Mohol Bushbaby (Galago moholi) (by Joachim S. Müller)
Tag Archives: animals
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 ❤
9.18.12 Kitty Update
Miss Constance Kitty has decided that she will take over my office. When I take a break for a minute and then return to my desk, she is now always in my chair. When I try to move her she gets mad at me. If she can’t be on my chair than she has decided she will lay on my papers. She does not want to go into the cat bed under the window which would be a good place for her (but it does probably smell like Noel, since it is her’s, so I kind of understand that). I never thought Kitty liked me so I am really freaking out that she wants to be with me in my office and even is trying to get under the covers with me at night. Kitty is one of those one person cats and she was Peanut’s kitten at first, but she turned into V’s cat over the years, but now, she seems to be taking a liking to me. I don’t want her to like me! (I know that probably sounds terrible.) I already have to many other animals that beg for my attention in this zoo. I like when the animal attention requirements is somewhat spread around to the other humans. But, alas, it is now only V and me, which violates one of my rules – you should never have more pets than you have hands. You see when it was us and the 3 kids, we had 10 hands. At one point we did have 11 furballs (ok the guinea pigs had 3 babies, it was not planned). But than the oldest moved out and we had 8 hands and 8 animals, and when it moved to 6 hands we had 7 animals, but now it is four hands and we still have 7 animals. Oh my, I am in trouble here aren’t I, and I digress…..
I have come to some conclusions about Kitty’s behavior:
(1) Kitty pees on the coach when people are overnight visiting (especially intense energy people). She does this to tell us she does not like outsiders in her house. If her routine is changed or people are loud, she gets “pissed.”
(2) Kitty is calmer when I sequester her for dinner in the bathroom with her own litter box, for at least 1/2 hr. She is happy and calm when I open the door.
(3) “GoodNights” Disposable Bed Mats, with adhesive corners, are now an essential item on my shopping list. They protect the coach cushions, under a cloth cover, very effectively.
(4) I still do not know why she pees on newpaper or in empty bowls, but we leave no papers down, anywhere and no bowl empty, so this has not happened in a while.
(5) She secretly smiles when we spray Nine with the water bottle, mostly for chasing her or Muffin. Tonight I actually gave Nine a very long time out because he kept trapping her into corners.
(6) On days when Nine and/or Stella really terrorize her, she gets very upset and could act out. Separating the cats, especially at night, makes a lot of difference in her stress level (Nine and Stella still sleep locked in the kitten room.)
(7) Kitty is following me because I protect her and she knows it. She is staying close because I have the power of the spray bottle and the ability to lock cats and dogs behind closed doors.
OK, I guess I can get used to her snuggling up to me if it will keep her from peeing on the furniture. But I am going to keep my office door closed when I am not in there, just in case she changes her mind about the new improved relationship.
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
9.17.12 The Down Stay
Louise: “Mommy, are you really going to make us lie here until you take all the garbage, recycle, and yard waste cans in from the curb?”
Sofie: “I can not believe that she is making us ‘stay’ when she gets to run all over the place and drag heavy looking things around!”
Louise: “Sometimes Sofie, life is just not fair. How would Mommy like it if we made her stay in one place while we ran up and down the driveway?”
Sofie: “You are so right Lulu, but if we get up she will be mad at us. I don’t like when Mommy is mad at me, she makes this really loud noise.”
Louise: “Ok, well I guess laying her in the cool grass under the shade of the tree isn’t the worst thing that could happen. She did just take us for a long walk and down to the river for a while. Maybe we should listen to her?”
Sofie: “I will. But only this once and you better give me your cookie after dinner.”
Louise: “Here she comes, make like you didn’t mind waiting.”
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
9.14.12 The Power Of Touch
Sometimes, when I am feeling lonely, I look up and the sky is a beautiful shade of blue and the clouds kind of hang there, just so fluffy and white, with that little grayish blue undertone that makes them look like ice cream in cones, and that is when the universe reminds me that I am not alone. It is hard for me to remember sometimes that I am always in relation to something, always connected. I am in relations to the earth, and other humans, and the animals, and to myself. I heard a news report yesterday about the zillions of little microscopic organisms that live on our bodies, so even when you think you are alone, you are not (now that is kind of creepy). I wonder sometimes if I surround myself with furry pets so that, when the other humans are not around, I still have some life form with me to connect to. I am one of those people that needs to physically connect to other living things or I feel off balance. (There is actual medical advice now that supports prescribing four hugs per day to a patient suffering from depression. eight hugs per day to achieve mental stability and twelve hugs per day for real psychological growth. If this is the case, touch has a greater significance than most of us would realize. (US National Library of Medicine))
I replenish my energy through the cuddling of a cat and the petting of a dog. (Now I do not want you to think I am weird, I do mostly replenish my energies through my interaction with humans (especially my significant humans) but that is for another blog (this one is about animals, remember).) Each of my animals has their own way of asking and receiving physical contact from the humans and from each other. Lulu does not like a lot of petting, except from me, and she can be very demanding several times a day wanting to be rubbed and hugged and scratched. Sofie will lie on Louise, and Lulu can tolerate it for a few minutes, but then she gets up and moves to another spot (because that is all the connection Lulu can take). Sofie on the other hand, craves tummy rubs and hugs and will make sure to ask for them morning and night, from anyone and everyone. She will not go to sleep however, until she has had a few minutes of Mommy cuddle time. She will whine in her crate if I try to put her to bed without that physical connection. Sofie and Nine, the cat, do a lovey dance (at least the ones that I observe) fur to fur, several times a week. Cats lie on laps, dogs lie on feet, dogs lie on dogs…. you get the picture. The power of touch, the power of interconnection between living bodies, it is critical to the well being here at the zoo.
How about in your house? How do you and your furry friend physically connect? How many hugs a day do you need?
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
