Delinquency and Legitimacy

I started this blog believing that I could just copy old journal entries onto a page and eventually catch up to the present. Ha! There's too much going on in our lives to write down a quick note and then try to remember all the nuances later. There will be some back-dated posts appearing in the coming weeks and, hopefully, I won't forget all the details. The present is hard enough to recall...

Confessions of a Idle Pet Guardian: 

While our family has had pets for the past six years, we (me, my ex-partner and son) have not been what you'd call model pet guardians.

Don't let this complacent posture fool you.
He's just waiting for food to drop.

Our beautiful nine year-old beagle, Jimmy, is not walked regularly nor have we been consistent with training. He sits readily for treats or a meal and reluctantly cooperates with "go to bed" but still pulls hard on a leash and plays dumb when confronted with the "down" command. Forget "stay." He's had no shots or veterinary care, with the exception of being treated for a rattle snake bite four years ago. His hips and knees are becoming arthritic, and this year he has officially gained "senior" status.

Oliver, my three year-old orange and white tabby, is neutered but has never had shots. He's thirteen pounds, healthy and active - one of the best mousers I've ever had. Interestingly enough, Oliver thinks he's a dog. He fetches Nerf balls, chases and takes turns tackling or being tackled by the beagle, and has been known to sack out on the dog bed with his buddies after a busy afternoon. He also insists on going outside and coming in with "the pack." It's wonderful that they get along so well but the dogs won't keep him healthy if he gets sick. They also won't protect him from a rabid rat or rabies carrying fleas. That's something his humans need to be taking care of.

L-R (clockwise) Jasper, Joy, and
Jimmy, with Oliver in the middle

Finances (or lack thereof) played a big part in excusing our past delinquent behavior. When there's not  enough money for annual exams or shots when they're due, it's easy to make excuses for not getting your critters to a vet. Yeah, you can hear it coming, can't you? "If you can't afford to have a pet, you shouldn't have one." That particular criticism didn't hinder our acquisition of two dogs and a cat as it should have, nor did it make the correct impression about why it might be wise to set aside a little bit of cash every month to save for their care.

People love their animals until they become too expensive or inconveniently disabled. People make excuses for not taking proper care of their animals or training them. People can be really blind and willfully ignorant about finding ways to make their "best friends" comfortable and keep them healthy. People are really good at making excuses. I know. I've used them all.

Vacation Prep

Vacation!!!!!

I have been so looking forward to enjoying some down-time with my sister and her husband at their beautiful home in the Central Coast hills. They graciously agreed to host both me and Poppy - my brother-in-law built a gate for their front hallway so Pops can have a space of her own that will allow her to interact with the household but keep her apart from the K and T's new kittens, Tigger and Pepper. We all feel a little nervous about puppy / kitten interaction but have agreed to take it one day at a time.

I wonder what she was thinking...

This was to be my first road trip with Poppy. We have been practicing with short local jaunts to the pet food store and a couple of parks. She just curls up in the front seat with the seat belt run through her harness and goes to sleep until we reach our destination. A very mellow passenger.

Miss Pepper

Besides T and K, the other residents of their home are brother and sister kittens, Pepper and Tigger, and Chips, a green Amazon parrot. All the furred and feathered creatures are rescues and there are two feral kitties that are being fed outside, as well. My sis and her hubby have huge loving, compassionate hearts.

We weren't worried too much about how Pops would get along with Chips since his perch is quite high and he doesn't move fast enough to catch her attention. We all had major concerns about how she'd react to the kittens racing around like little... well... energetic kittens.

Tigger

My three year old cat, Oliver, was bigger than Poppy when she first came home with me and now they're about the same weight and height. Oliver is extraordinarily tolerant of being pounced on, licked and nibbled by  his exuberant new housemate and, as far as I can tell, he has yet to lay a claw on her. She's accustomed to greeting him enthusiastically when allowed to and is learning (with difficulty) to "leave it" if I think Oliver has had enough or she's being too rough with him. Oliver at 15 pounds can stand a little rough housing but the two four-month-old kittens wouldn't.

Mr. Chips

Trudy and I had several long discussions about how to negotiate the introduction of the kittens to Poppy. I hit the internet after each phone conversation looking for information on dog-cat introductions. Everything I read boiled down to "take it slowly and use a crate or gate" to provide a physical barrier between the critters. We looked at baby gates, dog gates, kennels and all kinds of options for containing my pup to limit her access to the kitties and thereby keeping all three of them safe. Wow! I never would have thought wire kennels could be so expensive. Gates were not so costly but we couldn't find one that would span the 60"+ hallway where we'd agreed Pops would spend some of her daytime hours. Agony! Did I have to leave her behind?

That's when my beloved brother-in-law exercised his creative genius. He built a gate within a gate constructed from 2x2s and wire fencing. It was 48" high and was tension-fitted into the hallway entrance. A perfect spot for Poppy that would keep all three furry critters safe. See what I mean about big hearts? I'm so lucky!

Friday is the big day. Can't wait. Maybe the butterflies will abandon my stomach by then.

Mind Adventures

The freak-out phase of owning a pit-mix puppy is abating. Next up is "Educate Thyself." Great. I crave more time on the computer... NOT!

Nap time=my computer time

About a year ago, a friend turned me on to Paco Collars, a Berkeley based company that makes sturdy, beautiful dog collars, and the owner, Ana Poe, works with rescued pits. Besides coming to admire the talent and determination with which she's building her business, I also admire Ana's work with rescue dogs. I've been reading Huckleberry's blog. (Huckleberry was a very handsome blue pit/pit mix that she fostered.) It seemed to me, from reading Huck's blog, that training a pit/mix takes an inordinate amount of time. (I don't have inordinate amounts of spare time!) And, in the end, despite the hard work, time, attention and effort, Ana still had to make the difficult and heart-rending decision to put Huck down. (How on earth am I, an utter novice, going to be able to distinguish a "red flag" and discern hidden aggression in dog's personality?) This was only one of the concerns behind my adamant refusal to consider JL's suggestion that we get a pit puppy after Joy died.

Mind Games

I'm freaking out.

I just took on a pit mix puppy that JL wants to name "Green Bean."

"Really?" (That question comes with a tinge of sarcasm.)

What had I done? My kid is gaga over this newcomer (so am I) and now he wants to give the puppy a weird name. Even his girlfriend likes it. Perfect. No, no, no... Let's start again.

Poppy at 10 weeks

I'm freaking out because I fear my life is about to be turned upside down and inside out by my emotional response to a puppy. Well, how else do you respond to being handed a 10 week old, 12 pound bundle of fur, toenails and tongue? Yep. With your heart. Then, within 24 hours, all your deepest fears and anxieties creep in to that "first blush" and you start freaking out.

"How do I feed her? Where can I find training resources? How does my community feel about pit bull type dogs? Is my town one of those unfriendly to pits? Can I afford the fees for shots, spaying and training?" The questions are getting very close to overwhelming what little I know about dog-rearing and what's left of my common sense.

Heart Speak

July 5 - Snoozing

On July 5, 2011, I was at my neighbor's teasing him about his love of Dodge trucks - he'd rather sit in the cab, having a conversation over a cold one. than go into the comfort of his house or back yard - when his nephew, a young man with huge, neonate eyes walked up to us with a puppy in his arms. Those dark eyes were pleading his case (and hers) before he'd uttered a word.

"Please, I just want to find her a good home. I can't keep her and if I don't find her a good home, she'll be bait."

I reached out and he put her into my hands. Slippery, loose puppy skin covered in reddish tan fur, white toes, black tips on her ears and nose that was smudged with white on the left side. The warmest coppery brown eyes I'd ever seen looked up into mine and I fell in love. But... wait...

Damn. She was a pit bull type pup...