Last month, we were having a great time outdoors, enjoying our snow-free winter and early spring. Last month, we hiked a lot, we played on the beach a lot, we explored the city a lot.
The daffodils and other spring flowers were opening their colourful faces to the sun:
The birds were plentiful, feasting at low tide, swimming at high tide, male ducks beginning to show the start of their mating colours:
It was so warm, in fact, that Maggie thought she could go swimming (until she ran out of leash and her mean mama refused to wade in with her!):
We had days of high wind which brought in a lot of flotsam and jetsam, but that didn't stop Maggie from enjoying the beach:
We walked further and further on our morning walks, finding new vistas, exploring different roads and green spaces and areas of beach:
People were out hiking and fishing, paddleboarding and flying around with powered parachutes:
I experimented more with my new camera, finding interesting closeups and trying my hand at capturing the super blood moon lunar eclipse:
 |
| Just a boring old log we pass almost every day...... |
 |
| ....until you squat down and look through the middle. |
 |
| Clam shell on sand ripples |
 |
| Three shots of super blood moon lunar eclipse |
The only white on the ground was up high in the mountains, or whitecaps on the water:
And then this happened:
And this happened:
And this happened:
 |
| Snowpocalypse! |
And THIS happened:
 |
Owie!
|
No, Maggie's bandaged foot wasn't a result of the snow, though the wound combined with snow and ice put us on house arrest.
 |
| This is a funny hat! What holiday are we celebrating this time, Mama? |
Maggie was scheduled for a dental on February 4th, and in the pre-dental workup I asked her vet about a lump that had suddenly appeared on to top of her foot, about where the ankle would be if dogs had ankles. We decided the vet would aspirate it while she was sedated for the dental. But two weeks later, when I took her for the dental, the lump had grown so much that we decided to remove the whole thing rather than risk having to put her under a second time in short succession should the pathology show a problem. As it happens, the pathology came back benign, thank goodness.
It's not an easy surgery, as that part of the leg has very little skin with which to close a fairly large wound. Small slits are made around the sides of the area where the lump was removed, in order to be able to stretch enough skin to cover the wound. It will be a long and slow recovery. The stitched area over the wound looks pretty good to me (the stitches should come out later today), but the side slits are still raw. She is awesome about letting me change the dressing, thank goodness, but not so awesome about doing Houdini maneuvers to reach around her cone with her long sheltie snout and try to rip off the bandage. I am tied to her 24-7, pretty much. Or at least within eyesight of her.
 |
| At least ah can still play with my treat ball on our covered patio! |
At the moment, she is on short walks when there is a short section of dry sidewalk I can take her to (thankfully, snow disappears quickly around here - but thumbs down to people who don't shovel their walks resulting in a mess of slippery, icy, lumpy stuff that creates too much of a walking hazard for me and for Maggie!). However, for much of the past two weeks she has been on house arrest due to the phenomenal amount of snow, except for wee excursions into the back patio area to do her business. She has a collection of footwear and bandages - from vetwrap with sheep or pigs on it, to a rubber boot for heading outside for a quick pee, to a purple 'balloon' that covers her bandage for other short excursions - and a non slip sock-monkey sock which holds her bandage in place and helps her move around the house. The latter is my favourite. 😊
 |
| Maggie models a few of her wardrobe additions. |
A day of rain and a day of sun this week, and much of the 20" of snow has disappeared except where it was piled up by plows or left on sidewalks to be pounded into ice by passing feet. I'm hoping that after today's checkup she will be cleared for somewhat longer walks once the ground is ice-free and snow-free, though her bandage will likely remain on for quite a while yet until the side-slits have healed more.
Meanwhile, we watch birds through the window, play a lot of puzzle games and do some training in the house, and long for days when we can get back to the parks and the beaches.
 |
| Anna's Hummingbird sits on a tree outside our window |
Except the beach near our house will be off limits for the next two months as the migrating Brandt geese rest and feed here on their long journey from Mexico back up to Alaska. No dogs, on leash or off, allowed on any of the Oceanside beaches from Mar 1st (or Feb 15, in some places) until May 1st. We saw the first of the migration before the snow came, during our early fooled-ya spring in January:
 |
| Black Brandt geese with a few photobombing sandpipers and a seagull |
Maggie is going to be so bummed out!
 |
Wake me when it's over.
House Arrest is so boring.
Life without the beach? Unimaginable! |
