ToT: For the love of a dog....or a cat
This weeks ToT post is all about pets. Do you have em? Do you love em? Could you do without em?
We have a dog and a cat. I love them. I mean really LOVE them. I would do just about anything for my furry babies. They give me constant companionship. They give me love. They give me a good laugh every now and then. They give me a big ol' headache sometimes. They give me big messes to clean up. They give me so much joy. I can't imagine my life without a furry little friend by my side.
Meet Myrtle. She's a cat with spunk. Sure she spend most of her day sleeping in the sunshine. But she pulls her weight around here, she's the resident bug killer. Bugs don't survive long in our house. If there is a spider, she kills it. A moth is toast around here. A fly doesn't even stand a chance. It's her job. And frankly, I'm glad it's her job and not mine. And I'm pretty certain that if we should ever have a dreaded rodent enter our home, there would be no need for any traps...Myrtle would take care of it for us.
We came across this little feline when Nolan and I first moved back to Indy after living in Atlanta. We were living with my parents while we secured jobs and found a place of our own. One day my mom found a liter of 3 kitties in her flower bed. Their mother was the feral cat who ran around the neighborhood. We knew that if we didn't get the kitties away from her, that they would all soon be running around the neighborhood.
After a few weeks we decided to separate the mama and her babies. Nolan and my dad were able to get 2 of the kittens, but Myrtle hid under the deck and they were unable to grab her. That evening we went out to try again to get her, but she was no longer there. Mama Kitty moved baby Myrtle under the neighbor's shed. I tried to coax them out, but couldn't. The neighbor came out to see what was going on. He suggested using his leaf blower to scare them out. It worked. The mama came running out and right behind her was the little Myrtle. As Mama Kitty ran off into the woods, I grabbed little Myrtle and whisked her into my parent's house.
I felt terrible afterwards. Mama Kitty sat in my parent's dining room window crying for her babies that were inside the house. Ugh, I knew that it was the best thing for the babies, but it was still painful to watch. But soon she gave up and went on roaming around the neighborhood. We used to see her from time to time or we would find evidence that she had been napping on my mom's wicker chairs, the cushions were covered with white fur. It's been a while since we've seen her around. :(
And it's been 8 1/2 years since Myrtle came into our lives. Our friends are a little bit scared of her. We have to warn people when they come to our house that she's a little mean. She likes us, now after years. She cuddles up to us. She lets Georgia pet her. She sleeps at the foot of our bed. She follows me from room to room during the day. She even lets the twins pet her a little bit. She's a good kitty and I'm glad that she's got some spunk and personality. I'm glad that she's living with us.
And then there is Herbie, AKA Herb, Herbs,
Herbalicious, Bubba, Baby Boy, Puppy le Pew, and my personal favorite Herberto (like Roberto, only Herberto). He is a lovable guy. He spends most of his day lounging on my bed looking out the back window. You never know when a paper bag might blow across the back yard and threaten our home. He MUST bark to protect us.
Herbie came into our lives after Nolan and I went to Pet Fest. It was at a local park and there were tons of shelters and rescues there with dogs that were available for adoption. Nolan and I had no intention of getting a puppy. I had my eye on a sweet Border Collie (they are my favorite breed of dog, BTW). Nolan was looking at a Cattle Dog. The Border Collie was at the rescue because she was nipping at her previous owners children. And she wasn't super fond of men. She was so sweet with me and I feel in love with her. But I knew that Border Collies need a lot of exercise and it's not really great to leave them at home all day while you work. They need a job to do, a place to run. So, while I was in love with her, I knew that she couldn't come home with us.
While Nolan was trying to find me to show me this Cattle Dog he found, I found this little group of puppies. They were so cute. I just wanted to hold one. Just for a few minutes. Just to snuggle. WELL, Nolan finds me snuggling these cute little brown and white speckled pups. He knew right then and there that we were going to be adopting one of these puppies. I had fallen in love. We asked about the pups and we were told that there were no more left for adoption that day, but there was one they had to leave back at the rescue because he had a skin condition and we could find his info online.
Well Nolan still wanted to show me this Cattle Dog that he found. When we got back to the Cattle Dog, he was already spoken for. So we went home empty handed that day, but we had high hopes of this one little puppy with the skin condition that was still at the shelter.
When we got home, we looked up this puppy. His name was Billy. He looked a little different than the other pups in his liter. He was not just brown and white, he had some black too. And the other pups were mostly brown with white spots. Billy was white with a brown face and black spots. He was so sweet and he was going to be apart of our family. We filled out the forms and then got word that we were the proud adoptive parents of little Billy.
And now 7 years later, he is my baby. He's my protector. He really does put himself in front of me if he think that we are in a dangerous situation. Not that we have been in any danger, EVER, but you know, just in case. I feel safe with him here. He has a very loud bark and I think that alone is enough to scare off someone trying to break into our home. Oh and he hears everything....he knows when someone is at the front door before they even knock. And he is in tune with my feelings. When Violet died, he knew something was wrong. He sat by my feet the entire day rather than lay on my bed like usual.
I really do love my animals. I can not imagine not having a dog or a cat in our house. I hope that these guys hang around for many years to come. It's true what John Grogan, the author of Marley and Me says, "Such short little lives out pets have to spend with us, and they spend most of it waiting for us to come home each day. It is amazing how much love and laughter they bring into our lives and even how much closer we become because of them." I've have several friends who have found out that their beloved pets were sick and needed to go on to a better place. What a terrible, awful decision to make. I hope that day is years into the future for us. It's the dilemma for many pet owners....you choose to bring this animal into your home, love it, care for it and develop a relationship with it all while knowing that one day you will have to say goodbye to them. While I dread that day, I will enjoy all the days that I have making memories with these furry guys!
We have a dog and a cat. I love them. I mean really LOVE them. I would do just about anything for my furry babies. They give me constant companionship. They give me love. They give me a good laugh every now and then. They give me a big ol' headache sometimes. They give me big messes to clean up. They give me so much joy. I can't imagine my life without a furry little friend by my side.
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| Just a little fun fact about Myrtle, her favorite treats are Pity The Kitty chicken flavored treats. Nolan has even got her to sit for a treat. She's almost like dog! |
We came across this little feline when Nolan and I first moved back to Indy after living in Atlanta. We were living with my parents while we secured jobs and found a place of our own. One day my mom found a liter of 3 kitties in her flower bed. Their mother was the feral cat who ran around the neighborhood. We knew that if we didn't get the kitties away from her, that they would all soon be running around the neighborhood.
After a few weeks we decided to separate the mama and her babies. Nolan and my dad were able to get 2 of the kittens, but Myrtle hid under the deck and they were unable to grab her. That evening we went out to try again to get her, but she was no longer there. Mama Kitty moved baby Myrtle under the neighbor's shed. I tried to coax them out, but couldn't. The neighbor came out to see what was going on. He suggested using his leaf blower to scare them out. It worked. The mama came running out and right behind her was the little Myrtle. As Mama Kitty ran off into the woods, I grabbed little Myrtle and whisked her into my parent's house.
I felt terrible afterwards. Mama Kitty sat in my parent's dining room window crying for her babies that were inside the house. Ugh, I knew that it was the best thing for the babies, but it was still painful to watch. But soon she gave up and went on roaming around the neighborhood. We used to see her from time to time or we would find evidence that she had been napping on my mom's wicker chairs, the cushions were covered with white fur. It's been a while since we've seen her around. :(
And it's been 8 1/2 years since Myrtle came into our lives. Our friends are a little bit scared of her. We have to warn people when they come to our house that she's a little mean. She likes us, now after years. She cuddles up to us. She lets Georgia pet her. She sleeps at the foot of our bed. She follows me from room to room during the day. She even lets the twins pet her a little bit. She's a good kitty and I'm glad that she's got some spunk and personality. I'm glad that she's living with us.
 |
| Fun Fact about Herbie: He is part Australian Shepherd and has tried to herd Nolan while playing in a filed near my in laws home. He kept running circles around him until they were close to the house. Funny instincts! |
And then there is Herbie, AKA Herb, Herbs,
Herbalicious, Bubba, Baby Boy, Puppy le Pew, and my personal favorite Herberto (like Roberto, only Herberto). He is a lovable guy. He spends most of his day lounging on my bed looking out the back window. You never know when a paper bag might blow across the back yard and threaten our home. He MUST bark to protect us.
Herbie came into our lives after Nolan and I went to Pet Fest. It was at a local park and there were tons of shelters and rescues there with dogs that were available for adoption. Nolan and I had no intention of getting a puppy. I had my eye on a sweet Border Collie (they are my favorite breed of dog, BTW). Nolan was looking at a Cattle Dog. The Border Collie was at the rescue because she was nipping at her previous owners children. And she wasn't super fond of men. She was so sweet with me and I feel in love with her. But I knew that Border Collies need a lot of exercise and it's not really great to leave them at home all day while you work. They need a job to do, a place to run. So, while I was in love with her, I knew that she couldn't come home with us.
While Nolan was trying to find me to show me this Cattle Dog he found, I found this little group of puppies. They were so cute. I just wanted to hold one. Just for a few minutes. Just to snuggle. WELL, Nolan finds me snuggling these cute little brown and white speckled pups. He knew right then and there that we were going to be adopting one of these puppies. I had fallen in love. We asked about the pups and we were told that there were no more left for adoption that day, but there was one they had to leave back at the rescue because he had a skin condition and we could find his info online.
Well Nolan still wanted to show me this Cattle Dog that he found. When we got back to the Cattle Dog, he was already spoken for. So we went home empty handed that day, but we had high hopes of this one little puppy with the skin condition that was still at the shelter.
When we got home, we looked up this puppy. His name was Billy. He looked a little different than the other pups in his liter. He was not just brown and white, he had some black too. And the other pups were mostly brown with white spots. Billy was white with a brown face and black spots. He was so sweet and he was going to be apart of our family. We filled out the forms and then got word that we were the proud adoptive parents of little Billy.
And now 7 years later, he is my baby. He's my protector. He really does put himself in front of me if he think that we are in a dangerous situation. Not that we have been in any danger, EVER, but you know, just in case. I feel safe with him here. He has a very loud bark and I think that alone is enough to scare off someone trying to break into our home. Oh and he hears everything....he knows when someone is at the front door before they even knock. And he is in tune with my feelings. When Violet died, he knew something was wrong. He sat by my feet the entire day rather than lay on my bed like usual.
I really do love my animals. I can not imagine not having a dog or a cat in our house. I hope that these guys hang around for many years to come. It's true what John Grogan, the author of Marley and Me says, "Such short little lives out pets have to spend with us, and they spend most of it waiting for us to come home each day. It is amazing how much love and laughter they bring into our lives and even how much closer we become because of them." I've have several friends who have found out that their beloved pets were sick and needed to go on to a better place. What a terrible, awful decision to make. I hope that day is years into the future for us. It's the dilemma for many pet owners....you choose to bring this animal into your home, love it, care for it and develop a relationship with it all while knowing that one day you will have to say goodbye to them. While I dread that day, I will enjoy all the days that I have making memories with these furry guys!
I am glad I am not the only one who has a million nicknames for my dogs, LOL!! Cute pets!!
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