Happy Birthday Willow

My dog just turned 14 today. I know what you are thinking: Wow that's really old.

Come to think of it, it really is. In dog years, she would be 98 today. As well, her mother died when she was 9. So that means that she has lasted at least 35 more dog years than her mother. I'm 21 so my dog has been around for 2/3 of my life. Not only that she has been around for the part of my life that I can remember. I haven't even seen my Dad's dad (or Grandpa) since before Willow was born.

Willow isn't what she used to be. She is almost completely deaf. She can't hear when we yell at her. However, she is very sensitive to any loud or shrill sounds. When somebody drops a bag or cutlery on the floor, when somebody sneezes, or there is yelling, she gets up from the floor in a panic because she doesn't know what is going on.

I'd say that her eyesight is pretty good. Bearded collies are hairy animals and even with all of the hair in front of her eyes, she can see perfectly well.

She does have a few other issues though. Sometimes she paces at night. If I extrapolate human geriatric behavior to that of dogs, activity at nigth suggests that she is possibly going senile. She also licks her front paws ad nauseum. The only ailment that we know that she suffers from is vestibular disease. This is a condition in the inner ear that affects her balance. It causes her to lose her balance when walking over things that she normally didn't have trouble with.

Despite all of these problems, I think that Willow's biggest problem is her desire for food. She is constantly looking for food. It doesn't matter where she is in the house or if she is outside, her new mission is to get food. While she is doing this she is panting very heavily. She sounds like a pig. Since she is deaf she doesn't know how badly she sounds. It's hilarious, only when you are not sitting down at the dinner table to eat.

Regardless of all of this, I still love her.

Happy Birthday Willow