$141.25 [Kong Squeaker Ball to the Eyeball]

You know those 2" Kong Squeaker Balls that Betelgeuse is so fond of [previous post here]?  Well, it turns out that she's not so fond of them being kicked at her eyeball.

On Tuesday night, she took a Kong Squeaker Ball to the eyeball, yelped in pain, ran to me for comfort, and spent the rest of the evening being pathetic and refusing to open her left eye.  Yesterday morning, she was opening her eye, but still squinting, and the vet recommended that I bring her in to check for any scratches on her cornea.  Even though I could have waited to see if the eye improved on its own, I kept thinking about the beagle I met in South Carolina who lost his eye after being hit by a golf ball (oh geez, can you imagine?), so I just went ahead and made the vet appointment.

I was home sick yesterday with a gnarly cold, and my boyfriend had taken the car to his work, so I just packed some tissues, threw Betel in a bag, and hopped on the subway to our vet's office in DUMBO ($2.25).  The veterinarian wet Betel's eye with a stain that glowed yellow in the black light ($35.00) and examined her eye for scratches ($65.00).  Her eye looked just fine in the black light.  No corneal scratches for my little raver.

Betel also got her overdue Bordetella Injection Booster ($35.00).  (I'm helping my veterinarian pay off her student loans.)

For our trip home, I remembered that we could take the East River Ferry ($4.00) back to Greenpoint.  I wish I had thought of it for the initial leg of the trip -- it's faster than the subway and way more fun.  It was Betel's first time on a boat, and she did great.  She is so calm and patient when commuting in a bag (doesn't matter if it's a train, plane, or whatever).  Everyone riding the ferry wanted to talk about Betelgeuse riding the ferry.  She needs business cards.

When we got back to the apartment three hours and 141.25 dollars later, Lulu was so unbelievably happy to see us.  The two pups are rarely apart these days, and I'm pretty sure Lulu thought we were never coming back.

Even though it turned out that nothing was wrong with Betelgeuse's eye, I don't regret taking her to the veterinarian.  It's kind of why I work at a law firm -- so I don't have to make difficult decisions like whether I will take my dog to the vet for a busted eyeball or pay my electricity bill.  (Although that past isn't very far behind me.)  I'm just glad she's okay.

And FYI -- she's still into the Kong Squeaker Balls, even the pink one that hit her in the eye.  She's awesome.

$271.99 [Betelgeuse's Holiday Wish List]

Next up:  Betelgeuse's Wish List.

*          *          *

Dear Santa,

I'm not a complicated dog, but I like what I like, and you know what I like because I growled it in your ear while I sat on your lap.

Clockwise from top left: 10" Aerobie Superdisc, discussed here ($10) | American Kennel Club Hedgehog Dog Toy w. Squeaker, AKC toys discussed here ($5) | Chuckit! The Whistler, Small, 2" diameter, 2-pack, discussed here ($7) | Wagwear Boat Canvas Carrier, Large, because I like being in a bag ($130).

[A note from the author:  Nothing new here.  I was surprised to see that a replacement inflatable playball did not make the wish list.]

Clockwise from top left:  Block of stinky cheese ($10) | Doggles, assorted colors, size SM ($20) | Dirty sock because the only thing better than you taking your sock off and throwing it on the floor is when you take your other sock off and throw it on the floor ($2) | Satin Baby Blanket with cotton filling, 33" x 33" to cover me in the car and protect me from the sun, covered bridges, trucks, etc. ($55)

[A note from the author.  Two themes emerge from these gifts:  (1) protection from the sun and (2) things that stink.

On the first:  Betel hates that big yellow ball in the sky.  Maybe it's because she spent the first four months of her life in a cage with artificial lighting or maybe it's because she has a big fur coat and gets hot easily.  But whatever the reason, she hates the sun.  When we ride in the car, she gets anxious and sometimes even sick unless and until we cover her with something that blocks out all light (for example, our coats or a dark scarf but not a light-colored t-shirt or towel).  Then she lays down and goes to sleep for the rest of the ride.  She's like a parrot.

If nothing else is available, she'll even try to hide under Lulu. 

It would be nice to have something that is not one of our articles of clothing (or our other dog) to keep in the car for these purposes.  The satin side of a baby blanket would be nice and cool for her, but I think something like the Sleepypod Cloudpuff blanket ($30) would work fine too.  Doggles are hilarious, but I'm not sure she would put up with them.

On the second:  Betel is just gross.  She likes eating her own eye goo and cat poop and hanging out with socks and her favorite treat is the stinkiest cheese in the world.  It's just who she is.] 

And, Mr. Kringle, last but not least:

A bag of 140 replacement squeakers ($32.99), my favorite.  Thanks in advance.  I will leave you some dog food.  Oh, and NO CLOTHES PLS THX THAT SUX.  Also please shrink our cat.

<3,
Betel

$0.02 [2011 Halloween Costume Watch]

The weather has cooled this weekend.  You know what that means?  Halloween is right around the corner.  Well, not really, but we have been thinking about Halloween costumes since November 1 of last year, so for us, Halloween is right around the corner.

Last year, Kyler and Betelgeuse dressed up as a chef and a lobster.  They were runners-up for the best "Group" costume in the District Dog Halloween Parade and Costume Contest in McGolrick Park here in Greenpoint, Brooklyn.  See commentary on their costume ("absolutely adorable") and the winners here.

~$3.50 [Deflated Playball]

We found this purple 10" Hedstrom inflatable playball in an alley near the East River in Greenpoint, Brooklyn.  Betelgeuse took to it right away.

[Video]

We could never tell if she loved it or hated it.  It was hilarious.  For the last two months, she would bounce this ball off her paws or nose and chase it around the backyard, yapping furiously.  Until last Friday. 

Our latest and greatest doggie houseguest, Bella, arrived on Friday.  And she brought along her giant pitbull jaws and 50 lbs. of muscle.  Within fifteen minutes of her arrival, the reign of the purple ball was over.

We didn't buy the first one, so I shouldn't complain about having to buy the second one.  Except that I will anyway.  These balls are available for purchase for about three or four dollars in big-box and grocery stores throughout most of America.  But Brooklyn is not most of America, and these wire racks are just not going to fit in a bodega.

Unfortunately, on the Internet, the smallest quantity I can find is a 24-pack for $45.99.  Even though the idea of Betelgeuse in the backyard with 24 of these balls is amazing, the reality is a little nutty.  So we'll have to wait for our next trip out of New York to replace the ball.  And then we'll have to try remember to put it up when Bella's teeth come over.

$24.24 [Balls]

Betelgeuse's favorite past-time is fetch. You don't even have to command "fetch," just throw a ball, frisbee, or toy, or even shoot a dart from a Nerf gun, and she will bring it back to you. That is not to say that she doesn't have favorite items to fetch, including a favorite Frisbee (because she does -- a 10" Aerobie Superdisc -- the subject of a future post) and favorite types of balls. This particular post is about balls.



Two in particular:
(1) Kong Squeaker Balls, size small (2" diameter), which are soft tennis balls with a squeaker inside. These are her ultimate favorites -- great for catching (bet you didn't know Betelgeuse could catch a 2" ball!), playing fetch inside, or even just for hanging out and squeaking; and
(2) Chuckit! Ultra Balls, size small (2" diameter), which is a hard rubber, high bounce ball. These are great for playing fetch in the open expanses of grass in McGolrick and McCarren Parks because they bounce and keep traveling and don't get waterlogged like the Kong Squeakers.

Today, $24.24 to expand the second category of the Betelgeuse ball arsenal with two goals in mind: (A) preventing ball loss when playing in the parks after nightfall (we've had many a casualty) and (B) throwing the ball even farther with less effort.  In two days (thx, Amazon Prime), Betelgeuse will get her mind blown upon the arrival of two new Chuckit! Max Glow Balls, two new Chuckit! Whistler Balls, and her very own Chuckit! Mini Launcher! I'm not sure which ball choice will result in fewer lost balls: the glow-in-the-dark ball, which she can presumably see, or the whistler ball, which she can hear. Maybe neither because I will be launching them so far that they will land outside of the park and bounce away.

In any event, this will not be the last of my dollars spent on balls -- at least as long as the ball-stealing dogs are alive and well (Roxy, I'm looking at you on this one) and we haven't solved the mystery of the Bermuda Triangle of balls that is the couch's dark underbelly.