Happy Birthday Zeph!

We got Zephyr on 22nd May 2003, she was all on 21 days old and for us she became our first born child. Being a German Shepherd Zephyr was the cutest puppy ever and in so many she still thinks she's one and we sorta do too :) ... for the longest time her one ear would flop over and we thought it was the cutest thing! I remember that December on New Years Eve, Zeph kept wincing during her morning stroll so we took her to who we thought was the best vet in town. He did an x-ray and informed us that Zeph had hip dysplasia, a condition which wouldn't let her carry a litter and which may prove to be a nuisance to us! A nuisance we asked? He said she would be crippled eventually and sickly as well, maybe we ought to consider putting her down before we bonded.... it's the first time I saw A weep, he was inconsolable, "before we bond" he asked me, this is our girl ... we walked out with Zeph in tow never to return again! Zeph grew up happy and extremely loving, a tad timid for a German Shepherd but then again she was too humanized to realize she had a jaw that could sever an arm! When she was 3 we brought home our newborn baby, our second little girl, Alyssa! We didn't keep them apart for a single day and if I scan our old hard drives, I will surely find pictures of a tiny Ally with this giant fur ball. We have video clips of Zeph taking off the baby socks with teeth that could chomp off the baby's foot! They have grown very close over the last 6 years and its a pleasure to see Ally respect animals and Zeph love kids.

Today Zephyr is all of 9 years old and in some ways it breaks my heart. Considering she has lived so bravely with her hip condition, survived kidney failure and several resulting conditions, she is a happy, cheery dog, who brings joy to many! Her pa is not here these days and I'm sure he misses her terribly today but he will be happy to know that Zeph's b'day is all worked out. She is going to enjoy a honey and peanut butter cake, her dinner is boneless lamb with pumpkin, all the things she loves. She just had a bowl of mango ice cream, which is a once a year thing for her and I could almost see her smile. Here's the recipe for Zeph's cake in case you have furry little lovelies to cook for!

Ingredients:

1/2 cup plain flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

3 tbsp peanut butter

4 tbsp cooking oil

Few pieces of yellow pumpkin

2 tbsp honey

1 egg

Mix the flour and baking soda then add all the remaining ingredients and mix well. Pour into a greased baking dish and bake on 200 C for around 10-12 mins or till a skewer comes out clean. I frost the cake with a few tablespoons of fresh cream or you can use cream cheese as well but at Zeph's age, all this is too much fat and she has trouble digesting it!

Enjoy Zeph!!