New to the Zoo

I believe one dog is too few and is destined to be lonely, especially when few families can make it on one income. Matt feels the same about cats. Although Quincy gets along great with the dogs (he frequently pounces on Mya or Cyrus to initiate play), there are stretches of time where the dogs are outside and Quincy is left by himself. Plus, let's be honest, Matt wanted two cats to begin with. So, without further ado, we welcome...

Moira.

Who can resist that face? Moira came to us from the Manteca Animal Shelter. I don't know how they do it, but they manage to lower the adoption fee on animals that have been spayed or neutered. I know the procedure is an expense for the city/county just like it is to us regular citizens, but I think that is a wonderful way of encouraging ownership of altered animals. We need more programs like this, less of the "mandatory spay/neuter" type.

Anyway, Moira, a.k.a Sugar Bell, had been previously adopted by a woman who apparently had not run the idea past her husband. When he got home, he made her take the cat back to the pound. Although there is a delay on owner surrendered pets before they can be adopted out again, the lady at the shelter allowed us to take Moira home. As corny as her name was, it totally fit her personality... this kitten is pure sweet. I think the shelter employee was just happy to see her go to a good home. So were we.

What does Quincy think of all this? I think he likes her. They're getting to know each other slowly. Cats, y'know. She's a little older than him, but only by a matter of a week or two. Matt reports that he has actually seen them playing together. I haven't yet, but it's mostly because the dogs follow me around, and they get all excited when the cats get excited and Moira's still a little shy about dogs coming over to sniff her. (She's a trooper, though. She stands her ground very calmly, then walks away. Totally opposite of Quincy's paw-to-the-face method, but still effective.)

The most unexpected thing? Take a look at this! Are they going to be friends? Or is Mya just keeping an eye on the new interloper? I like to think friends.

On a side note... Look! It's a real garden! Actual flowers that I planted myself! So pretty... (Some of my standards are woefully low...)

And let's not forget the home orchard. Isn't it a thing of beauty? These will be the best four mandarin oranges in the world. I just know it.

A New Page

Well, the house appraisal is done. Whew! One more step that we can check off our list. Since we had everything neatened up for the appraiser, I took some pictures. Look how far everything's come!

Living room from the left side.

From the right side...

Kitchen/Dining Room

And some fun stuff. A rare video of Mya and Cyrus playing tug-o'-war. My favorite part? When he pulls it away from her, he stops and holds it still, like, "Oh, grab back on. Got a good hold? Okay!" The growling is all Mya.

So, we did get a second cat for Quincy (and Matt). She's great, too - she'll get her own post a little later. But I wanted to highlight the fabulousness of Q-Ball, the Tailless Wonder. This cat has cajones and I'm so happy he ended up with us. He and Cyrus are great together.

Saint Emily

This morning I heard geese overhead, heading for warmer climes ahead of the cold they know is coming. Although we still technically have a week left of summer, this year is turning inexhorably to winter, a time of rest and darkness. It was cold this morning and Emily did something she'd never done before: she came into our room to curl up on the blanket we have down beside our bed in hopes that the other two dogs will sleep there rather than on our blankets. I think it was because she was cold in the living room and wanted a place to sleep in out of the drafts. Matt tells me that it was her way of saying, "I love you and we had a good life together. I know it's time and I think I'm ready."

I'm glad she does not have to face another winter. I was afraid she wouldn't make it through the last one.

Today was one of her good days, which were becoming rarer. I think it helped that she got to sleep in a little longer than normal, since I took the morning off of work. We were early for the vet apppointment, so I took her on a walk through the empty lots near the office. She did get to wag her tail again when she saw Dad. I miss her, and I don't think I'll ever get over the guilt, even though I think it was the right decision.

Emily

June 1996 - September 15, 2009

New Arrival at the Animal House

Our newest member of the Zoo Family is Quincy. My cousin Keren found Quincy as a wee black puffball. He was around 4 or 5 weeks old and clearly abused (he had burned off whiskers and we suspect that his tail may have been pulled off rather than naturally manx). Even so, he has a lovely, friendly and brave disposition. My cousin kept him for us around 2 months while we prepped the new house, since we couldn't have a cat in the rental. She raised him well and her tiny chihuahua, Sugar, was Quincy's best buddy. They tousled and chased and Sugar taught Quincy a little about dogs. Now, an older Quincy has joined us. Here he is exploring his new digs.

From the beginning, he had little fear of (although a healthy respect for) the dogs, despite the fact that Cyrus, at least, is an order of magnitude larger than Sugar. We found that this bravery extends equally to a willingness to, say, attack feet carelessly left unattended at the edge of the bed. I hear that's a cat thing.

Here is a video of Quincy and the dogs. He will actually sometimes play with Cyrus (he likes to bat Cyrus' fringed ears), but he persists in swatting Mya. This is because Mya is determined to try and bite him at every opportunity. She's like the dog from Bunnicula, determined that our house is being overrun by the spawn of evil and she's the only one who can defend us...

New Exhibits

So close to being done! Our living room is shaping up nicely, with only a few more feet of tile left to go (compared with the 1000 square feet we started with). It's going to be the most beautiful remodel ever. Says me.

Surprisingly peaceful scene...all three dogs napping together. Emily is deigning to share space with the other two. She's usually much more standoffish, since she was an only dog for so long. Mya and Cyrus, on the other hand, love to snuggle.

We heard that lovely Layla was visiting Jim and Linda for the weekend. Since she and Cyrus hit it off so well at the dog show, we brought him over to visit. Here, all four siblings are in the puppies' kennel (Rider, of the black- and fluffiness, wisely escapes the heat by laying on top of his dog house and refusing to get involved). Cyrus' familiarity with sharp turns and tight spaces gives him the advantage... All the puppies from this litter are just wonderful.

Coming right along

Unfortunately, I didn't think to take "before" pictures, but I did save the photos from the original listing website. Here some are for comparison.

We are about halfway done laying the tile in the living room. The tile is completed everywhere else (although the hallway and living room still have to be grouted and sealed).

Mighty man Matt in a heroic pose, since I didn't have a good comparable picture to the one above. But here, you can see the new pain as well as the color we are painting the doors. The previous post has a good picture of the tile we're putting in the living room.

The floor is done in all the bedrooms. You can also see the decorative thresholds that Matt designed.

Blah in the old picture! Especially the chocolate brown baseboards.

Ignore the clutter. I really like our paint colors.

Yucky brown in the kitchen! Looks much nicer now.

Lompoc Dog Show July 25-26, 2009

The show actually ran Thursday through Sunday, but we drove down Friday morning and I only entered Cyrus on Saturday and Sunday. My goal for the weekend was for him to have a good time for his first show. He has a long memory for bad experiences (don't we all?) and I didn't want to start him off with a dislike of the ring. In that respect, we came home winners because I think he enjoyed himself. Bits of leftover prime rib in the ring on Sunday may have helped. He did come home with a ribbon from Saturday, but statistics were with him. There were only five puppies in his class.

There was a grand family reunion, with most of the puppies from the litter attending. Cyrus would definitely like to see more of Layla, preferably where there is sufficient fenced ground for running around like the whirling dervishes they are.

If there was a ribbon for cute, Cyrus would have come in first.

Left to right the dogs are: Kodi, Cyrus, Pearl, Rider, Aria, Strider, Layla, JJ, Solaris, and Quila.

I think this is the best still shot from the ring. He's doing a whippet impression, which is his way of saying, "Mom, the grass is wet and cold and icky." Or, "I don't like the judge" or "I'd rather put my feet where I want to put them" or "This is boring, let's go play with Layla." The whippet impression is very versatile. He uses it often.


Cyrus held it together pretty well his first day, I think. He was a champ about letting a stranger open his mouth and feel him all over. It wasn't until we completed the "down and back", and the judge tried to pat his head, that he decided enough was enough. As we set out for our last trip around the ring, you can see him keep looking over his shoulder... "Is that scary guy still after me? He might be following us!"