Chase

Charlie's favorite pre-bedtime ritual is a quick game of fetch and chase around the house. I thought I'd record it for fun. Although it will be along night tonight as I'm parking myself on my futon and studying... the last push before Thanksgiving break is always ridiculous!

It sure is chilly!

There was frost on the ground yesterday morning - it's so hard to believe that it's already getting cold enough for frost and snow on the mountaintops. I can't wait for Charlie to see snow for the first time.

I've been doing quite a bit of online work for classes and Charlie absolutely hates it when I'm on my computer for too long. He starts pawing at my hands and the keyboard, or he'll literally stand over me with his belly in front of the computer screen just looking at me like, uhmm, so, can you get off now and play? He's getting so big and he's really in to wrestling or playing chase in the house. It's hilarious to see him run around chasing his kong when I throw it on a wooden floor - he slips and slides all over the place! It's really cute, and I probably shouldn't laugh.

Although the weather changes have also stressed him out a bit (or perhaps it's something else) he was quite needy the other day - he army crawled his way under the covers and all the way up so he his head was on my pillow with me. He's been quite glued to my legs, too. Last night he was particularly whiney and whimpery- it started to stress me out a little because I couldn't figure out why he was so upset. I took him outside two or three times in case he had to go, nothing happened. He just kept sitting up and staring around and whining! He finally curled up next to me and settled down, but I wasn't sure what was going on. He seems fine this morning, just a little sleepy. His eating habits and digestive track is all in working order, so I think he was just a little anxious last night. Changes in the weather, there was a skunk hanging around outside, my schedule changed a bit this week... it could have been any number of things! Who knows, but at least he's fine now, as you can see.

Having him around makes it so difficult for me to go to work sometimes, or to class... when we're not outside or at the dog park, we lounge around on my futon couch and cuddle. And when you wake up and it's chilly and you're warm and you have a furry friend stretched out next to you, man oh man it is the worst thing in the world to have to leave that!


Staring contest. I won, he totally winked.

Happy Halloween!

Eat, drink & be scary (and safe!)

Here is my costume this year:

In the spirit of Halloween...

...I thought I would take a break from the Charlie stories and share my pumpkin for this year!

Phew!

We made it through the weekend with no belly issues!!! This is amazing. I'm still worried that next week it's going to pop up, but there is no use in worrying about it too much!

On a not so happy note... I am sick.. AGAIN. Now I have an absolutely awful head cold and laryngitis. I have my second round of exams this week as well... ugh! I always get super sick during the fall semester, my schedule just doesn't really have any room to give this year. Blah! At least Charlie is keeping me company...

Friday Evening Perfection

So far, so good...

No tummy issues thus far! I'm still sort of holding my breath for the next couple of days because of the number of times that I thought we were in the clear and we weren't... but here's to hoping!

He's also totally weaned off his crate now and it will be going into storage soon :-) He's totally fine being in the house by himself! He just wants to be where I usually am - the couch, my bed. He parks himself on the couch or on my comforter and sleeps while I'm gone! I'm certainly glad we don't have to worry about that god awful crate anymore... it takes up too much space, hah!

Ex-nay on the Medications-ay

I don't pig latin... clearly (or is that gibberish?)

Whatever. So Charlie is off of his medications (for now) to see if his little belly has finally righted itself. It's been about 24 hours since he hasn't had any, and we've had no problems thus far. Tonight will be the defining moment - I'm crossing my fingers I don't get woken up around midnight because this miss has work in the morning!

Will keep everyone posted on this delicate matter.

And now I leave you with this:

OMG

streeeeeeetch!

Feel Good Moment(s) of the Past Couple of Weeks...

Here are a multitude of photos I've snapped over the last couple of weeks. I just keep forgetting to post them on here! They're all over my Facebook...



Oh you're taking a picture? Wait let me pose...



Gimme kiss, mommy!



Me: Smile for the camera Charlie! Charlie: omg SQUIRREL..



Playtime!



A typical morning for us - coffee, cuddles, Law & Order...



Charlies conked out in my closet after we got home from one of our runs around the neighborhood! I think this was two miles... he was a tired puppy!




MA! Stop doing your homework... let's playyy!




Charlie's helping me write my paper... as you can see, he supplies the heat and the snoring, while I supply... well, everything else




Oh HAI! Good morning!

Sorry for the lack of posts!

I have been so busy this semester that I just didn't have time to blog. BOO!

But I wanted to take some time to catch y'all up on what's going on.

Charlie is doing fabulous - he is so much better on walks now, and instead of cowering away from people he is overtly friendly and likes to walk up to them and say hello! He still gets nervous when new people come into the house, but overall he's getting to know all of my friends and loves their company.

Charlie still absolutely hates going into his crate... I think it's because he knows it means that I'm leaving. I do everything I can to make it easier for him - I don't make a big deal about it, I don't get nervous about it, I leave him fresh water, treats, and even a sweatshirt of mine in there with him. He still just can't stand it. Anytime I leave, he would much rather go with me and wait in the car than stay at home alone. I want to begin training him to just stay outside of his crate while I'm gone, because I do think that will relieve some of his stress. But even when I'm here he tends to gnaw on things he shouldn't!

In fact, over the last couple of weeks I have lost four pairs of socks, a pair of leggings, two pairs of undies, and my Marc Jacobs designer arm warmers... grrr!! He has jaws of steel - he will chew up toys like I've never seen. Even his big black Kong is starting to show some wear! Goodness gracious...

But, our little life here is great. When I cook breakfast in the morning, I always make a bit extra so he can have some as well. He loves helping me study (well, he likes to paw at my hands when I'm typing a paper, or sprawl across my textbooks and notebooks when I have a midterm...)

And at the moment, I have an awful, awful cold and am stuck in bed... which is he is just ecstatic about! Andy and Truman helped take care of me yesterday and Charlie was overjoyed that he got to spend the day with his mom, his brother, and his uncle :-D

Well, I'm off to head back to sleep. I feel like my head is a balloon!

Hope everyone is enjoying this GORGEOUS fall that we have this year!

Back in the 802

Had a fabulous visit with my family. It was really great to see so many of them in one week! Now I'm in the NEK - I drove back here after my flight yesterday so I could fetch my little doggy, but ended up staying the night because I was so exhausted! Charlie woke me up around 4AM just to check in and say "hey, hi! You're here! I'm here! Let's cuddle!" It was cute.

Now he's currently hanging out under his tree in the front yard - he's got a big tree that he likes to just sit and nap under.

Mom says that although he was fine while I was gone, his eyes seemed to get a little dark. Yesterday after I arrived home... I guess his eyes weren't so dark and sad anymore. My little boy!

Later East Coast...

Well only for the long weekend, basically. I don't have too much time to write this because I'm about to meet up with some family, but I traveled way over to Seattle to visit the fam out here! My little cousin just graduated from USMC and is home for a 10 day base leave, so I wanted to come out to see him all grown up!

My flights were fine (well, the first one was reallyyyy bumpy...). I cried when I said goodbye to Charlie. I'm leaving him with my parents for the time being, so he's totally fine and safe, but man oh man that was so hard to leave him. I cried for a good half an hour on the car ride back to Burlington. I'm OK now, of course, but I miss him SO much! But I'm really glad to be out with the family.

More updates later, gotta run!!

What is this.... OH HAI!

Ups and downs and all arounds

Last night was the first night I left little Charlie for the first time since we've adopted him. I had made plans with some old high school friends of mine that I hadn't seen in years, and I would have loved to take him with me, however with his upset tummy I wanted to keep him in an area he was familiar with. It was also a good chance to see what he'll do when I'm not around.

Leaving him was hard - I'm such a little dork, but he was pulling on my heartstrings almost the entire time I was gone. It was fabulous to see everyone, and I've missed them a lot, but the next time we get together I'm sure Charlie will have to be me copilot.

I call home after being gone a few hours to see how he's doing - apparently as soon as I left Charlie went right up to the door and lay down with his nose RIGHT at the bottom of the door and didn't budge for an hour no matter what my parents did. So sweet! It broke my heart a bit, but at some point he has to learn that when I leave I will always come back, but of course this will be a difficult process (for the both of us). I sound like a mom... goodness gracious.

Mom and dad finally got him away from the door to feed him and give him his medication and get him to bed. Although overnight he RIPPED UP his bed. He left stuffing all over the floor, tore holes in the cover, ripped the stuffing to shreds... it was quite an epic thing to come home to - mom left it out for me so I could see how ridiculous it looked. Almost as if the thing exploded from the inside out! It's hard to tell if he just couldn't find his chew toy, or if he was frustrated and angry that I wasn't there so he took it out on the bed, or if he just felt like ripping it up... of course I think that it is because he was frustrated that I wasn't there.

I finally made it back home this afternoon and he was off his rocker to see me - wagging his whole body, pushing and leaning into me, jumping up onto me, licking my ankles and feet, and if I stood for any period of time longer than three seconds he collapsed at my feet with his paws around my ankle and his head on my foot - it was so sweet! He hasn't really left my side all evening. It's amazing that he is so, so sweet after all he has been through.

It will be interesting to see how he acts in Burlington - over there, he'll be kept in a kennel while I'm gone during the day at class, but I really hope that eventually he will be OK outside of his kennel.

I have noticed that he has been regressing just a bit - he peed on the floor right in the middle of the day! Normally he's pretty good about letting me know he needs to go out - he comes up and starts panting and jumping in front of me and mouthing my ankles - but I got none of that and I walked by the bird's room only to see him peeing right in the middle of the room! I was totally shocked, and I think he knew that it was not a good thing that he was doing...

Honestly, we just need to finish up getting furniture over to the apartment so we can get on a schedule, and get him enrolled in an obedience class. The poor thing has been all over the place, and although he knows that I'm his owner, he needs some sort of consistency in his life for an extended period of time, and he needs his little intestines to be back on track! This poor guy... he is certainly a handful, but he's the best handful I could ask for.

He's currently quite passed out next to me - twitching and snoring. It was so odd not sleeping next to him last night! I kept waking up in a panic because I didn't feel this warm body of fur breathing next to me.

And it's back to the lab again...

Quite literally. Charlie started having a diarrhea again so now the vet suggests we bring in a fecal sample to send off to their lab for a "diarrhea panel" (that's a beaut' of a name, isn't it?)

That's the least invasive procedure at this point... because after that we have to start pulling out the big guns and bring in a specialist to use a scope to basically perform a Colonoscopy.

I really hope there's an end in sight to this crappy (pun intended) situation.

Reading material

THIS IS AN EXCELLENT BOOK.

It's a combination of experience and science. Though there are moments of snooze-worthy passages, overall it is comical, surprising, and fascinating. I purchased the book in the hopes of understanding my little Charlie better, as well as dogs in general (I've always been interested in animal behavior - moreso interested in pet behavior, rather than the general term "animal"). I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to see dogs in a very different light. I, like many true dog owners, believe that dogs are capable of communication and understanding. Horowitz takes you on a trip from the tip of your doggies snout to the tip of his wagging tail, and everywhere in between.

Did you know that dogs can understand and follow the human gaze? And that when they stare at other dogs they look them straight on, but that when they look at our faces they have learned to gaze at us the way humans gaze at other humans, from right to left? And did you know that when dogs "kiss" us, that familiar licking of an outstretched hand or a lowered face, it is actually rooted in their wolf origins - when a wolf returns to the pack from a hunt, the other wolves lick his face to determine where he had traveled to and what his disposition is; when a mother wolf returns home from a hunt, her pups lick her face to encourage regurgitation of slightly digested meat - in other words, there is something in that act that instinctively force the mother to spew up little bits of undigested meat for her pups.

Seriously, go pick this book up. It's a great read and it will make you stare at that heap of fluff at your feet with amazement and wonder.

What a day, what a day!

This morning I wake up, a little later than usual today... the parents are finally home so I wasn't waking up at the crack of dawn to take Cory and Minnie outside and feed Zephyr - Charlie, the good boy, has learned to wait until much later to go outside and get fed... such as today. My door was open last night because I like the dogs to be able to come and go from my room as they please, and this morning it was still open even though mom and dad were up, and the dogs were already in and out. But Charlie remained on the bed - at one point, I guess, mom walked by and said "good morning Charlie!" because he was sitting up very alert on the bed, but he didn't budge. He just wagged his tail and she moved along, and he curled back up next to me. Very sweet.

Anyway, so I got up and he was very excited and we went right outside so he could take care of all of his business... and I'm there stretching and looking at the field while Charlie is doing his thing, and I look back to see if he's finished only to see a big, gross, white WORM! I just hung my head and let out a slew of words that aren't appropriate for this setting.

So I go inside, and I have my cup of coffee and then call the vet - as it turns out, we need to get them all another round of flea and heartworm meds anyway. Now Charlie is on a round (well, it's only one round - it's powerful stuff) of Drontal. This poor guy...

Then this afternoon we enjoyed some wonderful, delicious bourbon reserve - 101 proof, aged 10 years - that my parents purchased on their trip. We went ahead and let Charlie join us outside off his leash so he could run and play with the other dogs, and he went exploring in the field, but he didn't go far. He just sniffed and sat and enjoyed the sunshine and the freshly cut grass. He looked so cute out there just hanging out in the field, surveying the land. I'm sure he's never had this before - he's able to enjoy the scenery and the wildlife without being on guard; he kept looking back to make sure we were in sight and earshot, and eventually he came trotting back up - though not before checking out a little toad hopping around in the grass.

Mom and I took all the dogs out once it was dark for one last trip outside for them. We strolled into the upper field and Charlie was on his leash, but even Cory started trying to play so I just let him off his leash - it was a rare thing to see Cory that playful and excited, and I love seeing Charlie run and jump and bark - things he hasn't done in such a long time, if ever. Those two dogs were growing and chasing and wrestling... and what was most adorable, is that they started playing hide and seek. They ran into the side bushes and hid from one another - peeking their little heads out every now and again to see if the other was still there. Cory ran away, but Charlie just stayed crouched waiting for him - once Cory was back within running shot and turned away, Charlie raced off after him and tackled him to the ground. It was so sweet to watch those two - mom and I couldn't help but giggle.

We got inside and Charlie just couldn't settle down - he leaped on the couch with me and attempted to wrestle, but I had to calm him down. He didn't like that, and in the process he sort of nipped at me - not to cause harm, but to say, "hey! hey! c'mon! let's play!" but it ended up hurting quite badly and instinctively I whipped around and gave him a harsh tap on his haunches. In a very Matrix style moment, we both just looked at each other; immediately in his eyes I saw fear and a recognition of a familiar pain, and in mine I can only assume he saw how guilty and awful I felt at realizing what I had just done. I turned to my mother completely shocked, and she told me a story of how once she was holding me in her arms and she looked down at me and I looked up at her and promptly smacked her on her face - you know, how babies test to see what you'll do in a situation, and to try something new and unfamiliar. Instinctively, my mother tapped my face right back and that is the one and only time she ever hit me - and it wasn't even a true smack, just pure animal instinct to say "hey, that hurt, back off." These things happen, in other words. I turned back to Charlie and kept apologizing and and hugged him so hard - he cocked his head to the side and leaned his head way into mine and just pushed back on me and then just let himself fall into my lap and he just sat there - as if to say, "it's OK mommy, I'm sorry I nipped you, it's OK that you nipped me back."

Dogs are so humbling and forgiving, it's just astounding.

So then Zephyr joined us inside, and Charlie loves Zephyr... I think she likes him, too, but she's a picky girl and isn't the playful type. So she just watched him try to play with her, and then she made her way over to the couch with me and curled up - Charlie was relentless. Bouncing back and forth, lying down then siting up, whining and then growling, nuzzling her and then jumping back. She just wasn't having it and now she's sleeping and Charlie has only sort of given up - he's lying on the floor just waiting for her to wake up. Silly boy.

Oh Hai

Feel Good Moment(s) of the Day

Here are several photos I snapped of Charles in the last week. I have finally found a tennis ball tough enough to withstand his massive jaws - it's about the size of his head. Go figure.


I was on the floor checking my email when Charlies came over and flopped down next to/sort of on top of me. So cute!



Sleepy puppy couldn't quite make it all the way onto his bed before his naptime...

Finally, a break

Well, my week of hell is finally over. There was some drama, some serious stress, too much exhaustion, and a lot of chaos, but it's all over and done with :) We are all moved out of the apartment, and the inspection is done, and we're all moving forward.

The dogs are doing much better. Cory had all sorts of allergies going on, and he's on some serious meds and is doing much better! A brand new doggy. Charlie is doing better as well, but we'll see how he does once his round of medication is done...

He had a very busy couple of days in Burlington, as well. Not only did he have to put up with me moving things all over the place, but he was in and out of the car all day, but he did really well. And I tried to walk him as often as possible, and we made lots of trips to the dog park!

We had a few interesting moments together, however...

So, I have my dads car while my parents on vacation - and although it doesn't have AC, it DOES have automatic windows, which makes it easier for me to provide some fresh air for Charlie when he's either in the back seat or the passenger seat. So I've got the windows all down, and Charlie is looking around and enjoying the weather; we stop at a stop sign, but because of traffic we were sort of over the crosswalk a bit, so naturally there was a pedestrian on the sidewalk waiting to cross. He was a big dude, just hanging out, minding his own business, and in anticipation for the traffic to move, he began to move forward, and Charlie did NOT like that at all. He immediately started barking at him, to which I settled him down and we moved forward, but it was definitely interesting.

He's also getting better about meeting people - and generally, people in Burlington are extremely friendly and respectful towards dogs and their owners. Many people recognize that he's a rescue dog just by his demeanor towards strangers, so they're very sweet. Some other people, aren't so cautious. We were in the local video store visiting a very good friend of mine who works there and several people got right down on their knees and just showered him with love and kisses and hugs - it was so, so sweet; and they all asked beforehand if it was OK to pet him - which was also really awesome. But, we were in the corner looking at some videos, and someone, dressed in all dark clothing carrying a large bag (he really doesn't like anyone with big bags) came marching around the corner, clearly knowing exactly what she wanted. Charlie started barking and got quite defensive - I apologized and calmed him down and explained he was a rescue and gets nervous around strangers - but she cut me off and responded with a brief, "yeah, ok, I guess I'm cornering him, sorry," and pushed me aside to get her video. Rude!

But that's going to happen. Some people are animal people, and some people just aren't! Whatcha gonna do.

And we spent the night in the new apartment last night - I was on an air mattress and we were both totally exhausted. Charlie curled up on his bed, but immediately saw me crawl into my little air mattress bed and he came right over and zonked out right next to me. I'm noticing that he dreams quite vividly, because I'm finding that he kicks me in his sleep! Funny boy. He's like me - he likes to take up as much of the bed as possible, he kicks in his sleep, and he tends to roll over on top of his bed mate - i.e. me. But I certainly wouldn't trade any of it for the world.

So now I'm home, and my other doggies were here at home for the last two nights. My wonderful neighbor has been keeping an eye on them, and has been giving Cory his meds. But they were totally excited that I was home - I haven't seen Cory that excited in such a long time. Now we're all in the living room curling up for some movies.

I'm about ready to not think about anything that has to do with cleaning, packing, unpacking, or driving for the next 24 hours. So I will be parking myself on the couch with the dogs until I absolutely have to get up :)

*Bangs head against wall repeatedly*

The last week has been unbelievable. Our house was so chaotic, my mother and I were at our wits ends. Dad is just... well, dad. He tends to handle these situations rather quietly.

Anyway - picture this: a pile of boxes, bags, and camping supplies for mom and dad in one area; a pile of boxes, cleaning supplies, and odds and ends for me to move to Burlington with in another area; a pile of boxes, folders, and baskets full of photographs for mom's genealogy work in another area; too much recycle, laundry, and towels all over the place in piles. For about 36 hours, that's what our house looked like. My parents finally get on the road, and my immediate thought is: awesome, some peace and quiet, they're on vacation, and the dogs are relaxed now. So my first night was smooth, the next day was quiet and I did some work and got some laundry and cleaning done... fantastic. All is well..

And then this morning happens. I wake up after a restful night sleep and begin preparing for my trip over to Burlington to meet up with the landlord to pick up the keys and to begin my actual MOVE down to the new place. I have my coffee. I shower. I feed the birds and rats and cat. And then I head downstairs to grab the laundry from the dryer... only to see diarrhea... everywhere. Trails left and right. Immediately, I'm annoyed. But then I see the blood, and panic sets in. A bit mucusy, but mostly bloody, and I freak out because I'm not sure which dog it came from. So I rush upstairs to check all the dogs to see if anyone is bleeding externally, only to discover that Cory not only has some serious discharge coming from his eyes, but also from his bum. EWW. I get past the initial gross factor and go into auto pilot - I assume it's Cory with the issue and I call the vet, I give him some probiotics, and then I get ready to leave. I had to leave at least for the day because I canceled on my landlord the day before, and I couldn't cancel again. Our wonderful neighbor keeps an eye on the dogs while I head out.

Of course, then I get to Burlington and Charlie promptly jumps out of the car and drags me into the back yard of my apartment and I discover that it is he who left the treasures downstairs.

At this point, I hit a wall. You know that point. You can't take any more stress. My capacity just overflowed and I came inside, sat down on my bed, and I cried and cried and cried. I'm moving on my own with no help, my parents are miles away, I'm not quite sure how I'm going to get rid of the furniture I'm not keeping, I have two sick dogs, a car with no air conditioning, I have been totally MIA from the apartment and thus not helping out my roommates and I felt totally awful about that, it was hot as all hell, and I have until Saturday to take care of everything that needs to be taken care of. I just couldn't take any more. I finally heard back from mom and she helped calm me down, but man... I was done. I hit that brick wall so hard I wasn't quite sure how to regain my footing. But I finally did, and I took a couple of car loads down to the new place and threw out a pile of junk. I was running on auto pilot, though. So I packed the car back up and Charlie and I were on our way home.

So now we're all in the living room attempting to stay cool. I'm a bit more calm than I was before, but I'm mostly nervous about the doggies now. Hopefully Charlie's issue is food, and not internal. But Cory... he's getting old. And he's not looking too good, and as the vet said earlier, "these older dogs tend to fall apart all at once, you know..." So I'm taking both Charlie and Cory to the vet tomorrow, and I'm crossing my fingers and praying that they're both OK and this is all minor - not only for their sake, but for mine as well. This has been a helluva couple of weeks what with losing Boots, too much chaos, and Charlie's icky issues.

I'm going to have a beer, play some video games, and not think about anything for awhile. Tomorrow is a new day, and a trip to the vet is the first thing on my to-do list. Let's hope the outcome is a happy one!

Sunday Funday

I was just relaxing on the couch when the next thing I know, I have all three dogs on the couch with me. CUDDDLEEFESSSTTTT!

The Groundhog Menance

Occasionally, I take my iPod with me when I go out and about - whether it's a drive or walk with my friends, to just everyday activities. Today, I was filming some things with the dogs, and while we were out in the fields Cory, once again, finds some poor innocent animal to chase after. But this time, it was... kind of large. A groundhog, to be exact. I happened to be filming at the time, and I get a little hysterical. I don't do well in situations like this!

I don't think I'll ever be able to get the image of Cory turning in circles with a groundhog clinging to his face and flying all around.

Anyway, I got a little bored and decided to edit it together for a mini movie. So for all you fellow Star Wars nerds out there, you'll definitely enjoy this.

Chaos

I think for the next two weeks my life will be chaos. And as I write this I'm watching a baby finch fly around our house - the little thing somehow ended up in our living room this morning and although both doors to the house are open, she can't quite figure out how to get out. And she won't let us near her to help her out - oivey!

Anyway, I just got back from spending a couple of days in Burly at my apartment - not the new one, the one I've had for the last two years. The 'rents are going on vacay, and I'm left trying to pack myself up. Which is totally fine - I've moved so many times in my life, this is routine by now. Anyway, I have to house sit/dog sit while they are gone, so the week I'm moving I have to head back and forth to watch the dogs/clean and pack up the apartment. To make my life easier, I've packed up my entire room in two days - holy cow! I took little Charles with me which was great because I had to chance to walk him around the "big city" AND I had the chance to socialize him with people. A ton of my friends were in and out to say hi to me and meet the doggie (I also have roommates, which is great) and everyone has been so, so sweet with him! They recognize immediately that he's a nervous little boy and they get right down on the ground with him, and the next thing ya know he's on their lap and they won't leave him alone. It's so cute and he's loving all the attention! Thank goodness all my friends are animal people :)

Anyway, I get the keys to my new place next week which is VERY exciting! So I can't wait to start moving stuff in there! Such big changes, this is crazy...

Hope everyone is staying cool and enjoying this break in the heat.

R.I.P. Boots

I think we've lost another one of our cats :( Boots has been gone for just about 24 hours now, and that's really unlike him. He was such a loving, sweet boy. He loved to just lounge on your lap, and he and Charlie had a developed a very sweet friendship. Cory and Boots were quite the dynamic duo, too. And poor Zephyr... she was quite wary of him at first, but they became great pals. She's keeps looking at me and meowing. It's such bullshit - Boots was really, really young. We've only had him for a little over a year because we lost our other cat Gordo. It's all these male cats - they get so adventurous and wild... it just breaks my heart. I've still got a bit of hope left in me that he's on his own little trip and he'll be back... but, I don't know.

Doggie Loveseat

Oh my goodness - look at these two!!!

A little tribute to my other dogs

This is just a little post giving some credit to my other two dogs, Cory and Minnie, for not only just being wonderful, but also for being so good with Charlie. They are such wonderful dogs.

Minnie is our eldest - and has the silliest story behind her arrival into our household. Mom purchased her from a local pet store in Hawaii when we used to live out there - she bought him in a bit of a panic because she was on her way home to tell me that there was no Santa Claus. She had heard from a teacher that after the students in class talked about the story of Santa that my response was: "No, Santa is real because my parents would never lie to me." And thus, we have Minnie, our little Miniature Pinscher. We've had her since I was in the third grade, and now I'm 23. She's very old, she's almost completely deaf, her sight is going (ugh, I heard her run into a wall last night when she was trying to get out of my room in the dark... poor thing, we're getting a night light for the hallway for her), and I'm pretty certain she's on her last leg due to a number of health issues we've noticed as of late. She has been so sweet with this young dog - who has taken quite a liking to her. Charlie always tries to play with Minnie, though unfortunately she's just too old to do that anymore. But she likes to sleep near Charlie, and she tends to try to share food with him (which Charlie definitely does not like, but I think it's kind of a cute gesture). If he's sleeping on his bed, she tends to join him on there, and Charlie gladly welcomes the company. He's also been very good about giving up the entire bed to her - she likes to sleep on the bed when he's not on it, and he just looks at her (even if there's enough room) and just lies down next to it instead. She's currently sleeping near my feet, and I'm really glad I get to spend so much time with her this summer, because I don't think she'll be here next summer. As mom said tonight, "she's never been a little dog - she's always been a very brave, big courageous dog. She's a tough, take-no-shit kind of lady."

Cory is our extremely sweet goofy lab. He's about seven, so he's got some time left, but he's starting to age around the face, and he's quieted down a bit in the last year or so. He's such a love of a dog. The cats always cuddle with him, he and Minnie sleep and snuggle all the time, and he take such good care of his family. He has taken little Charlie under his wing to show him how to be a dog - since Charlie didn't quite know how to act around other dogs. He was always engaged, but he never participated. Now, he's always trotting alongside Cory, he follows Cory if he's exploring something, if Cory starts barking Charlie will follow suit... And Cory has been such a sweet dog to me as well. I'll go ahead and admit: I have a terrible fear of the dark, particularly out here in the middle of nowhere. I'm mostly scared that I'm going to run into an animal I don't want to run in to. Anyway, when I had to take Charlie out very late at night, Cory would hear me get up (even if he were in my parents room) and would come outside with us even if he didn't need to. He would walk right alongside me, not leaving my side. It was so sweet and touching.

Well that's all. They're such good dogs. All of 'em.