Zoya The Cat & Her Rescue Story

Zoya and Michael are quite a pair. Zoya was literally rescued by Michael. It was a year ago that the first human known to Zoya left her with Michael to be her guardian while the human went on a trip. It seems after that trip, the human never returned for Zoya and abandoned her. Now, in Zoya's case, that was a huge gift.

It is clear that Zoya was traumatized before her new life. She has a tendency to get a little prissy and bite the hand that feeds her. My guess is it was well deserved from her prior treatment. In fact, when you walk past her she often hisses which leads me to think that someone kicked or shoved her with their feet. She still responds with a hiss to protect herself even though those days are long gone.

And, believe me when I say they are long gone. Michael adores this cat. She rules the house getting lots of love and special cut pieces of ham for her dinner treats! When Michael goes away, he arranges for extra kitty visit time so Zoya is not lonely in his absence. In fact, even when he is away for extra long days he might ask me to stop in for a short day time visit to refresh her food and play some with her. Michael is one in a million for his incredible concern and love over this orphaned baby.

Zoya began her new life a year ago when she was literally rescued by Michael from a very bad previous life. She may have begun her life badly, but she could not have been luckier the day she was "left behind" at Michael's house. She found a safe house of love here!

Picture of The Year!!!!

The intensity of the dog's face shows more sincerity than most people!

Skyla The Bell Ringer and Pavlov's Dog!

My favorite schnauzer came to visit again, Yes, Skyla, the sweetest little gal with the Greek name. I am astounded at this smart and well behaved fur child. Skyla is young, under a year, yet she behaves with the manners of a dog who has graduated from the Martha Stewart School for Doggies. In fact, I think she is going for her PhD soon!

Skyla still hasn't figured out Annie as yet. As you can see they have gotten nose to nose, with Skyla being so curious about the kitty. And, Annie is also curious as long as Skyla doesn't get to much closer in her face as you can see from her ears!

Oh, yes, back to why I said Skyla is so smart. Remember back to school days and the story of the Nobel prize winner, Ivan Pavlov and his dogs? Ivan Pavlov, the scientist, was able to measure reflexes and responses in dogs using various stimuli. The best known stimuli was ringing a bell before offering food to the dogs in his experiments. A conditioned measured response was elicited in the canines based on ringing the bell and offering food.

Skyla has her own bells that she has been taught to ring when she needs to take a walk. When nature calls, she rings her bell on the floor to signal nature is calling. I have been very impressed with this.

I had not idea how impressed I was until this visit. It seems that Skyla has gotten really good at bell ringing. So good in fact, that she has been ringing the bell a lot. It seems we have been on walks all day long. We no sooner come in from a walk when an hour or so passes and Skyla rings that bell. I grab the leash and out the door we go.

Well, I have to laugh now. It seems that Skyla really doesn't have a weak kidney or a loose bowel as it might sound. Much of the time, Skyla does nothing more than sniff the air, the grass and stroll, quite happily. In fact, it would be fair to say that Skyla was just faking me out!

It has taken me a couple of days, but I know realize that Skyla, the bell ringing dog, has learned the lessons of Ivan Pavlov quite well. In fact, she is so smart that she is using that bell of hers to elicit a conditioned response from this human! Sklya knows when she rings the bell, that I will jump to attention and take her on an outside adventure. So in truth, it is Skyla who should get the next Nobel Peace prize. Skyla has proven that Pavlov's dog can be anyone, including this human!

Way to go, Skyla! You got me! Yup! I think Skyla has a PhD already!

Cletus An Alumni of Tree House Cat Shelter

I love Cletus! He has such a great personality. The minute I walk in the door, he is there to greet me. He immediately rolls on the floor, shows his belly and lets me know he wants some human attention.

Cletus is another wonderful cat from a shelter. His previous home was Tree House for Cats in Chicago. If you are looking for a kitty, Tree House should be on top of your list. It is a no kill shelter totally dedicated to cats.

The good news is Cletus now lives with a wonderful family rather than the shelter. Here he shares his space with a full size schnauzer and loving family. Life is pretty good for him these days!

Sage The Fireball of Love!

In life, we often have friends who come to visit and always bring something special just with their presence. That is how I would describe Sage, the Eskie dog. Just like her name, she has a wise old spirit with lots of love to give. A smart girl and sometimes feisty, but always happy and eager to please. She has a mighty bark which is quite amazing considering her smallish frame. Although Sage is solid and quite strong both in body and spirit. Despite her more diminutive appearance, when Sage is around she fills the space with her love making both far larger.

Her tail is happy wagging whether she is chasing a squirrel or greeting a visitor. Of course, there are some time outs in life as you can see from the photo. Sage is quite good at those snoozing moments, too!

So glad to have you visit, Sage, my friend. I appreciate the love you bring! The feeling is mutual!

Roxy And The New Moon

Roxy is a 9 week old Yorkshire Terrier puppy who came to visit last week. She came as we entered the New Moon and as all new moons, she heralded caution and new beginnings.

Roxy weighed a whole 1 lb, 7 oz when she saw the vet last. Thankfully, her Mom tells me she is now up to 1 lb, 14 oz! I guess hand feeding her all the chicken from Whole Foods paid off!

This tiny bunch of energy was the sweetest little pup. However, she was the pickiest eater I have ever encountered. I wondered if she thought she was a cat rather than a dog! Needless to say I had quite the challenge to find foods that she would eat. Evidently persistence did work and the scale proves that!

Oh, yes, and speaking of cats, Roxy met her first cat by meeting Annie. She wasn't quite sure what to do with her. Eventually she decided that Annie must be a friend to chase. Annie didn't exactly agree but they two got along well enough. If Roxy wasn't playing chase with Annie, she was busy carrying around her big bone (see it in the photo, it is larger than she is!) Roxy also enjoyed Anne's sparkle balls and chewing on everything from fingers to shoelaces! Of course, there is plenty of snooze, time, too when it comes to puppies. Roxy would just wind down and snooze at my feet or in her little bed.

Marsha and Loren came to visit on Sunday. Loren has been wanting a dog like Roxy so it is only fitting that they are both featured in the photos. Loren offered to take care of Roxy for you forever, Katie and Doug, but somehow I think you might not take her up on her offer. Yes, everyone loved Roxy, even little Matthew next door who is 7. He really doesn't like barking dogs and is often afraid of some of the larger dogs who come to visit. But, Roxy was just perfect for him to pet and cuddle. We got him smiling and thinking dogs can be okay.

So while we humans think it is us who are taking care of our companions, the truth of the matter is it is our fur children who are really caring for us. They bring us smiles and love far bigger than their size. They bring us healing in all forms even when we think we are healing them. In Roxy's case her presence and impact are far greater and larger than 1 lb. 14 oz. Our fur companions are always heralding new beginnings like the New Moon. They will be at our side in the darkness and in the light. So it was with Roxy, she and I enjoyed the New Moon and look forward the new beginnings ahead. Thanks for your presence, Roxy!

Come on over again soon and bring your sweet joy with you!

Oskar The Girl Kitty

Who would have thought that Oskar was the name of a girl cat? Well, indeed, Oskar is the sweet gal kitty in these photos. It seems she came from her previous home with that name so her new parents kept it since she seemed to already like it.

Oskar was quite a sweet gal. She made sure that she watched from various points in the house so she could see what was going on but be distant enough to keep her reputation as a cat. However, even a feline forgets that sometime and so did Oskar when I came in for my daily visit. She loved to roll on the rug and let me know that in her own way she was quite happy for the company. She also like to vocalize some which added to her charm.

Once Oskar checked out her new bowls of food she settled in for a good game of chase the birdie. I tried my famous sparkle balls but they went flat with Oskar. But Da Bird feather toy on a fishing pole went over quite well with her. Oskar is a natural hunter with predatory skills that made Da Bird the perfect amusement for our daily visits. Of course, I know Oskar would have preferred the real kind of feathered friend but this was a perfect substitute and far more ecologically friendly!

Thanks for the fun time Oskar! Hope to see you soon!