Lilly

From: Kate Lawrence [mailto:KateL@gcvs.com]
Sent: Thursday, August 25, 2011 17:00
To: royall@conchbbs.com
Subject: RE: Lilly

Mr. Royall,

I wasn’t able to sit down and put the emotion into words yesterday when I read your email. I know that I’ll never be able to really put the depth of the feeling that we (and I) had for Lilly on paper, much less try and imagine the torrent of emotions you are experiencing. I said before that Lilly was a Queen, and I truly believe that. She was a once-in-a-lifetime friend, and it seems so unfair that the friendship in your life with the one companion who is always loyal, utterly selfless, and loves without reservation, should be the one that is so brief.

Dr. Hottinger and I believe that Lilly deserves to be recognized for her steady faithfulness, dedication, and love. Over the last week or so, we have been composing a submission to nominate Lilly for the Texas Veterinary Medical Association’s Animal Hall of Fame, a yearly event recognizing exceptional animals in Texas. We couldn’t think of anyone who deserves this honor more than Lilly, and were hoping that her light will continue to shine – through you, through Arena, and through her legacy of unwavering service and devotion. The submissions are due September 15th, and we have already enlisted the help of Dr. Anderson, who will be writing her own letter of recommendation. We would love to be able to have two additional letters from people that Lilly has touched in her life, and a few pictures of you with your girl to complete the nomination. While we certainly don’t want to overwhelm you so soon after Lilly’s passing, we did want to let you know how much Lilly meant to everyone around her. She touched our hearts in a truly profound way, and with your blessing, we hope that she can continue to touch hearts with the story of her remarkable life, and your journey together.

You are ever in my thoughts and heart this week.

With love,

Kate Lawrence
Client/Patient Service Coordinator
Gulf Coast Veterinary Surgery
713-693-1122

Lilly Royall – TVMA.doc

Lilly

This note from Kate does cause me to wonder if the Palladia didn’t decrease Lilly’s quality of life in the last two weeks, because she exhibited the symptoms Kate described. Of course, as one of Lilly’s doctors put it, we would’ve always wondered If the chemo could’ve helped if we hadn’t tried it. True, but the manner of Lilly’s death and her final days will haunt me as long as I exist. She came to me in her last moments clearly pleading for help, and I could do nothing. It took me a minute to fully realize she had died. In fact, I’ll never really know if she was pleading for release or to stay, but, knowing her, it had to be the latter. Some great owner I was, I sat there powerless to help. I had decided the night before that it was time to release her. I simply hadn’t told her doctor yet, and now I wish I had. My poor wonderful girl.

I realize that even most dog owners will shake their heads at all this gnashing of teeth over the death of one dog. After all, there are so many. I almost envy those people for their ignorance, for you had to experience Lilly to understand what made her special. No words really do her justice. There are smart dogs and there are sweet dogs, but how many dogs actively spend their lives teaching themselves how to fill the specific needs of their people? All without any formal training? Only one that I know of, and she did it even when her own body was failing her.

A big part of me went with Lilly when she died. That’s probably why I’m so heartbroken. Lilly is now beyond any pain or discomfort. She’s probably beyond everything, but part of me has this forlorn hope that there’s some sort of afterlife where I can eventually apologize to Lilly for her final moments. She deserved so much better.

From: Kate Lawrence [mailto:KateL@gcvs.com]
Sent: Wednesday, August 24, 2011 11:50
To: royall@conchbbs.com
Cc: Dr. Heidi Hottinger
Subject: RE: Lilly

Mr. Royall,

Good morning!

I had a quick question for you. Is the tenderness you have noted when Lilly is walking on her forelegs something that has recently started, or is it an on-going issue for your girl? If it is a chronic problem, has it worsened recently? Oncology let Dr. Hottinger know that they have seen a few patients on Palladia show some discomfort on their front legs, or develop sores on their paws.

Let me know!

Talk to you soon.

Thanks,

Kate Lawrence
Client/Patient Service Coordinator
Gulf Coast Veterinary Surgery
713-693-1122

Why Men Should Have Dogs Not Wives

From: kb5ziv [mailto:kb5ziv@rionet.coop]
Sent: Monday, August 01, 2011 18:00
To: Scott Royall; mcasalini; SdCarroll
Subject: Fw: Fwd: Why Men Should Have Dogs Not Wives

Why Men Should Have Dogs Not Wives   1. The later you come home, the more excited your dogs are to see you.   2. Dogs don’t notice if you call them by another dog’s name.   3. Dogs actually like it when you leave things on the floor.   4. A dog’s parents never visit. And they don’t care if you like their parents or not. Nor will they ever tell you that you are just like one of them, and not in a good way.   5. Dogs agree that you sometimes have to raise your voice to get your point across.   6. You never have to wait for a dog; they’re ready to go, at the drop of a hat; twenty four hours a day, seven days a week.   7. Dogs find every single thing you say worth hearing.   8. Dogs like to go hunting and fishing.   9. A dog will not wake you up in the middle of the night to ask, “If I died, would you get another dog?”   10. If a dog has babies, you can put an ad in the paper and give them all away.   11. A dog will let you put a studded collar on it without calling you a pervert.   12. If a dog smells another dog on you, they don’t get mad. They think the smell makes you more interesting. They don’t get mad and say mean things about you for the rest of the night.   13. Dogs like to ride in the back of a pickup truck. And last, but certainly not least: 14. If a dog leaves, it won’t take half of your stuff with them and call you names as they go out the door. Ultimate True Test: Lock your wife and your dog in the trunk of your car for an hour. Then open the trunk and see who’s the happiest to see you.

Lilly: A Legend Ends

Ok gang, I’m going to state this simply and to-the-point: Lilly has n-stage lung cancer. Her remaining time is a matter of weeks to a few months. At ten and a half years old, heroic measures like chemo aren’t going to buy Lilly any meaningful amount of time. They would only make her miserable. No, the best we can do is make the most of whatever time she has.

I have a high school reunion in Baton Rouge on September 16th-17th, and Dr. Heidi Hottinger, one of the senior soft tissue specialists at Gulf Coast Veterinary Specialists, seems fairly confident she can enable Lilly to be at my side there. But, anything beyond that is a crap shoot; I won’t ask Lilly to hang around much longer because I don’t want her to endure serious pain on my behalf. She’s well earned that kindness.

Marsha, we are in a pain management mode at this point, although more for that damned right front paw right now than the cancer. Obviously, I’ll be contacting you soon to make final arrangements.

As to how I am doing, Lilly has been my partner in the purest sense of the word for a decade. How should I feel? Anyone who has met her goes away impressed. To paraphrase someone at GCVS, Lilly is a queen who enriches the lives of everyone around her. That’s why I hope she can go to Baton Rouge, to shine one more time. I sort of knew the jig was up last year when an aggressive bone cancer was found in one of her toes. Perhaps now my mother appreciates why I got Ari when I did. I only wish she had more time under the queen’s tutelage.

By the way, also learned today that Jack, my former caregiver and friend, has n-stage liver cancer. Not a good week.

Interesting

Also looks like a Kevlar vest…

http://youtu.be/jrWCxI9tLTE

Too funny!

A little free time with a video camera and editing software can be funny. J I hope the poor dog at least got paid “union scale” kibble.

And Then There’s Lilly

Lately, I’ve noticed a lot of people on Facebook posting under the names of their pet dogs, including German Shepherds. Some of the posts are hilarious, others… well, it’s easy to see how come so many pet owners have issues. Dogs are wonderful, but they are dogs, not children. Many of those posts suggest why most people aren’t good pack leaders.

For better or worse, I am a forthright and forceful person. Many people find me to be without courtesy, and maybe they are right. Maybe, but I don’t lose sleep wondering if I misled someone with phony courtesy. Funny though, dogs have no trouble understanding what I want them to do. I only wish humans were so straightforward.

And then there’s Lilly. Many of the “dogs” posting on Facebook admit to being less-than-perfect. While nobody’s perfect, Lilly comes so close that I am still being amazed after nearly a decade. Remember, she’s never needed any formal training, she simply looks at a situation and pays attention to what I seem to be telling her to do.

I made a road-trip this past weekend to an Amateur Radio “hamfest” in Belton, Texas, and of course Lilly went with me. A “hamfest” is basically a swap-meet of amateur radio gear and other stuff. Some, like at Belton, have large cook-outs the day before. Hamfests are held across the country, and they vary in size. Belton’s is held semi-annually in the county exposition center. Although small by urban standards, the Bell County Exposition Center simultaneously hosted a hamfest, gun show, and dog show this weekend, making for a quite busy environment filled with potential distractions for a working dog.

By coincidence, I decided to not put Lilly on her lead when we arrived Friday. I knew we’d mostly be outside that day, and I frankly expected her to go lay in the shade, this being her last year and all. Wrong! Oh yes, she did go find shade if I was stationary for any length of time, but, if I moved, she was right there. Other dogs? Meh, Lilly barely noticed. She seemed to say, “outta my way you lazy mutts, I’m on duty.”

Came Saturday with its full crowd, and I decided to see how Lilly would handle herself off-lead. I don’t really know what I expected, but she blew away any expectations. She might be 75 feet away when we were out in the open, only to be at my side as soon as I entered a crowd. The dog show shared the livestock hall with the hamfest tables, separated by partitions so the barking was obvious. However, Lilly never even turned an ear toward it. By mid-morning, she evidently had figured out my travel pattern as I trolled the aisles between the tables, because Lilly started walking three feet ahead of my wheelchair and gently using her nose to move people out of my path. I kid you not! That’s what I call a Class A working dog.

I will get a new dog in a couple of months, Arena vom Funken Spiel, a full-blooded GSD with a pedigree a mile long. Even my critics have acknowledged that my dogs have been exemplarily, but I fully expect Arena to be both my greatest challenge and (hopefully) my greatest success. The idea has always been to use Lilly’s final working years to train her successor by example. That’s how dogs naturally learn in the wild. My role has been, and will be, to be a strong and consistent leader. That’s not easy to do, human behavior is inherently inconsistent. It requires a very conscious effort to be consistent even when that’s inconvenient. That’s how dogs learn, though. I’m also getting a new wheelchair shortly, and I’ll use that to wear Arena out! The first rule of dog training is to manage the pupil’s energy level, and GSDs are pretty darn high energy. This step is probably the only one Lilly won’t participate in since she’s never been a runner.

Dog Talk

 

 

From: Malinda Julien
[mailto:k9malinda@mac.com]
Sent: Friday, August 03, 2007 8:22 PM
To: Scott Royall
Subject: Re: T#3229 Pet License

 

agreed.  

mj

 

On Aug 3, 2007, at 7:10 PM, Scott Royall wrote:

 

Now now, don’t fall into the trap of blaming inanimate objects.
It’s what we do—or don’t do—with them. We are selfish beings by nature. We can
do great things at times, but usually don’t. Yet, the simple truth is that, if
you treat a dog right, you do get a better product. It’s said that animals
don’t have a sense of right and wrong, but I disagree. They do have a sense.
The big difference is it’s built upon practicality, not an esoteric concept of
equality that’s foreign to Nature. Nature is all about hierarchical order. Man
ignores that at his peril.

 

Of course, like everything else, not all dogs come with totally
debugged software. Lilly isn’t perfect, but she does have a really solid kernel
thanks probably to her heritage. That enabled her to correct the rest as
needed.

 

From: Malinda
Julien [mailto:k9malinda@mac.com]
Sent: Friday, August 03, 2007 5:21 PM
To: Scott Royall
Subject: Re: T#3229 Pet License

 

people don’t understand dogs
anymore, or anything that lives.  We have cocooned ourselves so much with
technology and such that we no longer can be civil to each other, don’t love
our spouses and make our children spoiled or neglected but not parented. 
We hold dogs responsible for biting a kid which is teasing them or chasing a
cat when in the days when people still understood that animals are exactly
that, ANIMALS, and the kid was told "see what you get, now stop teasing
that dog" and on the flip side if the dog was bad or vicious, it was shot
immediately and not "adopted". 

 

geez…

 

mj

 

 

On Aug 3, 2007, at 5:12 PM,
Scott Royall wrote:

Malinda,

 

The truth is that most people don’t understand dogs, period.
That especially applies to that Chihuahua owner. I swear that it’s the owners
who need to be licensed more than the dogs.

 

Scott

 

From: Malinda
Julien [mailto:k9malinda@mac.com]
Sent: Friday, August 03, 2007 4:46 PM
To: Scott Royall
Subject: Re: T#3229 Pet License

 

that is so true, Scott. 
That is what most people do not  understand.

 

malinda

 

On Aug 3, 2007, at 4:39 PM,
Scott Royall wrote:

At least things like this reminds us of how special Lilly is.
She has outstanding judgment and common sense, very much like Corby was. You
can teach dogs a lot of things, but their instincts have to be perfect for
public work. Hers are. Lilly shuns all confrontations unless her daddy seems in
danger.

 

From: Malinda
Julien [mailto:k9malinda@mac.com]
Sent: Friday, August 03, 2007 3:33 PM
To: Scott Royall
Subject: Re: T#3229 Pet License

 

gee Scott, that is an
unfortunate turn of events.  I hope it all works out. 

malinda

 

On Aug 3, 2007, at 3:05 PM,
Scott Royall wrote:

Yeah, Roddy got attacked Wednesday and went stupid. Technically,
she was still on public ground, but her response was totally over the top. I
could practically hear Lilly’s thoughts: “Girl, you’re crazy! It’s just a
Chihuahua. Sneeze, and watch it roll down the street!” But no, Roddy decided it
looked  like a squirrel and that she was hungry. In the two year that
Roddy was Jack’s, he pretty much neglected her. She developed hunting skills
and a fondness for squirrel meat. Roddy put the Chihuahua in a hospital with a
$3,000 bill. Not a smart move.

That prompted an early-morning visit by Animal Control
yesterday, and I hear third-hand later that I have less than 48 hours to
register both dogs. Huh? That’s news to me as, historically, only the city had
animal registration, and I’m county. Sheesh.

 

Obviously, Roddy has about washed out of anything above pet.
That’s a real shame too, because she works wonderfully with  the chair.
She is just too skittish and feral to really trust. Yet, I’m not going to ship
her off to some shelter that will eventually kill her. Roddy has clearly grown
to love me so I guess I’m stuck with her.

 

From: Malinda
Julien [mailto:k9malinda@mac.com]
Sent: Friday, August 03, 2007 1:32 PM
To: Scott Royall
Subject: Re: T#3229 Pet License
Importance: High

 

scott, what is going on?
Someone challenging one of your dogs license? 

malinda

 

On Aug 3, 2007, at 1:07 PM,
Scott Royall wrote:

Interesting stationery.

 

Now, Terlingua was/is a sideline of Dr. Marsha Anderson, who
also works at VCA Ashford. She has continued Terlingua only to assist a few
clients like me who have special needs so I’m not surprised the telephone
number is disconnected. Ashford’s number is 281-497-3917.

 

Please be aware that this is in response to Activity 15805 where
officer 9762 issued a 48-hour Compliance Citation so we really need to deal
with the matter today if possible. Please know too that I am in a wheelchair
and must use a computer to speak. Your officer didn’t contact me as my
caregivers had not gotten me up yet. I do  need to discuss the entire
incident with your officer ASAP, and I’m available any day after 11 a.m.

 

I have two dogs, a certified service dog, and a sort of trainee.
As I understand it, the service dog is protected by federal statute and not
subject to leash laws at my discretion. Unfortunately, it was the immature
trainee who was attacked in the street by a Chihuahua, and felt that lethal
force was appropriate. (And no, we didn’t let her kill it.) Anyway, I need to
discuss the vexing problem of exercising two healthy dogs with your officer,
because a wheelchair only carries a finite amount of power.

 

From: Cook,
Tamara (PHES) [mailto:tcook@hcphes.org]
Sent: Friday, August 03, 2007 10:09 AM
To: royall@conchbbs.com
Subject: T#3229 Pet License

 

Donald Royall,

 

We are contacting you regarding the online request for your
pet’s license.

The phone number given on the application for Terlingua Mobile Vet
is not a working number (281-599-9387).  Please contact us about your
request or fax a copy of the rabies vaccination certificate to 281-847-1911
Attention Web License.

 

Thank you,

 

Tamara A. Cook

Harris County Veterinary
Public Health

Info
& Referral Specialist / Community Svc Coordinator

281-999-3191

"Love
all, trust few, and do wrong to none."

–William Shakespeare

 

 

 

 

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FW: Millan

________________________________________
From: malinda julien [mailto:ustk9@ustk9.com]
Sent: Monday, February 20, 2006 10:12 PM
To: ‘Scott Royall’
Subject: RE: Millan

100% agreed.. ? My disdain for the stupidity of humans thinking all dogs do
nothing but think about ways to screw them while they are gone instead of
realizing you left an untrained young animal loose in your house makes me
sometimes not so popular.. To use your words "don’t give a flying fig"..
(although my verbalization is much more colorful if not unlady like. ?

________________________________________
From: Scott Royall [mailto:royall@conchbbs.com]
Sent: Monday, February 20, 2006 9:37 PM
To: ustk9@ustk9.com
Cc: Blaise; Blog; bradgsmith@mdanderson.org; Brandon Milligan; Carol
McKinney; Dianne; DSloan; DVM Marsha Anderson; Jack Davidson;
janis.nicol@nau.edu; John Royall; ‘Michelle Luster’; Ming Zu; Mom; Richard
Becton; Sakina Lanig; Tao Ju
Subject: RE: Millan

Yeah, that’s my reading of him also. When I watch his show, I find myself
thinking, "well duh, stupid human, of course your dog is a psycho. You let
it be the damn pack leader." Obviously, those mean thoughts are directed
toward the owners. Maybe I should’ve been a dog whisperer. Nah, I would’ve
killed half of my clients by now. People just don’t seem to get that dogs
aren’t humans. (Dogs, on the other paw, probably are grateful they’re not!
?) Still, even angelic Lilly has developed the occasional behavioral issue
over the years, most notably garbage trucks and basketballs. No one needed
to tell me how to fix them. For the garbage truck, we simply sat next to one
as it worked its way down a street. The crew might have been a bit spooked
by us, but I didn’t give a flying fig. By the time we reached the end of the
street, Lilly was getting the message crystal clearly. "Yes, those green
things are big and noisy. But, I don’t need to fear them because my human
obviously doesn’t."

In fact, the innate intelligence of dogs is a marvel. Lilly’s lead now hangs
on my wheelchair. That means both her and the chair are controlled normally
only through the joystick. Rarely do I even need to think about Lilly while
she’s in "command mode," because I know she’s intent on following whatever
clues the chair gives her about our next move. ?

________________________________________
From: malinda julien [mailto:ustk9@ustk9.com]
Sent: Monday, February 20, 2006 8:27 PM
To: ‘Scott Royall’
Subject: RE: Millan

I think he is a good handler and good at reading dogs. A gift that usually
is NOT going to be able to be repeated by his clients. He is a middle of
the road trainer, some neg some positive and believes in being the "leader"
but not punishing all the time. So, in my book, he is ok.

malinda

________________________________________
From: Scott Royall [mailto:royall@conchbbs.com]
Sent: Monday, February 20, 2006 6:08 PM
To: Malinda Julien
Subject: Millan

Just curious. What do you think of Caesar Millan?

RE: Millan

Yeah, that’s my reading of him also. When I watch his show, I find myself thinking, “well duh, stupid human, of course your dog is a psycho. You let it be the damn pack leader.” Obviously, those mean thoughts are directed toward the owners. Maybe I should’ve been a dog whisperer. Nah, I would’ve killed half of my clients by now. People just don’t seem to get that dogs aren’t humans. (Dogs, on the other paw, probably are grateful they’re not! J)

Still, even angelic Lilly has developed the occasional behavioral issue over the years, most notably garbage trucks and basketballs. No one needed to tell me how to fix them. For the garbage truck, we simply sat next to one as it worked its way down a street. The crew might have been a bit spooked by us, but I didn’t give a flying fig. By the time we reached the end of the street, Lilly was getting the message crystal clearly. “Yes, those green things are big and noisy. But, I don’t need to fear them because my human obviously doesn’t.”

 In fact, the innate intelligence of dogs is a marvel. Lilly’s lead now hangs on my wheelchair. That means both her and the chair are controlled normally only through the joystick. Rarely do I even need to think about Lilly while she’s in “command mode,” because I know she’s intent on following whatever clues the chair gives her about our next move. J

 

 

---

From: malinda julien [mailto:ustk9@ustk9.com]
Sent: Monday, February 20, 2006 8:27 PM
To: ‘Scott Royall’
Subject: RE: Millan

 

I think he is a good handler and good at reading dogs.  A gift that usually is NOT going to be able to be repeated by his clients.  He is a middle of the road trainer, some neg some positive and believes in being the “leader” but not punishing all the time.  So, in my book, he is ok.

 

malinda

 

---

From: Scott Royall [mailto:royall@conchbbs.com]
Sent: Monday, February 20, 2006 6:08 PM
To: Malinda Julien
Subject: Millan

 

Just curious. What do you think of Caesar Millan?