Yesterday Was a Big Day

Jack went to the doctor to get 'fixed'...and he didn't even know he was broken! Doug had a heck of a time getting him through the door. I can't imagine that he'd ever been to this particular location before since we adopted him from people who live more than an hour away.

Jack ran the opposite direction and even worked his way out of his collar once. Luckily Doug was able to catch him and put the collar back on. He finally got Jack through the first set of automatic doors and then Jack decided he would have no more of it -- or maybe he'd heard what goes on in places like this. Jack sat down and absolutely refused to move. Doug had to pull the rug through the second set of automatic doors to get the silly dog into the waiting room! I wonder if the doctor will cut the sutures out on the sidewalk. There is NO way we'll get him in this place a second time after he has surgery.


Scamper was absolutely pathetic all day. First Sam disappeared, now Jack just as she was beginning to like him...what goes on around this place?

We got a phone call from the vet around 2:00 and Jack did 'fine'. He got home around 6:00. About 7:30 Sammi and her boyfriend Sam arrived with two cats -- Elvis and Kitty, who are going to live at our house for up to a week while we try to find them new homes. Know anyone who wants two older, sweet cats who are fixed, declawed, and up to date on shots?

Things are never boring around our house!

It's Never Boring Around Here

Ahh, the joys of pet ownership!

For various reasons, we got a new pet this week, Jack. He's a nine month old chocolate lab, and he's a BIG puppy who has grown into his feet but hasn't quite filled out enough to match his head! He's had some basic training -- if you work hard enough he will sit, lay, come, and stay, but he has to really want to. He also thinks he's a lap dog and he doesn't understand why he can't sleep on our full size bed (despite the fact that he takes up the whole thing).


He's actually relatively docile, but he loves to play. I figured Scamper would love the opportunity to mother him, since she really liked that role with Sam. I think I misread her. I've since decided she likes to be the bossy big sister (a role that is unfortunately rather near and dear to my heart...).


When they first met, Scamper was a bit taken back. This dog is at least 1 1/2 heads taller than she and he tends to get a little personal! We hope neutering him will help with that. He really just wanted to play with her -- she would bark her fool head off and he would just wimper. He even got down on the ground as if to say, "It's ok, I'll let you be the boss if you want to." Amazing from a male dog. They had a few little show downs before Scamper decided that he really didn't want to harm her and we really weren't going to ignore her for this big lug.

Jack has been raised with doggy toys. Our dogs have never really had toys other than balls, frisbees, and pull toys, so this is a new thing for us. It is really funny to see this 80 pound dog walk around with a teeny McDonald's Happy Meal stuffed kitten in his mouth! Not very manly. Of course he doesn't know what is ok to play with and what isn't, so we are learning to keep stuff up off the floor, and I'm always on the alert for sounds of chewing.


Yesterday I heard some chewing and went to check it out -- Scamper had the little kitten and was pulling the stuffing out of it! This from a dog who NEVER touched a stuffed animal before! Hmmm...a little resentment you think?

Scamper has definitely got the big sister role down well, though. This morning I guess Jack was a little bored and he at various times got caught with the following in his mouth:

the food cup
Chris's shoe
a boy's winter glove
a sock
a baseball glove
Scamper's bone (that was her own fault - she likes to save them for later)
Kevin's shirt (he happened to be wearing it at the time...)
and a big stuffed bear

When she sees that Jack has something, she starts barking like crazy, as if to say, "Mom, he's doing it again!" She doesn't stop until I take the toy away or tell her that that one's ok to play with.

As I watch them wrestling now, it's humorous. Scamper is still the loud one, but she doesn't run away. He puts a paw on her back and tries to roll her over (reminiscent of 'pinned ya' from the lion king'), and she tries to run between his front legs, causing him to almost somersault in an attempt to get at her! They'll go on like this for about ten minutes before they tire out and end up laying next to each other playing 'whose leg is on top' by trying to get their own leg on top of the other one's head. Hilarious!


Jack and the cat get along fine -- they both ignore each other totally. The cat decided to check him out a little the other day, and he thought she wanted to play. She turned and ran, and he wanted to take off after her. I was nervous for a second because he can run fast, but he was on the laminate floor -- it was like a scene from a cartoon. The faster he ran, the less he moved!


My days are definitely a little more full now...and I have to say that I feel MUCH more secure! Jack's barks, when he chooses to use them, rattle the windows!

Did Jesus Have Pets?

While I haven't done an extensive search, I'm unable to readily find any references to pets in the households of Biblical times. I'm sure that all children who lived in farming situations had some animals that they loved, named, and played with. The shepherds had dogs to help them with the sheep, and I imagine that they often became companions on long lonely days.

When God placed Adam in charge of all animals of the earth, don't you think there were some dogs or cats that liked to lay next to him for warmth and the occasional scratch behind the ears?

Our 13 year-old German Shepherd, Sam, had to be put to sleep on Saturday. He was a 90 pound baby with a ferocious bark (which would stop immediately if you rubbed his head!). Over the past few years his hips started getting stiff and he was pretty hesitant of stairs. Our younger dog, Scamper, decided that Sam was her responsibility. She annoyed him terribly (and us too)telling him it was time to go outside -- even pushing him in the behind with her nose if he didn't go fast enough! The interaction between the two of them was pretty funny. Sam would pretend that he wanted to go outside and Scamper would rush past him to encourage him down the stairs, then Sam would turn around and lay down so we would close Scamper outside. That way he got a little bit of peaceful sleep.

Sam really wasn't much of a playmate for the boys anymore, but he was a strong presence in our house. He would always end up in the room with me during the day, offering a fluffy hunk of quiet companionship. And he left his long, clumpy hair behind regardless of how much we brushed him. He patiently put up with the boys and Scamper, complaining only with pitiful eyes that silently asked if he really had to put up with all the annoyance.

Sam developed a super-ball sized tumor in mid December. It didn't seem to bother him so we figured we'd take him into the vet after our Florida trip. While we were gone, the tumor grew to the size of a lemon and became gooey and smelly as he fussed with it. When he started crying in his sleep, we knew it was time to take action. With his age and other difficulties we made the tough decision not to treat it, but to let him go.

I have to admit that we are sleeping better now that he's gone -- Sam's night noises would enter into our dreams as people or animals being tortured! He also had a pretty major social problem (gas), so we had to close our bedroom doors at night. There is much less hair to clean up, and less of a sense of security (even though I know he'd be hard pressed to hurt anyone).

Scamper is kind of lost. Instead of eating her morning doggy treat, she sets them on the landing as if offering them to Sam if he will just come back. She stays within a few feet of me all day long and questions with her eyes. She barks to go out, then hesitates as if she knows she's forgetting something.

God created all kinds of beasts for use on this earth. I like to think that he has a special spot in his heart for those creatures that bring us a special comfort.

We miss you, Sam.