Monthly Archives: January 2021

7 Ways to a Tired Dog

Dogs & Other Animals, , , ,
Zekie exhibiting the benefits of a tired dog.
Zekie exhibiting the benefits of a tired dog.

A tired dog is a good dog. This is Zekie, my problem child. Can You Tell Which Dog Is Reactive? You can read more about him at the link. This is Zekie resting after today’s walk.

All dogs’ behavior will be at least a bit better if they expend some energy. Here are some ways to do that which allow you to maintain social distance from other people.

  1. Walk your dog. You can take a mask along incase you encounter others. There are many trails that should provide good opportunities.
  2. Play frisbee or ball. You can play in your yard or in a field at a school. Enclosed tennis courts may be an option if your dog needs to be confined.
  3. Kick the toy. Rather like the child’s game kick the can. We play this indoors, down the center hallway of our house when the weather is inclement. Extra points if we can get the toy past the dogs and down the basement stairs!
  4. Obedience or trick training. This expends more mental energy than physical, but this is also tiring.
  5. Hide and seek. Played indoors. Have your dog sit and stay. Or someone can hold your dog. When you’re ready, say ok, find me.
  6. Hide and seek variation. Confine your dog in some manner while you hide treats for them to find. Make the first ones easy until your dog gets the hang of it.
  7. Provide chews such as nylabones, rope bones, antlers, etc. Monitor so your dog does not swallow small pieces. Chewing does not use as much energy as running around but it does help.
Walk your dog.
Walk your dog.

Dogs are social, active creatures and need to be provided an outlet to burn off energy. Finding a way to do this make both of your lives happier.

Hanging out with Claire waiting for better times.

Better Times Are Coming!

Dogs & Other Animals, Thoughts On Life, , , ,
Hanging out with Claire while waiting for better times.
Hanging out with Claire while waiting for better times.

I have spent a lot of time recently focusing on how to survive in a pandemic world. In retrospect, most of these ideas are good to apply to our lives in general. But most of us are searching for extra help and guidance right now. When we are spending so much more time and energy just to slog through our daily lives, there is little left over for getting beyond that. See my post giving you some ideas on how to cope. My Top 10 Ways to Deal With Isolation During the Covid Pandemic!

Rather than offer more ideas on how to cope, I would like to offer some words of comfort here. Life is cyclical. There will be good times and there will be bad times. Neither will last forever. The trick is in remembering that. The ecstasy that we feel when we are just married or newly in love, is a beautiful thing. We need to cherish moments like these as they occur. They are a positive experience that we can put into our emotional bank account. Something to draw on and relive when times are tougher. Because they will get tougher.

I think of life experiences as a mathematical sine curve. Positive and negative events go up and down balancing each other out. If time are rough, I think of the curve and know that they will swing up again. Life is not static. Times will get better.

I think it is safe to say that times and events are in a low part of the curve right now. Life is harder for almost everyone. I can’t imagine anyone that Covid 19 has not touched in some way. Those who have become ill or lost a loved are the most affected. But others’ lives have altered too. Businesses have lost income, people have lost jobs. Something so common as going out in public to get food has become a changed thing. There are now masks, sanitizers, and social distance to consider. Nothing is as easy as it used to be. Even when my husband and I take our pack of dogs out for a hike, we worry when a fellow hiker passes. How close did they get? Were they breathing heavily and expelling lots of breathe? Is the air movement good? We carry masks with us and use them as we deem they are necessary.

Hiking with Dogs
Hiking with Dogs

I feel confident that we are at a low point on the curve now so that means that things are going to get better. The roll out of a vaccine is a stepping stone to moving on to better times. Hold on a little longer, better times are coming. I will offer one coping mechanism here that can be used to get you through. Rather than wallowing in the negativity of our current low, spend time thinking about the blessings to come. Make plans for them. I made a previous post about that here. Coping Mechanisms

Our lives will be changing again, mostly for the better. We will be able to safely go out in public again. Not all at once, but each step along the way will be a return to normalcy. We will congregate with friends and family members again. We will share hugs, and I know mine will be long ones! I can see these times in my mind’s eye, even now. Hang on, I know you can do it.

Until then, good health and peace be with you.

Contemplation on a New Year

Dogs & Other Animals, Thoughts On Life, , ,
Contemplation on the New Year
Contemplation

Today is the beginning of the New Year. I have never been one to make New Year’s resolutions. After all, it is just a day, the same as any other. Why wait until a new year begins to decide on changes you want to make to your life? It just puts off what you could be starting earlier.

If you need or want to make changes to your life, do it when you realize the opportunity. Say you decide in November that you want to lose weight, the most common New Year’s resolution. If you wait until January 1, you have already lost two months of change. Add these up over a lifetime. You have lost years of improvement.

New Year’s Day is an arbitrary date on the calendar. It shouldn’t hold sway over the way we live our lives. We are free to change the path of our lives at any time. Readjust our sails at will. It takes time to realize the benefit of change and the sooner you start, the sooner you will notice a difference.

On the other hand, if you find change hard and need an impetus like the new year to get you moving, charting a better path at any time is better than not at all. If you fancy a symbol like a new year to motivate you, the time is NOW. Make your lists and goals and get started! If you find this overwhelming, remember that a tiny change to the sail on a boat results in a huge change in direction after a bit of time. You are in charge of your life. Take control. Make it something you are proud of.

And if you miss the new year to start on your goals, or your plans go awry, do not despair. The date was arbitrary. You can begin at any time or start again as needed. Tiny changes add up. Spend some time in contemplation and make your goals good ones. The thoughts you put in your mind will guide and change your life.

Here is the post from last New Year’s. Welcome 2020, Happy New Year! Wow, life seemed much simpler then, before we had even an inkling of the pandemic to come. Never forget to enjoy where you are. And never fear, this pandemic will pass and life will be normal again. Although we will probably only see it as normal in retrospect!

Blessings, peace, and good health to you, my readers!