No Easy Way To Say This - I Have Canine Dementia

Dear friends, for a few months now, Mommy and I, and our small family, have been dealing with a difficult reality that we've been reluctant to share. Not sure why. Perhaps we've been in denial, or maybe it was the fear that you'd think I'd lost my fun-loving Pixel ways. I'm still me, and Istill have those joyful times, but I'll get to my point... I have doggy dementia, medically termed "canine cognitive dysfunction syndrome", and I was officially diagnosed a few months ago. This is in addition to my seizures, neurological issues, liver issues,  and arthritis.

I was showing a lot of signs Mommy tried to explain away, but by December it just became overwhelming for both of us. I get lost in corners, under side tables and in the fridge door, I eat odd objects I shouldn't and sometimes I forget who Mommy is and where I am and I get scared, or I zone out and scare Mommy.
Mommy is doing everything she can for me, and she's keeping me as safe as possible, figuring out new ways to keep me out of "troubling situations". She works hard not to let me see her frustration but it's heartbreaking for her, I know it is, it's hard for me too. I'm only 10 years old.

Luckily there is a medicine for canine cognitive dysfunction called Anypril that we are trying for me. It helped my Uncle Happydog 5 years ago, so we insisted on  trying it as soon as we knew for sure I had it. I've been taking it almost a month now, and Mommy thinks it is starting to help me. I'm having more moments of clarity, less of the "lost look" in my eyes, more initiated playtime. I am also initiating more interactions with her. She was crying a lot over it, but taking action helped her a lot. Our family is so wonderful and helpful as we navigate this diagnosis. Mommy has  found a very helpful Facebook group for pet parents who have dogs with canine cognitive dysfunction and they are are a great support as well. 

I promise Mommy and I will be talking and sharing a lot more about this topic, our diagnosis and what you can do if this disease affects you.

As my friends and faithful readers, I just didn't want to keep you in the dark any longer. It's a dreadful disease, but no one has to go through it alone. And it doesn't have to mean our fun or adventures end. In fact, Mommy and I are taking this as an opportunity to do more, seek out exciting pet job opportunities with the blog, go to the beach, travel, and just have more fun. I hope you will have more fun too! Life is short, and you must seek to enjoy it with those you love every moment that you can.
Mommy and I have made the following  pact, shook paw in hand on it, and we'd like you to do the same with us. It's simple really, and it is inspired by Mommy Jenny's favorite composer and pianist, Yanni. She got to see him in concert and briefly interview him and hang out with his musicians twice in the 90s. He said the following words right before playing her all time favorite song called "Until the Last Moment". Follow the link to watch Yanni play it like she saw it then.

"Sometimes we get caught up in our troubles and our problems and we let life slip away, but life is precious, all of life, and one must try to take in as much of it as possible." ~ Yanni
So, let's all make a pact to take in as much of the joyful moments of life as possible, both big and small. Don't let life slip away. It can happen far too easily. I love you my friends, and I am always here to share a joyful moment with you! 

With much love, 

Pixel

Pixel's 7 Faces of a Happy Trick Dog - Playing with Mommy

Mommy and I love playing together and practicing my tricks. It keeps me young and happy. I do for her without her even asking, I love doing them so much!

I always make the funniest faces. We've picked the top 7 from our latest photo shoot. Which ones are your favorite?

1. Calm Pixel

2. Smiling Pixel

3. Super Smiling Pixel

4. Talking Pixel

5. Cheesy Pixel

6. Action Pixel

7. Yummy Treats Pixel

Learning and practicing tricks and commands is always fun and stress free for me and Mommy. I'm 10 years old now, so practicing these tricks will help my mind and emotional well being. And of course, it's part of our continued bonding. If you do tricks & teach/practice commands with your pet, always make sure it's stress free, so you both will have the best time together like me & Mommy. Happy playing! 

Do you like doing or learning tricks with your pet? Did I make funny face that you liked? Leave me a comment with your thoughts. 

Apologies & Explanations for the Long Absence from my Blog

My dear friends, I want to apologize to you and explain a bit as to why I have been gone for so long from my blog. Pull up a seat and let me make you my favorite meal of chicken and rice with pumpkin blueberry puree as we visit. I'll explain as best I can the reasons for my long absence. It reads a bit like a "Lifetime for Women" movie... 

Let me start by assuring you that Mommy Jenny and I have thought about you almost every day, wondering how you are, if you think of me, and missing our interactions. Mommy and I missed doing posts, and longed for the day when we could truly get back to doing what we love best: writing fun, entertaining, educational, and informative posts and stories you love. Whether you are new to the blog, or have following for years, I owe it to you to share the reasons why I disappeared.

A little over a year ago, our family went through a traumatic event that started when Grammy's husband of 35 years abandoned her and our family in the middle of the night. It was a shock to say the least, but then it was a terrible battle after that for Grammy and our family. Mommy was so stressed all the time as she she helped Grammy and Auntie work through it all. Everyone was trying to deal with the aftermath he caused and the many struggles. It seemed endless. He also abandoned my now sweet, beautiful  little sister Jellie, whom I adopted immediately as though it was planned. The ONLY good thing in mine and Mommy's life at that time was sweet little Jellie, whom we had to protect. It took time to feel like writing or posting anything, but I did a couple of posts trying to keep things going on the blog and in my social media pages. I was honored to be asked to work with a fantastic high end dog food campaign during this time. It was fun to have Jellie be a part of it, and I loved the work as always, but after that things got worse.Now, come down here, closer to me, so I can whisper this next part to you...it's a hard thing to have to admit. For certain reasons, we no longer felt safe in our own home. It was necessary to move to a new place and start a new life, several states away from where the pain, uncertainty and memories were.
Mommy, Auntie and Grammy started the hardcore search for a new home in our chosen secret location, and Mommy visited a couple of "hopeful" new houses for us. It was a hard process. The blog suffered because of Mommy's full time work, the "struggle" and the new home search. Another blow to our family of women was that Peanut Pumpkin Pie got desperately ill and then died during the height of the struggle. It was the most tragic loss! We loved her so much, and she was only 11 years old. We were all devastated. I then became the eldest dog girl of the family, so I tried hard to take care of everyone, comfort and be there for every human and dog. So with all this going on,  I let the blog go and just focused on my family, bringing as much love, comfort and joy as I could. 
Sadly, we also lost our beloved 17 year old cat  Meow Meow the last week in August of this year too. She was a wonderful kitty and we miss her sweet ways. 

Finally, after what seemed like forever, it happened. At 4:30am one morning, Grammy found THE house on Realtor.com. All of us fell in LOVE! It was perfect in every way we needed. Mommy called our realtor, he raced to get an appointment to see it that day. He called Mommy while standing IN the house, gave it his full approval, and by that night, we had a contract going. When Mommy drove down to visit it, after just 5 minutes inside the house she felt like she was home. Finally!
Then came the packing, the move, the 3-humans-and-5-dogs-in-2-overly-packed-cars trip down (which took 59 days...okay, maybe only 3 or 4 days), the move in and then a hurricane. Yes, we arrived at our new home just a couple of days before a big hurricane threatened it. But we survived, the house survived, and we are now making our new house a cozy home. All of this took me away from my beloved blog friends, and from you. But the good news is, not only is the meal I made you ready to eat, but my little blogging paws are ready to start typing away at these keys once more. So, please dig in to the good food, the friendly smiles, and the new stories I'll be sharing. Just bear with me as I get back to writing, sharing my adventures, my product reviews, and my health articles for dogs. Though we might not have been writing and posting awesome photos for you as of late, Mommy and I have been making plans to expand our blog. And remember my new sister Jellie? Well, this little 7 lb Chihuahua mix beauty has plans too, and will be a regular part of my blog!
So, hold onto your hats, there's lots more coming from Pixel Blue Eyes and her Tails of Adventure!!
I Love You!
Pixel

P.S. If you've been through anything like what I've talked about today, please feel free to share in a comment. Believe me, I understand the struggles of abandonment, house buying and hurricanes, and Mommy Jenny would be glad to talk if you need a human connection or advice. 

"Leave It To The Experts" For Safe, Great Tasting Pet Food #WeBelieveInNB

Leave It To the Experts
 

I hear people say all the time, "Don't worry about that, Leave It To the Experts". We live in a hurried, worried society. As a highly engaged, interactive pet parent, Mommy has told me there are so many things to be worried about and try to figure out when it comes to me and my needs. Safe, nutritious pet food made with premium, high quality ingredients is a big concern for her, as well as for most pet parents. Thanks to Natural Balance® and their Limited Ingredient Diet, Mommy doesn't have to worry about how safe and nutritious my dog food is for me. Natural Balance has experts at all levels of the dog food process, so she can buy it with confidence and is rest assured I am eating well.

This post is sponsored by Natural Balance and the BlogPaws Professional Pet Blogger Network. I am being compensated for helping to share my thoughts about why I believe in Natural Balance as a quality food for me as a dog. "Pixel Blue Eyes: Her Tails of Adventure" only shares information I feel is relevant to my readers. Natural Balance is not responsible for the content of this article.

My Journey With Natural Balance

I started eating delicious tasting Natural Balance back in November. A few of my dog friends had told me at the dog park how good it was, and they really had my mouth watering at the thought. Then Mommy heard about their high standards for Premium Quality Ingredients and how important the Safety of their Products were to the company. We both decided we wanted to work with them and give them a dedicated try. Over the last 4+ months, we've had a fantastic journey with Natural Balance. The road has been paved with learning and trust, and filled with yummy food!

Heaven on a Shelf

That first shopping trip to purchase Natural Balance's Limited Ingredient Diet dog food was not only an eye opener, but it was so much fun!! I had no idea they had so variety for each recipe to choose from. As you know, I love sweet potatoes and chicken, so when I saw that they had a specific small breed L.I.D. recipe called "Sweet Potato and Chicken Formula", I thought I'd died and gone to dog food shopping heaven!! I had Mommy get some of everything so I could sample it all, haha! And I've been a super happy girl ever since. If you haven't already, make sure you read about our first experience shopping for Natural Balance dog food, and don't forget to read follow up blog post #2 about building confidence at mealtime and post #3 about showing your pet you love them with great food. The entire series is a dog food love story worth reading and repeating!

Is My Food Safe to Eat? You Bet!

Mommy has learned that Natural Balance goes above and beyond for pet food safety. They don't just use high quality ingredients and then put it all together in a manufactured dog food and send it out the door. Natural Balance has a rigorous 9-point safety testing protocol that every single batch of kibble (as well as soft food & treats) has to pass. The 9 potential dangers they test for includes Melamine, Salmonella, and Cyanuric Acid (a major culprit during the 2007 pet food recalls). Natural Balance Pet Foods doesn't want to leave anything to chance for pets like me, or for any one of your precious pets. That is a real comfort for Mommy because she treasures me more than anything!

Premium Quality Ingredients

Here's one of my favorite reasons to love Natural Balance: the Premium Quality Ingredients . The Natural Balance L.I.D. line of pet food is absolutely delicious, and perfect for pets like me who have food issues and need limited ingredient diets. L.I.D. means just that...Limited Ingredient Diet, so you can be sure there's no fillers, no artificial flavors, no 'by-product' meals (I mean, who knows what that even is!), and definitely no wheat, corn or soy, which can be high allergens for pets. Natural Balance L.I.D. pet foods use single source proteins (such as chicken and salmon), and only the tastiest, most nutritious ingredients (such as sweet potatoes, peas, brown rice, to formulate their food and treats. My friends at Natural Balance have perfected making such a great tasting kibble with so few ingredients that I stand with my paws on the kitchen counter shelf at every mealtime and "sing" to Mommy for my food! (Can you see me howling out a food love song in this photo?)

Chat With The Experts at Natural Balance

With everything we've learned about Natural Balance Pet Food over the last few months, we're 100% confident that when it comes to a safe dog food, we really CAN
"Leave It To The Experts."
Visit Natural Balance to learn about the 4 pillars of the Natural Balance Buy with Confidence™ Promise. Which Pillar is most important to you for the health and happiness of your cat or dog? Leave me a comment below or on Facebook and tell me which one you chose.

Remember, you can actually talk live with a Natural Balance nutritional expert
during the day by  selecting  the Chat link on any of their pages.

Smiling From Ear to Ear

Go ahead friends, give Natural Balance a try, just like I did. I know your pet will love it, and YOU will love the confidence and security that they bring knowing you are feeding your pet tasty, nutritious and SAFE food that has been tested for quality. My Pixel promise is that you and your pet will be smiling with joy from ear to ear, just like me!
This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Natural Balance. The opinions and text are all mine.