Epi-Star, "Bohdi"     by Dorothy Wills-Raftery       I t's November, that means it is also  National Epilepsy Awareness Month (#NEAM) and here at FiveSibes, we are kicking off our official 4th Annual #LiveGibStrong #Epi-Star Features!   It's a special month here at FiveSibes. While this is the official fourth year of my series, there were, of course, "Epi-Stars" I highlighted along the way in early years, before the debut of this series. Their stories are also listed on my Special Series page HERE so you can read about all of our fabulous canine stars!   A brief recap for those new to my blog: I was inspired by my beloved Gibson, who was diagnosed with idiopathic epilepsy in 2009 shortly after his third birthday.   I began the #LiveGibStrong Canine Epilepsy awareness and education initiative, and also authored the multi-award winning EPIc Dog Tales: Heartfelt Stories About Amazing Dogs Living & Life With Canine Epile...

  💜 FiveSibes #Flashback ~ "Gibson" ~ Autumn 2015  💜   " The bond with a true dog is as lasting as the ties of this earth will ever be."    ~Konrad Lorenz With it being November Epilepsy Awareness Month, also referred to as #NEAM, I thought it only fitting to highlight my heart dog, my beloved Epi-boy "Gibson" for the first #FlashbackFriday of November! This photo was taken on a lovely Autumn day when we strolled over to my vet's office for a photoshoot. One of the front desk girls wanted to have her photo for their website taken with my Gibson! He was such a charmer, always bestowing his Gibbie kisses to all the girls! He was my only dog who ever absolutely loved going to the vet's! While out walking, he would always lead me straight to their door! In his name, this month I will sharing lots of information on Canine Epilepsy to help others on who are on this journey as well, and to offer them:       1) Hope. Dogs with epilepsy ca...

  F irst, this post is NOT to alarm anyone. It's just an informational post for awareness. Some Epi-dogs (dogs with epilepsy) are affected by lunar and atmospheric changes, and it can possibly happen before, during, and even after an event. Other Epi-dogs may not be affected at all. The full beaver "supermoon" rose on November 4 and is at its full phase today, November 5, according to Space.com. It is said that this is the "largest and brightest of moons all year." Also on November 4, scientists have detected    biggest black hole flare ever seen — with the power of 10 trillion suns, according to Space.com. In an article in Reuters, "The researchers said the flare at its peak was 10 trillion times brighter than the sun. It was unleashed by a black hole roughly 300 million times the mass of the sun residing inside a faraway galaxy, about 11 billion light-years from Earth...The researchers said the most likely explanation for the flare is a large star being p...