I took Red into the Cambridge Valley Vet this afternoon, the clinic has done a wonderful job of keeping Red healthy and working every day, herding sheep and doing his therapy work. Two years ago, he was stomped on his spine by Chloe, our pony, and a few months ago, he nearly done from four different tick borne infections. He also has arthritis.

It has been suggested that he needs Glucosamine supplements for his joints, almost every day I have had for years has been on these supplements when they age – Izzy, Rose, Lenore, Frieda – and I have never seen any effect whatsoever from using them on my dogs.

When Red was injured by Chloe, Dr. Fariello rolled out a menu of newer treatments – laser, acupuncture and massage. All three have been very and visibly effective and keeping his joints fluid and his energy level high. He also has cataracts in one eye, but I am not prepared to see a veterinary ophthalmologist, cataracts are common in dogs, I have strong ethical reservations about major surgery on animals. And he seems to be seeing clearly.

Dr. Fariello says she was pleased by her exam today, we took him outside and she watched him do a number outruns. I love plotting animal health strategies with Suzanne, she is open, she listens and is willing to step outside the box. She has kept Red healthy and active.

She said she did notice some stiffness in his two rear legs and right shoulder when we took him outside to run. She recommends two weeks of laser treatments (the first began today with Nicole, above, Red cuddling as always) and then some acupuncture. Then we’ll take a break and see how it goes.

If he’s fine, we’ll stop for awhile.

Otherwise, we will continue some of these treatments. Dr. Fariello has awakened me to the value of preventive medication for dogs, something I never tried before. It has worked beautifully on Red, and with luck and skill and attention, will keep him working with sheep and people who need him for a long time.

Dr. Fariello thinks Red is doing very well, and she wants to keep it that way. She went over these options carefully with me, as she always does and we are on the same page, as we almost always are.

In the Spring, Red came close to dying, and this reminded me to think ahead about his health, not to react. I have strong feelings about emotionalizing dogs, as you know, and I will not spend thousands and thousands of dollars on them while so many people in the world have no health care at all.

I don’t disrespect anyone who feels differently, many of my friends will spend anything and everything on their pets. And unlike so many dog lovers who message me every day, I don’t tell other people what to do, or offer or consider medical advice to strangers on social media.

But to me, that is a loss of perspective, so I am grateful to be keeping Red healthy in an appropriate and proportionate way. It is not loving to subject dogs to human ideas about health care, at least not to me.

(Thursday, we’re having Gus neutered. Dropping him off in the morning, picking him up late in the same day. Will cost about $400. They want him to wear a hood for a week (not likely) and be in a crate or on a leash for that same time frame (not likely either.)