Gone ...but we will never forget her

Girly, who was our one dog who would willingly share a couch with three of our cats, has lost her battle with increasing age and other ailments.  We knew she was already an older dog when she joined our household and we were concerned that she would find it difficult to fit in with our cats only household.  But she quickly found her way in the daily routine and became just one more four footed furry in the household.  Yes, she did find it difficult to get along with Sebastian...but those interactions were limited to growling (Girly) and hissing (Sebastian).

Girly has been in a decline these past few months, even getting to the point she would only give a half-hearted woof when Sebastian would go by.  With heavy hearts, we finally had to say goodbye to her on Thursday.  She spent her last few hours in the outdoors, sniffing gently at the air and hearing us tell her how much we loved her.

Life goes on ... but she has taken a big piece of our hearts with her.  :-(

(Looking back: Girly joining the family http://ourfurryboys.blogspot.ca/2010_04_01_archive.html )

 Sleeping soundly.....

Awakened when the flash went off!

This couch has seen its fair share of occupants these past few months.  The usual suspects are myself, working late into the night, one dog and one cat.  In fact, that is the corner of my sweatshirt in the top photo. Girly, the sable Sheltie, is usually the only dog on the couch and we have the knitted blanket on so that she doesn't scratch up the leather underneath. Angel, the elder, is the other regular occupant..but only when the couch is dog free.  Surprisingly, the other day Spike climbed up on the back of couch, fully aware that there was a dog below, and curled up to snooze comfortably.  I suppose I shouldn't be surprised because our fluff usually sleeps exactly where he wants, regardless of where it is. Yesterday, at feeding time, I had to drag him out of an empty box lid. Today, when I walked into the family room, I found him stuffed into the shelf of the open bookcase, just an arms length from hubby working on the computer.

My Faithful Companions

Usually one or both of these two are my companions late at night when I am working on my laptop in the living room. Today, they must have been a little confused. It was noon, I was home, and ...yes...busy working on my laptop. Within 10 minutes of me starting up the laptop and spreading some paperwork around, they both slipped into their respective resting spots, silently keeping me company as I worked. I think they must have been surprised to see me working during the day..but they didn't miss a beat getting settled in beside me.

Turn the clock forward nine hours....youngest daughter has come and gone, hubby is off to bed and I am settling back in to work on some analysis for the day job. As I look around me, the three woofies are spread out on their beds, Angel has moved over to the far side of the room and all I can hear are soft little grunts from Spike as he stretches out in the bed recently vacated by Angel (with a little help from Spike). Just the company I need as I dig in for another 3 hours of work!

Room for Two

Our woofie looks rather annoyed to wake up and find Spike sprawled out at the end of the couch. Usually this spot is occupied by me when I am working on my laptop. For the past three weeks I have been working on my other commitments in my "spare time" (3 projects for two different educational organizations) on top of the regular 45+ hours day job so have almost doubled my working hours in this time. Short term pain - since it will be coming to an end in a little over two weeks. During my late nights I typically have my two loyal pets keeping me company- the woofie on the couch, then on the floor, then on the couch..and Angel somewhere in the living room, looking over at me occasionally with a loving glance (or at least that is what my bleary eyes see!) Spike has no interest in hanging around with me - he only has eyes for my hubby. But he certainly has an interest in continuing his domination over all things soft and comfortable!

Spike extends his reach

Spike's desire to dominate all sleeping spaces has extended to the woofie's personal rug. Normally this rug is on the floor at the end of the bed and the woofie will sleep here most nights. To this point no cat has ventured on the rug for any length of time - one quick sniff and their little mouths hang open as they walk off with their noses in the air. We had just done a regular wash of the rug but happened to leave it in the living room, waiting for the next trip up to the second floor. The woofie settled herself on the rug as soon as we put it down, so we decided to leave it there for a bit.

Later that day, when the woofie vacated the rug in favour of the dog bed in the corner of the living room, Spike came over to have a good sniff. He then settled himself comfortably on the rug, as if to say: "Yes, this is my domain as well ...and I'll sit wherever I please!"

Leg Warmers

I could use a couple more of these when I am outside...weather here is -29 degrees Celsius, and that doesn't include the impact of the windchill. It would be a great day to stay inside and snuggle with the furry beasties.

(I will admit that when papabear said it was time that we took the woofie for a walk...I responded "We? I think you mean "you"!)

A Matching Set

A question one shouldn't ask is how many pet beds we have in the house. I think I've lost count by now. Just in the living room alone we have three cat beds and one dog bed. Almost every room in the house has a nice sleeping spot for one of the furries.

The woofie's bed is one of my favourites and came from Costco. We bought it because the beautiful soft green matched the house decor..but the woofie wasn't impressed with our sense of colour/style and ignored it for several weeks. Finally, she is starting to use it although it appears to be rather grudgingly sometimes. The cats are more appreciative when she is on her bed because they can race back and forth in the living room without having to scoot around a lounging dog.

When we were out at our regular visit to the Humane Society gift shop the other week, I happened to see a matching cat bed. The inside was fake fur, which our kitties seem to like cuddling up to and the outside microfibre was almost a perfect match to the woofie’s bed. We debated whether our cats would fit into the bed since it looked smaller than the beds we currently have but I couldn’t resist the opportunity to buy one that might actually look like it belongs in the room. When we brought it home, the first one in was Angel. It took him some time to figure out how to fit all of himself into the bed. He started out with a tail and a leg hanging out, then he turned around a few times until he could fit all extremities in. As you can see this photo is from one of his first few attempts! He now has claimed this bed for himself, figuring if he spends much of his time all curled up, then there would be no room for anyone else to climb in.

So how many cat beds does everyone have? I am thinking a ratio of 2 beds to every cat is probably the norm.

Wait for me!

One sneaky white cat in hot pursuit of freedom! While it may appear he is simply running after the woofie, perhaps to play, the real story is that he has managed to run out of the house while I was trying to stop Spike from getting out. The woofie has settled in well and clearly recognizes this house and yard as hers (quite evident when we are returning after her walk and she speeds up noticeably when the house comes into view). Consequently we will let her out onto the driveway when we are unpacking groceries. This time Angel was very quick to slip around me and run onto the grass. I told hubby that he could bring Angel back into the house, which he quickly declined. Refer to this post to see why neither of us wants to pick up our loving cat when he is sitting on the lawn: http://ourfurryboys.blogspot.com/2009/05/wearing-of-green.html

Welcoming Committee

Two content animals...waiting patiently for their loving humans to return. Aaah...if only that was true! When we leave the house, the opening and closing of the door is accompanied by the frenzied barking of the little Sheltie who has separation anxiety. When we return, the welcoming comittee is typically comprised of Spike, at the front window, the woofie barking madly right behind the front door and Angel just inside the door to the left, head trying to push out as soon as the door is opened. Sebastian lurks in the background, usually halfway up the stairs, watching to see if he has an opportunity to escape into the great outdoors.

Spike and Girly enjoying the fresh air

The inspiration for these photos came from Cat's beautiful photo of her Casper (white cat, red geraniums...but you really have to go and look at this photo http://catscats-catrina.blogspot.com/2010/08/thursday-in-garden.html ). Every once in awhile, Papabear will put the harness on Spike and bring him out for some fresh air in the front yard. He is the only cat that will put up with a harness...the other two wriggle around desperately trying to get out of anything that we put on so it doesn't turn out to be much fun for them (or us).

Girly is quite good at staying close by on the rare occasion we let her come out without her leash on. This time is the first time she has seen Spike outside (which tells us it must be more than 4 months since Spike's last excursion ...since that is when Girly came to live with us). These two will generally sit close by but there is always a space between. Spike does not believe in cuddling up with anyone except Papabear...and Girly spends more time stepping over cats who are in her way than she does trying to make friends. In fact, she likes to play "cop" when she hears any cat kerfuffle. The dining room window becomes hot property whenever we open it (not often in the recent 30 degree heat) and there is room for 2 cats. That is the first problem...third cat always feels left out. If Spike is the 3rd cat, he will simply shoulder his way into the mix and then the other cats at the window will hiss at him (not that he cares..even if he could hear it wouldn't stop him). If it is Spike and one other cat up there, all it takes is Spike taking a step closer to the other cat and then the hissing starts. Girly's hearing seems to be quite good because as soon as she hears the hiss, she is at attention, running to the source of the sound.

I know I'm not a cat..but aren't I cute, too?

Every once in awhile I feel a little guilty that the woofie is left out of the regular postings. Yes, she shows up occasionally - but as a supporting player rather than one of the stars of the blog. Papabear has a knack for taking good photos (mine will never show up on the blog since I really have no sense of composition, artistic style or even the ability to take photos that don't chop off something/someone that should have been in the frame). So I thought it was a good time to let the woofie have her own post - even if she isn't quite as cuddly as our soft, furry boys.

The introduction of the woofie has meant daily walks for Papabear and regular outings for me (after work and on weekends) so this means regular visits to the park down the street and the city parks which dot our city. We have been fortunate to have many days of sunny weather this summer - although the 30+ C weather these past few days has been a bit hotter than we like when we are on a 20 minute walk. I can almost hear the cats sniggering at the front window as they sit comfortably in the air conditioned house, watching us come in from the latest walk!

Friends "not of a feather"

Usually our Lord and Master of the Fluff is sitting up where he can look down on the denizens of the house - so this was a real surprise when Papabear walked back into the living room after getting himself a cup of coffee. Out with the pocket camera..and up with the photo! ("Up"loaded, that is.) We have been very pleased with the integration of the woofie into the household. Often she is sitting just a foot or two away from Angel and he just casually looks over at her, then buries his head in his blanket. If you look up and left, that is Angel's favorite chair. Spike will walk by, swishing his tail and ignoring dog and humans. It is very common, though, when I am in the kitchen late at night, to turn around and find Spike stretched out on one part of the kitchen floor and the woofie stretched out on another, both equally comfortable in the company of the other. Sebastian is the one hold out ...but there seems be some thawing so we hope they come to a truce in the near future. The woofie's fur is fast turning grey so we don't know how much time we will have with her. We just have a best estimate from the vet as to her age and our reading shows that the typical life expectancy for her breed is 12 - 13 years. But, as with the cats, this is her "forever" home and we'll love her through whatever time she has.

I am Alpha Cat

The world according to Spike: "I am alpha cat and the rest of you are my minions, who will not disturb me when I am resting." After the first early days of hiding under the headboard, Spike's natural tendencies have surfaced and he is very clear on his position in the family. He simply glances at Girly on his way to the latest sitting spot, with a grand swish of his tail as he passes by. Girly is learning that in our house "cats rule"....but more so because they have been with us for several years and have established habits and safe havens. She has been very good with two out of three cats but is still finding her way with Sebastian. We think that perhaps Sebastian had a run in with a dog (or two) when he was out on the streets so he is predisposed to distrust any dog, no matter how friendly it may be. And of course, when he growls and hisses, then Girly growls back. Early days though...with time this should at least settle into a wary truce, with no harm done on either side.

What the ....this isn't a cat!

A big surprise showed up for our three cats the other day. We brought home a little Sheltie a week ago to join our family. She is a rescue dog, about 6 to 8 years old. We have been looking for a cat friendly dog for several months and were referred to the Sheltie Rescue program by a friend who has two Shelties. This little girl has been living with several other dogs and three gray cats in her foster home - and didn't cause any problems with these cats in the several months she has been in foster care. When we brought her home we were most worried about our elder, Angel. Angel spent over half of his life in a single cat family, then had to learn to accept one and then two furry brothers. He still hisses occasionally at the other two cats and will move out of the way when the fluff cat pushes through to take a bite of whatever food is on offer. Surprisingly, Angel didn't miss a beat when the dog showed up. He continued to sit in his favorite chair in the living room or on the couch, and he didn't flinch a whisker when walking by the dog. The other two cats went into hiding when they saw the new four legged "beast" - took them two days before they were brave enough to come into a room where the dog was. Now all three seem to be comfortable with their new sister...and we are pleased to have another family member to cuddle with.