Scary tree

This is a big old tree that is seriously covered in moss. Again, I removed the color and got a much cooler image (in my opinion). The tree is much more sinister looking this way, don't you think?

A moss-covered tree down by the river. The dark patches on the tree are the moss plants.

We took Callie to vet on Friday. She's been coughing recently, a dry, hacking cough. And she's been drooling (yuck). Her eating habits have also changed slightly, so we knew something was up. My first thought was that it was kennel cough. But Callie doesn't interact with many dogs, just a few every now and then in the vineyard. Maybe one of them passed on a viral or bacterial infection?

The vet examined Callie and everything seems to be ok. She's running a slight fever. The vet said it looks like she ate something that irritated her throat; she saw some inflammation in the throat and Callie coughed when the vet massaged her throat from the outside. When we told the vet that Callie didn't finish her kibble in the morning, she said it was likely that her throat hurts when she swallows the hard kibble. Which is why she has no trouble eating soft meat or cheese.

Or it could be some kind of virus. Either way, there are no serious symptoms other than her coughing and drooling. So we got some cortisone pills for the throat inflammation and pain and some antibiotics to prevent any infections (or to stop any current infection). Callie should be back to normal in about six days time. We'll keep our fingers crossed.