Brrrr

This is little Roger, taking a snooze when we were staying with friends over Christmas. You can just see Spencer's nose at the top as he also is snoozing. It was very cold there, however it has been cold here the past two weeks too. We are all envious of the little guys who can just snuggle down anywhere when the snow blows outside. One thing that happened while we were there was that Roger found a piece of cheese that he couldn't resist. Unfortunately it was attached to a mouse trap--the kind that is "sticky. He came out from under the counter in the mud room with one stuck to his face and one on his foot. (The house is new and was recently under construction so with contractors in and out constantly and doors open a couple of mice had gotten in before all was secured.) Poor guy, but he was so funny! All three of our furbabies went to the vet this week for shots and weigh-ins. Those dreaded scales at the Dr.'s office----but Hildy has lost 5 much needed pounds as she was getting chubby and the other two were just fine. As we sat waiting our turn, it was amusing to observe the animals that came into the clinic. An old man with an equally old white bulldog came in and that dog weighed 61 lbs. He was huge! A young woman came out of an examining room with a pit bull and she was struggling to hold it with a chain for a lead which was attached to a chained collar. The dog was not aggressive, but by that time a mother and son came in with 3 border collie-type dogs, and with our 3 that was 7 dogs in the small waiting area. Another man came in to inquire about his pet and another came with a small animal carrier. (Not sure what was inside.) Across from us sat a small young woman, with tattoos on her legs, but dressed nicely and it was apparent that she was concerned about an animal and was waiting to speak to her vet. After my initial inquiry about her concerns obviously for a sick pet, she told me they thought it had suffered a stroke and might have to be put down. Worrying about the possibility that she might "fall apart", she told me it was a rat. I thought she meant a rat terrier and asked how old it was. She told me it was two, and when I seemed surprised that a rat terrier had suffered a stroke at two...she told me it was a "rat" and their life expectancy was about two years. (I was so glad that I hadn't said anything about her "dog".) When we came out of our examining room there were NO animals in the waiting room. So if you are an animal person, if you have an overweight bulldog or a rat...they become members of your family and eventually you have to deal with their short life expectancy...(unless of course you have one of those parrots and in that case when they may live to be 100...someone else will have to worry!)

Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about. - Regina Brett