pet issues

two out of my four animals are acting a bit odd.

lily has lost weight. a lot of weight. you can feel her ribs and backbone very easily and since i have a new tower and have to jump through hoops to reaccess my old photographs, i will simply have to beg your indulgence and trust on this because i have no "fuller lily" pics to show you.

herbie, our camera-shy dog and pretty much the bane of my existence (he's a dog, really!) is acting out of character, too. he is one of those pets who, when it is 32 degrees out, does his *thang* and runs right back to the door to be let back in. Max reported that herbie woke him up at 4 a.m. scratching to get outside and all he did once out was sit on our deck. it was freeeezing outside but max said it took about 20 minutes to get him back in. when i woke up at 8, max said he had just let him out and again, he was on the deck and it took me until 9:30 to get him back inside.

he is the very same dog that, if given ample opportunity and a soft spot near a fence, will dig out of our yard and go exploring. the neighborhood knows he is ours after 7 years of ownership, but when he escapes and is gone for hours, we have found him in the pound, in lock-up and this has happened twice in the last month. add to this his kooky behavior for wanting to be outside in the bitter cold, we are not sure what is happening.

i implore you, gentle readers, to lavish upon me your vast knowledge of the animal kingdom and their quirky behaviors because taking both animals to the vet would pretty much cancel out Christmas for the family this year.

the comments box is open to veterinarian advices. thanks in advance.