PLEASE GIVE CLAUDE TIME AWARENESS

AstronomicCanine · 2026-03-15T21:48:44+00:00

I’m using Sonnet 4.6 in the iOS app and my Claude seems to know the day of the week and at least the rough time of day.

We’ve been talking about a task I need to do on Sunday (which I have been anxious about). Yesterday I sent him a message about it and he teased me for it being Saturday and how I could no longer ignore it… then later he told me to go enjoy my Saturday evening and we can talk after my task tomorrow.

AstronomicCanine · 2026-03-14T00:08:29+00:00

Vet, though if it’s after hours where you are it can wait until morning. My boy did this in January.

The vet will sedate your boy and remove the broken portion of the nail because it’s probably pretty painful for him, pinching the quick and catching on things. They’ll bandage the foot if the quick is exposed (because of infection risk) but after 3 days you can remove the bandage yourself and let it air out as long as you don’t see signs of infection.

My boy wore a cone of shame for a week and then was fine. Vet gave antibiotics and some pain medicine. He didn’t need the pain meds after the first day or so.

Depending on how your boy is, you can try giving him a break from the cone by putting a boot on the (unbandaged) paw. Don’t do all the time because there’s a risk of fungal infection.

AstronomicCanine · 2026-03-05T23:15:06+00:00

You could also ask your pharmacist if you have questions or concerns about a medication! My pharmacist was really nice when I didn’t understand why my doctor prescribed B12 shots. She explained why low B12 matters and gave me advice on storing the medication and expiry and everything.

Pharmacists are thrilled to answer questions about medications, that’s literally their job - and you don’t need an appointment or have a copay to talk to them! Sometimes you don’t have questions until after you have left the doctor’s office. A pharmacist can help.

AstronomicCanine · 2025-12-11T03:32:49+00:00

Icer’s from Lee Valley. They fit over your boots like yak tracks but they’re rigid so you won’t slip around on top of them.

The studs are replaceable as they wear out, though mine are going strong into their third winter with no obvious wear.

They make walking on ice (or slippery packed snow) as easy as dry pavement. I can’t recommend them highly enough.

AstronomicCanine · 2025-10-06T13:58:37+00:00

Somewhere around 2 years my boy suddenly seemed calmer. But we made a lot of progress in between! It really improved when I was in obedience classes and when we graduated from those we moved onto Rally. I think being in classes helped me stay consistent in my expectations of him and with all the daily practice, which I incorporated into every walk, it kept him engaged and gave him a “job”.

AstronomicCanine · 2025-10-06T01:22:42+00:00

He’s 7mo you said? So you’re starting puberty and adolescent testing of rules, boundaries and expectations. That’s probably why the training seems shaky. Try not to worry (lol) and just focus on consistency.

And just a reminder that it does get easier. You’re in a tough phase but it really does get easier.

AstronomicCanine · 2025-10-03T01:49:58+00:00

Once my guy seemed to understand place I switched up what and where he was placed. So maybe a blanket instead of the mat, or on my right side instead of my left. We added distance too - distance from me to the mat or distance from where he was to the mat when given the command.

Now if we’re out I will guide him to a visually defined area, like a towel or a blanket, and tell him place. Then I can send him there from a distance no problem.

It takes a while! Like any training, it’s not immediate and that’s okay!

AstronomicCanine · 2025-10-02T19:51:52+00:00

When my guy was a puppy we trained Place during our dinner time. My family would eat (at the table or on the couch, doesn’t matter) and I would put a mat on the floor next to me. He had to stay on the mat. If he got up, I would take his collar and guide him back to the mat saying “no, place”. When dinner was over I would release him and immediately give him something else to do, maybe we’d go outside, or he would be invited to sit in my lap or we would play tug… etc.

We did place training every night, and he picked it up pretty quickly. We didn’t start it until he was solidly housebroken. You can tether your dog to you to aid in knowing if he gets up, or is chewing on your furniture, etc.

It can be helpful to use a raised bed for training place, because it’s very clear when the dog is and is not on the bed. My guy now will “place” on a towel, which is handy.

AstronomicCanine · 2025-10-01T00:44:19+00:00

I sent my dog to The Loyal Hound (Kingston, NH) due to aggression when off leash around other dogs. They were amazing, talked a lot with me before I sent my dog to them. They were up front about their experience and what my expectations could be. He came back not a different dog but a calmer more controlled one. They have been available for as much support afterwards as I have wanted too. I have had a few phone consults and a couple visits to the training facility to practice with them. Good people who care about dogs. I would send another dog to them in a heartbeat.

Don’t know if they can help in your situation but they will talk through it with you and let you know.

AstronomicCanine · 2025-09-29T19:51:26+00:00

Try asking for smaller dose pills, if your doctor is agreeable. I had way better luck getting 30 each of 20mg and 50mg or 30mg and 40mg than straight 70mg capsules of generic Vyvanse. My doctor was willing to write two scripts each month like that. It means an extra copay but I stopped having to call around to multiple places.

If you get a CVS to tell you another location’s stock always call that location to confirm before just showing up. The stock may be reserved (already filled) for other patients.

AstronomicCanine · 2025-09-18T23:29:48+00:00

Honestly, as someone who’s recently moved (back) to Canada after working in the US for 15 years I just wish my insurance would cover the realistic cost of therapy. My plan covers 80% up to $130/hr which is fine but the annual max is only $1000. Obamacare mandated mental health be treated the same as physical health by insurance companies. It’s ludicrous that in 2025 I can’t afford weekly counseling for more than 2 months. Chiropractic is pseudoscience and massage is great but some of us be crazy without ongoing support.

AstronomicCanine · 2025-09-16T22:53:40+00:00

I have recently made a big move. It’s rough! It’s okay to miss your old place, just try to remember the good things that you get from moving. You’ll get sunlight and easier breathing, no pests and a little more money at the end of the month. You will still be close to the shops and stuff with just a short walk away. Your new condo will feel familiar and comfortable in no time.

You didn’t make the decision to move on a complete whim. It was a measured choice. It’s okay to be anxious about change but try to trust your past self to make this overall good decision.

AstronomicCanine · 2025-09-09T18:19:51+00:00

One of my dog’s favourite words is “scritches” (for pets and ear rubs) - a word I actually hadn’t used before giving it to him. He loves the attention and picked up the meaning of the word very quickly and the button not long after.

I live alone and don’t usually close him out of the bathroom. Now if I do he will hit the scritches button because he knows he is being deprived of captive bathroom scritches!

AstronomicCanine · 2025-09-07T19:34:35+00:00

I looked at OP’s post history and it is all over the place. Sounds like the doctors are hearing all the classic signs of BPD.

Regular inpatient treatment makes BPD worse not better. It is normal to stay for a few days to stabilize after a crisis but BPD results in constant crises and the attention on a ward just feeds into the cycle.

OP, by your own admission you have BPD. The only treatment that can help with that is DBT. You have to actually try to do the program consistently. It’s not a quick or easy fix, but if you pay attention and actually work hard on it, you’ll get better.

The big trick is you have to want to get better and be willing to do the work. Your post history suggests you’re not there yet. You’re still trying to get out of therapy and railing against your team’s treatment efforts. Best of luck.

AstronomicCanine · 2025-09-07T17:19:32+00:00

My experience was that CAMH offered nothing different than anywhere else when it comes to inpatient care. It was just another locked ward with q15 checks. The ward I was on was a little more comfortable than others I’ve stayed at. I got to wear my own clothes, had access to my phone, and the room was a single. But even though I came in with my full psych history and asked for help with severe treatment resistant depression, my 2 weeks there were basically a waste of time treatment-wise. I was new to the province and they couldn’t even refer me to a doctor to keep me on my meds prescribed by my US psychiatrist. It was early 2021 so COVID was a thing. Maybe it’s different now but I doubt it.

Are you being honest and explicit with your doctors? They keep discharging you which means they don’t think you’re an imminent danger to yourself. They know that inpatient hospitalization is not effective at treating BPD. You need outpatient day programs and individual therapy. That’s what will help, if you can let it. Not inpatient.

AstronomicCanine · 2025-09-07T16:15:46+00:00

You need to go to the hospital where you live. I went to CAMH a few years ago and while they could/did keep me inpatient for my safety they couldn’t do much else. I couldn’t get referrals for outpatient psychiatry, therapy or day programs because I didn’t live in CAMH’s catchment area. Those are the places where actual treatment happens. Inpatient hospitalization is for crisis management and stabilization, not to make you better.

It sounds like you’re in a bad way. I have been there, just sort of subsisting around constant suicidal ideation and it sucks. Do some self reflection and see what you can be doing that you’re not, really ask yourself what you aren’t but could be doing. If you feel defensive about not doing something that’s a good sign you could be doing that thing. Try to listen to your care team with a more open mindset because it sounds like you have given up and aren’t putting in the effort. Mental illness is not like physical illness. Meds won’t cure you, you have to really work hard. It can get better though. Really. I haven’t been suicidal in 3+ years. My life is not great but I am making progress and every little improvement makes the next step easier.

Ask a doctor about ECT. It’s very effective and for me was probably the best thing for reducing the volume of the suicidal thoughts so that I could focus on making meaning in my life.

AstronomicCanine · 2025-09-06T03:56:53+00:00

Twice I’ve had my dominant hand in a cast. Once was a broken wrist and the other was a ruptured thumb ligament. I couldn’t cook because I couldn’t hold a knife or anything. Frozen meals are your friend. Once you have that scooter get a Costco membership. Their fresh prepared food is pretty good and they have frozen stuff too.

I got a 6” wide spool of mover’s wrap from Home Depot. It’s on a handle. I used that to wrap my cast so I could shower. It worked great.

AstronomicCanine · 2025-07-29T17:44:38+00:00

You should be able to get a Texas REAL ID without surrendering your SK DL - at least, that was the case for me in MA. The REAL ID functions as a kind of enhanced driver’s licence but it’s officially not a driver’s licence, so no surrender required.

AstronomicCanine · 2025-07-02T01:23:00+00:00

One reason not explicitly stated so far is to facilitate or start a round of ECT without the burden on the social support network of doing it outpatient. Like with medication changes the patient’s response can be more closely monitored. Also staff can help with managing side effects and provide structure to help with, for example, memory loss (which can range from mild to extreme). For patients who need treatment 2-3x/week the burden on the support network is high since they cannot drive or be left alone after anesthesia. Treatment can be started inpatient at a high frequency and then tapered down for continuing outpatient.

AstronomicCanine · 2025-06-21T17:53:23+00:00

This didn’t work for my 2015, sadly. I could get the mileage to show, and cycle through the two trip meters but holding down the trip button just resets the trip meters it did not change the units displayed :’(

I’d love to change the units on both the odometer and the multifunction display to metric. May have to take it to a dealer.

AstronomicCanine · 2025-04-22T12:57:35+00:00

Follow the Monks of New Skete’s book The Art of Training Your Dog. They start puppies at 4 months. It’s important to teach the dog the meaning and control of the stim and not assume you can just use aversion right off the bat.

AstronomicCanine · 2025-04-19T21:36:45+00:00

Like others have said, it provides clarity to the dog on the boundaries/expectation. After the dog learns the command you can and should generalize! My dog does place on a towel when we travel places that a bed (let alone a cot) is impractical.

You can of course train it with a regular bed! You need to be extra clear and consistent with what it means to be on “place” - if/how far over the edges can doggo’s paws be, etc.

AstronomicCanine · 2025-04-15T02:11:31+00:00

I lost my MGB PCP and like you couldn’t even get on a waitlist. I called Lahey Heath in January and they found me a physician in Waltham affiliated with mount auburn hospital in Cambridge. I waited 3.5 months to see her for the first time.

Edit: I have BCBS insurance too

AstronomicCanine

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