Bad Mom of Boxer Sarah

I have been cleaning house today in my air conditioned home which I keep at 72 degrees Farenheit. The sky got cloudy, then dark. We would welcome rain, as the temp and humidity have been soaring.

I was vacuuming when Sarah began exhibiting her anxiety. I gave her a tranquilizer that is vet prescribed for dogs with thunderstorm anxiety. I also give it to her for the 4th of July (lots of fire crackers) and the opening of deer season as I live on a forest wildlife preserve, which, ironically, does not preserve the deer except in certain quadrants. If only we could let the deer know where the would be safe.

I have several acres, filled with trees. One never knows when a tree will go down, or where it will go down, when there is a storm.

I promised Sarah as soon as I had finished vaccuming the living room, I would cuddle with her to help her with her anxiety.

I decided to go to my computer. There is a dog bed next to my feet. As I sit here, Sarah is under the keyboard, and Roscoe, my alpha Boxer boy, is on the dog bed. Rocketdog, my blind dog, does not seem to be disturbed by the thunder and lightening.

The funny thing is that when I came up to the second story where my study and bedroom are, I looked out the window and saw that a tree had fallen. It is a large tree. It takes up most of the width of my back yard. It was not dead. The branches are still very healthy looking and green. I have had other trees fall, one last Fall on my roof. That one cost me over $600 to have cut up and removed, plus the homeowners deduction on the roof repair.

Because it is still storming, and I dare not go outside, I believe this tree did not hit the roof. I will have to hire a tree man to cut it up and haul away the pieces, as well as cut down the remaining portion of the tree so that it doesn't fall in the future. If I am lucky, I will find someone who burns fire wood and will cut the tree up and haul it away for me without cost to me.

I will have to call my home insurance person to have the roof checked for damage.

Sarah is calmer now. The thunderstorm is moving on, and her medication is calming her. She is still by my feet, under the computer keyboard.

Sarah is an adopted Boxer, one I rescued when I was doing Boxer rescue years ago. She is old now, for a Boxer. Only eight, but she has cardiomyopathy and her left back leg is gimpy so that it is difficult for her to climb stairs. Fortunately, she is only 60 pounds, light enough for me to lift and carry when she collapses from her arrhytmias caused by her enlarged heart. Or light enough for me to lift into the back of my Jeep Grand Cherokee.

Sarah was tied outside all of her life, during every season that middle Minnesota has. She was never allowed to run free. When she was inside the trailer where her people lived, she was kenneled as she has a little urinary leakage problem. Not enough to bother me, and I have a lovely home on three acres, but enough to bother someone with a trailer to live in. Go figure.

I was glad to keep Sarah when she was surrendered to me. It was just two weeks after my beloved Bailey Bob, only two years old, had to be put down for a brain tumor that was causing terrible seizures. Sarah is a gift from God.

I understand her fears because there was no one to let her inside the trailer when there was a storm. She needs a lot of comfort, and I am happy to give it to her. I know, she probably has already forgotten her past, except for the lingering fear of loud noises, and when she dies, Sarah will only remember the love she had with me.

Best regards to all, Diana Lynn of Sunrise River Boxers in Stacy, MN, a rescuer, not a breeder.

what a lovely story,sarah bless her sounds lovely,and of all the dogs iv had the rescues are by far the most loving,imo.they stick to you like a corn plaster.my friend and sis dk has a bitch petrified of the thunderstorms and can tell one coming 2 days away,iv a wee bitch wary of the wind and she needs lots of cuddles in a storm,and one who hates the rain,there all very individual and all need lots of cuddles,keep up the good work and nice to see you bk xx

Diana:

Hope Sarah did well in the storm.
Did the tree hit the roof?

My late Daisy, may she rest in peace, hated storms like your Sarah, she would get into my bedroom and crawl under the bookcase headboard. Not a large space for my shepherd/chow mix.

But for a pup my daughter and I picked up for free at a grocery store, she was a daddy's girl! She was never more excited than when my husband came in from work! She would rear up on her hind legs and give him a hug, tail wagging like crazy! And she especially loved getting her leash and going bye-bye in the car to get her daddy at work... loved looking in my side mirrors and seeing her head out the window!

Diana, love to you and the pups!
Kay

I have an elderly bitch who is also terrified of thunder and also fireworks, so I know pretty much exactly what you are going through. My old'un tries to squeeze herself into the smalled space possible..... (