A Better Place

Country Life, Dogs & Other Animals, ,

Harley was my idea of the perfect cat. He was a good mouser. He was regal and demanded respect yet he was also affectionate and loved his people. I had the pleasure of being Harley’s momma for 16 years. We lost him yesterday. He went in for a dental and did not survive.

It turned out that he suffered from a condition that I was not familiar with. Something called dental resorption. As near as I understand it, the tooth or teeth, begin to calcify at the root. This forms lesions and the calcification attachs the tooth to the jawbone so that it is hard to remove. There are more details and technicalities but I will spare you. In Harley’s case, the teeth were very hard to remove. In essence, by a few hours after the surgery, the amount of blood loss he suffered was too great and he succumbed. This was traumatic and unexpected for us because although Harley was old, he was in fairly good shape for his age. We picked him up from the vet’s and brought him home. He is now buried with our other furry family members that have gone before.

I first got Harley when I and a friend where hiking with our dogs on a path that ran beside my house. We made it about half a mile down the trail when a kitten of about 4 months came running up to me meowing. This was near farm land that was grown up and no longer used. I think someone dumped Harley there. He couldn’t have been born there, he was too friendly to be a feral kitten. He ran up to me even with our dogs and let me pick him up. My friend Becky said “you can’t leave him here”. And so I didn’t. He let me carry him all the way back home. He never struggled to get down. He soon became a part of our household.

I thought for a while on what his name should be, and finally came up with Harley. Now he is not named after the obvious Harley Davidson of motorcycle fame. His name was short for Harlequin because he was a black and white cat.

Harley made the move with us to our current house nearly 14 years ago.  It is an old farmhouse, built in 1830. Read as:  mice like it here! Harley was a supreme mouser. And catcher of moles, and chipmunks, and baby squirrels. Unfortunately for us, this was all in the house. We would not do well in this house without a cat. Harley taught his protege’, Morty to catch mice.

Once he had passed the torch, as it were, he gave up hunting. That was apparently something for the next generation.

In his retirement, Harley became ever more affectionate and communicative. Once we discovered that his teeth were bad, which is another story, he ate canned food. He would call to me first thing in the morning and again throughout the day whenever he wanted his canned cat food. I would put it in a crate for him (so the other cats and dogs wouldn’t take it) and in he would go. I would then close the door. Whenever he was done, he would call to me again so that I could let him out and put any remaining food away for next time. This usually made me smile because he communicated so well. 

He also followed me around for affection. He would sit on the arm of the couch beside me and squint his eyes with happiness. He would rub on my hand and ask for ear rubs. And if I was busy doing something else, he would sit on the back of the couch directly behind my head, for maximum closeness while I read, or watched tv, or talked. He was my kitten always.

My world is an emptier place without a Harley Cat. But it is a better, richer place for having known him.

Spring Blooms

Country Life, Gardens,

Spring rebirth and renewal is always appreciated here.  It takes place in the heart and soul as well as in the garden.  Let me take you on a tour. 

Tulips and hostas emerge from the bed beside the house. 

Candy tuft hangs over the side wall.

Bleeding hearts are just starting to come out.

The dogwoods are flaunting their finery. These are just a few of the sights that rejuvenate my soul. I hope that you are enjoying and communing with the blossoming of spring wherever you are.

Peace be with you. 

Benefits of Obedience 

Country Life, Dogs & Other Animals, Thoughts On Life, ,

Spring has, at last, sprung here in Ohio. I finally have some pictures with flowers in them. And of course dogs. One of the benefits of teaching your dogs a few obedience commands is being able to pose them with things. 

Such as flowers. 

And book displays.

And certificates. 

Dogs who know some commands get to share more of their lives with us. They are more pleasant to be around. And more trust worthy. And having a dog who listens helps keep them safe too. A few minutes every day makes a surprising difference.  Give it a try! 

Peace Be With You Anyway 

Thoughts On Life,

Sometimes I think our society is getting just a little too lax on what it considers to be acceptable, or mainstream, behavior. 

For instance, one day last week, I stopped at the gas station on my way home from work. I was using a pump in between two other vehicles and the drivers apparently knew each other. One young man shouts across the pumps to the other, “I was driving home and I realized, I f**king need gas”. The other young man shouts back, “I know,  I realized I f**king need gas too”.

I wanted to yell back to them, “Do you talk to your mother with that mouth? What if there are kids in these cars that can hear you?” In hind site, I probably should have, but you never know when that crazy person is the one next to you. 

Someone I know was also out shopping last week and had two similar encounters in one day. He was joking with an employee and as he walked away, heard “f**king a**h*le. Later after making a purchase at another store, an assisting employee said “no f**k”. 

Really people? Even on the job you think it’s ok to use this kind of language? Let me give you a hint. If you care to retain employment, there are few places that would find this language to be acceptable. Or even tolerated.

I also think/wonder some other things about foul language:

  1. What do you say when you’re really upset and want to make a point? 
  2. Do you think it’s ok to talk this way in front of children? I know they’ve heard it before.  The point is, they shouldn’t think that you find it acceptable.
  3. Isn’t our society deteriorating if foul language/behaviors become the tolerated norm?
  4. Don’t you know any more descriptive words?

    Ok, I am done with my rant. If you think language of this sort is ok, at least now you know why some others of us do not feel that way. My wish for you this evening is still, …Peace be with You. 

    Find Gratitude Where You Are

    Thoughts On Life

    I am waiting to get an oil change, tire rotation, and car wash.  Not something that’s high up on my list of activities. But I am having a good time. They have free mochas, lattes, and popcorn here. So I get to enjoy these refreshments while I catch up on some emails and then read my book.

    I am finally getting around to reading Pigs In Heaven, which is the sequel to The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver. So all in all, it is a good afternoon. I hope you are enjoying where you are.

    The Forty Four

    Dogs & Other Animals,

    Nikki may look like she is posing for the camera but really she is demanding her dinner. Feed me human. My bowl isn’t going to fill itself!

    It’s hard for a tiny girl to get that full feeling. I counted Nikki ‘ s kibble one evening to see how many she actually gets. (I know, I need to get a life). Forty four. She says she is going to report me to NPS. (Nikki Protective Services)

    A Tired Dog Is a Good Dog 

    Dogs & Other Animals, Rescue Happenings, Thoughts On Life, ,

    This is the face of Baxter. He is tired after a day with frisbeeing and a long hike. What a precious face it is. He is a high energy dog. But he is all tuckered out and peaceful. 

    This is Cassius the greyhound. He is also tired out and peaceful after sharing all that activity with Baxter. Cassius is also a very high energy dog which is not typical for a greyhound. 

    This is Shelby. Turns out I don’t have any pictures of Shelby sleeping because she rarely does sleep during the day. She is too busy running our home. But she does it in a calm and well behaved, if controlling, manner. 

    Our dogs are generally well behaved and pleasant. At least that’s what people tell me and I tend to agree. Just like all “kids” though, you can tell when they’ve been cooped up inside with insufficient exercise. They get barkier (more than normal) and they tend to get underfoot and become pesky. 

    Then we must play what we call “the indoor games”. This involves one particular toy that stands on end and daddy kicks it down the center hall of the house. Here they are waiting for the kick. Whoever gets the toy first wins. They shake it for a while and then return it to daddy for the next round. There is never any fighting and everyone knows the rules. Mostly Shelby wants to bark at the other two to tell them how to behave. Once in a while she wins too by getting the toy first. And this game involves LOTS of barking by all dogs involved and those not involved bark too. Foster girl Kammie likes to hide beside the couch and bark at the players. Things become so loud with the barking and yipping that we now wear ear plugs during the game.

    The point here is that a tired dog is a good and happy dog. If our dogs were not tired, I have no doubt that they would find other ways to expend that energy. They would likely resort to chewing, snapping, endless pacing and other sorts of troublesome behavior. 

    We have high energy dogs. Those are the kind we prefer. But along with choosing that type of dog, comes the responsibility of filling that need of expending the energy.  If not, you are headed for trouble. I fully believe that in the wrong home, our dogs would not be well behaved. They would be trouble. 

    That is the case with most of the foster dogs we have had. We tend to specialize in fostering the troublesome ones. They turn out to be wonderful dogs once they have some structure, behavioral boundaries and lots of exercise. 

    So remember, a good dog is a tired dog! 

    Why?

    Country Life, Dogs & Other Animals,

    Spring-like weather, where did you go?

    I was starting to remember warmer days,

    But now I feel the cold wind blow.

    Oh balmy sun, how I miss your rays.

    Stack of Joy

    Thoughts On Life

    List of 9 Tomes I Checked Out of the Library Today 

    Two non-fiction:

    1. The Book of Joy – by the Dalai Lama & Desmond Tutu
    2. The Super Fun Times Vegan Holiday Cooking 

    These books sound like they have to make my life better.  Not that it’s bad now but, hey, better is good right? And I want to have joyfully fun times while eating and knowing no animals were harmed in the making of my meal! 

    Seven fiction:

    1. The Twenty Three-Thriller
    2. Black House – Stephen King & Straub
    3. Pigs In Heaven – Barbara Kingsolver (sequel to The Bean Trees so I’m excited )
    4. Perfume River – about relationships after the Vietnam War
    5. Orphan Train – somewhat self explanatory. 
    6. Christmas Joy – niece returns home to help run family farm. 
    7. A Baxter Family Christmas -a father invites the recipient of his daughter’s kidney to Christmas dinner  (Ok, the fact that one of our dog’s is named Baxter influenced me on this one.)

      And I don’t want to forget my pile of magazines!

      So if any of you ever wanted to ask me if I read much?

      ‘Little bit. 

      Yet again, life is good. Peace be with you. 

      A Good Day 

      Country Life, Dogs & Other Animals,

      It’s been a beautiful day in Northeast Ohio for mid-February. It’s 64 degrees and sunny. Quite the rarity. So we loaded up three of the dogs and headed to Towners Woods for a hike.

      As you can see, a good time was had by all. That’s a walk 6 out of the last 7 days for us. 

      Baxter and Shelby are quite reliable. They can hike the trails off leash. They come back when they are called. Even when they see other dogs, people,  or wildlife. And then there is Cassius the greyhound. You will notice that he is NEVER off leash in the pictures, or anywhere for that matter. He’s what we call a flight risk. We know from experience that he is not reliable off lead. Granted we have only had him for six months but given his temperament we realize that he may never be. That’s ok. We still think he’s an awesome dog.

      And this is what the dogs are doing after our hike. A tired dog is a good dog!