I’m FWEEZING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Oh, I SEE you in there!!!
SEWIOUSLY?????????????????????
I am SO not impressed!!!
Fine! I’ll just stand here until you’re ready to be an adult and open the door. Humphhhhh.
Category Archives: photography
Cats Dancing? Definitely.
I had the pleasure of spending a bit of time over the weekend with two of my beautiful friends Molly and Abby. Adopted from Paws as bitty sister kittens a couple of years ago, it was obvious to me when I met them at age one that they came from feral beginnings. It can be tough when one gets feral kittens without knowing that they are. My clients have been great troopers in loving them and respecting their boundaries and giving them a great home. The girls have bonded closer with them than they will with anyone else but I like the challenge in working with shy cats that have the feral edge.
There is a difference between regular shy cats and ferals that have been domesticated. While Molly is willing for you to pet her when she wants you to, Abby is very quick with a hiss and an exit. Their instinct is to hang back and watch. Pick either up? I don’t THINK so! And I am lucky if Abby even lets me touch her on the head. Belly rubs ever? Nope.
This is how I usually see Abby’s face as she peers over the couch at me:
Ms. Molly is less standoffish but still tends to keep her distance most of the time.
Now there IS one thing that gets these girls going. There is a toy out there called the Cat Dancer. I saw one at Paws and thought it was a used up old toy that was headed for the garbage. I was told by my friend there that cats go nuts over it but I was skeptical. It’s a wire with a piece of cardboard on one side and four pieces on the other. You hold onto the one and the four go wild on the other side. My induction was at their condo. Not sure what to do with these shy girls, I went into their box of toys and treats. I saw a never used Cat Dancer and decided that it was the day to delve into it. So, the three of us were introduced to something new and awesome. These shy girls, Abby in particular, went NUTS!! Little Miss Won’t Let Me Touch Her was all over me, jumping all around and actually making contact with my lap! It was an all around freak out session.
Look how close Abby is to me!!
So what’s nice about visiting these two now is that although they’ll spend part of the time being “shy guy” and Abby will hiss at me a lot, the moment the dancer comes out it is Game On.
Filed under cats, pet sitting, photography
Great BIG Hugs
There’s nothing quite like having a giant pit bull entrench his beautiful self in your lap and roll around like a maniac of love.
That’s my friend Cappy and I could hug him all day long.
Filed under dogs, pet sitting, photography
A Rare Day Off!
With random vacations occurring for college students and new babies in people’s lives, I’ve had the pleasure of a little down time over the last month. Today has been one of those days. The pet sitting business is kind of odd in the sense that I am technically on call 24 hours a day 7 days a week. So while I might have a week filled with Monday through Friday midday walks, lots of people go away on the weekends, so most Saturdays and Sundays have something going on. I’ve found that I might have one weekend a month completely free of work. And I try to be as flexible as I possibly can, so when someone contacts me on a Thursday announcing last minute weekend plans and a request for pet care, I’ll be there, even if it’s on that one weekend that I finally had free. But any excuse to hang out with my little buddies works for me.
I love animals for so many different reasons. And I love any animal that crosses my path. Were someone to record my walks, they would find them filled with greetings and conversations. I say hello (or shout across the street) to dogs and cats. I learn dogs’ names when their owners shout at them to stop barking and then call them by it when I see them (this drives one guy CRAZY when I do it. Oh well! His beautiful golden retriever is dog aggressive and when I say his name, he relaxes.) I chatter with the birds in the trees. I comment on the amount of nuts stuffed in a squirrel’s mouth and ask her about them. And don’t get me started on chipmunks. I am fully obsessed with chipmunks! Were a buffalo to meander by, I’d be right there with a wave asking him how his day was going.
Like many people, I also enjoy admiring trees and plants on my walks and visits. I wanted to end this post with a discovery I probably never would have seen had the storm not raged as hard as it did. On one of my drives to the dogs this weekend, amidst the whipping wind and rain, I witnessed a giant tree ripping out of the sidewalk. Its trunk was drooping with the weight and devastation of its new reality. By the time I returned home, it was a defeated arc. Its branches touched the pavement, feeling it with its long green fingers, for the first and last time. I felt my heart breaking as I passed through its arch of doom and gloom.
The next day was sunny and bright and all that was left was a lonely stump jutting out of the sidewalk attached to a broken piece of concrete. The rest of its trunk and lush leaves had been carted away.
Yesterday, I passed the stump. Glancing at it, I gasped, “It has a heart!” I returned home to grab my camera and went back, excited to see if I was correct. Sure enough, right in the middle of the remaining trunk was a beautiful heart. Although I am guessing that the hole is indicative of a problem, it is certainly a unique symbol for the tree to possess. It stood proud and tall for all this time, quietly carving out its treasure year after year. Although I am sad that a frantic storm exposed it, I feel just a little bit changed for having been lucky enough to share its secret.
Filed under dogs, nature, pet sitting, photography
Sunny Days!
Finally! A beautiful day! We went to the same beach as last time and explored the other side this time. Lots of swimming and wrestling and running around ensued. I even snuck along one of the nikons on this trip.
“It’s my favorite place to be!!!” Chance always sits down in the water and it looks funny every time. This photo fails to capture exactly how silly and cute he looks, but at least it gives you an idea of how happy he is.
Done for the moment, he propels himself out of the water.
Ginger is much daintier and likes to dip just her legs and belly in. Here they are investigating the scene:
Time for a brief ruff and tumble:
Walking in their pack of two, the best buds trundle on down the beach.
Time to go home. “Don’t mind us! We’ll take the wet way!”
Can’t wait till next time with these fantastic beauties.
Filed under dogs, nature, pet sitting, photography
Wading Through the Pieces
We had some pretty crazy storms this weekend. There was no power at Ginger and Chance’s house for two days. Yesterday was a maze of fallen trees. We often had to turn around and search out a new route to get to the beach. Just getting to their house was a challenge.
The other way was even worse as a HUGE tree had tangled up in the power lines and wrapped itself around them pulling everything to the ground. I couldn’t get close enough for a good shot though.
So off we went on our adventure to a different beach this time. This one has the main entrance but then a long wall off to the side where we veered off. Ominous skies loomed as they barreled on ahead.
I looked down and saw a starfish. As I spent more time looking down, I realized that there were hundreds where we were walking, along with crabs and all sorts of other creatures. Exhausted from the storm, waiting for the tide to take them back out, they lined the beaches. I thought about trying to save them. I flipped a bunch back over. I righted crabs that were upside down, many of whom lost limbs, and had barely enough energy to move. But I knew there were too many to help them all and that trying to help only a few would make me feel worse. My only hope was that because the sand was very wet and with the flooding everywhere, the waters would welcome them back soon enough.
Filed under dogs, pet sitting, photography
Minding the Minis 