If you had read my post about our newest family member, you will remember me saying that we were warned about Kira's escape artistry. When she was in the humane society, she used to escape out of the kitty room to go visit the rabbits.
Since coming home with us, after having been in the shelter for nearly three months, Kira has had a few attempted escapes. One of them caused her to stop and think because I accidentally closed her paw in the front door. We thought that this may have deterred her, but apparently the back sliding door isn't as scary as the front one that caught her paw.
Last night Mr. K and I walked over to the little park that is near our place to let the dogs run. Everyone really needed to burn off some energy. Hermione walked over off leash because she actually does better off leash than on and the other three were released once we arrived. They all ran hard and had a great time. They were obedient enough to take a time out to let two very little boys pet them all. Then, we went back home to have some supper.
I can't remember if it was before or after we ate, but at some point Roscoe needed out. They all had had quite a bit of water when we got back from their run. I think that's when our little sneaky kitty made her move.
I honestly don't know how long she was outside for, but when I was getting ready for bed, I ran down into the basement to feed the cats as I do every night. Rufio arrived on the scene, purring and rubbing on me in anticipation of his dinner. However, when I called Kira, she didn't show. After some calling and food bowl banging, Mr. K started searching the house.
And still no Kira.
I knew as we opened closet doors that hadn't been opened, just to make sure she hadn't magically been locked inside, that she was probably outside.
We've had her just shy of a month and I wondered if we had lost her. She was after all a stray cat who had spent nearly three months in a shelter. There was no saying what she would do.
I opened the back door and called her, banging her food bowl that was filled with kitty kibble. The dogs looming in the doorway behind me started letting out little woofs and I wondered that if perhaps she was out there and they could sort of see her. I didn't want them to scare her off if it was in fact her, so I closed the door and resumed my calling and food rattling.
She meowed.
I called again just in case I was hearing things and the meow came again, just much louder.
"She's out here." I called back into the house."But I don't know where."
Mr. K came out and I continued to call her name. She kept meowing back. Mr. K found her on the other side of our fence in our neighbour's yard. At first, she wouldn't let him pick her up, but when she finally did she climbed up his shoulder and tried to sit on his head. Once she was inside with the door firmly closed behind her, I ran down to her feeding station and she followed along happily. She had a few little burs stuck to her, but she was a bit too over stimulated from her little excursion that she wouldn't let me pull them off. I left her to eat in peace. I'd have to get the burs off in the morning.
I'm not sure how we lucked out to have two cats that answer to their names; especially since Kira has had her name for only a month. What's even more lucky for us is that not only do they come when called, but they both meow in response.
I know Kira was happy to be back inside last night. At 5 AM she started assaulting our bedroom door to get in to sleep with us. She and Rufio also had Kitten Olympics at some point last night too. She also scarfed down all of her food.
Now that we know that she isn't afraid of the back door, I'm going to have to be extra careful when opening and closing it. When I let the big dogs out I get Kira to go into the basement and close the door so that I know she won't sneak out under Nala or Roscoe's bellies. Kira is just a curious and active kitty, the two qualities that made us pick her, but it also means that we have a little mischievous soul on our hands.
At her next vet appointment, not only will Kira be given her yearly vaccinations, but she will be also getting microchipped.
Thursday, August 28, 2014
Tuesday, August 19, 2014
Brain/Mouth Filter
I have to say that over the years, my brain/mouth filter has been refined. It has been, and still is a work in progress. The reason for the construction of such a strong and reliable filter?
Quite often as a blind person I encounter people on a regular basis who may deserve a stern talking to; and that's putting it mildly. (I suppose, everyone whether they are blind or not, encounters similar idiots). However, I've learned to ignore a lot of behaviour that would require such a talking to for many reasons. The main reason being that if I went on a rampage every time someone acted like an idiot just because I'm blind, I'd be an angry and nasty person. Also, I've come to realise that much of people's poor behaviour comes from ignorance and fear. Letting my tongue fly wouldn't help or fix the situation. So, I've learned to be more eloquent or just ignore it all together. Carrying on speaking at your normal speaking volume when someone is talking to you at top volume because they think your blindness means your ears don't work, is usually better than getting angry at them. However, there are times when my filter fails and this morning was an example of that.
As per my normal morning routine, I leashed Hermione and Otis up to go walk through the little park that is around the corner from our place. (Hermione is back to her normal self, by the way). Hermione wears an extenda leash for these walks because then she can go off and explore the park without getting into trouble. People tend to dump garbage and stuff and I'd hate for her to get into something dangerous.
As soon as we hit the paved walk way, Otis pulled over to pee. Hermione had gone on ahead, but hadn't reached the limits of her extenda leash. As Otis finished his business I heard bike tires spraying up gravel coming at me. It was hard to tell exactly where the bike was so instead of reeling Hermione in, I left her out. She was off to the side and I was worried that if I called her to me she could potentially get tangled up in the bike's tires. Otis and I were off to the side as well; my white cane in my hand, slightly extended. (This is a very important part of this story). That little park is so small that I could walk around it without my white cane, but I use it just in case the neighbourhood kids leave something on one of the paths and also because it identifies me as blind.
The tires kept coming at me. The gravel spraying continued as if the rider was hitting the brakes and then releasing.
Just as the rider got to me he says in a very sarcastic tone:
"You'd think you'd move out of the way eh? Wow!"
That was it. My shocked silence was ended. Filter failed.
"I'm blind you dumb a*s!" I shouted at his retreating back. I know he heard me. I was a cheerleader a long time ago. My voice carries.
I'll blame it on the early hour and my brain still waking up. Or perhaps he just got what I've been holding back from other dumb a**es. Whatever it was, I'm not going to lie: it felt good to voice my annoyance instead of just turning the other cheek.
No, I'm not going to make a habit of going around and calling people who squish themselves as far up against a building wall as they can when I walk by dumb a**es or the people who cut in front of me in line. As I said above, getting angry about every jerk that crosses your path just isn't worth it, but sometimes just sometimes, it's appropriate to set the record straight and call it the way it is.
So, although I will continue to fortify my brain/mouth filter, I know that there will be times when it will fail. Here's to hoping that when it does, I'm not the one looking like the dumb a*s.
Quite often as a blind person I encounter people on a regular basis who may deserve a stern talking to; and that's putting it mildly. (I suppose, everyone whether they are blind or not, encounters similar idiots). However, I've learned to ignore a lot of behaviour that would require such a talking to for many reasons. The main reason being that if I went on a rampage every time someone acted like an idiot just because I'm blind, I'd be an angry and nasty person. Also, I've come to realise that much of people's poor behaviour comes from ignorance and fear. Letting my tongue fly wouldn't help or fix the situation. So, I've learned to be more eloquent or just ignore it all together. Carrying on speaking at your normal speaking volume when someone is talking to you at top volume because they think your blindness means your ears don't work, is usually better than getting angry at them. However, there are times when my filter fails and this morning was an example of that.
As per my normal morning routine, I leashed Hermione and Otis up to go walk through the little park that is around the corner from our place. (Hermione is back to her normal self, by the way). Hermione wears an extenda leash for these walks because then she can go off and explore the park without getting into trouble. People tend to dump garbage and stuff and I'd hate for her to get into something dangerous.
As soon as we hit the paved walk way, Otis pulled over to pee. Hermione had gone on ahead, but hadn't reached the limits of her extenda leash. As Otis finished his business I heard bike tires spraying up gravel coming at me. It was hard to tell exactly where the bike was so instead of reeling Hermione in, I left her out. She was off to the side and I was worried that if I called her to me she could potentially get tangled up in the bike's tires. Otis and I were off to the side as well; my white cane in my hand, slightly extended. (This is a very important part of this story). That little park is so small that I could walk around it without my white cane, but I use it just in case the neighbourhood kids leave something on one of the paths and also because it identifies me as blind.
The tires kept coming at me. The gravel spraying continued as if the rider was hitting the brakes and then releasing.
Just as the rider got to me he says in a very sarcastic tone:
"You'd think you'd move out of the way eh? Wow!"
That was it. My shocked silence was ended. Filter failed.
"I'm blind you dumb a*s!" I shouted at his retreating back. I know he heard me. I was a cheerleader a long time ago. My voice carries.
I'll blame it on the early hour and my brain still waking up. Or perhaps he just got what I've been holding back from other dumb a**es. Whatever it was, I'm not going to lie: it felt good to voice my annoyance instead of just turning the other cheek.
No, I'm not going to make a habit of going around and calling people who squish themselves as far up against a building wall as they can when I walk by dumb a**es or the people who cut in front of me in line. As I said above, getting angry about every jerk that crosses your path just isn't worth it, but sometimes just sometimes, it's appropriate to set the record straight and call it the way it is.
So, although I will continue to fortify my brain/mouth filter, I know that there will be times when it will fail. Here's to hoping that when it does, I'm not the one looking like the dumb a*s.
Tuesday, August 12, 2014
Little Miss Lamp Shade Head
That's right.
She's not a princess anymore. Or rather, she's royalty with a different kind of head wear.
Hermione is wearing the cone of shame.
Yesterday we brought her to the vet. A new vet I might add, who was very good and actually has emergency appointments available. Who would have thought?!
It was so strange because it seemed like she was healing, but all of a sudden around 5 last evening, a check of her bum made us hustle to the vet clinic.
Since realising last Wednesday that Hermione's anal gland had ruptured Mr. K and I have been doing a twice daily, sometimes three times daily, routine of cleaning her anal glands and putting anti-biotic ointment on the area. She seemed to be getting better. Her energy was returning, her bum was wagging and her appetite had come back in full force. A check of the area Sunday evening put her in the clear. It looked good. However, last night I had a funny feeling and asked someone to look at it again.
Hermione had seemed fine earlier in the day and even when I had the funny feeling, she seemed pretty much herself; except that she was lying much closer to me than normal. You try not to read into these things. Anything could cause behaviour changes in your animals and since they can't tell you what's going on, you could drive yourself mad trying to interpret their every change. However, her body felt warm. Granted, it was a warm day and the house was pretty warm, but knowing that she was just barely out of the woods, I had her looked at.
Good thing I did because the area that had been free of redness and clean the night before was inflamed with one side of the gland appearing to be entirely red and hard and the other being covered with a clear film. It was apparently also bulbous. This was cause for alarm. We had been battling with this thing for over a week. It was time to go to the vet, and as I said above, a different one than our original one.
I called the vet and told them we'd be in very quickly. They are within walking distance and we arrived within 30 minutes of me calling. Hermione walked the whole way and was even excited about being out and about. It was a good thing that she was showing visible symptoms because judging by how she pranced along, you'd never know that she was fighting an infection.
The vet was a bit busy when we arrived, but Hermione was quickly weighed and then whisked off to have her bum looked after. Basically, they had to lance the area, flush it and then she'd be good to go. We warned the vet that Hermione was a drama queen, but not a biter. Strangely enough, Hermione didn't complain once. They gave her an anti-biotic injection that sits under the skin for two weeks and some pain killers. We were given some pain killers for home and instructed to give her one a day until they were gone. The vet said it was good we had brought her in because her temperature was slightly higher than normal. Even now I think her temperature is a bit high, but I think it's because the medicine is doing its job and she's fighting off the foreign bodies invading her little fuzziness.
On top of the pain killers we were also given a "cone of shame" for her to wear. She's a bit obsessive and keeping her from licking/chewing at the area has been difficult. With the collar though, she's not able to get to it at all. I do have to take it off of her when taking her out for bathroom breaks because she refuses to walk around with it on. She's such a particular little thing. At least she's getting rest since she refuses to go anywhere with the collar on. I have to be really vigilant when I take it off for bathroom breaks because she instantly attacks her butt.
So, Hermione's battle with problematic anal glands continues, but with the assistance of some strong drugs she should be back to normal soon. The vet said that the glands may be problematic for her for the rest of her life, but then again maybe not. If they continue to cause her issues, we may explore the option of having her anal glands removed. It's a risky surgery so there are a lot of things to consider. I had Jetta's glands removed in the first year of us working together. I didn't know then what I do now about diet, but you never know what will work. I thought Hermione's diet was suiting her and maybe it is. These glands can be tricky little things that really serve no purpose for the domesticated dog.
For now, I'll continue to feed Hermione her pureed pumpkin and blueberries and hope that she recovers quickly so that she can take the ridiculous collar off sooner rather than later.
Poor Little Miss Lamp Shade Head.
She's not a princess anymore. Or rather, she's royalty with a different kind of head wear.
Hermione is wearing the cone of shame.
Yesterday we brought her to the vet. A new vet I might add, who was very good and actually has emergency appointments available. Who would have thought?!
It was so strange because it seemed like she was healing, but all of a sudden around 5 last evening, a check of her bum made us hustle to the vet clinic.
Since realising last Wednesday that Hermione's anal gland had ruptured Mr. K and I have been doing a twice daily, sometimes three times daily, routine of cleaning her anal glands and putting anti-biotic ointment on the area. She seemed to be getting better. Her energy was returning, her bum was wagging and her appetite had come back in full force. A check of the area Sunday evening put her in the clear. It looked good. However, last night I had a funny feeling and asked someone to look at it again.
Hermione had seemed fine earlier in the day and even when I had the funny feeling, she seemed pretty much herself; except that she was lying much closer to me than normal. You try not to read into these things. Anything could cause behaviour changes in your animals and since they can't tell you what's going on, you could drive yourself mad trying to interpret their every change. However, her body felt warm. Granted, it was a warm day and the house was pretty warm, but knowing that she was just barely out of the woods, I had her looked at.
Good thing I did because the area that had been free of redness and clean the night before was inflamed with one side of the gland appearing to be entirely red and hard and the other being covered with a clear film. It was apparently also bulbous. This was cause for alarm. We had been battling with this thing for over a week. It was time to go to the vet, and as I said above, a different one than our original one.
I called the vet and told them we'd be in very quickly. They are within walking distance and we arrived within 30 minutes of me calling. Hermione walked the whole way and was even excited about being out and about. It was a good thing that she was showing visible symptoms because judging by how she pranced along, you'd never know that she was fighting an infection.
The vet was a bit busy when we arrived, but Hermione was quickly weighed and then whisked off to have her bum looked after. Basically, they had to lance the area, flush it and then she'd be good to go. We warned the vet that Hermione was a drama queen, but not a biter. Strangely enough, Hermione didn't complain once. They gave her an anti-biotic injection that sits under the skin for two weeks and some pain killers. We were given some pain killers for home and instructed to give her one a day until they were gone. The vet said it was good we had brought her in because her temperature was slightly higher than normal. Even now I think her temperature is a bit high, but I think it's because the medicine is doing its job and she's fighting off the foreign bodies invading her little fuzziness.
On top of the pain killers we were also given a "cone of shame" for her to wear. She's a bit obsessive and keeping her from licking/chewing at the area has been difficult. With the collar though, she's not able to get to it at all. I do have to take it off of her when taking her out for bathroom breaks because she refuses to walk around with it on. She's such a particular little thing. At least she's getting rest since she refuses to go anywhere with the collar on. I have to be really vigilant when I take it off for bathroom breaks because she instantly attacks her butt.
So, Hermione's battle with problematic anal glands continues, but with the assistance of some strong drugs she should be back to normal soon. The vet said that the glands may be problematic for her for the rest of her life, but then again maybe not. If they continue to cause her issues, we may explore the option of having her anal glands removed. It's a risky surgery so there are a lot of things to consider. I had Jetta's glands removed in the first year of us working together. I didn't know then what I do now about diet, but you never know what will work. I thought Hermione's diet was suiting her and maybe it is. These glands can be tricky little things that really serve no purpose for the domesticated dog.
For now, I'll continue to feed Hermione her pureed pumpkin and blueberries and hope that she recovers quickly so that she can take the ridiculous collar off sooner rather than later.
Poor Little Miss Lamp Shade Head.
Thursday, August 07, 2014
A Hermione Update
So, you know how I said Hermione seemed to be on the mends? Well, Tuesday was a bit of a rough day. Not "Oh, we need to go the vet right now!", but more like "things aren't getting. better..a bit worse and I'm worried."
Tuesday Hermione refused to eat any dog food at all. By this point we had figured out that it wasn't whatever stung her, but rather something was wrong with her bum. So, I called Lindsay over to see if she could help me express Hermione's anal glands.
Anal glands are small glands near the dog's poop spot at about 4 and 8 on a clock's face. They can potentially become too full and infected if a dog isn't having regular poops. I was convinced that it was her glands.
Lindsay wasn't able to come until Wednesday because she was working. So, I spent much of Tuesday fussing and worrying. Hermione didn't want to have anything to do with food or water and that was freaking me out. However, she would allow me to spoon frozen blueberries into her mouth and she'd eat them. If I balled pureed pumpkin up small enough and dropped it into her mouth, she'd swallow it. I even made her some chicken broth which she drank some of.
That said, her heart rate was normal and she didn't have a fever. She was also going out to the bathroom and walking around if I took her out on leash.
I had put her flea stuff on the day before which never reacts well with her. In the hopes of making things easier for her system, I gave her a bath, washing away the flea medication. I also took the opportunity to trim the feathers away from her bum and feel her whole body all over. She's so quite furry, so feeling her structure is easier when her fur is wet. I didn't feel anything abnormal.
My parents stopped by that night to see her. Dad had dropped off the pureed pumpkin for me earlier in the day. Hermione didn't even get off the chair or wag her tail. Mom picked her up and at one point accidentally squished her bum. Hermione yelped. Mom also looked at her butt and said it was red and irritated.
I was further convinced it was anal glands.
Wednesday came and she seemed a bit perkier. She still didn't want dog food, but would let me shove blueberries into her mouth as well as the pumpkin. She wasn't too happy about it, but as long as she was swallowing I kept feeding it to her. I usually just gave her little bits at a time about every three hours or so. She was still going out to the bathroom. So, that was encouraging.
Lindsay arrived Wednesday afternoon and we spirited Hermione off to the bath tub to express her glands. Hermione yelped which we thought might happen, but upon closer inspection, Lindsay realised her bum didn't look right. There seemed to be a hole of sorts near her poop hole.
Now, it was time for the vet.
As I called the vet, we cleaned Hermione's bum with some therapeutic grade witch hazel. I think it stung a bit, but that just meant it was cleaning.
My first call to the vet sent me directly to voice mail. I left a message. They still haven't returned my call.
Mr. K had started looking stuff up on the internet because that is what he does. He had Lindsay describe what it looked like and when he found something he thought to be right, he showed her.
Turns out he diagnosed her.
While they were researching, Lindsay had called the vet on her cell phone and they answered. I talked to them and explained. They told me that they didn't have any appointments until Friday so I would have to bring her in for the day and they would call me once the vet finally got to her. Then, they would let me know how much everything would cost and what our plan of action was.
Um, how about no?
Don't you have emergency appointments?!!
What vet doesn't have emergency appointments?
Especially a vet office that has over ten vets working there plus their dozen or so vet Techs. I was furious.
According to the stuff Mr. K found, Hermione had blown out one of her anal glands. The concern with this, of course, is infection. However, other than giving her anti-biotics, there isn't anything vets can do for her; unless hers was so bad and she needed surgery. Hers wasn't that bad.
The instructions we found told us to keep it clean which we've done with the witch hazel and to keep her from licking. That's been the fun part. I can't tell you how many different types of doggie diapers we've made in the last few days. She's so small that she can get out of everything. Mom and I even bought her a baby diaper shirt, but it was just a tad too small and wasn't wide enough to cover her bum. She's currently wearing one of my t-shirts with her head poking through the sleeve. She's not too happy, but it works. We are also to put anti-biotic ointment on her which we have also been doing.
Since yesterday she's eaten two full meals and drank her fill of water. She even hopped around when I let her out of her crate this morning. Yesterday she wagged her tail, and bum, when Mom came over. Just that little bit of ointment and cleansing has made a huge difference.
I'm still feeding her pumpkin to keep her poop soft so that she doesn't strain while going. We think that is how she ruptured the gland in the first place. It will take some time for her to heal fully, but she is definitely on the mends. We are just paying very close attention to ensure there aren't any signs of infection. If anything crops up that is worrying, we'll be going to the vet; just not that one. Her bum apparently looks less irritated today than yesterday and it looks like it's healing. So, we'll just have to keep on it. Thankfully, she's not a labrador and is being quiet and resting. The dress-like t-shirt may be helping with that.
So, it was a bit stressful the last couple of days, but I think she's getting better. Fingers crossed.
My poor little princess.
Tuesday Hermione refused to eat any dog food at all. By this point we had figured out that it wasn't whatever stung her, but rather something was wrong with her bum. So, I called Lindsay over to see if she could help me express Hermione's anal glands.
Anal glands are small glands near the dog's poop spot at about 4 and 8 on a clock's face. They can potentially become too full and infected if a dog isn't having regular poops. I was convinced that it was her glands.
Lindsay wasn't able to come until Wednesday because she was working. So, I spent much of Tuesday fussing and worrying. Hermione didn't want to have anything to do with food or water and that was freaking me out. However, she would allow me to spoon frozen blueberries into her mouth and she'd eat them. If I balled pureed pumpkin up small enough and dropped it into her mouth, she'd swallow it. I even made her some chicken broth which she drank some of.
That said, her heart rate was normal and she didn't have a fever. She was also going out to the bathroom and walking around if I took her out on leash.
I had put her flea stuff on the day before which never reacts well with her. In the hopes of making things easier for her system, I gave her a bath, washing away the flea medication. I also took the opportunity to trim the feathers away from her bum and feel her whole body all over. She's so quite furry, so feeling her structure is easier when her fur is wet. I didn't feel anything abnormal.
My parents stopped by that night to see her. Dad had dropped off the pureed pumpkin for me earlier in the day. Hermione didn't even get off the chair or wag her tail. Mom picked her up and at one point accidentally squished her bum. Hermione yelped. Mom also looked at her butt and said it was red and irritated.
I was further convinced it was anal glands.
Wednesday came and she seemed a bit perkier. She still didn't want dog food, but would let me shove blueberries into her mouth as well as the pumpkin. She wasn't too happy about it, but as long as she was swallowing I kept feeding it to her. I usually just gave her little bits at a time about every three hours or so. She was still going out to the bathroom. So, that was encouraging.
Lindsay arrived Wednesday afternoon and we spirited Hermione off to the bath tub to express her glands. Hermione yelped which we thought might happen, but upon closer inspection, Lindsay realised her bum didn't look right. There seemed to be a hole of sorts near her poop hole.
Now, it was time for the vet.
As I called the vet, we cleaned Hermione's bum with some therapeutic grade witch hazel. I think it stung a bit, but that just meant it was cleaning.
My first call to the vet sent me directly to voice mail. I left a message. They still haven't returned my call.
Mr. K had started looking stuff up on the internet because that is what he does. He had Lindsay describe what it looked like and when he found something he thought to be right, he showed her.
Turns out he diagnosed her.
While they were researching, Lindsay had called the vet on her cell phone and they answered. I talked to them and explained. They told me that they didn't have any appointments until Friday so I would have to bring her in for the day and they would call me once the vet finally got to her. Then, they would let me know how much everything would cost and what our plan of action was.
Um, how about no?
Don't you have emergency appointments?!!
What vet doesn't have emergency appointments?
Especially a vet office that has over ten vets working there plus their dozen or so vet Techs. I was furious.
According to the stuff Mr. K found, Hermione had blown out one of her anal glands. The concern with this, of course, is infection. However, other than giving her anti-biotics, there isn't anything vets can do for her; unless hers was so bad and she needed surgery. Hers wasn't that bad.
The instructions we found told us to keep it clean which we've done with the witch hazel and to keep her from licking. That's been the fun part. I can't tell you how many different types of doggie diapers we've made in the last few days. She's so small that she can get out of everything. Mom and I even bought her a baby diaper shirt, but it was just a tad too small and wasn't wide enough to cover her bum. She's currently wearing one of my t-shirts with her head poking through the sleeve. She's not too happy, but it works. We are also to put anti-biotic ointment on her which we have also been doing.
Since yesterday she's eaten two full meals and drank her fill of water. She even hopped around when I let her out of her crate this morning. Yesterday she wagged her tail, and bum, when Mom came over. Just that little bit of ointment and cleansing has made a huge difference.
I'm still feeding her pumpkin to keep her poop soft so that she doesn't strain while going. We think that is how she ruptured the gland in the first place. It will take some time for her to heal fully, but she is definitely on the mends. We are just paying very close attention to ensure there aren't any signs of infection. If anything crops up that is worrying, we'll be going to the vet; just not that one. Her bum apparently looks less irritated today than yesterday and it looks like it's healing. So, we'll just have to keep on it. Thankfully, she's not a labrador and is being quiet and resting. The dress-like t-shirt may be helping with that.
So, it was a bit stressful the last couple of days, but I think she's getting better. Fingers crossed.
My poor little princess.
Tuesday, August 05, 2014
Kira Kitty and an Uncomfortable Hermione
Since I've let this blog lapse into non-writing status again, there are two components to today's post. (Very long post ahead)! The first is a bit longer, but both of equal importance. Let's start with Kira Kitty.
Who is she and where did she come from?
As everyone knows Mr. K and I have a Siberian Forest cat named Rufio. We had originally got him, not only for companionship, but to show him and start our own cattery; breeding these amazing cats. However, after searching and searching for a suitable wife, or wives" for him we couldn't find any or the plans of this or that cat fell threw and eventually we opted to have him neutered. We've discussed still showing him, but obviously starting our own cattery is no longer an option.
In those plans, we always thought that Rufio would eventually have other feline company. He's quite the social guy and he seemed lonely at night when we had all gone to bed. We tried letting him sleep with us, but since he's still young, only 1.5 years, he is active at night. He would clean himself on the bed, bounce around the room, sit on top of Hermione's crate and try to bat her, climb the dresser, attack the curtains Etc. Basically, we weren't getting any sleep and Sir was banned from the bedroom during sleeping hours. Mr. K and I both felt bad, knowing that he just liked having company. Rufio started letting us know about his disgruntled state by destroying things. He chewed through cell phone adapter cords, Mr. K's fancy headphone cords and many other things. We thought that perhaps it was just naughty kitty behaviour, but when he chewed through the strap of one of my bras not once but twice, we decided it was time to find him a friend. The problem is that Mr. K is allergic to cats. That is why we decided on the Siberian breed in the first place.
In our researching cat breeds the first time around, we read a lot about darker cats (sometimes) producing less of the protein that most people are allergic to. We knew getting another Siberian was out of the question this time around. They are really expensive and really difficult to get a hold of. So, I looked at the local humane society to see if they had any black cats. Statistically speaking, black, or darker, animals are more difficult to adopt out and so I wasn't surprised when I found a few black cats. There was one cat in particular that caught my attention. She was described as "active" and "spicy."
I sent her profile to Mr. K and I think his interest was peaked right away too.
We waited about a week, talking about the pros and cons. We finally decided that we would go meet her and see how allergic Mr. K was to her.
On July 31 we went to our local humane society and asked to see the kitten. There were so many beautiful and sweet cats available, it was just heart breaking. I just had to keep telling myself that we were going to try to save one and some day in the future, I'd be able to help in bigger ways. But, for now, this would have to do.
The worker went into the room and put the two cats already out back into their cage and opened Miss Kitty's door. She sprung happily out and immediately rubbed up against us. Then she was off, enthusiastically scratching the scratching post. It was like she was saying, "look. I know where I'm supposed to scratch. I'll be good. I promise."
The worker left, warning us to make sure that when we left, we snuck out without a black kitten in hot pursuit. Apparently she was quite the escape artist. She would bust out when unsuspecting people were leaving or entering the room and go off to visit the rabbits up for adoption.
We petted her while she scratched and we were both impressed at how she wasn't afraid of us. She purred, further winning us over. She had been found on a walk way in the middle of May and had been in the shelter ever since.
How was it that this little outgoing, sweet kitten had been looked over for two and a half months?
It had said on her bio that she needed to be spayed, but when we went back out to the front desk and told them we wanted her, they told us that she had been spayed three days prior to our arrival. This made us even more convinced.
As we stood petting her while she scratched away at the appropriate scratching object, Mr. K asked me if I wanted her. Of course I did, but I left it up to him.
"How allergic to her are you?"
He told me it was hard to tell because the room was full of cats, but he said that if he petted her and then put his hands near his face he felt fine.
We would have to take her home and see. I vowed to vaccuum every second day if that meant she could stay.
We signed our adoption papers and brought the little bundle of fur home.
We think she's between 6 and 8 months, but it's hard to tell because she is so tiny. She is technically called a black smoke because her coat is black, but has a silver under coat. Her eyes are gold and she is so sweet. She talks a lot and is quite active; just what we wanted.
Rufio wasn't entirely sure about our decision. He hissed and growled at her the first day, but it hasn't even been a week and they are already kitty battling; friendly kitty battling, that is. They even have started sleeping ear each other, Rufio on the top step and Kira on the one below him.
We're convinced that she is mixed with some kind of purebred cat because her features aren't that of your every day domestic long hair. Her tail is hugely furry and she uses it like a fan to show off. She's a flirt. More impressively, she's not even remotely afraid of the dogs. Otis tried to battle with her like he does with Rufio, but she powder puffed him on the head, flicked her flirty tail and pranced off.
As for her escape artistry, she hasn't tried it yet. (Knock on wood). We're hoping she doesn't want to go outside now because she has so much more room here and more company.
We did have to teach her that biting isn't nice. She would get so excited that someone was petting her that she'd put her teeth on your hand. After saying "ouch" a couple of times and refraining from petting her, she's stopped biting.
So, our furry family has grown again and I vaccuum for over an hour every second day. But, Mr. K's allergies aren't really bothering him. And, that means she can stay.
As for Her Royal Highness, Princess Hermione Sophia: she's not feeling well. (This is the second part of my post. Did you remember? The first part was quite long).
We had a birthday party for me on Saturday which consisted of brunch with some great people, a romp at the beach with sed wonderful people and then a barbecue at my parents' house with more great people. My parents were at camp, so I brought all of the dogs with us. They had been alone on and off all day and so I thought they would want to come along. Plus, they're my family too. Some time between barbecued hamburgers and cake, something bit Hermione. We don't know what it was, but she yelped and jumped around. We thought nothing of it, but the next day she was not herself. She didn't even want her breakfast. She did drink water though which made me feel better. She was alert, heart rate normal, but she just laid on the chair. At dinner I managed to convinced her to eat some yogurt and cinnamon. I thought her tummy was upset and that was why she wasn't eating.
The next morning she scarfed her breakfast down and drank. She was still just lying on her chair. She would go out if I took her, but she wanted to go right back home. Her tail wagged, but her usual spunk just wasn't there. A friend could see where she had been bitten and said it didn't look infected. She at her supper and drank water all day. Her bathroom breaks were normal.
Today is day three and she's still unhappy. She's in her chair resting again. I checked her heart rate and it's normal. Her nose is wet and cold and she's responsive. It's almost breakfast time here for the dogs, so we'll see what she thinks of eating this morning. As long as she keeps eating, drinking and going to the bathroom I won't worry...well, worry too much. I'll have someone look at the bite again today just to make sure it hasn't become infected. I'm hoping with a little rest and some TLC that she'll be back to normal soon. As much as her high energy can be a bit much sometimes, you never want your dog to change and you worry when they just aren't themselves.
Who is she and where did she come from?
As everyone knows Mr. K and I have a Siberian Forest cat named Rufio. We had originally got him, not only for companionship, but to show him and start our own cattery; breeding these amazing cats. However, after searching and searching for a suitable wife, or wives" for him we couldn't find any or the plans of this or that cat fell threw and eventually we opted to have him neutered. We've discussed still showing him, but obviously starting our own cattery is no longer an option.
In those plans, we always thought that Rufio would eventually have other feline company. He's quite the social guy and he seemed lonely at night when we had all gone to bed. We tried letting him sleep with us, but since he's still young, only 1.5 years, he is active at night. He would clean himself on the bed, bounce around the room, sit on top of Hermione's crate and try to bat her, climb the dresser, attack the curtains Etc. Basically, we weren't getting any sleep and Sir was banned from the bedroom during sleeping hours. Mr. K and I both felt bad, knowing that he just liked having company. Rufio started letting us know about his disgruntled state by destroying things. He chewed through cell phone adapter cords, Mr. K's fancy headphone cords and many other things. We thought that perhaps it was just naughty kitty behaviour, but when he chewed through the strap of one of my bras not once but twice, we decided it was time to find him a friend. The problem is that Mr. K is allergic to cats. That is why we decided on the Siberian breed in the first place.
In our researching cat breeds the first time around, we read a lot about darker cats (sometimes) producing less of the protein that most people are allergic to. We knew getting another Siberian was out of the question this time around. They are really expensive and really difficult to get a hold of. So, I looked at the local humane society to see if they had any black cats. Statistically speaking, black, or darker, animals are more difficult to adopt out and so I wasn't surprised when I found a few black cats. There was one cat in particular that caught my attention. She was described as "active" and "spicy."
I sent her profile to Mr. K and I think his interest was peaked right away too.
We waited about a week, talking about the pros and cons. We finally decided that we would go meet her and see how allergic Mr. K was to her.
On July 31 we went to our local humane society and asked to see the kitten. There were so many beautiful and sweet cats available, it was just heart breaking. I just had to keep telling myself that we were going to try to save one and some day in the future, I'd be able to help in bigger ways. But, for now, this would have to do.
The worker went into the room and put the two cats already out back into their cage and opened Miss Kitty's door. She sprung happily out and immediately rubbed up against us. Then she was off, enthusiastically scratching the scratching post. It was like she was saying, "look. I know where I'm supposed to scratch. I'll be good. I promise."
The worker left, warning us to make sure that when we left, we snuck out without a black kitten in hot pursuit. Apparently she was quite the escape artist. She would bust out when unsuspecting people were leaving or entering the room and go off to visit the rabbits up for adoption.
We petted her while she scratched and we were both impressed at how she wasn't afraid of us. She purred, further winning us over. She had been found on a walk way in the middle of May and had been in the shelter ever since.
How was it that this little outgoing, sweet kitten had been looked over for two and a half months?
It had said on her bio that she needed to be spayed, but when we went back out to the front desk and told them we wanted her, they told us that she had been spayed three days prior to our arrival. This made us even more convinced.
As we stood petting her while she scratched away at the appropriate scratching object, Mr. K asked me if I wanted her. Of course I did, but I left it up to him.
"How allergic to her are you?"
He told me it was hard to tell because the room was full of cats, but he said that if he petted her and then put his hands near his face he felt fine.
We would have to take her home and see. I vowed to vaccuum every second day if that meant she could stay.
We signed our adoption papers and brought the little bundle of fur home.
We think she's between 6 and 8 months, but it's hard to tell because she is so tiny. She is technically called a black smoke because her coat is black, but has a silver under coat. Her eyes are gold and she is so sweet. She talks a lot and is quite active; just what we wanted.
Rufio wasn't entirely sure about our decision. He hissed and growled at her the first day, but it hasn't even been a week and they are already kitty battling; friendly kitty battling, that is. They even have started sleeping ear each other, Rufio on the top step and Kira on the one below him.
We're convinced that she is mixed with some kind of purebred cat because her features aren't that of your every day domestic long hair. Her tail is hugely furry and she uses it like a fan to show off. She's a flirt. More impressively, she's not even remotely afraid of the dogs. Otis tried to battle with her like he does with Rufio, but she powder puffed him on the head, flicked her flirty tail and pranced off.
As for her escape artistry, she hasn't tried it yet. (Knock on wood). We're hoping she doesn't want to go outside now because she has so much more room here and more company.
We did have to teach her that biting isn't nice. She would get so excited that someone was petting her that she'd put her teeth on your hand. After saying "ouch" a couple of times and refraining from petting her, she's stopped biting.
So, our furry family has grown again and I vaccuum for over an hour every second day. But, Mr. K's allergies aren't really bothering him. And, that means she can stay.
As for Her Royal Highness, Princess Hermione Sophia: she's not feeling well. (This is the second part of my post. Did you remember? The first part was quite long).
We had a birthday party for me on Saturday which consisted of brunch with some great people, a romp at the beach with sed wonderful people and then a barbecue at my parents' house with more great people. My parents were at camp, so I brought all of the dogs with us. They had been alone on and off all day and so I thought they would want to come along. Plus, they're my family too. Some time between barbecued hamburgers and cake, something bit Hermione. We don't know what it was, but she yelped and jumped around. We thought nothing of it, but the next day she was not herself. She didn't even want her breakfast. She did drink water though which made me feel better. She was alert, heart rate normal, but she just laid on the chair. At dinner I managed to convinced her to eat some yogurt and cinnamon. I thought her tummy was upset and that was why she wasn't eating.
The next morning she scarfed her breakfast down and drank. She was still just lying on her chair. She would go out if I took her, but she wanted to go right back home. Her tail wagged, but her usual spunk just wasn't there. A friend could see where she had been bitten and said it didn't look infected. She at her supper and drank water all day. Her bathroom breaks were normal.
Today is day three and she's still unhappy. She's in her chair resting again. I checked her heart rate and it's normal. Her nose is wet and cold and she's responsive. It's almost breakfast time here for the dogs, so we'll see what she thinks of eating this morning. As long as she keeps eating, drinking and going to the bathroom I won't worry...well, worry too much. I'll have someone look at the bite again today just to make sure it hasn't become infected. I'm hoping with a little rest and some TLC that she'll be back to normal soon. As much as her high energy can be a bit much sometimes, you never want your dog to change and you worry when they just aren't themselves.
Saturday, July 26, 2014
Her "Ahah!" Moment
Hermione and I have been working on "hit it" and "touch" for quite some time now. Her "hit it" is her using her paws to touch and "touch" is her using her nose. She seems to prefer using her paws and so I've really tried to reinforce that behaviour. I want to say it's been a month or so, but maybe it hasn't been that long. Then again, maybe it's been longer. either way, it's been a while. Her "hit it" is spot on when I'm training with her, but proofing the cue has been a bit tricky. I could get her to do it as long as I had kibble or a treat in a closed fist pretty much anywhere, but I really want her to learn to use her paws instead of her voice. That was the whole point of me teaching her "hit it" in the first place. Even though I didn't see any improvement in her translating "hit it" to every day things and she was still yelling about things, I have kept at the training at meal times and when I'm dispensing treats.
About a week ago I saw a glimmer of her starting to understand. I was by the back door, letting the dogs out and she came over and whacked me with her paw. Normally I make the dogs sit before going out, but I said "yes" "" enthusiastically and flung the door open. I don't know if going out was what she wanted, but I wanted her to realise that she gets things for using her feet instead of her voice.
Yesterday was probably the biggest "ahah" moment she's had since we've started training the behaviour. I don't even think it's that she's put two and two together, but what I think happened was that she was so frustrated with me ignoring her barking that she hit me with her paw very enthusiastically and repeatedly. She had a stuffed fish toy that she loves. Technically it was otis's for his birthday, but Hermione seemed to enjoy death shaking and chasing it more than he did. I was sitting on the couch doing my best to ignore her insistent yipping; she really, really wanted me to throw it. Her bark is so high pitched it's difficult not to respond which is probably why she learned in the first place to use it. I sat and waited, hoping that she'd just give up. Instead of giving up, she hit me repeatedly on the leg with her paw in quick succession. The fish was within my reach so I nearly shouted "yes" in my excitement and hurled the fish across the room for her to fetch. Her frenzied state to get me to throw the fish must have worn her out because she didn't want me to throw it anymore after that one great toss, but I was so excited that she had used her feet that it didn't matter.
I've always read that re-training a behaviour or even training a new one takes time, patience and consistency. I knew that, logically. But, honestly, it's difficult to understand just what that entails until you go through it. That said, I think we're making progress so I will blunder on and hope that paw tapping becomes more frequent than voice squawking.
About a week ago I saw a glimmer of her starting to understand. I was by the back door, letting the dogs out and she came over and whacked me with her paw. Normally I make the dogs sit before going out, but I said "yes" "" enthusiastically and flung the door open. I don't know if going out was what she wanted, but I wanted her to realise that she gets things for using her feet instead of her voice.
Yesterday was probably the biggest "ahah" moment she's had since we've started training the behaviour. I don't even think it's that she's put two and two together, but what I think happened was that she was so frustrated with me ignoring her barking that she hit me with her paw very enthusiastically and repeatedly. She had a stuffed fish toy that she loves. Technically it was otis's for his birthday, but Hermione seemed to enjoy death shaking and chasing it more than he did. I was sitting on the couch doing my best to ignore her insistent yipping; she really, really wanted me to throw it. Her bark is so high pitched it's difficult not to respond which is probably why she learned in the first place to use it. I sat and waited, hoping that she'd just give up. Instead of giving up, she hit me repeatedly on the leg with her paw in quick succession. The fish was within my reach so I nearly shouted "yes" in my excitement and hurled the fish across the room for her to fetch. Her frenzied state to get me to throw the fish must have worn her out because she didn't want me to throw it anymore after that one great toss, but I was so excited that she had used her feet that it didn't matter.
I've always read that re-training a behaviour or even training a new one takes time, patience and consistency. I knew that, logically. But, honestly, it's difficult to understand just what that entails until you go through it. That said, I think we're making progress so I will blunder on and hope that paw tapping becomes more frequent than voice squawking.
Thursday, July 17, 2014
Innovative Dog Mom
If you've read this blog for long enough, and maybe even for not so long, you will know that Her Royal Highness Princess Hermione Sophia is one high energy dog. Sometimes she drives me nuts, but most of the time, I embrace her Crazy with enthusiasm and try to figure out ways to keep her occupied.
Since my aunt's been here from BC, most of my hard work has been non-existent. We've taken the dogs hiking about every second day and it's been great for Hermione. I know that if I could see, and hence could drive, most of Hermione's energy would be better spent, chasing rabbits/squirrels/chipmunks and running as fast as her little legs can carry her. However, since I am blind and can't drive, I have to find other ways.
So, yesterday I decided that I'd find a new way of dispensing her supper.
A few weeks back I started doing a lot of my obedience training with her during her meals. It's something that I've kept up and I think is helping. Most mornings if I don't ask her for a "touch" or a "hit it" she won't eat the food that is in her bowl. That said, I knew that since my aunt is leaving and our hours long hikes are coming to an end, I needed to find a way to get Hermione moving in the house in a positive manner.
I've always liked the idea of food dispensing toys. We used to have Kong Wobblers, but moving from country to country has meant leaving the toys behind. Not to mention, Hermione was afraid of the Kong Wobbler. I didn't have any food dispensing toys on hand so I tried to come up with something I could make myself.
When Hermione was a puppy I used to put part of her breakfast in a paper towel tube. I'm not sure why this particular tube was as sturdy as it was, but it seemed to be industrial strength. She used to push it all over the floor, her puppy kibbles spilling out. She loved it. An empty paper towel tube would be way too easy for her now.
What could I use?
Empty water bottles!
Hermione likes playing with them anyway, so why not turn one into a food dispenser?
I set to work with knife and scissors, cutting small holes out of the sides of the bottle. I made two and found that I had to tape the edges of some of the holes on my first attempt to cover up some sharpish edges. Other than managing to stab myself in the palm when shoving the knife through the first bottle, it turned out pretty good.
At supper time, I took the lids off of the bottles and funnelled Hermione's and Otis's portions into the bottles.
I fed the big dogs from their bowls as I don't want Nala thinking she should forage for food on the floor. I'm not sure using food dispensing toys would create this habit, but I wasn't about to take any chances. I'm sure it depends on the dog.
Lids tightly screwed back on, I set the bottles down on the floor and stepped back to wait. Otis, being the brave guy that he is, investigated the bottles and pushed one over. Hermione stomped her front paws and huffed, circling the still upright second bottle. She did this for some time and so I laid it down for her, thinking that it was too challenging. She still didn't know what to do. I stepped back and waited.
Didn't I want her brain to be challenged?
After about five minutes I could tell she was getting frustrated. She kept coming over to me and stomping her paws or woofing softly. It was time to get out the clicker since my verbal encouragement seemed to be confusing her even more.
I went and sat down on the floor beside the bottle. Hermione sat in front of the bottle, what she is supposed to do before eating out of her bowl. I placed my hand near the bottle and had her do a "touch." She did it and was rewarded with a click. Then, I had her do a "hit it." It was with this "hit it" that I think the lights started turning on. She moved closer to the bottle and I clicked. The instant I heard her paw hit the bottle I clicked. My clicking frenzy continued throughout the whole thing. Part way through I realised that I could use this to encourage her to play quietly. Every time she engaged with the bottle quietly, which could include soft grumbles, she got a click. If she full out barked at the bottle, no click.
I have to admit that this is not completely flawless as there were a few times where she hit the bottle and I clicked when she used her voice. My timing was off because I heard her paw before her voice.
by the end of her meal, Hermione had figured out how to whack the home made dog food dispensing toy around the whole living room. She even figured out how to get it out of corners.
Although I am going to count this as a success, if I want to have Hermione and Otis eat from my home made toys again, I am going to have to make new ones. Once dinner had been dispensed, Otis promptly tore one of the bottles in half and Roscoe squashed the second one flat trying to get one last kibble out that the small dogs had left behind. I haven't decided whether I want to risk stabbing myself or not again, but if I don't, I think actual dog food dispensing toys bought from a store may be our next purchase. That said, if you're ever in a pinch, the water bottle toys do work.
Since my aunt's been here from BC, most of my hard work has been non-existent. We've taken the dogs hiking about every second day and it's been great for Hermione. I know that if I could see, and hence could drive, most of Hermione's energy would be better spent, chasing rabbits/squirrels/chipmunks and running as fast as her little legs can carry her. However, since I am blind and can't drive, I have to find other ways.
So, yesterday I decided that I'd find a new way of dispensing her supper.
A few weeks back I started doing a lot of my obedience training with her during her meals. It's something that I've kept up and I think is helping. Most mornings if I don't ask her for a "touch" or a "hit it" she won't eat the food that is in her bowl. That said, I knew that since my aunt is leaving and our hours long hikes are coming to an end, I needed to find a way to get Hermione moving in the house in a positive manner.
I've always liked the idea of food dispensing toys. We used to have Kong Wobblers, but moving from country to country has meant leaving the toys behind. Not to mention, Hermione was afraid of the Kong Wobbler. I didn't have any food dispensing toys on hand so I tried to come up with something I could make myself.
When Hermione was a puppy I used to put part of her breakfast in a paper towel tube. I'm not sure why this particular tube was as sturdy as it was, but it seemed to be industrial strength. She used to push it all over the floor, her puppy kibbles spilling out. She loved it. An empty paper towel tube would be way too easy for her now.
What could I use?
Empty water bottles!
Hermione likes playing with them anyway, so why not turn one into a food dispenser?
I set to work with knife and scissors, cutting small holes out of the sides of the bottle. I made two and found that I had to tape the edges of some of the holes on my first attempt to cover up some sharpish edges. Other than managing to stab myself in the palm when shoving the knife through the first bottle, it turned out pretty good.
At supper time, I took the lids off of the bottles and funnelled Hermione's and Otis's portions into the bottles.
I fed the big dogs from their bowls as I don't want Nala thinking she should forage for food on the floor. I'm not sure using food dispensing toys would create this habit, but I wasn't about to take any chances. I'm sure it depends on the dog.
Lids tightly screwed back on, I set the bottles down on the floor and stepped back to wait. Otis, being the brave guy that he is, investigated the bottles and pushed one over. Hermione stomped her front paws and huffed, circling the still upright second bottle. She did this for some time and so I laid it down for her, thinking that it was too challenging. She still didn't know what to do. I stepped back and waited.
Didn't I want her brain to be challenged?
After about five minutes I could tell she was getting frustrated. She kept coming over to me and stomping her paws or woofing softly. It was time to get out the clicker since my verbal encouragement seemed to be confusing her even more.
I went and sat down on the floor beside the bottle. Hermione sat in front of the bottle, what she is supposed to do before eating out of her bowl. I placed my hand near the bottle and had her do a "touch." She did it and was rewarded with a click. Then, I had her do a "hit it." It was with this "hit it" that I think the lights started turning on. She moved closer to the bottle and I clicked. The instant I heard her paw hit the bottle I clicked. My clicking frenzy continued throughout the whole thing. Part way through I realised that I could use this to encourage her to play quietly. Every time she engaged with the bottle quietly, which could include soft grumbles, she got a click. If she full out barked at the bottle, no click.
I have to admit that this is not completely flawless as there were a few times where she hit the bottle and I clicked when she used her voice. My timing was off because I heard her paw before her voice.
by the end of her meal, Hermione had figured out how to whack the home made dog food dispensing toy around the whole living room. She even figured out how to get it out of corners.
Although I am going to count this as a success, if I want to have Hermione and Otis eat from my home made toys again, I am going to have to make new ones. Once dinner had been dispensed, Otis promptly tore one of the bottles in half and Roscoe squashed the second one flat trying to get one last kibble out that the small dogs had left behind. I haven't decided whether I want to risk stabbing myself or not again, but if I don't, I think actual dog food dispensing toys bought from a store may be our next purchase. That said, if you're ever in a pinch, the water bottle toys do work.
Friday, July 11, 2014
Roscoe Learns to Swim
Today was another hiking day. My aunt asked me if I wanted to head out early since it looked as though it may rain. I got the dogs ready and in the process, Mr. K decided to join us. We drove back out to the area where we had walked for 2 hours, but took a different trail.
This one was one that I was actually familiar with as it was the trail that I had done my time trials on during the winter months. Skiing it and walking it are two different things. Not to mention, I think we took a different route since we drove down the large incline that I normally would have skied down.
Our hike started with us walking down a path and then on to a boardwalk/bridge thingy that is in need of repair. Some of the boards were loose and others were missing. There was a small waterfall rushing down on the right side. Hermione was convinced it wasn't safe and so we had to carry her across. Otis was okay with going it on is own, but he remained on leash and we had to lift him over certain spots where the boards were missing. Nala and Roscoe had no problems ploughing ahead.
After our encounter with the questionable bridge thingy we came face to face with a hillside. There was nowhere to go but up. So we went up. This sort of climbing was similar to that of the hike we had done on Monday. We found footholds for our feet in the big rocks and from time to time grabbed on to a tree to help pull ourselves up. There were also a few places where I had to dropped into a crouch position in order to lower my centre of gravity and kind of scuttle up the hill.
Again, Hermione did not think this was safe and squawked at me all the way to the top. She took it upon herself to rush ahead and yell at me from above. She would sometimes lay a paw on my shoulder if I was crouched down or poke my leg with her nose to make sure I realised that she was highly unimpressed. Otis just plunged ahead like the little mac truck/mountain goat that he is.
After that first climb though, the terrain levelled off and although there were climbs and descents, we could stay standing upright the whole time. Rock clutching and tree grabbing were no longer necessary. Hermione stopped yelling.
There were a few opportunities to practice recall. Two cyclists past us and I whistled the dogs back. Everyone came and stayed out of the cyclists' way. The man even commented on how beautiful the dogs were and how well behaved.
That was nice to hear.
A little while later another cyclist appeared and the whistle was used again. The three dogs off leash came bounding back and stayed out of his way as well.
Eventually, our twisting and turning brought us back out of the forest and to the edge of a man made lake. We were all fighting off mosquitoes and horse flies, but the dogs were hot and we thought we'd stop to let them cool off.
Nala, Roscoe and Hermione went splashing about, soaking themselves up to their bellies. Otis was brought over to the water's edge on leash, but when it appeared that all he wanted to do was drink the entire lake, he was removed.
My aunt asked me if Roscoe knew how to fetch and I said no. She then asked if he could swim and I said, "sort of."
Mr. K and I had tried to teach him a few summers ago, but he really didn't get it. There was much paw whacking the water and not enough of paddling under the water. We found a stick and she chucked it way out into the lake. Roscoe and Nala leapt into the water, but then put the brakes on when the bottom started to drop out. The stick floated away.
Roscoe whined in protest.
Another smaller stick was found and thrown within bottom touching distance. They chased it, but then it began floating away as well. Roscoe whined desperately. I nearly died laughing.
Was it a fluke or was he genuinely upset that he couldn't get the stick?
More sticks found and thrown with the same results.
Stick thrown.
Roscoe chases.
Stick gets away.
Roscoe yells about it.
Eventually, we managed to coax him to go get the stick and he became braver. It got to the point where he'd actually chase the stick and swim out to it. He'd usually drop it on the edge of the lake instead of bringing it to you, but baby steps right?
The fact that he figured out to put his paws under the water was a miracle.
He tired of the game much more quickly than dogs who learn how to fetch as puppies. He'd let us know by wandering away once he had dropped the stick on the ground. However, I'm just so excited that he learned how to swim. That means, that if it ever gets warm enough for us to go to the beach this summer, Roscoe can come swimming with me.
After our swimming lesson, we leashed them back up and headed for the SUV. Wet was fine, but we didn't want wet and sandy and there was plenty of sand for them to roll in on the way to the vehicle. We had to cross another bridge thingy that Hermione was none too happy about. She even waded out as far as she could instead of taking the bridge. Mr. K managed to convince her to cross the bridge with us and we were all back at the SUV in one piece.
"Who says you can't teach an old dog new tricks?" I asked as Roscoe leapt into the back of the SUV. At 7 years old, Roscoe is the "old man" of our group. It just goes to show you that there's something to be said for a dog's natural instincts and abilities.
It was a great hike, aside from the bugs. And even though all of the dogs, except Otis, are still a bit damp, they are happy and damp...and sleepy!
and, we all know that a tired dog, whether it is damp or not, is a good dog.
This one was one that I was actually familiar with as it was the trail that I had done my time trials on during the winter months. Skiing it and walking it are two different things. Not to mention, I think we took a different route since we drove down the large incline that I normally would have skied down.
Our hike started with us walking down a path and then on to a boardwalk/bridge thingy that is in need of repair. Some of the boards were loose and others were missing. There was a small waterfall rushing down on the right side. Hermione was convinced it wasn't safe and so we had to carry her across. Otis was okay with going it on is own, but he remained on leash and we had to lift him over certain spots where the boards were missing. Nala and Roscoe had no problems ploughing ahead.
After our encounter with the questionable bridge thingy we came face to face with a hillside. There was nowhere to go but up. So we went up. This sort of climbing was similar to that of the hike we had done on Monday. We found footholds for our feet in the big rocks and from time to time grabbed on to a tree to help pull ourselves up. There were also a few places where I had to dropped into a crouch position in order to lower my centre of gravity and kind of scuttle up the hill.
Again, Hermione did not think this was safe and squawked at me all the way to the top. She took it upon herself to rush ahead and yell at me from above. She would sometimes lay a paw on my shoulder if I was crouched down or poke my leg with her nose to make sure I realised that she was highly unimpressed. Otis just plunged ahead like the little mac truck/mountain goat that he is.
After that first climb though, the terrain levelled off and although there were climbs and descents, we could stay standing upright the whole time. Rock clutching and tree grabbing were no longer necessary. Hermione stopped yelling.
There were a few opportunities to practice recall. Two cyclists past us and I whistled the dogs back. Everyone came and stayed out of the cyclists' way. The man even commented on how beautiful the dogs were and how well behaved.
That was nice to hear.
A little while later another cyclist appeared and the whistle was used again. The three dogs off leash came bounding back and stayed out of his way as well.
Eventually, our twisting and turning brought us back out of the forest and to the edge of a man made lake. We were all fighting off mosquitoes and horse flies, but the dogs were hot and we thought we'd stop to let them cool off.
Nala, Roscoe and Hermione went splashing about, soaking themselves up to their bellies. Otis was brought over to the water's edge on leash, but when it appeared that all he wanted to do was drink the entire lake, he was removed.
My aunt asked me if Roscoe knew how to fetch and I said no. She then asked if he could swim and I said, "sort of."
Mr. K and I had tried to teach him a few summers ago, but he really didn't get it. There was much paw whacking the water and not enough of paddling under the water. We found a stick and she chucked it way out into the lake. Roscoe and Nala leapt into the water, but then put the brakes on when the bottom started to drop out. The stick floated away.
Roscoe whined in protest.
Another smaller stick was found and thrown within bottom touching distance. They chased it, but then it began floating away as well. Roscoe whined desperately. I nearly died laughing.
Was it a fluke or was he genuinely upset that he couldn't get the stick?
More sticks found and thrown with the same results.
Stick thrown.
Roscoe chases.
Stick gets away.
Roscoe yells about it.
Eventually, we managed to coax him to go get the stick and he became braver. It got to the point where he'd actually chase the stick and swim out to it. He'd usually drop it on the edge of the lake instead of bringing it to you, but baby steps right?
The fact that he figured out to put his paws under the water was a miracle.
He tired of the game much more quickly than dogs who learn how to fetch as puppies. He'd let us know by wandering away once he had dropped the stick on the ground. However, I'm just so excited that he learned how to swim. That means, that if it ever gets warm enough for us to go to the beach this summer, Roscoe can come swimming with me.
After our swimming lesson, we leashed them back up and headed for the SUV. Wet was fine, but we didn't want wet and sandy and there was plenty of sand for them to roll in on the way to the vehicle. We had to cross another bridge thingy that Hermione was none too happy about. She even waded out as far as she could instead of taking the bridge. Mr. K managed to convince her to cross the bridge with us and we were all back at the SUV in one piece.
"Who says you can't teach an old dog new tricks?" I asked as Roscoe leapt into the back of the SUV. At 7 years old, Roscoe is the "old man" of our group. It just goes to show you that there's something to be said for a dog's natural instincts and abilities.
It was a great hike, aside from the bugs. And even though all of the dogs, except Otis, are still a bit damp, they are happy and damp...and sleepy!
and, we all know that a tired dog, whether it is damp or not, is a good dog.
Thursday, July 10, 2014
Adventuring
The last few days have been quite busy. My aunt is visiting from British Columbia, a western province of Canada, and we've spent plenty of time in the great outdoors. Since her arrival last Wednesday night, we've been out hiking almost every day. Thankfully my aunt is a dog fan because that means that my whole furry family, minus Rufio the cat, have been getting a lot of exercise. We even had Kayla join us (on a long lunge line) yesterday as well. It was a full vehicle with two people and five dogs.
Yesterday was our longest hike yet. I wouldn't say it was the most challenging in regards to terrain, but we were out for just over two hours; partially due to the fact that we got sort of lost.
None of the trails are marked and it was impossible to know where you were. I'm not sure what people did before cell phone GPS.
We started by loading everyone into my mom's SUV which took some time because everyone was excited. I try to wait until the dogs have themselves under control before letting them into vehicles or else they will be crazy for the whole trip. Expecting self control in exciting situations and achieving it is one way to manage a multi-dog household. I wouldn't say we were perfect, but it was pretty good. It will be something we continue to work on.
Once we reached our destination the same expectation of self control was present. It was even harder for everyone since they could see the trail head from where we were, but with only two of us handling five dogs, there was no way we were proceeding until everyone was relatively calm. Eventually, the dogs figured out we weren't going anywhere until they heeled and we were able to move on. We had to cross a road to reach the trail, another reason for needing calm and controlled dogs, and everyone was asked to sit. A few thought about it, but again, eventually five butts were down all at once and we were able to cross safely. We walked a few minutes down the trail and once the road was out of sight we asked for another sit/stay and three out of the five dogs were released. Nala, Hermione and Roscoe all took off like shots, but never went very far ahead. Roscoe, despite being the oldest, was always out in front showing us the way.
Our hike was incredibly pleasant. It was actually quite cool considering it's July and, most excitingly, there weren't any mosquitoes. Our previous hike which took us up the side of the Canadian shield, had us eaten alive by the annoying critters. The cooler temperatures and the light breeze kept the monsters at bay.
We took various trails, twisting and turning. There were some spots where we had to climb down hills sideways because they were a bit steep. There were a few uphills that we climbed that were quite long and you could really feel your heart pumping by the time you reached the top. None of the inclines were as treacherous as our Monday hike though.
Our twisting and turning eventually landed us in a field with a "private property" sign and "keep out." We found our way back on to the trail and attempted to find our way back to the vehicle. We found a small swimming hole for the dogs to cool off in and let them splash about while we checked my aunt's phone's GPS. It appeared that we were heading back in the right direction.
After a few more steady uphill climbs, a couple more narrow trails and roots and rocks, we made our way back on to the main trail. In the whole two hours that we were out we only ran into one other person walking a Husky puppy. And, we didn't run into him until we were on the trail back out. By this time, the mosquitoes were starting to come out, we were both sweating and the dogs' tongues were lolling. There wasn't much difficulty getting everyone's leashes back on and the sit/stays came much faster and easier when crossing back over the road.
By this point I was following Nala and Roscoe down a dirt path back to the SUV which did not have any hills/roots and/or giant boulders, but it was here that I managed to roll my ankle on, what I am sure, was only a small rock. It may even have been a biggish pebble.
"Really?" I said to my aunt. "We climb a stinking mountain two days ago, hike for two hours in the forest and just before we get back to the vehicle I slide on a pebble."
We laughed and thought nothing of it...that was until a few hours later when my ankle swelled and I could hardly move it. I was shocked. It hadn't seemed that bad, but it was so painful that I was struggling to walk.
Mr. K and I were scheduled to go out and pick up a few groceries and although I felt like my foot was exploding I made myself go. I needed the foot to move. That said, I now see why people don't want to walk on an injured foot even though, in most cases, they should. I'm glad I did though as the swelling went down quite a bit and it's only stiff this morning instead of painfully sore. The Ibuprofin I took as well as elevating it all night may have helped too.
I think I'll be taking the day off from hiking though which makes me sad because it's a gorgeous day. It's better to take one day of and rest properly than push through an injury and risk making it worse. Quite often that leads to having to take way more time off. So, if I do end up going out for a walk, it will be on flat, paved ground and it won't be walking more than one big dog at a time.
Yesterday was our longest hike yet. I wouldn't say it was the most challenging in regards to terrain, but we were out for just over two hours; partially due to the fact that we got sort of lost.
None of the trails are marked and it was impossible to know where you were. I'm not sure what people did before cell phone GPS.
We started by loading everyone into my mom's SUV which took some time because everyone was excited. I try to wait until the dogs have themselves under control before letting them into vehicles or else they will be crazy for the whole trip. Expecting self control in exciting situations and achieving it is one way to manage a multi-dog household. I wouldn't say we were perfect, but it was pretty good. It will be something we continue to work on.
Once we reached our destination the same expectation of self control was present. It was even harder for everyone since they could see the trail head from where we were, but with only two of us handling five dogs, there was no way we were proceeding until everyone was relatively calm. Eventually, the dogs figured out we weren't going anywhere until they heeled and we were able to move on. We had to cross a road to reach the trail, another reason for needing calm and controlled dogs, and everyone was asked to sit. A few thought about it, but again, eventually five butts were down all at once and we were able to cross safely. We walked a few minutes down the trail and once the road was out of sight we asked for another sit/stay and three out of the five dogs were released. Nala, Hermione and Roscoe all took off like shots, but never went very far ahead. Roscoe, despite being the oldest, was always out in front showing us the way.
Our hike was incredibly pleasant. It was actually quite cool considering it's July and, most excitingly, there weren't any mosquitoes. Our previous hike which took us up the side of the Canadian shield, had us eaten alive by the annoying critters. The cooler temperatures and the light breeze kept the monsters at bay.
We took various trails, twisting and turning. There were some spots where we had to climb down hills sideways because they were a bit steep. There were a few uphills that we climbed that were quite long and you could really feel your heart pumping by the time you reached the top. None of the inclines were as treacherous as our Monday hike though.
Our twisting and turning eventually landed us in a field with a "private property" sign and "keep out." We found our way back on to the trail and attempted to find our way back to the vehicle. We found a small swimming hole for the dogs to cool off in and let them splash about while we checked my aunt's phone's GPS. It appeared that we were heading back in the right direction.
After a few more steady uphill climbs, a couple more narrow trails and roots and rocks, we made our way back on to the main trail. In the whole two hours that we were out we only ran into one other person walking a Husky puppy. And, we didn't run into him until we were on the trail back out. By this time, the mosquitoes were starting to come out, we were both sweating and the dogs' tongues were lolling. There wasn't much difficulty getting everyone's leashes back on and the sit/stays came much faster and easier when crossing back over the road.
By this point I was following Nala and Roscoe down a dirt path back to the SUV which did not have any hills/roots and/or giant boulders, but it was here that I managed to roll my ankle on, what I am sure, was only a small rock. It may even have been a biggish pebble.
"Really?" I said to my aunt. "We climb a stinking mountain two days ago, hike for two hours in the forest and just before we get back to the vehicle I slide on a pebble."
We laughed and thought nothing of it...that was until a few hours later when my ankle swelled and I could hardly move it. I was shocked. It hadn't seemed that bad, but it was so painful that I was struggling to walk.
Mr. K and I were scheduled to go out and pick up a few groceries and although I felt like my foot was exploding I made myself go. I needed the foot to move. That said, I now see why people don't want to walk on an injured foot even though, in most cases, they should. I'm glad I did though as the swelling went down quite a bit and it's only stiff this morning instead of painfully sore. The Ibuprofin I took as well as elevating it all night may have helped too.
I think I'll be taking the day off from hiking though which makes me sad because it's a gorgeous day. It's better to take one day of and rest properly than push through an injury and risk making it worse. Quite often that leads to having to take way more time off. So, if I do end up going out for a walk, it will be on flat, paved ground and it won't be walking more than one big dog at a time.
Sunday, July 06, 2014
A Lot to Celebrate
Between a certain French Piggie's birthday and a guide dog anniversary, my days have been filled with puppy fun.
On Thursday July 03 2002 I was matched with my very first guide dog from Leader Dogs for the Blind. That little crazy Black Lab and I had a lot of adventures over the years, many of which I have written about here, and I was lucky enough to celebrate 12 years with her on Thursday. She was supposed to join us on our hike, but her leash had been forgotten in my Dad's truck which was out of town at a camping spot. So unfortunately, Jetta had to stay home. However, 12 years with one dog cannot be ignored, especially when that dog dedicated six years of her life ensuring your safety and embracing every nutso thing you asked her to do.
Next up was Otis's 2nd birthday. I can't believe the little dude is already 2. We celebrated in the morning by all of the dogs getting home made doggie ice cream. Otis got a Hear Doggie whale toy. The toys squeak, but the squeaker's set to a sound only the dogs can hear. I thought they were a hoax the first time i brought one home, but judging by the way my dogs reacted to the silent squeaker, I don't think they are anymore. Otis loved the first one so much that we got him a second one. His Grandma also bought him a team England mini soccer ball that he now hits around the floor with his front paw.
In the evening, we attempted a hike, but only lasted 30 minutes as the mosquitoes were feasting on humans and dogs alike. I had used a home remedy for repelling the pests from the dogs and it seemed to work for the most part.
Otis's birthday was finished off with my mom, aunt, me and the dogs watching the 4th of July fireworks. I thought Hermione would have a fit, but she loved them. She was more excited by the crowds of people than anything. Otis was slightly concerned and Nala and Roscoe could have cared less. We did have an exit strategy in place just in case the dogs were stressed, but we were able to sit and watch the whole display.
I'm also celebrating Hermione's paw targeting success. It's only been a few days since we started and it's to the point where I can name the cue. I called it "hit it." She even performed it last night at someone else's house. I still have to have a food reward in my hand most of the time, but we're getting there.
So, happy 12 years, Jetta!
Happy 2nd birthday Sir French Pig!
And, congratulations Her Royal Highness, Princess Hermione Sophia on a job well done. :)
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