Surprisingly not-so-research-related update post

Some long time readers may find a pattern here; when the weather gets bad and cold and humid, Nokkaelaimet becomes inactive. That is unfortunately something I can't help much. I have a chronic illness that gets worse during the fall, and due to the climate change (if you still wondered if it's true, welcome to Finland to experience it) fall lasts FOREVER here. Partly because of this and partly because of work and studying I haven't been able to focus too much on researching matters I have been asked about. Instead of any properly researched in-depth article, this time you'll get pictures of our every day life and some casual talk.

My illness doesn't really have a name or a code, because this kind of a disease has yet to be properly studied. My situation was caused by breathing toxin and mold while working in an old building, and unfortunately while my condition gets better gradually, I can never completely heal and I developed some chronic issues because of that. This, along with work related stress, studying and some sort of a mental breakdown have slowed my researching down a bit. I have tried to update my Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/nokkaelaimet/) quite often, so head over there to have some pictures of fancy raw food. Also, as I have said before, you are free to use the comment section here and there to tell me if there is something you'd like to read about. 

So, to that casual talk, then!

Not so long ago we had two vet visits. 
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The first one was about my oldest ferret, Mr. Hittavainen. Hittavainen has been having some respiratory problems I wanted to have checked. Now, ferrets are considered exotic pets and not many vets can take care of them, but our vet tried the best she could and the problem itself is something that works somewhat same no matter what species.

Turned out Mr. Hittavainen is a completely healthy old man, if a bit plump, and that his age is most likely softening the walls of his air tubes, making it hard to breath sometimes. The situation has gotten better gradually, and I am very happy about that. Weather being more chilly sure works for Hittavainen, unlike it does for me.

The vet did say there are possibilities like cancer and tumor near lungs, but as there is no cure for either of the problems we decided it was best to care for him just like before and make sure he lives a happy, healthy ferret elder life as long as he enjoys it. After all, taking all kinds of tests and RTG and what-not's would, in this case, only be for me. Hittavainen doesn't gain anything from them, so I don't see any point in bothering him with those. 

Mrs. Aloofness visited the vet, also. both to get vaccinated and to have a lump on her side checked. The lump was diagnosed to be a lipoma, in all likelihood, and completely harmless. We celebrated these good news with getting her a new set of leg wrappers for the fall (I assume she might have appreciated something to eat more, but what can I say? It does get muddy around here).

Like I said before, I have tried to be more active in Instagram and post pictures of our raw food diet there. I am happy to say our most beloved pet accessory store brought new meats for sale, and some of those meats are chopped meats instead of minced meats. This is a great change and I have enjoyed feeding my dogs something they can gulp, chew and bite. We have also found a couple of products we can use both boneless and with bone. I am not comfortable feeding Miss Dominance full bones, but she has responded well to ground bone and it seems to fit her digestive system better than calcium products, so we have moved further away from powders and more towards natural even in there! All my dogs like ground bone products, even though Mrs. Aloofness sometimes gets full raw chicken necks to crush just because she seems to enjoy it and I always have some around for Armo Svensson, my younger ferret.

Nothing good without something bad, unfortunately. These humid fall days have made Mr. Arthritis very sore and he needs lost of massaging and restricting of too heavy exercise as well as pain killers during the worst days to cope. This is something I know passes eventually, but it's a grim reminder of the fact he is getting older and older. 

I hope winter arrives soon, so he could once again enjoy exercising like he loves to do.

I think that's it for today. I have a post about crating coming soon; another one of those sensitive topics nobody really talks about but everyone has an opinion on. I have seen both the good and the bad sides of having to crate a dog for health purposes, and I think busting some myths about crating could serve a purpose. Not because I think crating is something everyone should feel comfortable doing every day, but because sometimes there might be situation in which you need to crate a dog. When that happens, it's beneficial to know some facts about the effects of crating, may they be good or bad. 

Till that day!