Itchy Dogs

After 15 months of living with 2 itchy dogs, I finally caved and had them allergy tested. Here's a rundown of what they reacted to. Expensive little turds...

Kona
foods
barley
beef
beets
corn
egg
potato
venison
wheat
yeast

trees, grasses, weeds
box elder/maple
cottonwood/poplar
bermuda grass
bluegrass
brome grass
daisy
dandelion
dog fennel (chamomile)
kochia
russian thistle

molds, insects, indoor
alternaria tenuis
fusarium
T. putrescentiae
moth (the flying insect)
cotton linters (yes, my dog is allergic to cotton, which basically means she is allergic to everything including clothing, carpets, bedding, probably her collar...you get the picture)


Hyside
foods 
beef
lamb
oats

trees, grasses, weeds
box elder/maple
bluegrass
brome grass

molds, insects, indoor
aspergillus
cladosporium
fusarium
grass smut
helminthosporium
pullularia pullulans
T. putrescentiae
moth

I have, in my hot little hands, a list of 10 types of dry dog food that they can both eat. Not many. I hope they like them. The treat list is longer, lucky for them!

Also, Hyside decided to get pancreatitis, so he's hospitalized. (Interesting that the article specifically mentions mini schnauzers as being prone to developing pancreatitis since he's part mini schnauzer)  Hopefully he'll be better by tomorrow and can come home. My poor little man! Kona misses him. This is the first time they have been apart for longer than 15 minutes since the day Hyside came home! Wow! Sad.

Project Pet Slim Down

Kona and Hyside are both fat. This is, in part, due to my lack of reading the feeding guide on their new food and continuing to feed them the same amount of food I was feeding before, when they were eating a lower calorie food. Oops. Guess all I can do now is work to correct the problem. They are now part of Project Pet Slim Down, a weight loss programs of sorts for 4-legged kids, set up by Purina. They just started last week, and are doing well so far. If nothing else, they really seem to enjoy meal time now that they are getting less food (and hopefully a little more exercise). They are gonna be the talk of the dog park once they are trim and fit. Oh yeah, and Kona says she is going to be a supermodel. I guess we'll see! :) Wish us luck!

Fall Colors

We took a little drive up to the ski basin today to check out the aspens. Beau-ti-ful!

Someone with lots of Spare Time

Check out this great MSN Video: 'Miracles' musical mash-up