It is hard to believe that we have only been with Jolie since July. She seems like such an integral part of the zoo. Every animal, even Stella, loves her. She is silly and loving and always hungry. I made her pictures mostly into cartoons for her bday. Happy 7th ‘Lil Bit. You make us all smile.
And what is the chance of having one love with a Valentine’s Day birthday? We have 2! Happy bday in heaven today, Mr. Nine. We miss you tons.
Sending flowers, candy, and treats to all our blog friends for Valentine’s Day! Let’s Party!
Today is the birthday of Abraham Lincoln, our sixteenth President. Let’s learn more about his love for animals.
He loved cats and could play with them for hours. When asked if her husband had a hobby, Mary Todd Lincoln replied, “cats.” President Lincoln visited General Grant at City Point, Virginia in March of 1865. The civil war was drawing to a close and the enormous task of reuniting the country lay ahead, yet the President made time to care for three orphaned kittens. Abraham Lincoln noticed three stray kittens in the telegraph hut. Picking them up and placing them in his lap, he asked about their mother. When the President learned that the kittens’ mother was dead, he made sure the kittens would be fed and a good home found for them.
President Lincoln’s compassion extended to turkeys, too. Abraham Lincoln issued a proclamation on October 3, 1863, setting aside the last Thursday of November, “as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise.” A turkey was sent to the White House for Thanksgiving dinner in 1863, and Tad, Lincoln’s son, named him Tom. Tad befriended the turkey and pleaded with his father to grant “Tom” a stay of execution. Abraham Lincoln took time out from a cabinet meeting to issue “an order of reprieve,” sparing the turkey’s life.
Mr. Lincoln’s compassion extended to dogs, too. Fido was a mixed breed with floppy ears and a yellowish coat. When fireworks and cannons announced Abraham Lincoln’s victory in the Presidential election of 1860, poor Fido was terrified. The Lincolns were worried that the long train trip to Washington, D.C., combined with loud noises, would terrify Fido. John and Frank Roll, two neighborhood boys, promised to take good care of Fido. Mr. Lincoln made them promise to let Fido inside the house whenever he scratched at the front door, never scold Fido for entering the house with muddy paws, and feed him if he came to the dinner table. The Lincolns gave the Rolls their sofa so Fido would feel at home! Did you know “Fido” is Latin? Fido is from “Fidelitas,” which translates as “faithful.”
Nanny and Nanko were White House goats. Tad and Willie liked to hitch the goats to carts or kitchen chairs and have the goats pull them through the White House. Both Nanny and Nanko liked to chew things. Nanny got in trouble for chewing up the flowers at the Old Soldier’s Home. Nanko got in trouble for chewing the bulbs planted by White House Gardener, John Watt.
The Lincolns also had rabbits and cats. Mr. Lincoln named his horse Old Bob. Old Bob was the rider-less horse with a pair of boots turned backward in the stirrups in Abraham Lincoln’s funeral procession.
These Ground Hogs are such funny weather predicting creatures. They have names like woodchuck, land-beaver, and whistle-pig. Our regional prognosticator is named Punxsutawney Phil. Phil is known as the “Seer of Seers,” the “Prognosticator of Prognosticators” and the “Most Photographed Pennsylvanian.” People in Pennsylvania dress up in top hats and tails and have this whole big event each year to see if we are going to have an early spring or late winter. Leave it to a rodent to let us know.
Groundhog day actually designates the middle point between the winter solstice and the spring equinox. There are 6 more weeks until the Vernal Equinox, which marks the beginning of spring. No matter what Phil says – SPRING IS COMING!!!!! Make way for crocus and daffodils.
“Never, never be afraid to do what’s right, especially if the well-being of a person or animal is at stake. Society’s punishments are small compared to the wounds we inflict on our soul when we look the other way.” ― Martin Luther King Jr.
We wish all our wonderful blog family an awesome holiday season and a wonderful 2023 New Year celebration.
Mom is having eye surgery this week and will not be blogging again until next year. Hopefully, she will be seeing her way to more posts in early January. (Get the pun, ‘seeing her way’ – Bark Out Loud)
Thank you for following and commenting and just being our blog friends. We appreciate you and hope to ‘see’ you all in the New Year.
Noel (the Christmas cat), Charles Mugwump, Stella, Mini Cooper, Jolie, & Mom
Charles here – I am interrupting the Caturday post to bring you an update on my bladder surgery:
Everything is going great. The first day was hard and no one told Mommy to have ramps and things for me to get up onto the bed and couch and boy, did coming up the stairs hurt, But you know me, Mr. Biter, I would not let anyone carry me, even though the stairs were really tough.
I was not very impressed with the ramp Mom made from pillows, but Joile thought it was a hoot!
I am making Mom crazy with going out a great deal, but maybe it is because I am just getting used to not having that big bladder stone anymore. The Doctor called and said that it was a CALCIUM OXILATE stone. That is what we thought and there is not much we can do but stay on the special urinary diet we are on and hope no new ones grow.
Mom says I am licking myself too much and she is going to the store to get a baby onesy. That sounds awful.
Charles here: I just wanted to let you know that I am Ok and did very well with my surgery. The Doctor said I am a real trooper.
It is going to be hard for a few days until all the stitches heal but I should be as good as new, for an old guy. They aren’t going to get rid of me so fast. At 14-1/2 years old and 14 pounds, I plan to be around for several more sun rises.
The Dr said that the stone was so big and green and odd, that they are sending it to a lab to make sure it wasn’t some alien from outer space. Then maybe we can know what we can do to avoid more in the future.
I am having trouble with the stairs and don’t want anyone to touch me, so I am trying to bite people to leave me alone. It’s not that I don’t love them. Mom made me a ramp to get up on the bed cause I can’t even do my dog stairs. But hopefully I’ll be OK soon.
Mr. Charles is having his cystotomy today. The date was moved up because he is starting to have issues. A cystotomy is a surgical opening created in the wall of the urinary bladder. This procedure allows the surgeon to look inside the bladder and remove the giant stone that he has. Beat your drums for a quick and pain-free recovery. We will keep you posted.
We shall never forget! Here is Mommy at the 9/11 North Tower Memorial pre-opening in 2012. Mommy grow up in NY so the devastation hit hard for her home state, but we live outside of Washington, DC now, so when the planes crashed at the Pentagon, the devastation directly affected our friends and family as well. May we never have to experience this terror again. – DogDaz Zoo
DogDaz Zoo 