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Tag Archives: Animal
9.22.12 ‘Home’ Shopping w/ Louise
As you all know Peanut is away at college up north. It is getting colder and she did not bring enough warm clothes, like sweatshirts. So, being the TechnoMom that I am, she and I Skyped the other day (it was our first time since she left and it was so cool), and I was able to bring the computer into her room and go through her closet and drawers visually. It was like the ‘home’ shopping network in my own home. All the animals came in her room to help me, especially since the door has not been open much since she left. Louise, as you can see, tried to help me but got bored and decided to go to sleep instead. I walked around the house and each of the animals were able to see Peanut on the screen. I think some heard her voice but I am not sure they really knew it was her. 
I think the animals know that the kids are gone because they sit outside their rooms and scratch up the carpet to try and get in. Sometimes, when I go into Peanut’s room, Nine runs in unseen and then gets locked in when I leave. When this happens Stella goes crazy and tries to dig him out while he is on the other side, while he is trying to get out. “Help! Help! My brother is locked behind the door!” I am sure you can image what the corners of my carpets look like on both sides of every kid’s door. Lately, Noel has been pushing open K8’s door (old knobs don’t hold well, so a cat can push them open easily) and going to sleep on her bed. We have to be careful not to lock them inside. (You probably will think I am weird but I believe that cats have this ability to teleport behind closed doors somehow, since they always seem to get into closed rooms and closets which have not been opened any time recently.) Maybe I need to put ‘Nannycams’ around to see what is really going on. Then I could send the videos to the kids at college so they can feel like they are home.
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤ 
9.21.12 A-a-a-achooooo!
Fall is here. The air is crisp and the days are getting shorter. The dogs love the breezes and coldness of the days. They like to sit out on the deck in the afternoon and just lie in the late day sun. That is the good part of the season. The bad part is that Sofie is suffering terribly (as am I) from fall allergies. I have never seen her have so much trouble before (well she is only going to be 2). She coughs and wheezes, like she is trying to hack up a hairball. The other night she woke in her kennel and cried and cried to go out, and then threw up for a long time, ate more grass, threw up some more. She does not want to get sick in her kennel (which is really nice of her). I went out in the field with her but she could not calm down. I was so sad for her. Finally, I got her to come in (good because it was 2AM and raining) and we went back to bed. I have her on 50 mg of Benadryl and that really seems to help. (I am taking Sudafed because Benadryl makes me fall asleep). Louise’s eyes run and are gooey, but nothing like Sofie’s problem. Poor baby!
I hate when my furries are sick. It is really hard to know the best thing to do for them. Sometimes it even takes me a day to realize what is going on with them. At times like this, with allergies, all you can do is deal with the symptoms. In many cases, animal or human, time is the best healer, but if there are things that can help make us more comfortable while we are waiting for things to pass in time (like pollen), than I am all for those too. The Allergist says to not open the windows or go outside, but that is kind of silly in my book. I am not going to run the air conditioner when it is cool outside just to clear the air of pollen which is going to come in any way. I guess if it was killing us, I would do it, but since the antihistamines seem to work, than I don’t have to. So now Sofie and Louise and I are going for a walk in the dangerous air, but if we don’t then we don’t get exercise, and then we get stiff, and then we will not feel well….. Sorry, I am rambling, I guess I get blue when my furries get green.
Do your furries have allergies? How do you deal with them? Do you have any alternative approaches to allergy therapy?
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
9.20.12 My name is “Milky-Toe”
Louise’s back toes are all white on the left and mostly white on the right. She has what we call here at the zoo: “Milky Toes.” I am not exactly sure where the name came from, I only know that K8 has a stuffed dog toy ever since she was a little girl that she named “Milky-Toe.” No one knows, or remembers, why. We thought about naming Louise that when we first adopted her, but the name ‘Louise’ just seemed to fit her so well, so we kept it. (Note: They also wanted to name her ‘Harlo,’ which would really not have fit now that I know her.)
Names are funny things. I used to name Peanut’s stuffed animals (of which she had a zillion) either after the person or state that they came from. She has a rabbit named Carolina, a lamb named Larry… you get the idea. It not only made it easier to name things but it also helped my old brain remember, who or where. But ‘Milky-Toe?’ Well, it kind of makes sense if you think that Lulu’s back paws were dunked in a vat of milk or white paint, but, I just didn’t want to run around the dog park calling for ‘Milky-Toe.’
Names are really powerful things. “A common concept in history is that knowing the name of something or someone gives one power over that thing or person. This concept occurs in many different forms, in numerous cultures—in ancient and primitive tribes, as well as in Islamic, Jewish, Egyptian, Vedic, Hindu, and Christian tradition,” – Loren Graham, MIT and Harvard University. The act of naming, a religious ritual for many, is important on many levels. Think about what it means when you know someone’s, or something’s name. In the human world, knowing someone’s name gives you the ability to contact them, to interact personally. You can’t find someone’s phone number if you don’t know their name and you definitely can’t Google them (that was a blog joke – LOL).
But is it the same with a dog? If you know a dog’s name, will it respond differently if it does not know you? Is it more likely to come to you if you call it. Does “Here, Lulu” from a stranger work any better than “Here, doggie?” In humans you have to fear this knowledge (especially people calling your children by name who they do not know), but I am not so sure in animals.
I used to just accept the name of an animal when I adopted it, not realizing that it was probably given to it just yesterday by the rescuer, or when it was picked up from the street or at the shelter. They know the sound of their name, but of course not what their name means in human language. All they understand is ‘Oh, they are referring to me. That is my sound (Luluuuuu).’ That is why you can name a Bull Mastiff ‘Tinker Bell’ or a Yorkie ‘Killer,’ what you name him or her is not really important. The fact that you can call the animal by name, now that is everything. That is the power of connection, of knowing, of intimate knowledge. Since I turned this whole name thing around and am looking at it from the animals point of view, I realize that the names I pick for them are more important for me than for them: I guess I could have called her ‘Milky-Toe’ after all.
How do you decide what to name your pets?
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
Wednesday’s Kidmation Adoption
Are You My Mother?
It doesn’t get any more adorable than when a dalmatian adopts a rare spotted lamb that looks just like her.
9.19.12 Batter Up!
New people moved in next door (well actually behind us). They have 3 boys of varying ages. So yesterday, I noted that the dogs had a new white ball. Hummm, I don’t remember buying them a white ball. They were running all over the place, chasing and stealing it from each other. So I had to investigate. Lulu brought me the ball and dropped it on my foot. Ouch! I declare, that thing is heavy. It was a real, honest to goodness, hard ball, the kind that baseball players use. I assume that it must have come over the fence from the new kids. I was going to return it but the dogs are having such a great time with it that I do not think the new people will want a ball with tons of teeth marks. I am so blessed that people are providing the dogs free play toys. I hope this is not un-new-neighborly of me. Baseball season is over anyway, isn’t it?
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
DogDaz Zoo 