lest i forget...

the 8 days of jj:
day one: met in a parking lot. collected his stuff. posed for some adorable pictures. went to a park, walked through the woods, and onto a pebble beach. took it very slow on the walk back. jj had a blast - smiling and smiling... seemed like a happy little guy. he slept (and farted) the whole ride home. when we got to the house, he walked on in and puttered around like he already lived here. he briefly said hi to hobbes, and ignored the other kitties. didn't eat much. i chalked it up to an exciting day and new surroundings. slept like a log.
day two: fought over taking pills at breakfast. barely ate, except for some turkey dogs. went to work to meet "the pack". offended poor betty (the boss dog) by pointedly ignoring her when she tried to intimidate him. puttered around the yard and staked out his spot by the back door. ate even less. had some icky poo. fought over taking pills again with dinner.
day three: jj showed his little attitude with morning pills. after i had the pill in his mouth, and was holding it closed so he would swallow, he started coughing. so i had to let go, and he spit out the pill. the look he gave me! it said, "ha ha" plain as anything. then, after he finished coughing and i was about ready to start fighting again, he ate up the pill from off the floor. again, "ha ha".
days four, and five: went to work. slept, played, came inside when it rained, puttered around the yard some more. on day four jj learned how to fetch, and actually ran a few times.
day six: saturday. napped most of the day. went for a couple of short walks in the rain. threw up friday's lunch and everything he'd eaten since then. took more naps.
day seven: napped most of the day. threw up everything. wagged his tail when we went out for walks. had "empty ketchup bottle" diarrhea. started shaking in his sleep about 8:30 at night. kept shaking even after i woke him up. went to the hospital. got x-rays. got fluids. got anti-nausea meds. left the poor dude in a kennel overnight so he wouldn't have access to food or water - so he wouldn't throw up.
day eight: drank a little bit. went outside. puttered around. didn't play, but watched the other dogs running around like idiots. got more fluids and a blood panel. went for a car ride to buy chicken for trying to get him to eat. he wasn't interested in the chicken. started breathing strangely about 9:30pm - rapid and shallow. gave me the "help me" eyes and leaned in for lovings. he hadn't done that before. i tried to calm him down, distract him with a walk. he liked the walk, but his breathing didn't get any better. i called emergency, brought him in, told him he was a good boy. we x-rayed again. diagnosis: system failure. so we let him go.