinking.  So, it was back to the vet that night to have some blood drawn and if that didn't provide any answers, Rilley would further diagnostics done.

"Look...I have an owie!"

The results of the blood test would be in the next day, but since our vet had begun her (much deserved) vacation, the new vet in the office would have to relay the results to us.  Yeah, I'm sure she was soooo looking forward to that.  First of all, Rilley's file must be the thickest one there but if that alone didn't frighten her, surely she must have heard stories about how freakish Sara is about her beloved pooch.  Nonetheless, first thing the following morning, as soon as the results reached the office, she called to let us know that everything was normal.

Whew, what a relief.  Yeah, it was just a possible bladder infection, but after having gone through what he has, it does make you wonder what, if anything, could happen next.  This fall will be the fourth anniversary of his surgery and involvement in the University of Minnesota's cancer research and we want him to live out his full life.  We are already looking forward to next year, while he was declared cured and cancer free on his first anniversary, five years marks the same milestone for humans and that would be an amazing gift.

Now, we all know that Rilley can be a source of some much needed comic relief, so here's one that made us chuckle.

"Ummm...hello there."

Last week we had him out for an evening walk.  Garbage had been put out for the following day's pickup and Rilley came across a lion...yes, a LION!  Obviously, it was of the plush variety, however it was also the same size as him and was standing on its own at the curb.  Well, Rilley had never seen something like this before and it quickly became apparent that he didn't realize it was just a toy so he cautiously approached.  Not just any approach, but his crouched, "I'm-a-tough-guy", approach he sometimes uses when he happens upon another dog on "his" sidewalk.

In the end, Rilley came to the realization that this strange being was no threat and continued on his way.  Although we're sure he was still a bit bewildered about this encounter.