Thanksgiving

Almost two years ago our beloved dog Reno passed.  Thanksgiving is a time for reflection and unfortunately he passed the day after Thanksgiving.  That day will always be a reminder of the friend we lost.

I think about Bentley our newest furry addition and hope that he feels loved.  It's hard to love someone new but also easy because he melts your heart with his puppy eyes.  I'm hoping for a better Thanksgiving with my family but also with our new dog.

As we visit other's pets during the holidays, I tend to think about my own pets more and how I would want them to feel loved during this time.  Although it probably doesn't matter so much to them what day it is - they want to feel loved everyday.  I hope they will feel the love when we visit!

The End Of Summer

Did we get a summer this year?  Well, it was nice walking dogs in non-freezing weather.  And sometimes the sun was actually out and doing dog jogs actually caused a sweat.

The end of summer brings the rush of Fall activities.  Hopefully, our client's who have had the summer off go back to work and call us up to resume pet care visits!  Looking forward to taking walks on paths full of leaves and crisp air. 

Meet Bentley!

We decided to go to the Everett Animal Shelter without our daughters and "see" if there was a dog that matched our needs.  We didn't want to take the girls and have them be disappointed when we left without a dog.  The dog needed to be kid/baby friendly and cat friendly.  The dog needed to have energy but not be aggressive.  On Saturday, we were there when the shelter opened and looked around but found no matches.  The next day, a friend texted us a picture of Bentley telling us how she remembered we had thought about adopting a Schnauzer.  We went back on Monday to look around with our baby, our eldest was at school.  Bentley was still there!  He was full of anxiety and energy.  Bentley had lived in a household without kids/babies and cats.  The shelter did not know if he would be good for us.  We took him out to the play area and he smelled our baby and calmed down.  Bentley was the dog for us! 

We decided to take him home.  Arnie took him with him to pet sitting visits and he was back in time for our eldest to be home from school.  What a great surprise!  In the words of our eldest, "new dogs just make you feel happy!"  We took Bentley with us to our eldest's baseball game.  He had so much anxiety.  At night we decided to sleep on the couch so he could get accustomed to his new home.  Every time someone got up, he got up.  Poor Bentley.  We bought him a new bed - which could probably fit 4 dogs!  But he decided to sleep NEXT to the bed and not on the bed.

We forgot how much is involved with a new dog.  We have made a vet appointment, grooming appointment, and are looking for basic obedience classes.  Bentley hit the jackpot with us.  We still miss our dogs that passed away, no dog could ever replace them.  Bentley feels "adopted" but I know with time he will become an established member of our family.  I think we hit the jackpot too...

Where or where has my litter box gone?

My poor cat Katie has had her litter moved countless times.  Poor cat literally needs to find her "bathroom" everytime we decide it isn't working out for us.  Imagine if your bathroom kept moving - would probably be annoying, no wonder she gets cranky sometimes.  The previous location was ideal but too much cold air from the garage was coming into our home. 

We moved her belongings to our closet.  Not ideal!  Pretty soon we started finding remnants of litter in our clothes and shoes.  We have an armoire in the closet and decided to take out what we had in the bottom half and put her litter in it.  It couldn't have been more brilliant!  Her litter is no longer an eyesore and "most" of the litter remains in the litter box or the armoire.  She has the privacy she needs and we have our closet back - free from litter smells.  I really wish she could pick up the broom and clean up after herself everytime she left a trail though...  So hopefully this will be the last time we move the litter box - I'm sure she'll be thankful and keep her space clean so that we don't move it again!

The Holidays with Bella

Bella, our dog will be celebrating her 14th Christmas with us this year.  I wonder how far back she can remember our holidays together.  I remember her as puppy, getting into everything!  I remember how hard it was to potty train her.  She was terribly cute and we probably let her get away with too many things.  She was the first dog I really ever owned and cared for.  Along with my husband, this was our first "child" that we cared for as a couple.  We had so many bad habits with her, like letting her sleep with us.  After she got bigger, it was harder to tell who's bed it was - hers or ours? 

I am so glad that our baby knows her.  For some reason, Bella never got attached to our eldest daughter who is now 7.  She lets the baby grab her, hug her, and kiss her.  It is too adorable.  I hope she stays healthy until the baby is older and can remember her more.

I know Bella's ultimate Christmas gift would be for us to allow her on the couch (or perhaps our bed again).  The problem is she has no boundaries and would likely take advantage of the situation.  I think I'll buy her a new comfy bed instead.  She's a great believer in good bones, so I'll probably get her some bones as well. 

I hope there are many more years with Bella, our first "child".

Pet Sitting Myths Barto, Bally, Boyertown, Bechtelsville, and Gilbertsville, PA

Great blog about pet sitting myths!

Pet Sitting Myths Barto, Bally, Boyertown, Bechtelsville, and Gilbertsville, PA

PAWS Walk

I'm surprised and over-joyed by the generousity of our pet sitting clients.  We were able to raise $240 in donations for PAWSWalk (PAWS in Lynnwood, WA).  This is the most donations we have received for any walk/organization since we have been in business.  Keep in mind that we began our business in 2001. 

I think that says a lot considering the economic conditions we are in.  I think pets in general target people's hearts.  Animals can only do so much for themselves in a human dominated world.  Especially small animals that have domesticated for the sheer purpose of being our companions.

The holiday season is fast approaching...unfortunately that means every organization that needs help is going to ask for help during this time-frame.  It seems that most people tend to be more generous during the holidays.  We have an annual drive for PAWs in Lynnwod, WA for items such as dog and cat food, bedding, and other pet-related items.  I hope that it will be as successful as the PAWSWalk!