My Dog Had A Kitten!

Thank you to everybody who responded with blog comments, e-mail, or Facebook comments to the announcement of Alli joining our family. Whether with a puppy or an adult dog, the first few nights in a new home can be uncomfortable for everybody as the animal tries to get used to its new surroundings. Not so with Alli. She settled right in and slept on the floor on my side of the bed all night long. She woke me up about 8 o’clock yesterday morning, whimpering to let me know she needed to go out. Either she needs to become a night owl dog I need to become a morning dove person. I’m not sure who’s going to win that contest yet.

One of the first things we wanted was to get her in to see a veterinarian, and a couple of people recommended West Alabama Veterinary Hospital in Carrollton, just a few miles south of us. I called at 9 o’clock yesterday morning and they told me to come in anytime, they welcome walk-ins and new clients.

The people we got Alli from said she was slow to warm up to other dogs, but we didn’t see any indication of that yesterday when we got to the veterinarian. There was somebody in the rather small waiting room with a mid-sized spaniel of some kind, and another person with a tiny teacup Chihuahua. Alli gave them both a sniff and a tail wag and that was it. Later, as we were leaving after her examination, somebody came in with a very old male German shepherd and they gave each other quite a sniffing and a lot of tail wagging, but again, no problems at all.

Doctor Lowe and his staff are excellent, and we are so grateful that people steered us to them. It’s obvious that they really care about their patients and their customers. We only had to wait about 5 minutes before they took us in and gave Alli a thorough examination. She sat on the examination table just fine, though she was a bit off put by the fecal exam. I can’t say I blame her for that.

I was surprised that she weighed 52 pounds because she looks thinner than that. Terry and I both estimated somewhere around 40 pounds. But we definitely need to put some meat on her bones. The good news is that all of her test results were fine, including heartworm and things like that, and Doctor Lowe gave her all of her shots. We made an appointment for late June to bring her in to have her spayed. They also told me to order a microchip from Amazon and bring it in, and the doctor will insert it under her skin. I didn’t know you could buy them on Amazon, but I shouldn’t be surprised. You can buy just about anything there.

Nobody’s ever accused me of being a genius, but I have learned a thing or two in my long life. But I had no idea that dogs could have kittens. Did you? Well, it’s true! We took a dog to the veterinarian and came home with a dog and a kitten.

As I said before, Terry has been wanting a kitten, and while we were there someone came in with several little ones that they were looking for homes for. They were all boys except for one little girl, and she and Terry seemed to have bonded. I would tell you her name, but I don’t know what it is yet, because Terry hasn’t decided on that. Stay tuned, I’ll let you know.

Alli is curious about the kitten but not at all aggressive toward her. The kitten, on the other hand, even though it’s only a few weeks old is already hissing whenever the dog comes close. We are keeping them separate when we’re not right there to watch them, only because Alli is so big and it is so small that we’re afraid she could hurt it without meaning to.

Speaking of kittens, I’ve also told you that Terry had a polydactyl cat for many years that she just loved, and she’s always said if she got another cat, that’s what she would like to have. Smokey or Blackie or Ebony or whatever this one’s name is just has the normal number of toes, but I did find one over in Mississippi that Terry was interested in before our trip to the vet. We had already made arrangements to go check it out, which we will still do. Who knows, we might be a one dog and two cat family. Does anybody see a pattern here?

I’ll probably sound like a proud parent talking about their kid, but I have to tell you that this dog is pretty darn smart and funny, too. Last night I made a video of her chasing her tail around the bedroom until she finally caught it, then wasn’t sure what to do with it. So she let go of it and chased it some more. I’ve had her out for several sessions throwing a Kong, which is a rubber toy that bounces all over the place, and she loves chasing it. I’m sure I could wear my arm out just throwing it for her. Just since getting home with her Wednesday evening, using the Kong and small treats as rewards, I’ve already got her sitting, staying, coming to me, and dropping the Kong, all on hand signals without using my voice. I’ve said before that I’ve had several German shepherds over the years, and they really do want to please you. All it takes is communicating in a way that they can understand what it is you want from them. And this little girl is definitely a pleaser.

Be sure to enter our latest Free Drawing. This week’s prize is an audiobook of The Last Call, the first book in my dear friend George Wier’s Bill Travis mystery series.  We lost Bill a while back, but his amazing talent lives on through his great stories. I only have a few of his audiobook codes left, and once they are gone there won’t be any more.

To enter, click on this Free Drawing link or the tab at the top of this page and enter your name (first and last) in the comments section at the bottom of that page (not this one). Only one entry per person per drawing please, and you must enter with your real name. To prevent spam or multiple entries, the names of cartoon or movie characters are not allowed. The winner will be drawn Sunday evening. Note: Due to the high shipping cost of printed books and Amazon restrictions on e-books and audiobooks to foreign countries, only entries with US addresses and e-mail addresses are allowed.

And finally, here’s a chuckle to start your day from the collection of funny signs we see in our travels and that our readers share with us.

Thought For The Day – Those who snore always fall asleep first.