What About Bob?

Halo's arrival home has Leeloo delighted there's an extra dog to follow around, snuggle with and generally annoy.

This picture speaks volumes about Leeloo's total disregard for anyone's comfort but her own ... and Halo's enduring patience.

Shakespeare in Love

Since it's Valentine's Day I thought I'd post some picture of the dogs and cats disturbing love for each other ...

Raimi and his kitten Weasley. Weasley likes to head bump Raimi on the chest or the stifle as he walks by.

Ceilidh and Weasley in a loving embrace. Weasley adores Ceilidh but thankfully the love has waned since he was neutered.

Raimi's love for his Mommy endures to this day. Some days it's disturbing, some days it's really sweet.

Mallaig and Ceilidh are less love bugs and more play bugs but occassionally I find them snuggling together.

And of course Raimi and Leeloo sunshine cuddles. I've used a version of this photo before but really ... what's not to love?

And what is a blog about love without Petal? Not possible. (And yes, that is me with long hair about 6 or 7 years ago)

Domino

I thought for the longest time that I owned the couches. Boy was I wrong.

I also thought that people who told me they sat on the floor and the dogs sat on the couch were nuts.

So I brought a dog bed into the livingroom and put it in front of the couch. Sometimes I sit on it, sometimes a dog lies on it, sometimes a cat lies on it. This morning I spilt coffee on it. It's there anyway ... if I need it.

Seven Year Itch

Often I've mentioned the face Halo makes.



It's the face she has pretty much all the time now. I really do not know what I'm going to do if she's not pregnant and this is just ... her.



Tanja visited yesterday and as an outside opinion of someone who has also known Halo since she was a puppy, and lived with her, she said Halo does seem low. I do really hope she is in whelp so that I can just spay her ... no more heat hormones and moodiness, no more pregnancy, no more angst for Halo.





On the plus side the change in food has made such a marked difference it's amazing. I can't recall what Erin was feeding Halo but she definitely smelled weird. Her breath stank even tho her teeth are sparkling white, her ears were red inside and irritated, she was very itchy, her feet smelled very strongly. Now, she smells of nothing. Not even doggy. The itching is gradually abating. How bizarre.

Vanilla Sky

Montana. Big Sky Country. Home of the famous Moose Drool beer. Possibly the only place in the US of A I'd consider living based on the scenery alone.

I can't imagine taking a drive in the middle of winter through a mountain range is a good idea at the best of times but this year it was a simple pleasure. Clear roads, bright sun, good music and a truck full of dogs. Good times.

Here's little Cedric, he's got his suitcase and is navigating the way home. He's been my little travelling buddy this past year or so, he had some Raimi snot on his hat for some time but it's cleaned off now.

The Gates of the Mountains. Not sure what they look like. Possibly some Lord of the Rings Kings of Old statues that have stood guard for a millenia. Or it's just a turn of phrase that makes you think grandios but are disappointed when you realize they're just rocks.

A tree all effed up from the weather or fire or whatever. If you can't tell at this point I was taking photos as I drove. Yes I was alone. Make of that what you will. No time to stop. Gotta get home. Precious cargo and all that.

A twisty bit. One of the twisty bits. It got really twisty shortly after this part. The speed limit is 75 miles per hour but when they say slow to 45 for a bendy part ... they're not just being conservatively cautious. There were no 'Don't take pictures of the bendy bits as you drive" signs so I figured I was a-okay.

This is my favorite and most anticipated part of the drive. Even though I name my dogs after movies, one day, when I get to 'L', I'm going to name a puppy "Little Prickly Pear Creek". How cute is that? It's hard to see the sign but it names the creek 100 feet below the bridge.

I think this is the Missouri River. I saw a sign. What the Missouri is doing meandering through Montana is beyond me ... perhaps it got lost. It looks to be a slow sort of river so maybe it was having trouble learning the States.

Montana of the movies looks just like Montana in real life. Weird that. Scrubland, prairie, mountians ... coolness. You can see the prairies coming up in the distance. Suffice it to say I did not photograph a lot of the boring flatness.

As much as I complain about humanity's ability to screw up pretty much anything it touches, sometimes the mark of man results in a visual delight. It looks like someone heated up a butter knife and cut out a space for the road right through a hill. Destructive ... but effective.

Speaking of butterknives ... someone chopped off the top of this mountain. Definitely this is something to do with glaciers and time and a whole lot of dirt and rocks ending up somewhere far far away.

So that is part one of Montana. There's more boring brown pictures on the way and I'll add in the mix a few of Miss Misery herself since she is the star of the show until proven otherwise.

A Little Trip to Heaven

We are back. By the time I get home from drives like that I just want to crawl somewhere warm and slip into a coma. It is almost the middle of February and I drove, in the peak of winter, 1000 miles return Calgary, AB to Butte, MT. The weather was outstanding. The only thing that soured the trip was the brand new chip in my windshield courtesty of the sanded highway and 75 MPH.

As usual the US border was the biggest hold up but it was a breeze once I got to the window. They had opened the back of the previous two vehicles but Ms. Customs Woman stopped Mr Customs Guy from opening my rear door when she realized there were dogs inside. (I have to unlock the doors before they can be opened externally anyway.) She asked a couple questions and within moments I was on the road again.

Sometimes a question comes up on a dog list I’m a member of asking how hard is it to cross the border into the US and a complicated discussion ensues. In the last year I’ve crossed the border 5 times, in my lifetime probably more than 100. We have never had any trouble crossing the border, not even on September 11th, 2001. That day they did search the vehicle and trailer but we went through with no problem at all. I have never been asked for rabies certificates, registrations, or to remove the dogs. This is not to say I don’t travel with the requisite paperwork … but I never volunteer info, only answer the questions asked and never tell them any details unless they are specifically requested.

The trip back was as uneventful as the trip down only the wait to get back into Canada was long because US Customs was having each vehicle drug dog sniffed and searched. That takes time apparently. The dog handler asked what the discs on Leeloo’s ears were(they taped yet again while she takes her damn time about teething) and everyone looked confused while I explained it was to correct her earset. They waved me through and Canada welcomed me home.

So now Halo is home and looks promisingly pregnant but there’s no definite signs as yet. Her behaviour, if she’s not pregnant, I would equate to clinical depression and possibly suicidal. She sat outside the bathroom this morning looking as though the world was crashing in on her. I’ll have to get a photo of her expression, it’s priceless. I can’t recall that she was this moody when she left so I suspect that the hormones are making her experience a pre-partum depression of some kind.

If she’s not pregnant I’ll have to look into some sort of therapy for her.

She is also very itchy. It’s like her whole body is suffering from an allergic reaction to puppies. This will be her final litter, final heat and thank gawd too. Being in heat and having a litter results in a stronger hormonal reaction each time and I just can’t put her through it again. I switched her to Orijen just yesterday and already I think it’s making a difference. Less head shaking, less scratching, and thankfully the bad breath is abating.

Raimi is beside himself with love for his Mommy. He was determined to cuddle … the sleep of extreme content. The couch was very crowded last night. Leeloo was concerned there was no space for her until she realized that my lap was unoccupied. Oh hooray. The cat had to look elsewhere.

The house is getting crowded.

Life Is Beautiful

Leeloo blows my mind with how gorgeous she is. A five month old puppy should not be this well put together. I'm pretty confident she will retain her clean lines, outstanding shoulder, strong rear and kick ass head into adult hood. If she doesn't you can tell me "I told you so" in two years ... but I doubt you'll be able to.