Poetry and Potpourri .... November 12-13, 2003

11-12-2003 | JustAmy, St.Louie1 and Mama_Bear

[Jen]

Outstanding poem LJ! I love your way with words.

My kitty is sleeping
so I am FReeping.
How long he'll snooze
I have no clues.

Best I can do tonight. :(

[JustAmy]

LOL ... Thank you ....

The truth or something very close can be sooo funny.

[deadhead]

A kitten is the most irresistable comedian in the world. Its
wide-open eyes gleam with wonder and mirth. It darts
madly at nothing at all, and then, as though suddenly
checked in the pursuit, prances sideways on its hind legs
with ridiculous agility and zeal.

~Agnes Repplier~

Still praying for Sasso. Oh my, Jen...I looked at the photo of Sasso, feel so bad for him...and you.

[JustAmy]

Oh my goodnes .... that looks awful!!
I'm sure Sasso will continue to improve with the help of the many prayers being offered for his recovery.
Jen .... An animal can still do amazing things even when blind. My son's dog lost his sight at the age of 3 due to glaucoma. Prior to losing his sight, Bandit loved to play Frisbee and ball. After having his eyes removed, he still loved to play. The only difference was he could not longer catch objects in the air. He would listen to see where they landed and then get them and bring them back for another toss.
It used to be both funny and sad to watch our playful 1 year old Shepherd. She would wait until he was just about ready to pick up the toy then beat him to it. It looked like she was teasing him. Bandit died last year at the age of 13.
We will pray that Sasso recovers completely but if he should be blind, don't give up on the life he can still lead.

[JustAmy]

Very Cute .... Thank you!

[JustAmy]

Cats and kittens are special.

[MEG33]

Sasso's whiskers can be a great help to him.

[deadhead]

"An animal can still do amazing things even when blind"

Glad to read that, Amy. My sweet pup Lucy is now blind in her right eye after her recent illness. Amazing how she has adjusted to it. I am praying she keeps her sight in her left eye. Thanks for writing about Bandit, gives me hope :-)

[MEG33]

I am familiar with this type of wound and know it's tough to deal with.I pray for Sasso's improvement and am thankful he is doing better.To those horrified by the wound,it all began with a small puncture wound closing.It can happen,it seems to me, so quickly.I love kitties.

[JustAmy]

Oh Colleen .... I could tell you stories that you would not believe.
My son always brought Bandit when he came to visit (which was often, like every week to 10 days). One time my hubby was working on the vacuum and it was in the middle of the floor. Naturally Bandit tripped over it. We learned not to leave things where they did not belong.

We raised turkeys and Bandit loved to go out to the turkey pens. He would run down the long drive way and you would swear he could see. If there was a tractor or a trailer there, Ron would yell "Watch it!" and Bandit would make a perfect turn. He would run right up to the turkey fence to make the turkeys jump and make noise. His eyes were stitched closed and sometimes people would ask why Ron didn't put him to sleep. That would have been cruel; Bandit enjoyed life and he was perfectly healthy.

When they removed his eyes, he was at a Vet's in Fresno and Ron lives about 50 miles away. I called one day to see how he was doing. They told me he was depressed and was not eating and asked it someone could come visit him. I went by on my lunch hour. He was so excited to 'see' someone he knew. I sat in the floor and he put his head in my lap and let me feed him. I think he thought he had been abandoned. After that, any time he wanted a little extra babying he would come to me and put his head in my lap. He knew where Grandma was! LOL

[MEG33]

I love your Bandit story.

[Dubya]

The Missing Blood Transfusion


There is my brother, lying in that room
For his life is fading, death will come soon
I felt so helpless, "Lord what can I do?"
Pleading harder to God the weaker he grew
"Lord, can't you save him? He's almost gone!
Lord, why did his life go so wrong?"
Then the doctor pulled me aside
With a somber look that he tried to hide
"He just needed some blood all along
But now it's too late, for now he's gone
I asked you to give some blood to him
So he wouldn't die in his wretched sin
But you were afraid and now it's too late
In matters like these, one cannot wait"
"But doctor, my blood doesn't match!
Don't you have his type in that batch?"
"The Blood he needed doesn't come from your vein
It comes from a Man who died for his pain
A Man whose blood is perfect in every way
Only through His blood, could his sins be paid
The blood that would have healed his soul
And given him direction, the way to go
I asked you to share this blood with him
But you were afraid that you might offend
And now it's too late for now he's dead
That's one less reason for Jesus to have bled!"

By James Corwin

[deadhead]

"He knew where Grandma was!"

Sweet memories, Amy. Bandit sounds like he was a wonderful part of your family. Happy that Ron didn't put Bandit to sleep and Bandit enjoyed his life :-)

Wondering, how is it determined that the eye should be removed? My Vet has not mentioned this just yet.

[JustAmy]

Thank you, Meg.

Bandit was very smart and he was a special pet. My son has not gotten another dog yet. He has a cat and will probably get another puppy next spring.

[MEG33]

I lost a wonderful kitty this year to cancer. It hurt too much to mention on FR for months..I had not been on threads where pets were a topic.I have found lots of comfort reading about others love for their pets.There are a lot of us!

[JustAmy]

"how is it determined that the eye should be removed? My Vet has not mentioned this just yet"

This was a decision that was not made immediately. The Vet in Fresno could not help Bandit and referred Ron to a Doggie Opthomalogist(sp) in Stockton. The doctor there determined that he was blind and gave Ron three options. Ron did nothing at the time. The options were (1) remove the eye and replace with glass eyes. Seemed like a stupid idea to me. My Grandmother was blind in one eye and she had a glass eye. She never wore it, she said it was not comfortable. (2)just leave them as they were for the time being (this is what Ron chose). Though he knew it would not be the final decision.(3) Remove the eyes, replace with cotton and stitch closed.

After Bandit ran into something and injured the eyeball, (You need to understand that he was an outdoor as well as indoor pet, the decision was to remove the eyes. This was when he had to spend about 10 days at the Veterinarian's. He was blind, confused and in pain when I went to see him.

I think a pet that is a housepet could get along fine without having to remove the eyes. Bandit was an indoor pet but he spent lots of time out of doors. He was a large dog ... about 40 or 50 pounds. If I can find a picture later, I will scan it.

[Jen]

Sasso's whiskers can be a great help to him.

Yes, they can. Last night I was doing some testing of my own to try to determine if Sasso could see me. I took my hand and put it in front of his face and wiggled my fingers. Then I moved it slowly to the left side still wiggling the fingers. Sasso moved his head to the left. I then moved my hand to the center, then to the right, back to center, etc. Sasso followed each movement by turning his head. But his eyes never changed from wide open and staring straight ahead. I told the vet about it and she mentioned the whiskers and said he may have felt the air move or heard the slight sounds of my fingers moving against other fingers. The test she did is called a 'menace' test. She held up a hand about a foot away from his face as if making a 'stop' signal. Then she moved her hand towards his face. No response. This test makes no sound and doesn't move any air around the whiskers, so it's more reliable than my own tests.

I pray that he regains his sight, but if he doesn't he will still be my baby cat and I will love him just the same and we all will adapt to his handicap.

[JustAmy]

I'm sorry about your loss, Meg.

Losing a pet is very hard. We make our pets part of our family.

[Jen]

Awwwww, I'm sorry about Lucy. Glad you girls have adapted. I will add prayers for Lucy's vision when I pray for Sasso. God loves critters too.

[JustAmy]

Thank you for posting "The Missing Blood Transfusion" Dubya!