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During my April college speaking tour, I read “The Art of Racing in the Rain” by Garth Stein. It’s a novel about a golden retriever, Enzo, and his race-car-driving human. Enzo reminded me of Max, a golden retriever Deb and I had as our first dog after we got married. Yes, all dog books and […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4735: This photo shows Nellie keeping me company last fall on Vancouver Island. When Nellie joined our family, she was a skinny rescue dog, weighing just 42 pounds. She also had what appeared to be a burn on one of her legs. Yesterday, I wrote about Annie, a rescue dog, […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4702: And suddenly, Nellie’s body stiffened. The crisp morning air carried the distant chirping of birds, and the exhilarating scent of fresh deer poop teased her senses. Yet at that moment, her eyes were fixated on the one creature that possessed the audacity to disrupt her joyful game of ball […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4700: Here at the Essen Wildlife Refuge—the 25 acres at the edge of the mountains in Montana that Deb and I protect from hunters, loggers, and four-wheelers—we have always had a consistent population of moose. Sometimes we only see their scat and tracks; other times we will see them in-person […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4680: Nellie, ears flapping! She’s now damn close to being just as fast as she was pre-bionic left-rear leg (surgery to remove her cranial cruciate ligament, refit the bone in her knee—all held together with a metal plate and six screws). I still cringe when she makes sharp cuts to […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4670: Now that Nellie’s bionic left-rear leg is totally healed, we are back to all our old pre-surgery routines. One of those routines is a vigorous game of keep-away each morning, where Nellie will grab a stick and run at me full speed, only to dodge my grasp for the […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4663: “Come on Dad! My bionic leg feels great. Let’s play!” *For those that don’t know about Nellie’s bionic leg: She had TPLO surgery to remove the cranial cruciate ligament in her left-rear leg, refit the bone in her knee, and hold everything together with a metal plate and six […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4653: Nellie is back! As many of you know, Nellie had TPLO surgery on her left rear leg on November 1. That surgery involved removing her cranial cruciate ligament, refitting the bone in her knee, and holding everything together with a metal plate and six screws. It’s her “bionic leg.” […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4644: Nellie loves routines, and with her it only takes once to establish a precedent. After she had TPLO surgery on November 1st, to get her bionic left-rear leg, she would get me up three and four times a night to go for walks in the forest. I was happy […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4638: I blindly shot this photo through my legs this morning. I thought about straightening it in my photo program, but I think it’s funnier tilted. As many of you know, Nellie had TPLO surgery on her left rear leg on November 1. That surgery involved removing her cranial cruciate […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4635: It was so much fun watching Marc-André Fleury become the second winningest goalie in NHL history last night, leading the Minnesota Wild to a 5 to 0 shutout of the New York Islanders. Pulling for Fleury is so much better than pulling for assholes, such as football’s Aaron Rodgers. […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4630: Last night my wife, Deb, pointed out that Eve and her daughter, Lara Flynn Boa, were doing their “two-headed snake thing.” So I went upstairs to grab my camera, and then our dog, Nellie, decided to help with the photo session by placing her head between the lens and […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4627: Deb and I spent a week during the falls of 2021 and 2022 visiting Montana’s American Prairie. Each time we rented a yurt, and it felt like having our own cabin on the reserve. We skipped 2023, because we didn’t want the place to lose its special feeling. We […]
Marty’s photos of the day #4617-4618: Yesterday Nellie had her final appointment with the surgeon who created her bionic left-rear leg. What you are looking at are two X-rays from that appointment. The first photo shows a view of five of the six screws inserted into Nellie’s leg. TPLO surgery (Doggie Tommy John) involves removing […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4613: My Christmas weekend so far: Deb (wife), Nellie (dog), and I live on a private gravel road in the mountains of Montana. We have three neighbors above us, and the climb to our houses on that road is steep and often icy in the winter. Our two newest neighbors […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4611: Earlier this week, Deb, Nellie, and I watched “The Book Club: The Next Chapter” (where the characters travel to Italy). The movie was good, but not great. Mostly Deb and I would take turns blurting out, “We were there!” and Nellie would bark out, “Where are the dogs?” So […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4610: Seven-and-a-half weeks have passed since Nellie got her new bionic left-rear leg (TPLO surgery to remove a ligament, reshape/refit the bone, and install a metal plate with 6 screws). Nellie’s recovery is coming along on schedule. She doesn’t limp anymore when outside, but still limps sometimes inside—especially after a […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4605: Six-and-a-half weeks have passed since Nellie got her new bionic left-rear leg (CCL removed, knee refitted, and a metal plate with six screws installed). Deb and I have one more week of sleeping with her on the pullout couch mattress placed on the great room floor before moving up […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4586: As many of you know, Nellie had TPLO surgery on her left-rear leg four weeks ago. She’s doing great, but won’t be fully recovered until sometime in January. Until then, the veterinarian’s instructions are to not let Nellie climb stairs, run, or jump. That means keeping Nellie on a […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4583: We are three-and-a-half weeks into the eight-to-twelve weeks of Nellie’s recovery from TPLO surgery on her left rear leg. The worst is over, at least for Nellie. As you can see, much of the hair has grown back on her leg (which had been shaved clean), so she doesn’t […]
