Last weekend we found this great crane statue to fill some space in our corner.  We originally had the lava rock ending just past this Japanese Maple but with the addition of something that I really, really wanted to add to our yard, we finished off this corner.

Can you tell what it is that has me so happy about the landscaping? 

I want to start by thanking everyone for their comments and private messages of support regarding our post on Tuesday.  The challenge with dogs and babies is that they are dogs and babies and both think differently than we do. 

Because Asia was there, she wrote the account so I do feel compelled to clarify a few things:  as a rule, all baby and dog interactions are done with an adult within reaching distance.  I believe that because Ray was focused on licking an owie, he was startled but I am so relieved in his reaction.  Also, we are all about positive training.  The pop on the bottom and the repremand that Ray got almost ended up “on the cutting room floor” but it happened so we included it.  I don’t want Ray to learn that what he did was wrong, because it was so right. I also am not here to hang Asia out to dry.  This was the first incident of this type and I can only imagine the heart pounding adrenaline going through her.  Any snap or growl to communicate discomfort is highly encouraged and we are so thankful that he did it and didn’t make any contact with the baby. 
So, once again, thank you.

…and the reason we are late with today’s post is that Ray and Mama got a little extra snuggle time in this morning. 

Who wants to get up and go to work when you’d be leaving this?

This is a post I’ve held while debating on whether or not to let it go “live.”, the day it happened, I knew we’d have to tell the story, but each time I thought about it, my stomach wound into knots.  What if it we aren’t able to articulate it as a positive?  What if the words are regurgitated in a negative way?  I even considered editing a bit, but in the end, it is what it is and too many people I talk to don’t understand that a growl is a good thing.  What if, what if, what if…
But the bottom line is, it happened, we recognized it and can even be that much better  to have had the experience and since Asia was there, she has decided to tell the story.

It all happened so quickly that afterwards I almost thought it was a dream. My heart was pounding as I held my daughter close. I’m an overprotective Mom.  Even my own mom teases me about it being a wonder that I made it to the age I am since I sometimes give her “suggestions” when she is watching Baby, but I can’t help it. 

I think all dog owners with small children worry about an incident happening and we did a lot of work with a trainer in anticipation of Baby’s arrival. When I was pregnant I had no idea how Ray would react to a baby and because he was such a high maintenance puppy, I prepared myself for the worst, but in my heart I knew our loving Ray-Ray would be gentle with her. He might be confused with her arrival, since HE was the baby of the house but I knew he would learn and grow to love her, after all, we were prepared.

Ray mostly hangs out in the kitchen and living room area, but Baby and I have been spending more and more time with him in there as well as him roaming the house freely. Baby was sitting on the floor while I was sitting above her on the couch and Ray was lying on the floor near us. Any time Baby starts to crawl towards Ray; I pick her up and redirect her. He gets nervous easily and I don’t want to push their relationship too fast. This time I wasn’t quick enough. I looked away for a second, and Baby had crawled over to Ray who was licking a sore spot on his back leg. I stood up to get the baby, and in that same moment she grabbed his leg and Ray jumped up and made a sound; a growl and bared his teeth. I picked Baby up and we were both shaken. I smacked Ray’s butt and yelled “bad!”  (I know, I know!) Then I left the room as he slinked under the kitchen table, his safe spot.

Ray did not touch her and he would not have even if I didn’t pick her up. He had been startled and I knew that he was just giving her a warning, “My legs are sensitive and you pushed my limit” but it scared me, obviously. Afterwards I called my mom and she explained that it was a good sign that he showed this warning. By him doing that it helps us know what his boundaries are. He was not trying to hurt the baby; he just wanted to ask her not to do that. I went back in the kitchen with the baby and saw Ray lying on his mat under the table looking sad. I felt horrible. I shouldn’t have yelled at him, because really what he did wasn’t bad at all. I got a treat and coaxed him out of his safe zone; pet him and let him give the baby a kiss.  I’m thankful that my mom has done a tremendous job training Ray and that he is so loving and patient with the baby.  Our cats are extremely patient with her as well; I couldn’t ask for more from them. 

Yes, what happened shocked and scared me, but after the fact it was a great Learning Experience.
I’m glad Ray shows us signs and that he didn’t bite or hurt her in any way.  Some dogs would skip the warning and do harm first and I know that we want him to continue to show us his limits and I know to allow him his space.
As a new mom and new part-dog owner, I encourage people that are introducing a baby to a pet to take it slow and be patient.  You can’t expect the animal to understand right away what you want.  And you also can’t expect the baby or small child to know how to treat a dog.  As my daughter grows up I look forward to teaching her how to treat all animals the right way; with care, caution, and respect.  Animals are not toys and they deserve to be treated like a human being, in my opinion.

You know how karma has a way of putting you in your place?  Yeah, well sometime last week, I had started to feel kind of burnt, overwhelmed and discouraged so in my mind, I declared that Saturday was going to be Selfish Saturday.  I planned to sleep late and cuddle with Ray, get a pedicure and not clean the house -at least in the morning. 

While I had my hedonistic morning, something else happened and if you follow him on Facebook you already know;  Ray got sick.  He starting throwing up in the early afternoon and every few hours throughout the evening, once overnight, again a few times on Sunday.  I was starting to feel a bit panicked because he only ate half of his breakfast on Saturday morning, refused food all the rest of the day-even the boiled chicken and rice I made him.  Thankfully he still drank water and ate ice chips to keep hydrated.  Also, Ray usually smells like nothing and I could smell sick-dog smell on him. 

The really cute and somewhat sad thing about Ray is that he hates to throw up in the house.  He runs to the door and stands there, waiting to be let out.  He actually seems to hold it as long as possible until he can go out to a good spot.  Everytime we missed the signal or overnight, there was a bit of vomit by the door.  What really started frightening me was when he vomited on his foot and didn’t even seem to mind. 

I think he probably ate something that disagreed with his tummy and after thinking and talking about all the possibilities, we feel it was a certain one of his treats, which we will obviously no longer give him. Finally Sunday afternoon he ate his chicken and rice with a little kibble and acted like he was regaining some strength.  By Sunday evening he was acting a bit more playful and even begging for a taste of my sorbet and this morning my happy wiggle butt was back.

Thanks for all the good healing thoughts and wishes you all sent over the interwebs.  We really appreciated all your kind words.

With some good “leave it” training, some sturdy gates and a lot of praise for “doing the right thing,” Ray now (for the most part) has very little interest in our kitties.  Though the kitties show varying degrees of interest in him which manifests itself in unique ways.

Jae spends most of his time on top of hte table that Ray sleeps under.  He is the one who walks anywhere he wants, drinks from dips his piggies in Ray’s water bowl, and steals kibble.  They can pass each other in the hallway without so much as a “how ya doin'” to each other because Jae has learned that a moving cat is FUN to chase and a stationary cat isn’t even worth the effort of nodding to.

Miko is our largest and youngest cat.  As Asia mentioned, Miko is our Inspector.  Everything has to be just so and follow the rules of Miko.  If the gate is open and Ray is laying on his mat, Miko will sit on “his” side of the gate feeling as if he is in the safety zone.  He can talk and meow at Ray to his heart’s content because whether or not the gate is open, Miko is on the right side.  He will also venture into Rayville and steal kibble, sit by the garage door and whine (the garage is “outside” to Miko) or just generally sit in the choice sunspots as long as Ray is out of Miko’s sightline.  When Ray is moving about the house, Miko tends to hug the walls behind furniture and keep a clear path.

That’s 9 lbs of Boo Kitty and 20 lbs of Miko.

Boo Kitty is our oldest and smallest cat and she used to have a best friend.  Our dog Bam Bam (Baa Baa) was Boo Kitty’s friend, guardian, and cherished companion until Bam Bam when to the bridge.  Boo Kitty feels it is her bound duty to remind Ray at every opportunity that he is ‘not the Baa Baa.’ 
Recently, Ray was laying in the living room on the sofa and behind the coffee table.  Boo Kitty enters the room walking on the opposite side of the table, see’s Ray, hisses, doubles back to stand in front of him and hisses again, you know…just in case he didn’t get the first message.

She definitely has some chutzpah.  Who is your bravest fur baby?

Sometimes I live way too far inside my own head and it can take something pretty spectacular to get me out of those depths. 

This week started out pretty awesome.  One morning before work the lady in front of me at the drive-thru at Starbucks paid for my coffee, allowing me to earn some good karma by passing along her kindess.  The next day a lady who seemed to be in a hurry, held an elevator door for me.  It’s these small tiles of kindess and humanity that once collected, form a beautiful mosaic that we can reflect on when we need a touch of beauty in our lives.

For some reason, this story brought me to tears this week.  By “some reason” I don’t mean that it shouldn’t but just that I felt so affected by an alligator.   But I did.  It just Makes. Me. So. Sad. 

Re-focus. 

The gator will soon be on it’s way to a Florida sanctuary to live out it’s life in a manner most befitting it’s needs and hopefully be able to dwell in all the sunshine it  wants.

Do feel like cheering a crazy lady up?  Tell me something good that happened to you or that you did recently.

Back in the late 80’s and early 90’s I was living in Chicago and at the time was a much bigger basketball fan than I am now.  Of course, it was during the heyday of the Bulls, so it was pretty easy to get swept up in the excitement. 

A thought had occured to me back then that it would be fun to have a dalmation and name him Spotty Pippen.  Though I never seriously wanted a dalmation, I never completely forgot that little bon mot and then it hit me the other day:

Ray could very well have been my Spotty Pippen, but in all actuality, his little pigment spots didn’t appear until he was several months old and they still seem to be coming.

Do you have any names in resserve that you’ve always wanted to use for a pet?

I entered the yard through the gate and was greeted by the sight of  a large white and black dog.  He was heavily muscled, had limpid brown eyes and a tail slowly fanned the air behind him.  He was a sweet and welcomed sight, calming my pounding heart in the most perfect way.  My hands were not trembling, though they felt as if they could start at any moment, and I wrapped them around his large cheeks and bent down to give my Ray a kiss on the top of his broad forehead.

Ray-Ray

He strikes fear in my heart.

Last week, our friends at Pitlandia asked if anyone had ever tried a Crinkit because that was the deal of the day at Doggyloot.  (I had stopped getting the Doggyloot emails quite a while ago because I really never ordered from  there.)  Ray used to have a Crinkit, or Crinkie as we call it and while it wasn’t indesctructable,it really did last a long time, and I had been meaning to replace it for-evs but I just hadn’t gotten around to it.  Well, when I saw that this was the opportunity for a new Crinkie,  I jumped right on it and promptly forgot about it until it arrived in the mail.

He always knows it’s for him.

 These are a durable something or other compound and it smells like vanilla, which is nice.  Luckily we had a nearly empty water bottle to stuff inside, but even without, Ray is pretty happy to have his Crinkie back.

It’s probably been since late last summer since he had a Crinkie, but I was still somewhat shocked that he played with it differently.  Big boy knows exactly where the bottle goes in and did work it out within an hour before playing with the empty Crinkit. 

All in all, I’m glad we have it back because it really is a great toy and provides Ray with some mental stimualtion, as well as physical exertion.  If you don’t have a Crinkit yet, I highly recommend one.  Ray does too.

If you follow us on Facebook, you know that Ray had a visitor last night.  A couple of years ago, we had a beautiful garden.  We delighted in lucious tomatoes, tender crisp sweet peas, fresh parsley, green beans, onions and jalapenos.  I wanted so badly for this visitor to take up residence in our garden that I searched high and low for a suitable abode in which he could feel at home.

photo: www.thebirdhouseny.com

Alas, Mr. Toad did not see fit to take up residence in our garden, at least not that I ever saw, however last night while mowing, I realized I had a serious little overseer.

He  was clearly not impressed by either Ray or me, and though I admit that if I ever happened to brush against him with a bare toe I would probably scream and flail around like a startled bird, and I have no garden for him to keep watch  over, I hope he’ll stay around for awhile.  I kind of like him.