Abby is a 16.5 year old, eight pound Papillon. (I'll post a picture tomorrow, after I've scanned one.) She is sliding into senility, which I think is to be expected of a dog that is, in dog years, close to 113. How do we know she's senile? Well...
1. She gets lost in the front yard, and is only called back by loud clapping.
2. She can't find a treat you put directly in front of her face, though she intuitively knows if you're making spaghetti or have entered the house with fried food.
3. Owing to loss of depth perception, she jumps off of furniture like a flying squirrel (limbs out wide; a leap of faith).
4. If you call for her, she turns her head every which way and then goes to my Mom.
5. She leaves the room if she senses the presence of: a fly, nail clippers, nail file, scissors, or my neice.
6. She has taken to napping under the dining room table and inevitably hits her head on the table rungs when she gets up.
7. If you pick her up, she goes Tasmanian Devil on you.
8. If Dad puts his left hand in the air, she barks at him like a mad thing.
9. Ditto if he starts to fall asleep.
10. If you ask for her paw, with her head down she looks up and to the side at you, and you stop asking.
11. She paces from the livingroom to the bedrooms and back about 100 times a day.
12. She has to go outside and get lost in the yard every half hour.
13. After 16 years she finally discovered the fire hydrant at the edge of our yard. It's always been there.
14. She still sleeps on my bed, but only until 3:45 a.m. Then she goes out to her own.
15. She still runs around in circles like a crazy puppy... she just does it for no reason, runs into more stuff, and passes out sooner.
