Vacation Dilemma

With apologies to Shakespeare and Hamlet for trivializing Hamlet's life or death dilemma, I present the following original verse:
 
To vacation, or not to vacation-
that is the question addressed in this post.
Whether 'tis better to stay home with the
pets and know they are being well cared for,
or to take chances with sitters for them.
Or do we dare kennel them and worry
how they will handle their time in the joint?
Should we plan a pet-friendly trip somewhere?
Perhaps 'tis best we never leave our homes
and just become known as the crazy pet
people who cannot go away.

I am an English teacher. I find it cathartic to emote via iambic pentameter.  hahahaha

The hubs and I are going away for two days. TWO WHOLE DAYS. And that means we have to find someone to dogsit Wiley. Wiley's total aversion to a crate, plus his terrible attachment issues and fear of strangers, precludes kenneling him. I also don't think he's ready to go on any trips, because if he did we could never leave him, not even for an instant, in a strange place. So we are trying out a new sitter.  We have successfully left him with a sitter before for two days, but she is unavailable. 

Enter Meredith. Mer once sat with Wiley right after we got him, when I had to go away for the day. She did a stellar job, and I feel she is more than up to the physical task of caring for Wiley. She may be a bit mentally fatigued when she's finished though. 

All of these pictures show Wiley's reaction to her on various visits to our house. He is always trying to get himself into a position where he can kiss her face.  

Mer has plenty of dog experiences of her own. Here she is with her precious Nala.

We've shared Nala in a few Photo Share posts. She is very sweet; I've met her. She is loving and well-behaved. Here she is looking at Pop-tarts the same way I always look at Pop-tarts.

She is also compliant with being dressed up, like a true lady.

  I feel Meredith will do a good job. On the other hand, I have a dog-sitting experience to share with you that exemplifies why some dog owners never go away.

 Leroy's dad, Luke, went away on a fishing trip this past week and left Leroy in the care of his girlfriend Kim, whom Leroy adores.  It did not go well. It did not go well at all. 

Kim is a nurse, and after the first long day of being at work while Leroy was at his house, this is more or less what she came home to:

Ok, that's actually what the window looked like by the middle of the week. I don't want you to think I'm exaggerating. Oh yeah, and HOLY CRAP LEROY! WHAT THE HECK!?!

He's always had separation anxiety. He has destroyed various parts of Luke's house, with the worst destruction occurring last year during Luke's annual fishing trip. Leroy ate through the dry wall surrounding the door and nearly made it to the outside wall of the house.  

Before you ask, yes Leroy is well-exercised. He is also medicated. Kim spoils him with an extraordinary amount of love and affection. And if you're wondering why Luke continues to go away when he knows he'll come home to this, read this explanation of the trip.

So Kimberly took me up on my offering of help. 

Now, side-note, I have to show you these cute pictures of the puppy who lives next to Luke and Leroy. He was out one day when I stopped by. His name is Lincoln.

 <---He was talking to me in this picture. He wanted me to throw the ball he's playing with in the picture on the right.

Anyway, getting back to the problem, I went to visit Leroy during the day when Kim had work. I walked him. I played with him. I hung out for hours. I took a nap on the couch.  I cleaned up with him while having a nice long talk.  While I was sweeping up some of his window shavings, he joined me but pretended to not notice what I was doing:

  He spent a considerable portion of time looking around attentively, honestly probably searching for Luke. 

Guess what? He still destroyed the house after I left.   And I would get so mad at him when I walked in the house to a mess, but then he would give this look:

Who can be mad at a dog that looks like a Sesame Street muppet? By the way if you glance closely at the cabinet in the background you can see some of the damage he's done there.

I have mentioned he loves Kim, right? Here's a picture she took right at the beginning of the week, when she was still hopeful. 

And when he was with her, just like when I was there, he was a perfect little angel.

A perfect little angel dreaming of when he would be reunited with Luke, and how many windows and countertops he could destroy between now and then.

So, getting back to Wiley, we shall see how it goes. I know the amount of time he spends trying to force himself on Meredith's face for a kiss is not necessarily indicative of how he'll be while we're gone.

I will not be posting a new blog entry at all while I'm away. I will continue to promote this post, and I hope if you like it, and you've experienced some of the issues described here, you'll pass it along and share it. If you miss me and Wiley too much you can just come here and reread this. ;-) 

We hope to be back to blogging on Wednesday, with our next Oral Fixation Photo Share. It's not too late to get your pictures in to me. Email me at pabibliophile@gmail.com.  And say a prayer for a nice, calm, relaxing time for Wiley (and me) if you would.

PS: Here's a ridiculously cute picture I took of Leroy on one of our walks.

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Waldo Revisited

A few weeks ago a picture showed up in my Facebook newsfeed that inspired the latest Photo Share, The Great Outdoors.

This is Waldo. LOOK AT HIM. I am so in love with this dog it's ridiculous. We featured him on the blog back in December, and his story is so compelling. Please please go read about Waldo if you haven't yet. His story will make your day. I mean, have you LOOKED AT HIM!?!

Waldo was absolutely loving the snowstorm Missouri got back in February and Clare's neighbor Teri took some great pictures to show how at home he was.

Do I have something on my face?

Could you even imagine being victimized by the elements and looking up to see Waldo coming to your rescue?  If I lived near Clare I would spend my summer flailing around in a swimming pool just to get Waldo to save me. The picture below shows how heavily his responsibilities sit with him.

Luckily his toy giraffe brings him comfort. haha

To conclude today's post, Waldo is amazing. I want to meet him. I feel like I've known him forever and I could tell him all my secrets.  Wouldn't you love to see this at your door every day?

Go and read Waldo's original story if you haven't. Find some pictures of your pets outside and share them with us. Put together some details on your rescue story and share it with the blog. And follow us on social media. I'm very demanding today, aren't I?

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Kami

 Puppies are a lot of work. Sometimes people see the cuteness factor and have no idea what they’re getting into. When Michelle saw Kami, however, she didn’t know how much work it would be just to bring her home!

Kami was in the Kent County SPCA in Camden, Delaware when Michelle saw her picture online.  She called right away but they were closed for adoptions. The next day she drove there, timing her arrival with the minute the doors opened so she could be the first one inside. 

Michelle says it was love at first sight as they played together in the meet and greet room. What really made Michelle sure that Kami was part of her destiny was the comical moment when Kami saw some people walk by the floor-to-ceiling window in the room and ran after them, only to be stopped quite short by running directly into the window. 

Unfortunately Michelle found out that someone else had placed a hold on this puppy, and she would have to wait until 6:30 that evening to see if  Kami could be hers. Obviously the people never claimed Kami, and Michelle was eager to go bring her girl home the next day.  

She drove the hour from her house to the shelter, again, only to find out Kami was out being spayed, and wouldn’t be available until the next day!  So far Michelle had invested four hours into adopting Kami and had nothing to show for it.

The next day she had company visiting for the weekend. They were not going to deter her from getting her precious pup though! Her friend Claraann went with her on the trip, and that day she was finally able to bring Kami home! Claraann held her all the way. 

At Michelle’s house, Kami (short for Kamiflauge) was a bit intimidated at first. It didn’t take long for her to make herself at home though! 

She makes the most out of her cushy life, enjoying swimming and lounging in the pool, trips to the beach, long walks, car rides, and everything else life offers! 

Kami was worth the work and the wait, and now she is part of a loving family and a great home. Much love to Kami and Michelle from Wiley and me and all of our readers too! And thanks for finally sharing your story! ;-)  Readers-don't forget you can share yours too!

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Mini and Macy

 Mini lives with Davey and Holly and her family in Canada.   You might remember Davey's story; if you didn't get a chance to read it take some time to do so. It will help you see the kind of heart Holly has for rescued pets.

Anyway,  Holly was working at the shelter where she got Davey and continuing to volunteer showing available dogs on weekends  for various rescue groups. 

One of the dogs she showed was named Mini. Around this time Holly started taking her daughter Macy with her to the shows. Macy was four years old, and Mini the chihuahua fit perfectly in her sweet little arms, so that became Macy's official job.

Of course Macy loved Mini and looked forward to shows and visiting the shelter. The relationship, however, became very reciprocal. Mini would get super excited to see Macy, and if anyone else tried to hold Mini at showings, Mini would squirm and cry to get back to Macy!  

Eventually Holly talked her husband into coming to the shelter to see Mini and help her clean.  Holly had never envisioned having a chihuahua, but the connection between Macy and Mini was undeniable.  As she and her husband left the shelter that day he remarked that he was surprised they weren't taking her home with them.  

 

That was all Holly needed to hear, and Mini came to join the menagerie of a Cocker Spaniel named Maui, a guinea pig, Davey, and three cats in September of 2010.  She has likewise made the journey from Kansas to Canada and is adjusting to her life there.

HAHA just look at that picture up there. Mini is loving life and clearly making the most of it! She knows she hit the jackpot in Holly’s house. 

I’m not finished sharing the animals Holly has saved either! We will devote another entry to Maui and Gracie with more pictures and happy tails. It’s easy when Holly takes such AMAZING pictures and is willing to share them with us.

Speaking of sharing, time is running out to get your Sleeping Pets Pictures in for Wednesday’s Photo Share. We also need more rescue stories so keep them coming!

Sunday's Gratitude: Must Love Dogs

Yesterday was the 14th year anniversary of the day I met my husband. It was a fix-up by a student at the school I was teaching in at the time, and it was a very romantic setting-a high school playoff basketball game. haha.

Hubbie's cousin (whose dog Barney we featured a few weeks ago) was a cheerleader at the school, and I was filling in for the cheerleading coach as a favor.  It was a task I was dreading, but God and fate had plans for me and here we are 14 years later.

So today I am expressing my gratitude that I found a man who loves dogs. When we met he had his own dog, Mac, who became our dog soon thereafter. Poor Hubs is sick this weekend, and leaving for a long road-trip south.

He is an assistant baseball coach at Div II Kutztown University in southeastern Pennsylvania, and they are headed to North Carolina for some games. The poor guy is up to his eyeballs in work for grad class, packing for the trip, and coughing.  Yet as he went out to his car to retrieve his baseball equipment to pack it, he couldn't resist spending a few moments playing with Wiley, who was making the most out of the surprise snow we are dealing with here in Pennsylvania.

Wiley has a very strange habit he came with from the shelter. While fetch is his ABSOLUTE FAVORITE, and he will return the ball over and over again, he will NOT let it go in anyone's hand. He'll only lay it down nearby. You can see Hubs trying to take it out of his mouth, and Wiley is not "playing tug," he just flat-out won't let it go.  I haven't been able to train my husband to stop trying to win.

 

 

I'm including some other pictures I took of Wiley frolicking. The quality is average at best because an iphone around sunset isn't an ideal tool for action shots, but he was having too much fun to not take pictures. Fingers crossed this is the last photo opportunity for winter action shots this season.

HE'S READY!

Want to know what crazy eyes look like?  I can read dogs' minds, and I know what he's thinking here. "BALLLLLLL. BALL. BALL. THROW IT!"

It was almost impossible to get him to stand still to take a picture.

By the time we came in his tongue was just about on the ground, but he certainly had  a lot of fun, and considering I couldn't wake him this morning once he found this comfy position:

he certainly found some energy as the day wore on.

So, that was our day yesterday. How was yours? What was the weather like?  Did you get any good pictures outdoors?  That is going to be our next photo share. . .the Great Outdoors. This week we will still be sharing the sleeping pictures (and it's not too late to get yours in), but the next request will be any outdoor photos of your pets. Don't forget to share your rescue story too!  Happy St Patrick's Day to our Irish friends and all those who are celebrating!