• cats,  knee replacement,  life after 50,  pets,  recovery

    Blogging A to Z: C-ats and Dogs

    Update to knee replacement surgery – I cannot sleep with any pets in our bed the night before surgery, through six weeks after surgery, according to the “class.” Of course I will follow the instructions prior to surgery because I want a successful outcome. And, if at all possible, I’ll try to adhere to the rule afterwards. Ollie is the “vocal” kitty in our household. He is 11 years old this May so as a senior citizen, he’s allowed! As it stands now, Hershey, our 70-lb. dog, sleeps in the living room because he has eaten four or more comforters. Apparently he wakes up and gets bored while we sleep.…

  • Dish Network,  dog,  faith,  pets,  writing

    Blogging from A to Z: Hershey, an apology

    Hershey, age 2 months, during his formative years. Note: Hershey is our 2-year-old Australian cattle dog/labrador retriever mix dog. Joe and I are first-time dog owners and we thought it was necessary in our puppy’s development for him to learn the importance of an earnest apology. Here, printed in its entirety, is his letter to Dish Network. Yes, he dictated it to me and I typed it, otherwise the company would not have been able to read his paw-writing. He insisted on us using a younger photo of him although he now weighs in at 51 pure-muscle pounds. Dear spare parts coordinator: My name is Hershey and I am 2…

  • cat,  grace

    Blogging from A to Z: Grace

    Grace comes to us in many forms. Several years ago, a small gray and white cat showed up at our door with three kittens. She was barely larger than her kittens and I was surprised she was a momma cat. She was obviously putting everything she had into raising her kittens. I put food and water out and this enabled her to wean her babies. She showed up like clockwork for breakfast and dinner. Although she didn’t let me pet her, she started communicating with me through “meows” and body language. She’d become playful after dinner, chasing grasshoppers and rolling over on her back. One day she arrived with just…

  • cats,  pet rescue,  pets

    I got my cat at Kroger’s grocery store

    When we can’t get to our locally owned grocery store, my husband and I shop at Kroger’s in north Terre Haute. Kroger’s offers you a discount on gasoline, based on your monthly in-store grocery purchases. We’ve been known to save 30 or 40 cents per gallon, easy. This summer a Sister of Providence that I work with told me she saw a black and white kitten at Kroger’s gas pumps the previous night. She talked to it as she filled her tank but it became frightened and ran under a wooden pallet piled high with wood for sale. She told us this story at a meeting because she knows that…

  • Christian,  dogs,  essay,  pet adoption

    Down for the count

    Our dog, Hershey, is in his “formative” years – he’s almost two. Our little fledgling has learned much. He is potty trained, likes car rides and walks in the park, warmly greets other dogs (and to their dismay cats) with the international canine custom of bottom sniffing. He has “sit,” “stay,” “shake,” and “down” memorized and if you have a treat or he’s not distracted by absolutely anything else, he’d be happy to show you. He only chases the kitties 62.8 percent of the time and he’s been caught licking Tike, although Tike would deny it if asked. He almost sleeps through the night without taking a potty break and…