Bret, aka wolfie boy, white lightning, bretty spaghetti, mr spaghetti, mr handsome, mr booger king, plant man, big dog, baby boy, etc etc etc
I'm in California and have a 2.5 year old Great Pyrenees, Bret. I've had him for 1 year and he's in excellent health, but being a rescue and my first extra large breed dog I asked my vet a lot of questions at his first check up.
His medical record is clean, just vaccines, dewormer, BCS was low at 3/9 but she only wanted him to put on 5lbs at the time which he's exceeded as he's matured and filled out.
In the notes though is a summary of our conversation where I'd asked about if it would be smart to start him on joint supplements young, if it could be worth it to have his hips xrayed when he's put under for being neutered just to see if they look good or if there's any signs of anything that could cause him problems down the road (like how potential breeding dogs get their hips and elbows checked), and I'd asked if there was any concern with droopy eyelids lids for which she just recommended artificial tears in case of any irritation/dust.
My primary concerns and reasons for looking into insurance are the typical large breed worries about joints/ligaments, bloat, and being in the southwest, possible rattlesnake bites. But of just our conversation notes alone could be enough for them to deny coverage for anything joint/hip/eye related then is there any point in doing accident + illness or should I just get accident only for him to have in case of a snake bite?
Lemonade's online quote is accident + illness 20k limit, $750 deductible, 90% for $43/mo or AKC is 10k/$750/90% for $61/mo for accident + illness or $20/mo for accident only.
I'm leaning towards lemonade, unless they would screw me over for trying to just get breed specific advice from my vet which would be absurd. AKC has the 1 year thing for preexisting so would that be a better way to go, assuming he continues to be issue-free for the next year? I really don't like feeling like I might be punished for trying to be proactive and learning about how to prevent health issues.
I feel like I really scored at home depot, 2 JFKs and 4 Ring of Fire! Wasn't totally sure what I was looking for aside from some sort of red and white, I'm beyond happy and the coral color is so stunning!
I'm pretty 'green' with roses though, my grandma was an avid gardener and I'd help her prune and pull weeds as a kid, but she's gone now and I can't ask her for her advice here. I keep seeing Alfalfa as a great amendment and always have 1/4" Alfalfa pellets on hand for my horse and sheep, I added some sheep manure to the holes when planting but whats the best way to use the pellets? Should I soak them first then crumble them at the base of the plant? Just work dry pellets into the top soil under the mulch? Partially soak and use the water? How many pellets and how often?
I'm in 9a and my native ground is decomposed granite with a bit of clay. I dug holes roughly 18x18 and built 12x12x12 gopher cages for them. I had a big brick of peat on hand and mixed that and some sheep manure into the backfill to add nutrients to the dirt and sifted out the rocks. So far so good, pruning the spent blooms and getting new buds.
I was planning on picking up some rose tone today, but would really like to sort out this whole fertilizer regimen now instead of waiting until they're unhappy 😬 I'd bought some 'Vigoro organic rose and flower plant food', but couldn't find any previous posts here about it but if its comparable to rose tone I could just stick with it?
One of Bret's favorite lookout spots. The K&H cots have been great for helping keep him up off the dirt and foxtails while he watches over us, he loves them.
They're staying put in the wind surprisingly well too, only had 1 flip over once during a pretty gnarly night anf its out on a ridge that gets the brunt of any wind coming through. I thought I'd have to stake them down but that seems to be unnecessary.
My perfect, perfect boy 🥹
Woodhouse had company over last night, came out for breakfast with a tarantula chilling on his back 🫣
Nobody was harmed, the tarantula was relocated to another area of my property so he can carry on his merry way. But I think I might have had a minor heart attack since seeing a tarantula riding a tortoise was NOT on my bingo card today.
Looking back at his old pics makes my heart want to cry and explode at the same time, I don't even recognize that dog.
Top row: left - before I met him (I found his stray intake pic from the shelter), middle - when I first met him (and called first dibs on him, before I knew that he'd actually need me), right - and his first day here, matted, impacted, underweight, and infested with fleas
Bottom row: A few favorite pics from over the last 10 months with him. He's just perfect in every way. If i could clone him and have a pack of 10 Brets I absolutely would.
(Not shown, the husband that "didn't want another dog" but cuddles him and sings to him and brags about him to anyone who will listen)
I know its a bit on anthropomorphizing but it feels like he knows the collar = his new name, identity, and forever home here. He wants it back anytime I take it off to brush him or charge his tractive 🥹
Flair as meme because its so absurd, but unfortunately I saw this in the wild on marketplace 🙃
This is what the double dews are for, according to Bret