Tag: dog

Runanrunanrun Treat!

(Today’s guest post is by Bob and Bentley, the mini-dachshunds who are caring for us.)

two of them are big like our other people but one of them is little like us not quite as little though she throws the ball BALL BALL BALL shut up bob i’m writing she throws the ball for us and bob never shuts up HEY HEY HEY bob will you shut up it’s hard enough typing with paws without you barking in my ear is flapped over and it feels funny not bad funny good funny we run around the living room run and run and run and BALL BALL BALL sweet merciful heavens bob will you please go away and quit interrupting this is TREAT TREAT TREAT treat? treatreatreatreatreat gotta go

Missing the Pitter Patter of Little Feet and the Welcome Home

Yesterday  Brodie the canine left with his family to Van Isle. We miss him. We keep expecting to hear his gentle whine waking us up in the morning or to hear the pitter patter of his little feet on the stairs or hardwood floor. When we got home last night there was no welcome home from Brodie.

When we first found out we were going to be dog sitting as well as house  sitting, we weren’t sure how it would work out. We haven’t owned a pet in years and thought perhaps the daily care of a dog, making sure he was fed, had water, took his walks, would be challenging and cut into our time. We were wrong. Fiona loved making sure he had food and water, and I looked forward to our early morning walks.

So, yes, we miss Brodie! Do you hear that Brodie? We miss you!

The Eagles Have Landed

Ian and Caitlyn have arrived for a quick overnighter before Trip #2.

Beans on the stove, brown rice and cornbread in the oven, homemade salsa in the fridge.

It’s gonna be a great dinner, followed almost instantly by waffles (or pancakes, no one’s decided for sure) for breakfast.

By bedtime tonight we will have tripled the amount of time we’ve spent with these folks whose home we’ve been living in for more than two weeks.

Guest Post by Brodie the Canine

I asked Brodie, the dog we’re sitting for, to write a guest post for us today. I thought it would be a good idea for him to share his viewpoint of having us house sit and take care of him. I had a little trouble translating so I apologize to Brodie if I didn’t get this word for word correct.

Brodie here. So I’ve been asked to write this guest post. If you plan on having the Canfield Family house sit or dog sit for you in the future, perhaps what I share here will be useful.

Though my family tried to explain what would happen, I was quite surprised to find these three people show up at my door one day and move in and suddenly my family was gone. Sure, mum had taken me on a walk with the family and showed the little one, they call her Fiona, how to handle the leash. But by the end of the day I had wondered where in the world my family had gone.

The Canfields took good care of me that day, making sure I had food and water, taking me out for walks. I kept looking out the window and all around the house for my family but they never came home. It was quite unsettling. That night the Canfield family went upstairs and took over the bedrooms. They wanted me to sleep on my pillow in Fiona’s room when I usually slept in the other bedroom. I really didn’t understand what was happening and decided I’d just wait downstairs near the window for my family to come home. I must have fallen asleep because next thing I knew it was the next day, my family still wasn’t home, and the Canfield family were still there.

I did settle in though and finally realized that my family wasn’t going to be around for a while. I got used to sleeping in Fiona’s room. And the Canfield family is taking very good care of me. Fiona makes sure I have water and food every day and periodically gets me a treat. She loves to take me out for walks and sometimes we race to see who can get to the corner fast enough.

Sometimes they are gone for longer periods of time and I’m so glad when they get home. I really like having them around. It was hard enough to keep track of the two in my family when they were in separate rooms. Now there are three and sometimes they all end up in different rooms. It gets very confusing. Last night the mum and Fiona were reading upstairs and the dad was still downstairs. I kept waiting at the top of the stairs for him and couldn’t settle down till he came up.

This morning I did have to wake the mum to take me out. Guess they were a bit worn out from their day out yesterday traipsing in Lynn Canyon Park. Sometimes too the mum forgets that I like to curl up on the floor under her feet while she’s at the couch and she’s accidentally stepped on my toe a time or two. I had to let her know that hurt and she apologized so it’s okay. She’s trying to be more careful and I’ll just watch out for those big feet.

It’s been different but not bad. I really couldn’t have been more prepared I suppose. The family did their best to prepare me and the Canfield family has taken excellent care of me. I still miss my family and hope they come home soon. If they ever do have to leave for an extended period of time again, I would gladly have the Canfield family take care of me again.

Are there any canines out there who have had similar experiences? How did you deal with the changes?

Changes in Fiona

Sitting here recovering from this morning’s headache, I’m watching Fiona play tug-of-war with the dog we’re watching.

Now, if you’ve grown up with dogs, this might not seem like a big deal. For us, it is.

Fiona has never been comfortable around dogs. Our life so far has made caring full time for a pet impractical. Even when she’s gotten to know a dog well, like Boston the giant chocolate puffball her adopted pseudo second family’s dog, she’s always a little hesitant.

Since we’ve been here, she’s decided that this is her dog to care for. She’s very conscious of walk time. She watches his water and food bowls. She worked hard to make him comfortable sleeping on his bedtime pillow in her room instead of his usual place in ours.

In short, she’s doing stuff I never thought she would.

And now, she’s playing a fairly tough game of fling and toss the chew toy, boldly grabbing it from under his nose, then holding it up while he jumps to grab it from her hands, bouncing off her tummy and generally turning it into rugby.

It’s some fairly significant emotional progress for a fairly cautious bookworm of a little girl, and I like it.

Updated  August 19, 2010 with this photo of Fiona walking Brodie:

Fiona walking Brodie

Our First Full Day In British Columbia

Yesterday, Tuesday August 3, 2010, was our first full day in British Columbia. We slept with the windows open; it’s very quiet. As soon as I was up I took the dog for a walk and then came home to make our morning tea. Joel and I drank our tea while sitting on the front porch.

We set  Fiona up with a laptop and she worked at one desk while I worked at another close by. Joel sat in a comfy chair in the living room a few feet away working away on his laptop. It was work as usual. We stopped at lunch and ate in the dining area that leads into the back yard through French doors. In the afternoon we had two business calls via Skype that went very well.

Fiona’s enjoying taking the dog for walks and making sure he has his food and water. Last night he was comfortable enough to sleep on his pillow in Fiona’s room. She loves to read in bed and has lots of books to read. We will have to go to the local library still. There’s a huge park nearby and tonight we may explore it. Fiona thinks it’s a forest and I’ve heard they may have an animal petting area.

Tomorrow we’ll go to the local Waves Coffee House and check it out. So if you happen to be in the area of New Westminster, come on by about 11:30 am and say hi!

Updated August 19, 2010 with this picture:

Fiona

Streamlining, Paring, Tossing and We have to go!

So I’ve been working on streamlining our possessions. I’ve pared down the clothing quite a bit, tossed a bunch of trash, took 12 bags of clothing to Goodwill today. There’s lots more to go. I’ve been holding on to clothing for years that no longer fit or are worn or that don’t have as much sentimental value as I thought. Gone!

Fiona, our six-year old, is very excited about going to Canada for our trip in August. She knows it’s still tentative for a little while longer. She also knows we’ll be staying with a family that have a dog and Fiona says, “We have to go!” She wants to take care of the dog.

Don’t let Fiona down! Help her get to Canada to take care of the doggie. :)