My Compadre

Meet my hiking buddy, Bernie, who's been following me around since February 2017. At the time I was fostering dogs through Labs and More in San Diego. Bernie was a stray dog from Tijuana, and he came to us with a form of transmissible cancer called TVT. He stayed with me while he was being treated, a process that took eight months and included two rounds of chemotherapy and three courses of radiation therapy. After he was cured I decided that he was going to stay with me indefinitely.

No matter what life throws at Bernie he is the happiest dog. He loves dirty socks, belly rubs, and occasionally eating out of the trash.

Is Bernie politically active?

People ask me a lot if Bernie was named after a certain member of Congress. I usually explain that he does have some common ground with the famous Senator: They have the same hairstyle! However, Bernie, like me, finds the incessant bickering in politics to be overwhelming, and so he has no aspirations for higher office.

Bernie and Friends

Bernie can make friends with anyone.

Epilepsy

In the summer of 2019 Bernie started having seizures. They are now a somewhat regular part of our lives, but we're managing it with medication and CBD oil. We're monitoring these with my cousin, who is a veterinarian. Hopefully they stay benign.