Butterfly
post-grad
- Joined
- May 29, 2013
- Messages
- 1,575
- Age
- 80
- Location
- Albuquerque, NM
- Gender
- Female
- Country
United States
@DogLoverx3 BRING YOUR BABIES HOME!! I live alone, too, except for 2 labrador retriever crosses. Though usually a bit psycho when I first come home after being gone (even for 5 minutes), they were quite respectful of me with my hips. Good thing -- I sure didn't need a combination of almost 200 pounds of dog leaping up on me and my walker. I think the walker was a little off-putting to them, too, which was probably a good thing also.
I have dog doors, too, so they could come and go out as they pleased and did not seem to suffer for not going on walks. I couldn't walk them for a while before the surgeries, either, and they got through it just fine. Feeding them was a bit of a challenge (getting the dishes down on the floor without violating my bending restrictions). I figured out that I could mix up their food, and bend over just a bit and drop each dog's dish straight down and that worked out pretty well -- a couple of time some (or most) of the food spilled out, but they didn't seem to mind at all; they just ate it off the floor. My dogs eat on separate sides of the kitchen, and each one knows where he/she eats, so we didn't have confrontations over food. I learned to pick the empty dishes back up by using my grabber. I also learned it is easier to pick them up if you first flip them over with your grabber.
Keeping water in their big dish wasn't quite as easy to figure out, since I couldn't pick it up to fill it or put new water in, so I would just refill it from a mixing bowl by pouring the new water down into the dish. A bit messy, but again, no one seemed to mind. And when anyone would come over, including my pastor (also a dog lover), I'd get them to pick up the dish so I could wash it out completely, then have them put all clean water in it and put it back down. My grandsons would come over and do pooper scooper duty in the backyard for me. It all worked out fine. And I was able to keep my much beloved doggies with me. They are so calming and loving, and they did not once hurt me or act like they were going to jump on me; they didn't even do their "I am really just an overgrown lap dog" thing and try to get in my lap. I think dogs know when something isn't quite right.
You will feel so much better with your doggies back home to comfort you!
Peace and love to you.
I have dog doors, too, so they could come and go out as they pleased and did not seem to suffer for not going on walks. I couldn't walk them for a while before the surgeries, either, and they got through it just fine. Feeding them was a bit of a challenge (getting the dishes down on the floor without violating my bending restrictions). I figured out that I could mix up their food, and bend over just a bit and drop each dog's dish straight down and that worked out pretty well -- a couple of time some (or most) of the food spilled out, but they didn't seem to mind at all; they just ate it off the floor. My dogs eat on separate sides of the kitchen, and each one knows where he/she eats, so we didn't have confrontations over food. I learned to pick the empty dishes back up by using my grabber. I also learned it is easier to pick them up if you first flip them over with your grabber.
Keeping water in their big dish wasn't quite as easy to figure out, since I couldn't pick it up to fill it or put new water in, so I would just refill it from a mixing bowl by pouring the new water down into the dish. A bit messy, but again, no one seemed to mind. And when anyone would come over, including my pastor (also a dog lover), I'd get them to pick up the dish so I could wash it out completely, then have them put all clean water in it and put it back down. My grandsons would come over and do pooper scooper duty in the backyard for me. It all worked out fine. And I was able to keep my much beloved doggies with me. They are so calming and loving, and they did not once hurt me or act like they were going to jump on me; they didn't even do their "I am really just an overgrown lap dog" thing and try to get in my lap. I think dogs know when something isn't quite right.
You will feel so much better with your doggies back home to comfort you!
Peace and love to you.
ironically I had him with me hiking last year and going downhill he went one way and I went the other and the knee paid the price. That was the last thing it could take which pushed my ortho to suggest a partial which quickly turned into a full replacement. 
