Labor Day?

Tomorrow both my Ma and Pa have a holiday for something called Labor Day. I'm not sure what that L word means.

What is it now? Can't you see I was resting?

Sadie Takes to Her Fainting Couch

This heat makes me want to take to my fainting couch, a la the Manly Dandy. So I did just that.

Please, no more photos. I am trying to get my beauty rest and avoid any strenuous activity.

Just Peachy

This weekend, my ma and pa took a brief trip back to my old hometown of Macon for a friend's pool party. While they lounged by the pool and drank margaritas, I got to hang out with my Pop Pop and see my old buddy Spud.

Today, on the way back home to Savannah, we stopped at Lane Southern Orchards so my ma could buy some peaches for some delicious recipes. We also got to catch up with our friends Mr. Richard and Miss Shelley. Mr. Richard is so nice - he gave me a french fry. (PS: I love you, Mr. Richard.)

Before we left, I got my photo made out in front of the produce store and cafe. I'm a real Georgia peach!

If You Can't Beat 'Em, Join 'Em

My ma and pa are friends with a very nice couple, Mr. Chris and Miss Ashlie. Although I L-O-V-E Miss Ashlie (she goes for walks with me), Mr. Chris and I have never quite "clicked." I really think it's because the first time I met him, it was because he was wearing a motorcycle helmet. And I really don't like hats.

I guess I got a bad feeling about that motorcycle, because every time he came to the house, I barked and barked, trying to warn him about that dang motorcycle. Wednesday night he had a little accident and broke his wrist. He came by to visit me and my ma yesterday, and I finally decided to give him a break....pun intended.

We took a little nap together and let bygones be bygones. Get well soon, Mr. Chris! And my ma said you can sell that motorcycle ANY day now!

Shakin' It in Daffin Park

This morning my ma and I took our longest walk yet since my surgery -- to Daffin Park and back. The track around Daffin Park, home to the Savannah Sand Gnats, is a mile and a half long, so we guessed we walked nearly two miles by the time we got home. I did have to stop and shake my groove thang in front of the Daffin Park sign.

I was a little tired by the time I got home, but I made it there and back, so that must mean I am on the mend! Now, I am relaxing at the spa, getting my nails and hair did.

Happy Monday, y'all!

Happy Birthday, Boo!

Sadie and her Ma would like to wish the always dapper Manly Dandy the happiest of birthdays.

May your thirty-second year be full of all the things you love: haute couture and cuisine, good friends, Gucci and Obagi, and magical and mythical nights.

Operation Angus

I found out yesterday that one of my friends, Angus, is going to have to have the same surgery I just had. Angus lives in Arizona and his ma and my ma are friends. Here's a photo of him with his little girl:

Good luck, Angus! I am thinking of you and I know you will be better in no time. (You will, however, have a funny haircut.)

Love,
Sadie

Doctor, Doctor - Give Me the News

Today marked six weeks ago that I had my little back surgery, so Dr. Shealy wanted me to come back for a checkup so he could see how well I was doing. He gave me a clean bill of health and told my Ma that she could progressively start working our way back to our old routine. Already, we've gone on 20-minute walks or so, and before too long, he said I would be back to my old routine of 45-minute to one-hour walks. Just in time for the Savannah summer!

In other good news, Dr. Shealy said that, in all his years doing this kind of back surgery, he's never had to do follow-up surgery on a basset hound (knock on wood). Dachshunds have the highest rate of recurring issues at 19 percent, so watch out, Spuddy!

Dr. Shealy is such a nice man. Can you tell how much I adore him? My Ma and Pa think he's pretty swell, too.

Driving Miss Sadie

This past weekend, my ma's Aunt Faye came to visit us all the way from a land called Texas. Actually, I have been to Texas before, several years ago for Thanksgiving. Here is a picture of me with my cousin Opie.

Since Faye is technically my great aunt, I just call her Faye the Great. She is such a good aunt. She always wears red lipstick and she brought me some treats. She also took me for walks each morning around the neighborhood and I told her about Savannah.

I love Faye the Great so much, I tried to convince her to take me back to Texas with her in the Fiat. Here we are trying to make a break for it!

We miss you, Hyacinth. Come back to visit any time!

xxoo

My Kind of Sunday

Today was another beautiful day in Savannah. My Ma and Pa decided that since I have been doing so well post-surgery, it was time for my first public outing. We headed to Forsyth Park in my favorite mode of transportation - the Fiat - to attend the Humane Society's Doggie Carnival. An added bonus was the SCAD Sidewalk Arts Festival, which had been held the day before.

There were lots of doggies that had vibrant colors on their coats, but my Ma and Pa wouldn't let me take a rest on the chalky sidewalk. My paws had some interesting hues, though.

I love an afternoon out in the park. My friends at Case Veterinary Hospital had a tent set up at the doggie carnival, and I was able to show Dr. Knight, the doctor who referred me to my surgeon, just how far I have come.

I enjoyed seeing the big fountain:

And the old oak trees with Spanish moss:

I was so glad to be out and about again, amongst my admiring public.

Time for a slice of pie at Vinnie's. Happy Sunday, y'all!

Happy Birthday, Ellie!

I'd like to take this opportunity to wish my best bud Ellie a very happy TENTH birthday! Ellie and I met when my mom lived in Macon, and even though we have moved to Savannah, I still think of Ellie often and fondly.

Happy birthday, old friend. I hope your wildest Weimaraner dreams come true today.

My Kind of Saturday

Today was my kind of day. The sky is blue, the sun is shining and there is a cool breeze blowing. And my ma and pa stayed at home all day, working outside, while I got to hang out in the yard. I look bored here, but I am really resting myself in a sun puddle:

Hey, Pa, you missed a spot on the car. I'm helpful like that.

Yup, hanging out outside all day and getting to be with my people definitely makes me a happy girl.

I Walk the Line

Today my ma came to watch me in action, as I work to get all my leg and back muscles strong again. Part of my exercises is walking in this tank on a treadmill that is submerged in water.

When I first started walking on this treadmill, the nice physical therapists started me off at three minutes. Now I am all the way up to 14 minutes.

If you'd like to see me in action, click on the video below. Normally I don't whine and cry when I am on the treadmill, but I was so excited to see my ma, I was ready to get out of the dunk tank and get back home in my sun puddle!



Because you're mine....I walk the line.

Home Sweet Home

The day finally arrived - my ma came and picked me up today and took me HOME!

First things first. I had to get in my comfy bed:

And then I had to enjoy the sun puddle:

All's right in my world, folks. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to go catch a few ZZZs before I head back to physical therapy in the a.m.

Get Well Wishes

Hi everyone, Sadie here. My home away from home - Veterinary Specialists of the Southeast - has wi-fi, so I'm able to update you on my condition myself.

I sure am glad my Ma brought me in here, because I was really hurting last Monday. Then I fell asleep for a really long time and when I woke up, I wasn't hurting as much. I did have a weird new haircut, however:

That being said, the folks up here are taking good care of me. My doctor is a nice man named Dr. Paul, and he is a specialist in these kinds of surgeries. You can read an article about him here. My new best friend is a lady named Taine and my physical therapist is a lady named Georgia. The other night we started therapy and she massaged my muscles with a device that had a low electrical current running through it. It felt so good! And once I get my stitches out, they'll put me on something called a treadmill that's submerged under water. I don't know how I'll feel about that, but my Ma said she would take a picture for you.

And speaking of my Ma (and my Pa), they have been to see me every day. Yesterday, they brought me a gift from my friends at the Spivey household - Clarece, Carl, Jack, Roger, Victor, Bloo, Minnie and Scarlett. An autographed get-well card:

I'm not sure why Spitfire and Bones didn't sign the card. However, there was also a doggy biscuit, wrapped in pink and white satin ribbons. I was impatient with my Ma as she tried to unwrap it - that Miss Shelley sure knows how to wrap up a biscuit! - but she finally got the ribbons, tape and Ziploc bag undone and I enjoyed a delicious treat.

So fear not, readers of Six Inches High and Rising. Super Sadie is on the mend.

Sadie on the Mend

Dear readers of Six Inches High and Rising,

Sadie is out of surgery! She did have a ruptured disk, right in the middle of her back, that had traumatized the nerve root and there was a lot of compression. The surgeon said he was surprised she was walking as normally as she was and the extent of the damage led him to believe she has been living with this for a while as it continued to build up.

That being said, she came through the surgery fine and is in recovery now. Her Pa and I can go see her tomorrow (the vet requests owners not come see the pet on the day of surgery, to give them time to recover a bit).

Thank you for all your good wishes and prayers for Sadie...she is a well-loved little girl!

Before too long, she'll be running and playing.

Nancy

Say a Little Prayer for Sadie

Hello, regular readers of Six Inches High and Rising. Sadie's mom here. Many of you know that Little Miss Sadie May has not been feeling very well lately. Several weeks ago, she would yelp out in pain when being lifted and did not act as peppy as usual. As her Ma, I knew something was really wrong when she wasn't that interested in S-U-P-P-E-R. She went to see her friends at Case, and they prescribed an anti-inflammatory medicine. She had a full blood screen (results looked "great," according to Dr. Knight) and she even had acupuncture. Despite our best efforts, Sadie epitomized the poky little puppy.

My friends who know me well know that patience is not one of my virtues, and my four-legged babies are my everything. I neither have nor want human babies and I make no apologies for that inclination or for spoiling Sadie with three beds throughout the house, long walks around the park, expensive gourmet dog treats and a basket full of toys. She's my friend and constant companion.

So seeing her not feeling well, not being her perky little self, really had me worried. Her Uncle Jeremy opined that perhaps she had lost her mojo. And it did seem that way. Although she is five and no longer a high-energy puppy, she is the equivalent of 36 human years, not exactly over the hill. And a mama just knows when something is not right.

So yesterday, I took her back to Case, where she saw the compassionate Dr. Knight again, who had examined her previously on March 18. She said, "This is not the same dog as the last one I examined." She was very stiff and tense in her neck and back, exhibiting signs of pain. Dr. Knight immediately suspected degenerative disk disease and referred me to a specialist, a veterinary surgeon who does three to five disk repair surgeries a week.

The surgeon, Dr. Paul Shealy, made the same conclusions after examining Sadie. Today she is undergoing a myelogram, a test where dye is injected into her spine to determine if there is a disk problem and, if so, where. If that test shows a disk problem, she will immediately go into surgery. She will have a long recovery - about four weeks - but the good news is that these surgeries have a high rate of success and for the "long-low" dog breeds, bassets have the lowest incidence of recurring issues later on down the road.

While I hate for her to have to go through a back surgery, I am relieved to (hopefully) have a clear diagnosis and I am grateful that such a specialist has a practice right here in Savannah and for the caring folks at Case, who saw to it that Sadie got into see the surgeon as soon as possible yesterday. Their well wishes for "Sadie Girl" along with the good thoughts and prayers of folk all over the world (literally! Hi GrandMum and GrandJohn!) are very much appreciated.

Because those thoughts and prayers aren't just for Sadie - they're for me, too. So do us a favor today when you think of it. Say a little prayer for us.

Meeting Uncle Jeremy

This past weekend, we had a very special guest in our house - my Uncle Jeremy, who lives all the way across some big pond in a place called England. I still was feeling a bit under the weather, but I am a good hostess, if nothing else, so I was sure to wait right by his bedroom door until he woke up on Saturday morning:

On Sunday morning after brunch, my Pa and Uncle Jeremy took me for a ride in my car, the Fiat. It perked me up a bit. I was too busy looking out the window in this picture:

Here's a picture of Uncle and Pa when they lived in Italy. Uncle Jeremy looks like he was about my age:

Thanks for coming to visit me, Uncle Jeremy! You're welcome any time.

xxoo,

Sadie

Vote for My Friends at Case!

My buddies at Case Veterinary Hospital are in the running for Best of Savannah. Would you help them out at cast a vote for them? All you have to do to cast your vote is click on this video:



Good luck, Case friends!

Sadie Turns to Eastern Medicine

Hello, everyone. My ma has made me rest up this weekend and take my medicine so I am continuing to get better. However, my back and neck are still a little sore, so my ma asked her friend, Dr. Patricia Wilfert, to come test out acupuncture on me. Dr. Wilfert, or Miss Patricia as I call her, works as a veterinarian in Kennesaw and has been taking lots of classes in veterinary acupuncture.

Acupuncture is the application of small needles to various points on the body to treat almost any disease or condition, and is especially useful for pain. Acupuncture dates back nearly 7,000 years to India, and Stone Age humans used fishbone needles in China 5,000 years ago. Veterinary acupuncture is almost as old, with one of the earliest records being some 3,000 years ago for the treatment of elephants.

First, Miss Patricia put a couple of needles into points that are supposed to relax me:

I didn't think it would really relax me, but pretty soon, I got kind of sleepy and just sat on down. Then, Miss Patricia put needles into all my trouble spots:

And before I knew it, I was in hog heaven. Miss Patricia even gave me a massage.

Now if you'll please excuse me, I need to go take a nap.

The Poky Little Puppy

Do you remember a book called The Poky Little Puppy? Well, that's what my ma's been calling me all week long. I just plain out don't feel good.


This morning when I sniffed my S-U-P-P-E-R and passed it by, my mom completely FREAKED out and took me to Case Veterinary Hospital. They're pretty nice up there, but someone did stick me with a needle. Until my blood test results come back, I have to take medicine and rest up, so no play dates with Lancaster this weekend. The thought of this depresses me to no end.

I'll see you on the flip side of the weekend, and hopefully I'll be back to my tail-waggin' self.

Éirinn go Brách, Savannah Style

Happy St. Patrick's Day, everybody! Well, while my ma and pa are at work and all our friends are downtown at the parade drinking green beer, I have to make do with a celebration for one. Don't I look festive?

The parade, which started as a Savannah tradition in 1824, began at 10 this morning, and I think I can still hear the bagpipes out here in Ardsley Park. City officials are expecting 400,000 people here for the celebration, which is officially the seventh oldest in America. (New York's is the oldest, having originated in 1762.)

Did you know that originally the color blue was associated with Saint Patrick? Over the years, though, green became the color of choice. Good thing, too, because I wouldn't like blue beer.

Get Well Wishes for My GrandMum!

Even though I am definitely a southern girl, I do have European ties. As you know (or should know), my breed is a French one, with the word basset meaning low to the ground.

But did you know that I also have ties to the United Kingdom? Sawbridgeworth, in particular. That's where my grandparents Mary and John live. Here's a picture of them visiting me last year.

Don't they look nice? That's because they are.

Last month, my ma and pa got word that my GrandMum fell and broke her ankle. She has been recuperating since then and is improving every day, but I wanted to take this opportunity to tell her that I hope she gets better real soon. If I were there, I would do my best to help her out, but I hear that my Grandpa John and Aunt Jane and Uncle Jeremy are pretty good helpers, too.

My GrandMum is so thoughtful, she sent me a card the other day! My very own piece of mail in the shape of doggies, one of whom looks kind of like me! Thanks, GrandMum, and I hope you get to feeling better soon!

Fairy Rings

Have you ever seen a fairy ring? I didn't know what they were until my pa pointed them out, because I was too busy chasing squirrels. However, they are all over my neighborhood.

In England, where my pa is from, they say that fairy rings are the result of fairies or elves dancing. In Germany, fairy rings were said to mark the site of witches. The Dutch claim that the circles are where the Devil set his milk churn. Other countries say fairy rings are the result of flying dragons and are guarded by giant bug-eyed toads that curse anyone who step into the fairy ring!

I think I'll stick to squirrels, thank you very much.

Doggy Happy Hour

Every night, the folks in my neighborhood get out and walk their dogs. The other night, we all met up in McCauley Park. I got to see my buddies Lancaster and Etta, and I met some new friends, too.

Sorry the picture is so blurry, but I was so happy, I was wagging my tail at lightning speed. This doggy happy hour is almost as exciting as a basset hound party.

Springtime for Sadie

Man, what a weekend! It's FINALLY nice enough weather where I can stay outside and snooze in sun puddles and my ma can start to think about her spring garden. Of course, I am a big help when it comes to cleaning out the garden boxes and putting new soil down. By the way, mushroom compost is NOT made of mushrooms.

We're growing a lot of plants from seeds this year (thanks for advising my mom, Gopal!) but we did put some plants in the ground outside today, including strawberries:

Texas sweet onions (in honor of my sweet Texas relatives, Hyacinth & Onslo):

Ranunculus:

Primrose:

And of course, the ever-present lime tree. She got a trimming and some new soil. Can you spot the lonely lime and yours truly?

Sadie's New Sun Puddle

It's a lovely sunshine-y day here today in Savannah, and luckily my ma is working from home, so I get to spend a lot of time outdoors. And speaking of luck - I found the perfect place to sun myself, and it looks like it was built just for me.

Uh oh. Here comes my ma and she's hollerin' about a vegetable garden, whatever that is. Gotta go.

Sadie and the Super Bowl

The other day was something called the Super Bowl, so that means F-U-D. I helped my ma make a recipe she found on foodnetwork.com for a six layer dip. First, you mix mashed garlic, salt, olive oil, water, pinto beans and black beans in a food processor until smooth. Then you spread it in the bottom of a dish and add some cheese on top of it.

Then smoosh up some avocado and chopped jalapenos and throw that on top:

Chop up some lettuce, scallions and tomatoes:

And then mix some non-fat Greek yogurt with chopped cilantro:

And voila! A layered dip that is delicious with tortilla chips - and no baking required!

Ingredients

• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1(15-ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 (15-ounce) can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
• 2 teaspoons chili powder
• 2 tablespoons water
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 cups lowfat shredded Cheddar
• 2 ripe avocados, preferably Hass
• 1 jalapeno, stemmed, finely chopped, (with seeds for more heat)
• 2 cups chopped romaine lettuce
• 1 1/2 cups nonfat yogurt, preferably Greek
• 1/2 cup fresh cilantro, leaves and some stems, roughly chopped, plus more for garnish
• 3 ripe medium tomatoes, diced
• 5 scallions (white and green), thinly sliced
• Baked tortilla chips, for dipping

On a cutting board, smash the garlic cloves, sprinkle with 1 teaspoon of the salt, and, with the flat side of a large knife, mash and smear the mixture to a coarse paste. Put the garlic, beans, chili powder, water, and olive oil in the bowl of a food processor and blend until smooth. Spread in the bottom of a 2 quart casserole or gratin dish, or in individual sized dishes, as desired.

Scatter the cheese over the beans. Halve and seed the avocados, then mash with the jalapeno and another teaspoon of salt in a small bowl. Spread a layer of the avocado over the cheese, and then scatter the lettuce on top.

Mix the yogurt with the cilantro and then spread over the lettuce. Add a layer of tomatoes and finally scatter the scallions on top. Chill until ready to serve. Garnish with a few cilantro sprigs and serve with baked chips.