Riley here… It is official as my test results are in. My ACH came back as normal but my thyroid results indicate that I’m low compared to the standard. The upside is that the medication is simply one small tablet two times a day. Dad gives me my meds in a piece of cheese. Yummy, yummy cheese. I am feeling better already. Roxie is also benefitting from my two times a day cheese treat as Dad gives her cheese (no pill though). Dad says that this is done so that I don’t catch on that I am being medicated. Long story short, I don’t really care as I am getting cheese twice a day. Happy days. I’ll continue to update you as things progress. Later!

My Friday blood test results are back, sorta. Dr. Carol spoke to Dad this morning and gave him what results were available. My ACH results are A-OK. I’m good to go in that regards. However, my thyroid test results are incomplete. Seems that it takes between three and five days for the lab to complete the testing. Since my blood was drawn on Friday morning, the lab still has some leeway in getting the results to Dr. Carol. Still, overall things are looking good. I promise to post a more complete update as soon as I know. I might even let Roxie post her thoughts about this situation. Bye for now!

Riley here....Dad got an email from the people who own Kassi, my sister. To be honest, I didn’t know I had a sister. Mom and Dad had never mentioned her to me and it has been a long time since I was at Grandma Eileen’s house where I was born.

As with all news in this world, I learned of Kassi’s existence because of bad news. Her loving owners had found out that Kassi wasn’t feeling well and took her to their vet. It turns out that she was ill but her condition is treatable. And so she is doing well with her treatment. I understand that she is back to her old self and is frisky as a puppy. But her owners were concerned that maybe I might suffer from the same ailment. That was the reason for the email to Dad.

Dad took me to my vet, Dr. Carol. I wasn’t happy to go as Dad left Roxie at home. She didn’t understand why she couldn’t come along. I wanted her to be with me to bolster my spirits. Turns out that I don’t have what Kassi has so that is good news. But Dr. Carol found that I had unbalanced electrolytes. So I am going in for another blood test this Friday. Dr. Carol assured Dad that if I still have the imbalance it is an easily treated condition.

Out of all this business, the joyful news is that I have a sister. Will I ever see her other than her picture? Probably not as I live on the West Coast and Kassi lives in the Mid-West. I’d like to think that Mom and Dad would visit but it is not likely. It is a long way to go for the family and their two Klee Kai. I gotta bring Roxie don’t you know. I have posted the picture of Kassi that was sent to Dad. Kassi is so pretty and she really does resemble me. The big difference is that I have a very pronounced mane of fur around my neck. My facial markings are a little darker as well but the family resemblance is there.

I’ll post the outcome of my tests and let you know what is going on. Until then, keep those good thoughts coming. Bye for now!

Kassi with her crown

OK now that we are somewhat up to date, I need to jump back in time to the month of April. We attended the Pet Expo held at the Orange County Fairgrounds. We had a wonderful turnout. Riley and I were so happy to be around other AKK. Riley was especially thrilled as he is a real social hound. Between the general public petting us and the other dogs, we were exhausted by the end of the day. We totally sacked out on the trip back home.

Check out the photos of the Pet Expo on the link to the left titled Pet Expo 2011. I hope you enjoy them as much as we do.

Now that everyone was reunited, we found out that the two cats, Woody and Tabitha were less than pleased to share Steven’s room with him. It seems that the two of them had come to believe that his room had become their domain. Woody slept at the head of the bed against Steven’s pillow while Tabitha slept at the foot of the bed. Not a lot of room for Steven! We Klee Kai of course stayed out of Steven’s room as the cats were very protective of their perceived domain. We could come in and visit but don’t think about staying!

Steven soon got both cats adjusted to sharing with him and for the most part all is well. We still don’t really stay in his room much but that is OK as we prefer to look out the front living room window. Watching the comings and goings on our street is more fun.

Summer is fast approaching. With the change of seasons, both of us are starting to “blow” our coats. On me, that means mostly the undercoat near my rear legs and tail is falling out. I look somewhat ratty but it will pass. Riley on the other hand has a massive amount of undercoat all over. He is dropping fur everywhere. Dad has brushed us several times and continues to be amazed at the amount of fur that we are shedding.

Interesting note is the color of my undercoat. It is a soft gray and is pretty in color. I bet that the local birds who are building nests in the trees around the yard would love to score some of it. Those baby birds would be born into the lap of soft, cushy luxury.

That is all for now. Goodbye from Burbank, the Media City!