Brain Fog

I've started this post, as well as multiple other posts in recent weeks, many times and have either fallen asleep, been distracted, or entered into a brain fog before publishing.  Today I will stay on top of it and finish what I start...

A couple days before Christmas, Moggy (my Domestic Short Hair rescue kitty--now almost five years old) was playing with his Sock Monkey. He normally bats his toys around, tosses them in the air, or drags larger floppy toys (i.e. Bandit's toys) around like prey. But he's never destroyed anything the way Bandit loved to do (e.g. rip the head off,  disembowl the squeeky, and shred the remainder).   Other than hunting (and killing, and presenting me with gifts of squirrels,  jays, field mice, and lizzards, etc.), Moggy's most destructive action has been to shred TP.  

Until now...

Moggy started off batting his Sock Monkey.  First, he bit SMs head.  Then he took his little paws and wrapped 'em around SMs body, bit down hard on SMs head, and pulled. There was a ripping sound and I fully expected to see SM decapitated and shreded. In the end Moggy gave up a little too early. But I joked he was channeling Bandit.

Christmas Morning I opened up Moggy's stocking and gave him a few toys to play with in the hotel while I left to play board games and exchange gifts with friends. 

One of Moggy's new toys was a squeeky mouse that squeeks at random times. Another  was a hard plastic ball with openings for treats to be worried out. The concept is simple: keep kitty occupied for hours with rewards of treats as they slowly jiggle out. The top of the ball was a cute little mouse head. I don't remember if the treat toy had the feathers on it, or if it was the squeeky mouse. Really doesn't matter, Moggy ripped the feathers  off whatever they were on.  Probably before I even reached the SUV. 

Sometime during the day he also ripped off the hard plastic treat toy mouse head--to heck with worrying those treats out one at a time! He was obviously ravenous.

I'm very picky about the everyday food and treats I allow my FurBabies to have. Each holiday I search until I find a holiday meal for the FurBoys that also meets my expectations:

1)   Absolutely nothing with China food sources or processing (ongoing decades long poison scandals).
2)   Same ban on  Tiwan (they use dogs as a catfood source).
3)   Nothing made by anyone on a recall list (usually contaminates linked to multiple major medical problems and death).
4)   And nothing by a HUGE pet name brand that is ALWAYS on the recall list.

Saddly, it is the most recognized name in pet food. They recently bought out one of my go-to  pet foods which was a high caliber outfit that used only locally resourced ingredients. I suspect the huge profit driven company bought out the smaller quality-driven company to bolster their tarnished image in the pet food industry (they continue to use China to source their ingredients and/or process  their product, knowing China products are full of lead and/or poisons/toxins).  It truly pains me that I can no longer trust the smaller quality driven company--nothing they do or say will ever restore my trust. The almighty dollar seems to have trumped the memory of their beloved pet, and the committment they said they made to him to produce quality pet food.

On my way to Tyler I realized I had failed to purchase a holiday dinner for Moggy. Once again I blamed my recent brain fog and lack of focus (much like this rambling post). But even with a reason, I still felt like a Bad Mommy. It was Christmas Eve and I wouldn't arrive in Tyler before the Pet Boutiques I knew about closed. Regular stores don't usually carry pet food meeting my requirement. I considered breaking my no people food rule.

Luckily, as I drove through Corsicana, I saw an open HEB (a Texas-only grocery store with a top 5 national reputation). HEB actually carries a cat food that meets my requirements. I stopped, but didn't find a Christmassy dinner. However, they did have a steak and shrimp dinner that would substitute as a special dinner. It would be a Surf-n-Turf Kitty Christmas.

Christmas night I returned to the hotel to find a present from Moggy. Not the chewed-up Sock Monkey. Not the featherless whatever. Not the randomly squeeking mouse. Not the decapitated and now empty treat mouse. Nope,  I wouldn't be that lucky.

Moggy's litter box was full. And stinky.

Thankfully, I keep the FurBoys travel bag filled with the basics:  a toy or two, food,  bowls,  litterbox, extra litter, pooper scooper, small dust pan and hand-held broom, paper towels, zip lock baggies to dispose of used litter so we don't stink up the room (I tried using Bandit's poop bags the first trip we took and found them to be useless at masking the pungent odor of kittie poo), a blacklight to ensure if there are accidents, they are found and cleaned up before check out, enzymatic cleaning spray (for marking and accidents--also really good to use before bringing my FurBoys into the hotel room because it masks previous occupants marks, and thus reduces the desire for my guys to return mark),  air freshener,  and litter deodorant. (Now you see why although I can travel lite, the FurBoys can not.)

Brain fog or not, I  was especially glad to see the litter deodorizer, air freshener, and ziplock baggies.  They dispossed of Moggy's gift quite nicely. 

Bandit: Best. Dog. Ever.

Bandit passed away  0430 Friday morning. He was 15 years old--which is about the average life expectancy of Chinese Cresteds, depending on who you read (some sources say 12-15, the AKC says 12-18). 

He's been my FurLessBoy and constant TravelBuddy since he was 18 months old. He's traveled so much, Friends have joked he's more traveled than they are.
 

They are probably right. 

In adition to frolicking on Pet Friendly beaches in Florida, Texas, California, Oregon, and Maine, he's attended numerous Dog Friendly professional and college sporting events--mostly baseball games:  Atlanta Braves, Texas Rangers, and Baylor Bears--but he has also attended Odessa Jackalopes ice hocky. He was an equal sporting event opportunity kind of dog--as long as it was pet friendly.

But he didn't limit his outings to sporting events, Bandit has shopped in pet friendly stores, lounged while I browsed/read/loaded up in Half-Priced Books (they are almost always pet friendly), dinned in pet friendly restaurants, attended pet friendly events nationwide.  He also explored pet friendly parks, carnivals, and festivals, as well as the Manitou Cliff Dwellings--we missed meeting the Wolves because I forgot the Flute Player and Wolves alternated weekends. The Flute Player was in residence during our visit.

He's worn costumes and walked in numerous Barcus Parades in NOLA, and participated in our own version of Treat or Trick (our reversal on the beggars holiday, where we took treats to our Friends and their Feathered/FurKids).

Bandit has also "lost" a couple competitions.  We failed to catch the judges eye in an Old Town Spring costume contest, and in Denton he was robbed of the "Shortest Hair" title when the judges compared his 4-inch crest, rather than his total hairlessness, to the minuscule coat of a short hair Chihuahua. It was rigged in favor of the home town girl I tell ya. 😉

In Petaloma CA he lost The Ugly Dog Contest. But that was the goal since we went to obtain undeniable proof of our proclaimation to all doubters:  Bandit is not ugly! That loss was actually a mission accomplished and I have it tallied in the Win column. In fact, not only was Bandit not the Ugliest Dog, he was the most handsome pup there! 😍

No matter what the blind and misguided judges thought, he's no loser. Actually, Bandit is part of a few Guinness World Records (Most Simultaneous DogYoga Participant's, Most Simultaneous Tricks, and Largest Hair Ball)--all were hosted by The Mighty Texas Dog Walk.

But his most lasting win was my heart. 💜💜💜

He was already named Bandit when he came to live with me.  I didn't particularly care for the name, but didn't want to confuse him by changing it. I soon came to realize it was the perfect name for him, because he stole the heart of every one he met.

Bandit was also cultured.  He attended concerts, theatrical productions, and movies in parks all over the country, as well as the now defunct amphitheater on the UMHB campus.  I have a wickely perverse sense of humor, so my favorite was attending the Broadway musical Cats--part of the Under the Stars series several years ago at the Miller Outdoor Theater in Houston's Herman Park.

Bandit didn't always travel well--he threw up three times on his first drive home, and at least twice driving to the park.  But once he became acclimated to the SUV he loved to go for a ride--be it one of our epic cross-country adventures, or  simply Saturday errands around town, which would take us through through several drive thrus: Bank, Fast Food, Starbucks, Dry Cleaners, etc. and they all offered him doggie treats. It was such a routine, that he started barking his order at all drive-thru windows and screens.  Even the  pharmacy. 

During our long trips he loved watching the scenary from his elevated seat in the back and would get excited when he recognized a place we were revisiting. Or if he smelled a gathering of dogs.

Once, I was driving Hwy 98 between Destin and Panama City Beach. Bandit became highly aggitated. I noticed a tiny sign about a foot off the grass pointing the way to a dog fair.  I had never been to Seaside, so we turned and followed the signs. The fair ended up being 5 or 10 miles away. (In a really cute town.)

Another time, we were tooling around town in Ocean Springs MS, a cute artys-fartys kind of place, when all of a sudden he went balistic. Yep. Doggie Boutique on the right. I'm not saying his nose is pretty awesome even for a dog, or that he can read, but....

Far be it from Bandit to stop at riding in motorized transportation.  He's also ridden in horse-drawn carragies in the French Quarter, sat on a Belton Fire Truck and a Sweet Potato Queen parade float in Jackson MS, shared a double stroller with his CatBrother Moggy, sailed on a Mail Ferry in Portland Maine, and ridden a "jeep" tour through Fantastic Caverns in Springfield MO (which was discovered by a dog, and during the prohibition, the caverns  housed an illegal underground speakeasy).  Saddly, we never got around to the pet friendly steam boat, train, or hot air balloon rides I found.

He's stayed in beachfront condos in Texas and Oregon, log cabins in the mountains of New Mexico and  Georgia,  a tiny house in west Texas, a yurt in Arkansas, a tepee motel in Holbrook AZ, kitchy dives along Route 66, and 5 star luxury hotels in Manhattan and Dallas (part of a Dallas Cowboys Tour).

Because of Bandit I've been interviewed by an Oklahoma newspaper, numerous NOLA radio and TV stations, Animal Planet, and I won a trip during an Atlanta Braves fan game.  To my knowledge, that jumbotron event was not televised; however, imagine my surprise when I received a call from a Friend saying she had just seen Bandit on the Texas Rangers jumbotron (she was watching the nationally televised game at home on her TV).

Bandit has had his photo taken with total strangers, Santa,  local celebrities, The Sweet Potato Queen, McDuff the Crime Dog, Little Ceaser, Blue Dog,  professional athletes, Hollywood Animal Casting professionals, cable TV personalities, national politicians and international best-selling authors. Kinky Friedman counts twice on the list since he is both a politician of sorts and an author.

The past couple months Bandit has been in and out of the Emergencey Vet, as well as follow-up visits with his regular Vet, so I knew his death was fast approaching; however, I still was not ready.

This week Bandit returned to the Emergency Vet, then spent two days at his regular Vet, but came home with me during the nights since he was stable and they didn't have anýone on duty to monitor him over night in case he decompensated. 

Bandit seemed to be responding to the new med regimine, although his new baseline resperations were on the high side of normal.

Thursday his respirations continued to creep up during the day despite his morning meds.   I gave  him  extra Lasix when I got home. He seemed to respond (his respirations came down to his new baseline, but not down to where I really wanted them).  He had eatten a good breakfast, but was not interested in dinner despite the appetite stimulant.

During the middle of the night he became restless, his respirations climbed, and he appeared to be in acute respiratiory distress. I called the Emergency Vet so they could get the ICU crate ready for him. They advised me to go to Killeen because their only empty ICU Crate was large and would take too long to fill with oxygen.

I couldn't hold Bandit and drive, so I moved his dog bed to the passenger seat.  As I drove, I rubbed his favorite spots (between his eyes and his lower back just above his tail) and told him repeatedly how much I loved him and what a good boy he was.  

Before we made it too far out of Belton he stuggled to sit up, fell forward, gave a little whimper, and was gone.

💜💜💜Bandit: Best. Dog. Ever.💜💜💜

Mama loves you and will  miss your sweet face, soulful brown eyes now cloudy with cataracts,  happy-go-lucky disposition, playful antics, and sharply insistant bark.

Rest in peace my precious BanditBoy. 💔🖤💔🖤💔