Why should you follow this blog? What makes it unique? Well that is an excellent set of questions. We try to post some fun stuff on the blog and lots of pictures of Lucy (the title character of the blog) and an occasional video or two. We write about things that matter to dog lovers and especially boxer dog lovers. So, here are the details of who Lucy the White Boxer Dog is...

Lucy the white boxer dog has been in our family for a little over six years now. She is not truly white but rather what is referred to as a "check boxer" due to her spots. She is not an albino! She has brown eyes and splashes of black on her in addition to her spots. She is a full blooded boxer. She is also extremely healthy with the exception of having a sensitive stomach.

Want to learn more about Lucy and the things we write about her, follow her blog. Better yet, check out some of the older posts. There is a lot of information on the care of boxers and dogs in general... We look forward to see your comments on some of the posts... Happy blogging to all!


Monday, October 20, 2014

Our Middle Aged Boxer...

 
      Lucy on one of our many hikes. 

Well, Lucy is now 9 years old and she is starting to show signs of being middle aged. While she still has a lot of heart, she is starting to slow down just a bit. I think this is mostly because of joint discomfort in her hips. 

In an effort to allow her more mobility and relieve joint pain, we've been very careful in helping her maintain a healthy weight. She is now down to a healthier 65 lbs. versus the 78 lbs. that she was at. In addition to weight management, we've put her on a glucosamine supplement. Before we started on the supplement, she would sometimes drag her rear back right leg. This got our immediate attention. The glucosamine seems to have helped her regain quite a bit of flexibility. 

We've also placed her on a daily doggy aspirin routine. She gets a dose of 160 mg. aspirin twice a day. One tablet in the morning and one before she goes to bed at night. This too seems to help her flexibility. I say doggie aspirin because it comes from the Vet and tastes like liver. Yes, I tried one! Not bad!!! Even the glucosamine has a nice taste - if you are a dog! 

Since we live in fairly hilly terrain, we are very careful in where we take her on our hikes together. We stop a little more often than we use to in order for her to cool down and take a break. I learned this the hard way one day when we over did it just a bit and Lucy insisted that we either stop or I carry her home. I did a bit of both. I think she got overly excited in the first part of walk and over did it on a rather warm day. That leads me to another topic...

Boxers aren't equipped with the best cooling system. Due to their shorter snouts they can overheat in a hurry if you aren't careful. We tend to pick cooler times of the day to hike with Lucy. The cooler the better. You can see in the picture we also keep a coat handy for comfort on the cooler mornings and evenings. 

If you would like more information on the supplement and aspirin, drop me a note and I'll be happy share where you can find what we are giving Lucy. Until next time, cioa!