I try not to sweat the small stuff. Really I do. But when I leave home, and leave my menagerie in the care of a house sitter, I am nothing if not explicit. The directions for the care and feeding of my four dogs and two horses (the cat got a reprieve from his Boston… Continue reading Make Yourself At Home
Category: Dog Stories
My First Day Off
I’ve rarely been a real risk taker when it comes to physical activity. I’ve never jumped out of an airplane, rappelled down a mountainside, or skied in fresh powder after being dropped from a helicopter. When I swim, I like my pool water warm, and when I ride, I like my horses elderly and as… Continue reading My First Day Off
Superstition, Karma and Faith
I have always been a mildly superstitious person. With a casual air, I will walk around rather than under an open ladder and I never wear opals since they are not my birthstone. I will happily pet a purring black cat then shiver when it runs across my path, and when I break a mirror… Continue reading Superstition, Karma and Faith
The Case of The Missing Chicken
It happened two or three weeks ago, and it’s still bothering me so I might as well write about it. Harvest Ranch Market, in Encinitas where I work, makes a pretty good rotisserie chicken. I don’t have much time to cook during the week, so many Sundays I’ll head over there and pick up two… Continue reading The Case of The Missing Chicken
Happiness is a Warm Puppy
I had promised my friend Rachel two months ago that when it came time to let her current litter of Scottish deerhound puppies go to their new homes, I would come to Arizona for the big send off. I bought my ticket to Tucson cheap but life has been hectic lately, between the pressures of… Continue reading Happiness is a Warm Puppy
The Thundershirt
“Thunder and lightning, very very frightening–me” Queen When I woke up this morning, they were already at it, and I walked into the kitchen and immediately slipped in a large pool of saliva that had apparently been dripping from the mouth of big Magic, my 125 pound scaredy cat Scottish deerhound. When I say “they”,… Continue reading The Thundershirt
It’s Always Something
When you are owned by a Scottish deerhound, or two or three, you get the pleasure of their company on your couch, the soulful gaze of their soft brown eyes as they gently interfere with your reading and typing, and occasionally the crunching sound of the prime rib that was marinating on the countertop before… Continue reading It’s Always Something
Old Dog Lying In The Sun
The old dog barks backwards without getting up. I can remember when he was a pup. – Robert Frost If you live in a multi-pet household, as I do, you will know the one I am talking about. The dog that never caused anyone any trouble, never barked, never bit, never peed in the house,… Continue reading Old Dog Lying In The Sun
A Brief News Update From the Animal House
If you’ve been reading this blog for a while, you know that I have quite a little menagerie here. In my animal loving prime, when I had a lot more energy than I do now, we had 5 Scottish deerhounds, one Brussels Griffon, two cats, two guinea pigs and eight horses, at least one of… Continue reading A Brief News Update From the Animal House
An Exercise in Futility
I am working at home today. And no, that’s not the exercise in futility, although it could be. I have paperwork to complete, treatment summaries to write– odds and ends that don’t involve patient care. I am working at home because today, the carpet layers are putting in my brand new wall to wall carpet. … Continue reading An Exercise in Futility