In the nick of time

Today, Sandi and I saved a life in the nick of time. This little pup was scheduled to be euthanized today!

(being in Sandi's arms and in the sunshine is making her smile)

Today, Sandi and I were walking around the lake with our dogs, as usual, when a city truck stopped next to us. The guys inside told us about a small, white dog being in the pound and scheduled to be euthanized today. They thought one of us might want it because we have small dogs.

Sure enough, after driving to the pound and talking to the Animal Control guy, he was going to destroy her today because he's had her for 18 days and they normally don't keep them that long. It took some doing (long story) but we eventually were allowed to bail her out (we split the impound fee) and now she's a happy pup:

"free at last!"

being bombarded by our dogs

Gizzy growled at her at first, but eventually got over it.

"I'm a happy dog!" 

(If I wouldn't have already made arrangements to get Weezie, I would have kept her.)

That's all behind you now, little one...bye-bye to the bad place!

We took her to the Vet's since we had to take our own pets anyway. The Vet said she looked like a Wire Hair Terrier. He guessed her at about four-months old and said she'd probably grow to be about 15 lbs or so. He too was glad we rescued her.

little rescue baby sitting in the back seat in the carrier

Gizzy in the front, on the floor between my legs 

Sophie on her mama's lap

Then, we took her to Lynn Kent's house, the lady that runs LAPS (the animal rescue group who pays for my feral cats being spayed/neutered at the rate of one per month) and it turns out that she recently rescued her sister because she had one that looked exactly like her. It came from the same place and the Animal Control guy said that someone turned in several puppies like that previously. She's going to get her spayed and vaccinated and adopt her out because she's already received a call earlier about someone wanting a little dog. Since she didn't have any, we think that this little girl will not be homeless for very long.  

My heart breaks for the ones we could not help, but one has to rejoice in small victories!

Lynn Kent will speak with the person who is in charge of our town's small animal shed (ahem) shelter and make arrangements to go and rescue dogs out of there instead of having them put down unless it's an owner reclaim (which there hardly ever is.) I feel sad for the ones that we could not rescue, but I feel good about this little one and hopefully the changes in policies.

We're all tired and Gizzy has been sleeping since we got home.

Spay and Neuter Day and a pending Adoption

Yesterday I dropped off the one feral cat I caught and another feral cat my friend caught at her house since we had two spots reserved for us. This was a free service provided by an animal group called LAPS (Lanier Animal Partnership & Support.)

Young male in small cage

This is a big boy of Janice's group whom she calls Loverboy and I refer to as Catzilla. As you can see by his open wound, he recently got in a fight over mating rights (hence Loverboy!)

These dogs are all rescue dogs who are now getting spayed/neutered.

The van is being loaded with cats and dogs for the trip to the Vet's in Forida. Bigger cities are closer in Florida than here in GA because we're just 30 miles from the FL border and closer to where the Vet is that is working with this group.

Bigger dogs in kennels in the back and cats in their cages in the front.

There were two Siamese kittens in that carrier

Rebecca, who didn't want her photo taken, carrying one of the cats.

My friend, Janice, holding the instructions for the spay/neuter program. This is held every last Tuesday of the month and we have a standing reservation to bring in one of our stray/feral cats till they're all done. It sounds easier than it is, because there is no guarantee that the strays will go in the cages...so, we just have to hope and pray! I'm grateful that there is this program available in Lakeland, and I wanted to share the good news because it's important to read something positive about animals than always abandonment, pain and suffering, agreed?

I picked up the strays at 6:30 pm yesterday afternoon and I released the orange boy back into the woods with his relatives who are next. It may be difficult for me to get them because they all witnessed the trapping ordeal of their brother with big eyes filled with shock and terror! Maybe they have a short memory!

All in all, there were about 14 animals spayed/neutered yesterday, about half dogs and the other half cats... and that's a good thing!

I am making some little fundraiser items for our upcoming pet costume contest on October 29th in the park. Here I crocheted cat faces around an old cd to use them as coasters or hot pads. They can also be used as wall decorations or ornaments. 

And now for the biggest news of my day: This is not quite finalized, but I'm working on finding a volunteer pet transport to help me get this little girl home to me and Gizzy for we are adopting her.

Meet Weezie. She's a 7-year old spayed Pekingese. She's a rescue dog. She was found when she was about one year old in Biloxi, MS, wandering around outside during Katrina. Then she lived with an elderly lady who ended up in a nursing home a couple of years ago. Weezie has been living with her foster mom for the past two years. They would never think of puting her in an animal shelter, but the financial burden with four other pets and three children is becoming too great. I can totally understand that. I've been communicating with Weezie's owner extensively and she wants no adoption fee, just reassurance that she will go into a good home. I guess she could contact you guys, because you all know how I dote on my boy. Doesn't she sort of look like him? When Gizzy was younger, he looked even more like her.  

(Gizzy's photo below)

Doesn't he look like Weezie's older brother? Gizzy and Weezie - I can't wait!

Froggy Swap Package

I participated in a frog swap that was hosted by Valery of "Yarnigras Swapper Spot" and I received the package from my swap partner yesterday. I just wanted to share all the wonderful, handmade items it contained. I can't get over the creativity and talent wrapped in one box that Gizzy had to help me unpack, of course!

I'm smitten with the felted crocheting frog who has beads attached to her yarn spelling "rip-it"...how clever ist that? She's going to be my constant crochet partner reminding me with her big, toothy smile that when at first you don't succeed, just rip-it and try again! 

I can't get over the detail and workmanship Sherry put into making those two, decorated match box ornaments. They're simply adorable and they each have a little surprise hidden inside. Here's the frog prince with his loot::

and here is the little frog witch matchbox ornament:

(I love the little sticker that says "Ghoul's Best Friend)

I also got three little draw string pouches made from very cute frog pattern material and a really pretty blue lining to match. Here's a photo of two of them.

 I love the pattern and you can tell that they're very well made.

And if that wasn't enough, I also got these adorable gift tags with froggy sayings on them:

It's difficult to read what it says on the photo here, so I'm going to tell you the clever little inscriptions:

Toad-ally happy for you, You make my heart leap, Sorry I frog-got and You're un-frog-gettable! Aren't those clever?

Here's a photo of the items I sent to my froggy swap partner, Sherry, who also has a shop on Etsy called "A Pinch of This - a Dash of That" (in case anyone is interested in her work.)

I'm glad Sherry liked the gifts I sent her. She said that she wore my crocheted frog hat all day on Saturday when she got the package.

I think I'm off to do some crocheting now with my new froggy crochet partner - I just love her!

p.s. the cats are loaded and off to Florida to the Vet for their spay/neuter ordeal. I took photos and will post about it tomorrow after I take more pictures at 6:30 pm when we have to go and pick them up.

This is for you, my dear, faithful, patient and forgiving blogging friends:

Have a wonderful day!

Trapped and unhappy

I set the traps this morning and got one right off the bat. It's one of the younger, orange ones and he's one unhappy kitty-cat....I have to be careful how I handle the cage because he's all over it. I put a pillow case over the trap so he at least stopped crying and seems more calm now. I have to keep him all day until I drop him off tomorrow morning at 7 am for the spay/neuter clinic. (The animal organization who sponsors these low cost spay/neuter clinics pays for the spay or neuter of one feral cat per month. The reason I got two spots this time is because I didn't trap one last month and they had the room to squeeze me in.)  IF I do n ot catch another by the end of the day, I will see if my friend wants to include one of her 20 odd strays that she feeds at her house. Many of "hers" are quite tame and can be put in a carrier easily, so I hope she's home for me to get one of hers so that we can use the two spaces that they reserved for me.

I don't know what gender this cat is, but I'm glad I got at least one...thus far!

I'm thankful that most of my neighbors sleep in, so that I can do this with minimal interference because everyone would want me to take this cat to the pound or dump him someplace out in the woods "since I've already trapped him" .... people don't understand that cats have no chance in this state. They're even harder to place than dogs. At least people can "use" dogs but cats are like squirrels and some people use them for pit bull bait (just like little stray dogs) - why do you think we have hardly any dogs in our local shelter and why you have to have an appointment to come in and see it... think about it...or not!

Anyway, this cat  will be spayed/neutered tomorrow morning and then I'll pick him up in the afternoon and release him back here. He's in the house with me now and quiet as a mouse. Guess the pillow case calmed him down. Poor thing! It's so dramatic for him (or her.)

I still have one trap sitting outside, but it's an old rust bucket and the food has already been eaten out of it. When I tested it, it only snapped closed if pressure is applied just so on a specific location of the lever....I will continue to put food in it throughout the day and hopefully I won't trap an opossum

Happy Monday everyone!.

Small daily adventures

A couple of days ago, I saw my very first live snake whilst walking around the lake.

I was spying on this Great Blue Heron as he was fishing for his breakfast when I encountered this oak snake that I was later told is harmless.

I was hiding behind a tree in order to get closer to the bird and that's when I noticed the snake in the grass (no pun intended.)

 (my friend Sandi looking at the snake)

I always keep my distance with wild (and unfamiliar) animals...unless they're incredibly cute like this little green tree frog that was clinging to my Ginger Lily out on the front porch this afternoon.

After the first flash of my camera, he quickly retreated inside the leaves and was sleepily peeking up at me. You can't tell from looking at it here, but this little fella was only about an inch or so big.... clearly a baby!

I wanted to reach for him and hold him, but I knew it would only scare him away.

My Ginger Lily is blooming again (for the third or second time this year) and the fragrant blossoms have a scent similar to Gardenias. 

I cut one blossom off today (for the first time) and put it in a vase inside my apartment. It's sitting on my computer desk so that I can enjoy its aroma whilst typing.

Today, the little kindergartners had their annual autumn walk around the lake, so Gizzy and I stayed and watched all the little ones walk by, carrying their plastic baggies full of collectibles, i.e. leaves, sticks, etc. 

One of my friend's grand daughter and her mommy were there too. Haley is such an adorable little four-year old girl.

She kind of reminds me of a young Drew Barrymore....look at that adorable cookie dough commercial:



Here's another precious face belonging to one of Haley's little friends:

I enjoyed watching the little ones march by waving hello to me and Gizzy. "Hello, doggy!" they would say and I just answered back in Gizzy's behalf.

My neighbor Terri came walking to the lake with Patches and Gizzy had to sniff hello.

Patches is a young Jack Russell Terrier mix that belongs to another elderly neighbor. 

Here's Gizzy and his friends Tuffy and Sophie, the two Shih-Tzus that belong to my friend Sandi.

Our morning walks are leisurely and unhurried. We love to let the dogs explore and get their fill while we look at everything and often stop and rest for a while to soak up nature and offer the dogs some refreshments (i.e. water, snacks)  Not a  high-energy type of activity, but most enjoyable and a great way for us to start the day. Oftentimes that's the only socializing we do with other people as I and Sandi pretty much stay to ourselves for the rest of the day.

Yesterday I spied a White Egret perched in one of the swamp cypress trees and I actually managed to get a close up. They normally fly away just before I get a chance to come any closer.

The trees used to be full of those white, majestic looking birds, but now I only see one or two flying around. It really is an impressive sight to see a tree full of those big, white birds ... as if it snowed Egrets.

The cats are getting fat and sassy, seeking me out if I'm running a wee bit late for their morning and evening feedings. I have two spaces reserved for our upcoming spay/neuter day next Tuesday. I have two traps and hope and pray that I get at least one.

Here are a few random photos of our "resident" strays:

Here's Papa Leggs, a handsome and fearless warrior tomcat responsible for all the kittens around here. I'm afraid he's too smart than to be trapped by me.

I love to watch the young ones run. They're such goof balls. I can't help but smile watching them in action.

They all run when they see me at feeding times and almost fall all over themselves. I so wish I could pet them and despite myself, I end up loving them as if they were my own.

I think he's so handsome, but he's seen some very bloodied battles - poor thing!

I have a soft spot for this little black one. He (or she) has a habit of wrapping his (or her) tail around things like a little monkey.

I miss you Mr. Bloomers, my blue prince!

He loved doing the roly-poly. He felt like spun silk and was so special to me.

Lastly, a couple more pictures of my silly boy around the house:

I call this his "gator impression" 

Here's your cigar (ahem) Pup-Peroni, Gizzy!

I want to wish you all a most wonderful First Day of Autumn.... a day I've been yearning for all summer long. Here's a little poem that I read on my friend Ginny's blog of Let Your Light Shine I want to pass it on simply because I enjoy the poetry of Dr. Seuss:


How did it get so late so soon?
It's night before it's afternoon.
December is here before it's June.
My goodness how the time has flewn!
How did it get so late so soon?
Theodor Geisel (Dr. Seuss)

Happy weekend - happy Autumn!