Category: Pets

Convalescence

Our three cats sleep on my legs

Although only four years old, the vet says Boo has the teeth of an elderly cat and he had to get a couple of teeth pulled on Thursday. As you’d expect he was in a great deal of pain so we kept him in isolation in the guest bedroom for a few days while he was getting painkillers, both to give him some quiet time in a house full of pets and to keep him from running and jumping until he was off the painkillers.

My wife stayed with him that night but he was making such a ruckus through the night from some combination of pain and hunger and frustration at being cooped up that none of us got much sleep. After finally falling asleep I got woken up not much later by our dog Ellie, so I put on my warm clothes and took her downstairs so she could go outside and go to the bathroom. At which point she looked at me with an expression of “I don’t have to go outside, I just wanted to spend some time with you!” “A lovely thought, pup,” I grumbled as I stumbled upstairs, “but save it for the morning!”

We got freezing rain overnight and with the sidewalks coated in ice and the trains off schedule, I decided to take a vacation day and Boo and I curled up and slept off the morning. Friday night was another rough one so Saturday morning we were back to the two of us sleeping it off while the other pets all went to the vet for routine checkups. They had to get shots and were pretty subdued when they came home, so I let them all come in and join us, this is a shot of Trixie, Boo, and Sam (from left to right) curled up on my legs. Ellie was sleeping on the floor, the guest bed is on the frame and she can’t jump up onto it at her age (we keep our bed on the floor so she can still get into it with a little effort).

Boo recovered nicely and was given free run of the house on Sunday after some trial periods on Saturday, although he reminded me of when we adopted him, he’d go exploring the main house and then come back to the guest bedroom for some quiet time. Sunday night we all slept peacefully, that’s Boo in my lap below.

Our black-and-white cat Boo sleeps in my lap

Winter at the Door of Hope

A heavy snow falls around the Door of Hope church in NE Portland

When we got an unusually heavy snowfall earlier in the month, I wanted a picture of the Door of Hope church in the snow. The church sits at the edge of Irving Park and Ellie and I used to pass it as we walked around the path that circles the park, but these days after a quick visit to the dog park she wants to head out into the neighborhood instead of going further into the park.

I had thoughts of making her go up to the church as the snow continued to fall, it isn’t much farther than the dog park, but I just couldn’t do it. This theme continued as we walked, on the one hand I knew this was a historic storm and it was not something I’d have the chance to photograph again, but on the other hand this was also going to be my only chance to enjoy this much snow with the pup, and I chose the pup. I did take pictures on our walk, some of her and some of the neighborhood, but only on streets she chose to go down. An hour and a half later I dropped off an exhausted Ellie at the house and went back out alone for more pictures. The snow was still falling as I reached the Door of Hope and took this picture.

A few days later I bribed Ellie with treats to get her up to the church on our morning walk, now bathed in the morning light, every inch of snow trampled underfoot by families enjoying the unusual snow. I had thoughts about making her sit in front of the little utility building from the previous post, it’s just a little further up the path to the left of this picture, but she wanted to go and I couldn’t say no.

Snow and Sun at the Door of Hope

The Happiest Dog in the World

Our dog Ellie stands in deep snow in our backyard

The snow was still coming down as a tired but happy Ellie waited to go inside after a long walk through the deep snow. Despite my best intentions I didn’t take too many pictures over the hour and a half we walked as it often felt like it would intrude on the fun we were having. So after getting her settled inside I went back outside for more pictures.

The Saddest Dog in the World

The Saddest Dog in the World

After an unusually heavy snowfall hit Portland one night, Ellie and I were working our way back home on our morning walk when I noticed a massive snowman in front of one of the houses, the kind you see in the movies but never here since we rarely get much snow, so I wanted a quick picture. Ellie was starting to tire after our long and joyful walk through the tall snow so I left her on what I presumed was the sidewalk and told her to stay and walked a few feet over and got my picture of the snowman.

I had to laugh when I turned around and saw the saddest dog in the world, all alone in this desolate landscape, looking for someone to love. Her droopy jowls when she sits still make her look so sad, but I knew the mental calculation she was making. She gets a treat if she sits still when we’re near a street and I give her the stay command, and she gets a treat if she sits still while I take a picture, so what she really wanted to know was, “Am I getting one treat or two?”

She got two.

You do make me laugh, pup, you do make me laugh.

Patience

Goodbye Sun, Goodbye Snow

Our dog Ellie at sunset in the snow at Irving Park

Ellie watches the last rays of the setting sun from a snow-covered hill in Irving Park. I thought this Sunday afternoon walk was going to be our last walk together in the snow after a week of walking in the white as I was back at work on Monday, but I stayed home on Tuesday when temperatures didn’t warm as quickly as predicted and a possible ice storm was approaching. Thankfully the ice just missed us but Ellie and I had one more long walk in the snow that morning before the great thaw started in the evening.

I treasure every moment with this sweet pup.

Red Five Prepares for the Trench Run

Our black lab Ellie stands in a trench dug into the snow in Portland, Oregon

A week ago we got an unusually heavy snow (5th heaviest snowfall on record for Portland) and work was canceled. This was the snow I had been hoping Ellie would get to play in (plenty more than I had hoped for), not only because she enjoys it but because it reminds me of the snowstorm that led to us adopting her, so we went out for a long walk in the morning. On some streets we were the first to be out and had to blaze a trail through the deep snow, in the early going she was happy to plunge along in the lead but an hour and a half later she was happy to follow in my footsteps.

She went on another long walk in the afternoon around sunset, I took this picture of her on our shoveled sidewalk after we got back so you can see that with the snow up to her belly it was a lot of work for our elderly pup to get through the snow, she got more than her share of exercise that day. Normally snow melts pretty quickly here in Portland but a cold snap kept the snow around for a week, it started warming last night and the snow is rapidly melting (and the water now seeping into our basement).

We had a great time in the snow, the pup and I, but now I’m ready for spring. When does that start, next week?