Written by my own paws - Mercy

Last month, I wrote an article about how you know about

How To Tell Whether Your Dogs Are Fighting or Playing

Here is an addition to my former thesis.

Goodness and I love to spar. We love to do our Dog-Fu fighting. Even though we ladies are the best in canine fighting techniques, when we spar, we are only playing.

Some humans name their females after us especially when these ladies are quarrelsome and emotionally ugly. Well, that is of course unfair to us. Why? Because we are not quarrelsome and emotionally ugly. We do not get emotional or nag - we just attack and if necessary bite hard.

Well, back to our Dog-Fu fighting. I just want all the readers to know that I always emerge the champion. So, in this house you have one champion (that's me) and a second champion (that's my sister). You see, I have been very gracious and do not call Goodness a loser. Another reason for not doing so is that my Mommy and Daddy do not permit that.

"We are a family of champions!" Mommy always says that.

Well, Daddy is more biblical, "We are a family of conquerors".

Daddy likes to quote from the bible that states that we are "more than conquerors" (Romans 8:37). I think Daddy should say that we are a family of "more than conquerors"... don't you think? Mmmm, all these theological stuffs are too much for me and worse off for Goodness. She goes 'kuku' whenever he preaches.

Okay, back to our Dog-Fu fighting. The scene is always a calm placid one until I snatch Goodness' bone. You see, my younger sister spends most of her time, chewing and chewing and chewing. It's so annoying to watch her jaw moving continually. Bow wow wow.

With a Ninja's leap, I grab the bone and run. In a flash, Goodness is up and chasing after me. The trick is for me to run and take cover behind the sofa. Goodness leaps up the sofa and falls right into my diversion trap.

You see, if Daddy is around, he will immediately scream, "No sofa!"

Poor Goodness has to reluctantly jump down from the sofa. Her short cut has become a delay instead. By that time, I have promptly buried the bone under the mat. Then I sit on the mat and wait. Sooner or later, the attack will come.

Goodness circles around me like a wolf. Then she charges and tries to knock me off the mat. Hah, I remain motionless - using the technique prescribed by the 'Ancient Canine Arts of War', the mountain does not move. Yes, in canine warfare, the right technique in this situation is to remain calm and unmovable. Bow wow wow!

The charge of the stupid brigade is useless against the mountain. As expected, Goodness trips over my firm well-built muscular body and crashes by the wall. Unperturbed by her stupidity, she charges again. Boom! She crashes against the sofa. After a few waves of attack, she finally settles down and pants with long tongue dripping saliva. Her brain waves finally activate and she goes for my leg.

Once again, the ancient instinct of the wolf triggers her intellect. She goes for the weakest part which is the lower part of the legs. The grip on one of my hind leg is not dangerous but painful. That forces me to rise and retaliate.

The bone is forgotten while we go for each others' legs. This goes on for a few minutes until the losing party retreats under the table. That of course, is usually Goodness. If we spar out on the porch, she will retreat under the car. Guess that is another technique learned from our ancient 'Art of War' manual - 'when in a weak position, retreat!'

The sparring continues until Daddy comes down from his study.

"Enough!"

Daddy's command stops all the fun. Fully satisfied with our sparring session, we settle in our own corners and catch a nap. Peace returns to the house while the forgotten bone lays neglected under the mat.

Question answered by Daddy Albert

Q: My poodle was 14 years old when she passed away. By that time, she had lost most of her teeth. Did the soft food cause her health to deteriorate and ultimately die?

A: I believe that soft food has nothing to do with the deteriorating health of your pet. If your soft food have sufficient nutrients to sustain her health, she should be able to live normally.

At 14 years old, your poodle was actually 72 to 78 years old based on human aging process. So, she had lived to a ripe old age. Some poodles may live to 17 years old and that will make them around 84 to 94 human years.

Diseases
Senior poodles may suffer from various diseases. Therefore it is important to have your poodle regularly checked by the vet. In this modern age, there are many new treatments that will keep ailments at bay.

Weight
Like human beings, your poodle needs to maintain a healthy weight. Senior poodles do gain weight easily and so it is vital to keep your poodle active by scheduling regular exercises like walking and playing. Please note that you are to make them regular but SHORT.. Do not prolong the time of the exercises and games - they are not good for canine primer timers.

Quality Food
I recommend that you get rid of the commercial dog food and give your poodle home-cooked food. Food fillers are not good for your senior poodle or any other older dogs.Ask your vet for more advice.

Canine Dental Care
Dental problem is most common with aging dogs. Daily brushing is important because it keeps the bacteria from building up in their mouths. Your local vet may be able to do the scraping so as to enhance the dental health of your dog.

Take Care of Your Aging Dog
Time flies especially when you are in love with your pet. Your dog ages very fast and it is important to observe its behaviors and other physical signs of weakness.

Do not hesitate to visit your vet if your dog is not feeling well. Like I have said, in this modern age, your vet has many good treatments that may enhance and prolong the life of your aging pet.

During the night, when Mommy returned from her work, she screamed for Daddy. Goodness and I thought that she had spotted the bone that we had hidden in the sofa. No, she was looking at me - straight in the eyes. Now that was scary. When Mommy stares, the world stops spinning. 

The next terrifying thing was when she walked menacingly towards me. The furs on my neck stood up in full attention. All the alarms rang in my head and my heart raced like a cat whose tail was on fire. However, the firm command, "stay" was paralyzing. Stayed I did and Mommy took my head in her gentle hands.

I had to pay a heavy price to have that privilege of bearing the title of ' Connie Dog'. First and foremost, I noticed that the rest of my body had disappeared from sight. I turned my head here and there, and still could not even take a peep at my behind. I could see my front paws but not the whole front legs. I knew that my head was still firmly attached to my body because I could feel every part of it.

One day, when Mommy and Daddy were having their nap after church, I personally demolished the white cone. Bow wow wow. Even though our parents were not too happy about my vengeful act, I must say that it was satisfaction beyond description. A double Bow wow wow.