winter in muskoka

Winter in Muskoka, otherwise known as "let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!"

There's a lot of snow here. More snow than anywhere I've lived before. And it's cold. Very cold. However, the hiking trails are still phenomenal, my apartment is NOT cold, and work is reasonably busy!

Other than being a freakazoid about having to drive in the snow, I'm really enjoying it up here. In fact, I think I would struggle moving back to southern Ontario.

Here are a whole bunch of winter photos - excuse the crummy quality, I only have a camera on my phone at the moment.

Percy and Archie - no idea what they were getting up to.

Attempted selfie of Piper and I on New Years Day

Lazy night. Barely space for me on that bed!

Hiking/posing at Kerr Park

Snowy Ace, at Wilson Falls (notice his boots, and my snowshoes?!)

Run faster Ace!

Piper at a different section of Kerr Park - and on a different day.

 

Too cold to go outside? We'll do an indoor workout!

Piper all snuggled up with Percy.

Piper says "I'm gonna get you!" Poor Ace

academics, puppy visits, vet visits, and agility class!

Wednesday was a great day for me, I was able to present my research at the Campbell Centre for Studies in Animal Welfare annual Symposium and Research Day. There were about 100 people in the audience (scary!!!), including a number of professors, students, and public interested in animal welfare. I think I did pretty well, although I did loose my place a few times. It was nice to be one of only two social science majors, out of 22 presenters.

On Thursday I had lunch with a good friend from Guelph, and visited Wendy (Piper's breeder). Piper and I got to meet another of Piper's littermates, Ryder (who she adored).

All four of my animals also had vet appointments in the afternoon, so we spent about two hours with Dr. Paula. Piper and Percy were both in perfect health, which was good news (although I was expecting it). The vet heard a grade one heart murmur in Archie, although it went away as he relaxed. Something to watch, however it seemed to only be an issue when he was stressed, and he's generally a pretty laid back cat. Ace is my poor, unhealthy soul, unfortunately. The vet now suspects his elbow dysplasia is causing him chronic pain, so she prescribed some painkillers. It breaks my heart, since he's only five years old, but she said he has almost no muscle around his elbows, and quite severe arthritis in his joints. He is to receive minimal exercise, except as much swimming as we can handle! She told me its ok to not exercise him every day, and I was correct to also cut back his food (which I had already done - my 74 lb dog now eats the same amount as my 42 lb dog). We are going to start a painkiller trial next week, he is to be medicated for a solid week, to see if I notice any differences. It's the easiest way to find out if he really is in chronic pain. I had suspected something along those lines, so I was not surprised by her evaluation.

We had a good time visiting my friend Karen, and her super-adorable Turveurn puppy Spark. Spark and Piper are like two peas in a pod, they got along fantastically :) We spent several nights watching agility videos.

Tonight was my last agility class with Piper for a while. We had a pretty good class, only screwing up a couple time in a course that was masters level (and harder than anything that would be seen at a regional level event). I was pretty happy with that! What I was not happy with was that Piper BARKED the entire time she was not working. My instructor told me to step on the leash and ignore her, quietly rewarding anytime she was quiet. The result was an hour and a half of barking. It was brutal. Definitely something we are going to have to work on.

winter photos

Photo update!

Today I've included just a few pictures of my beasties from the last few months in Ennismore. I have been applying to lots of jobs, so hopefully I will start to get interviews and we can move out on our own once again!

Piper and Percy cuddling on the couch. They love each other!

Piper being super cute in my bedroom. Notice the one crazy ear...

Ace and Piper posing during a walk on the ice. Notice Ace wearing his mutluks, it's just too cold for his little toes!

Archie with his happy camper face and his dirty nose. He must have just finished dinner... no wonder he was happy!

post-move in update

Well, I have been neglectful. Two months since I have posted anything! Here is an update:

The move went well, and we have all settled into my parent's house better than expected. The cats pretty much get free run, and except for a bit of bagel-snatching (Percy), and railing-scratching (also Percy), they have been great. My dad even plays with Percy once in a while. Archie tries hard to stay out the way, and spend most of his time sleeping at the top of the stairs or on my sister's empty bed.

The dogs stay downstairs quite a bit, either with me in my bedroom, or hanging out at the bottom of the basement stairs. The first week after I moved in, I went out and bought mats for my bedroom floors and for the bottom of the stairs for the dogs to sleep on. I would have liked to cover all the floors, but just couldn't afford it. Every evening (and days my dad goes to work) Ace and Piper don their indoor boots and take over the available couches and laps. My mom is quite smitten with Piper, who loves to cuddle and lick her face.

I have been working part-time in a Paulmac's Pet Food store, which is ok. I work by myself quite a bit, or with the grouchy owner. I definitely miss my friends at Rens.

My thesis was defended on December 17, and accepted by the University of Guelph on January 6. Yay me! I have been diligently applying for jobs, but no interviews yet. My fingers are crossed every day, hoping that I will hear from a prospective employer.

Piper and I made some new friends shortly after our arrival in Ennismore, we met a woman and her two Aussies on a trail, and became fast friends. We hike with Tucker and Blaster (who is actually Piper's great-uncle) nearly every week. Through our new friend, we have also joined the Peterborough and District Obedience Club (PADOC), which is fantastic because now we get free obedience classes! We are also signed up to take a class with agility instructor Dante Camacho, recommended to us by Chad, our Guelph instructor.

Piper and Ace hanging out on the couch.

That's all for now! Piper and I are heading to Hamilton in a few weeks for our first CKC trial, so expect another post shortly :)

cuddling kitties

Very quiet yahoo moment!

Percy was sleeping in the hooded cat bed when Archie approached and gingerly climbed in. Percy woke up and looked agitated for a minute, but Archie started licking him! So Percy and Archie have spent the last 10 minutes sharing the bed, and grooming each other. I'm so glad, it looks like they will be good company for each other after all, which is what I was hoping for when I adopted Percy.

Now, Archie may or may not be laying across Percy, so I'm not actually sure he CAN get up, but he doesn't look too distressed about it. Maybe my positive reinforcement training is paying off already. What cuties!

percy's re-adjustment

Meet Morgan... or... ummm... Percy? Yes, Percy.

That's right, Morgan has had a name change. After having him for about 2 months, I decided I didn't like Morgan after all. AndI think Percy is the perfect name for a cat. And since he didn't have any name recognition anyways, I changed it!

He has been quite the annoying little fool recently. Always bugging Archie, and often bugging me. I was getting pretty frustrated my my little kitten.

A few days ago I decided to change how I dealt with him, in order to bond with him better. Part of this was the name change. The other part is that I have decided to treat him like a dog. No, really.

Good behaviour gets treats. Bad behaviour gets lured into good behaviour, and rewarded. If bad behaviour persists, he gets a time out in the cat crate. And I am making a point to exercise him! Play with the laser pointer several times per day. Rotation of cat toys every few days. Additional interactive play with toys that swing, tinkle, or crinkle. And maybe, just maybe, leash walks outside.

It's time to get this kitten under control!

Percy and Archie sleeping on the table, under the ceiling fan.

training and vacationing

During the summer, I spent most of my dog training time at home. I was all over the place with my research - literally from Ottawa to Bracebridge to Niagara - as well as trying to pick up hours at work, so decided against any classes.

However, Piper and I are back in the saddle! We are currently enrolled in the Jumpworks class at Companion Dog Training, which teaches us common jump combinations and exposes us to different manuvers such as front and rear crosses. Piper just adores it, I think if she could jump all day long, she would!

We also enrolled in a 3 hour workshop at Companion called Games for Obedience that took place last Saturday. We learned a few tricks, and fun things to do while training to keep it fun. Most of it seemed to be to throw in variations when you're teaching things like heeling and jumping, so they don't know what to expect and to teach them to recover if they don't do it quite right the first time. Piper had cut her foot at the cottage a few days before, but seemed to be ok so I took her anyways. She is not quite healed enough to run around off-leash, but I am leash walking her still. Anyways, we very much enjoyed the workshop, and look forward to continue to practice our heeling. I also want to bring out the dumbbell again, and our scent recognition tubes, as we haven't worked with those in a long time.

The next class I would like to take is Attention One, however I am running out of money, so will probably have to wait until I get a full-time job. The jumpworks class was a birthday gift from my parents.

There are however a few meets coming up, including the Monster Match (also at Companion) about a month from now. The run obedience, rally, and agility fun matches - I will probably take both Ace and Piper. My friends have asked me to help them teach their yellow lab some Rally, so maybe I will enter Rogue as well!

As mentioned, we spent a few days at the cottage last week with my sister Rebecca, who flew out to Thailand on Friday afternoon to spend about 6 months teaching English. We had a relaxing few days, and were quite entertained by Ace, Piper, Archie, Morgan, and my parent's dog Toby.

Ace and Piper racing to get the ball in the water. Ace always wins.

Swimming back with the ball.

Piper standing on the beach, waiting for me to throw the ball.

Toby, looking cute!

Piper looking expectantly at the camera. "Can I run yet?"

Ace taking a break from swimming. It does happen! Usually so he can poop.

morgan

Greeting Blog Readers!

I would like to introduce Morgan, little annoying kitten extrordinaire!

Morgan, at 9 weeks old.

Morgan was born June 9th, and taken to the Kitchener Humane Society when he was about 5 weeks old. A kind citizen had found him and taken him there. I adopted him on August 10.

Morgan spent his first two weeks in and out of a 42" dog crate, learning to conduct himself among the dogs, and giving him some time for Archie to adjust to his presence. The separation was worth it, Morgan has now fit in almost seamlessly.

Morgan playing with a shoelace on the bed.

He curls up with the Aussies, snoozing and playing with their long fur. He plays with Archie (who I was most worried about), jumping on him and chasing his tail. Archie is a pretty good sport about it, occasionally complaining, but for the most part being very stoic about it. I think a few times Archie has even initiated the play, and I have caught them curled up together a few times.

Morgan curled up with Piper... he loves his Aussies!

Morgan has the loudest purr I've ever heard, he sounds like a regular little motor boat! I was thinking the other day we should have called him Evinrude. He spent most of last night curled up in bed with me.

What a sweetheart!

dog pages

  Check out my new dog pages :)    

home for christmas

This year I made the 3 hour trek to my parents house for Christmas. Ace, Piper, Archie, and I spent 3 very interesting days there. Overall, I think it was a success!

Archie sitting on the tile at the front door.

Piper survived her boots, and was not even fighting them by the end of the trip. They are a little big for her, so they would fall off once in a while, but overall the boots were a success.

Ace was his normal, lazy bones self. Cuddling with anyone who would give him space on the couch. He is always a hit with my parents.

Archie was also good, with one exception. The first morning there he pooped and peed under my dad's work bench. My dad doesn't like cats to begin with so this was not a good thing to happen. I moved his litter box to a more open spot and Archie decided that now the box was where he wanted it to be, he would use it. He also had a good cuddle with my 86 year old Grandma, which gave him lots of points.

My Aunt and her partner also brought over their 7 month old Australian Labradoodle (aka lab x poodle x cocker spaniel x irish waterdog x something else I can't remember) on Christmas day. He was very cute, and played well with Piper when they were running around in the basement, but when they were around all the people he was getting pretty snappy with her. He seemed to be possessive over toys (which were actually Piper's) and also his space overall. It was kind of odd, considering how well they played together in the basement. Hopefully my Aunt will work on whatever issues he may have so they do better next Christmas.

Ace being forced to dance with my sister. He's clearly thrilled.

I have the whole next week off, so I'm looking forward to doing lots of hikes and training with the dogs! Oh yeah, and schoolwork. Blah.

we survived!

Well, we officially survived our first weekend at my parent's house. You remember, the one with the precious floors?

Lucky Ace got to wear his mut-luks, he's very stoic about it. Honestly, he takes it like a champ. I just have to watch that his dew claws don't get stuck above the boot, since I'm guessing that would be pretty uncomfortable.

Archie acquired a lovely set of black nail caps. He's all dressed up for halloween now! Actually, I think this is the most manly Archie has ever looked. Well, it will be once I take off his collar with the flowers and heart-shaped ID tag :)

And lucky Piper is apparently too small for her nails to scratch the floors, so she got away with bare feet the whole two days we were visiting! I'm guessing she won't be so lucky next time, but maybe the long fur on her feet will help protect the floor? The only catch was that she was not allowed to run. As you can imagine, trying to keep any four-month old puppy from running over a two day period would be a challenge. Let alone an active dog like an Aussie? Wishful thinking!

lost

Archie has been with me for about four and a half years now, and in that time I've been very cautious with him. He is a strictly indoor cat, once or twice a year I will take him out on a leash. He loves hanging out in windows and looking out the door, but has never really pushed his luck in his escape attempts.

Yesterday was different. I was taking my garbage out and had both dogs on leashes. I didn't even see him get outside. I put Ace in a down-stay by the garbage cans and was clearing everything out, when he broke his stay and raced towards the apartment. The guys doing work on the apartment beside mine said he chased an orange and white cat up the stairs. I thought "That's weird, I've never seen a loose orange and white cat in this neighbourhood". I got my trash to the curb and went inside to feed the animals.

I poured the kibble into the dish...and Archie was nowhere to be seen. Uh oh. An orange and white cat that ran up the stairs? Uh oh.

So I go back outside and check the staircase - no cat. I check in the yard, my neighbours yard, and took a quick walk down the street, shaking the kibble dish as I went. No luck.

The humane society didn't open until 9:00, so I had half an hour before I could report him missing. I made up a poster with his picture and contact information, and would take short walks around the block, shaking his kibble dish.

By the time I got through to the humane society, I was distraught. I kept thinking that I had lost him forever - he would get hit by a car, get in a fight with another cat, or just get lost and not be able to find his way home.

The woman who answered the phone was very helpful. She took down a description of him, and my information. She explained the best way to make a LOST poster, and suggested I sprinkle some old litter in the yard and leave the door cracked open, so he could smell his way home. I was also provided with the number of the microchip company, so I could update Archie's information.

I immediately followed her instructions and propped the door open (dogs in their crates, so I didn't have other escapees). I called the microchip company to give my address and phone number, and they made a note on his file that he was missing. I went out side to sprinkle litter in the yard...and who do I see sitting at the side of the road?

Archie. My super intelligent cat was sitting on the road with his nose stuffed in my neighbours catnip plant. I walked over and picked him up - tragedy averted. He was out in the world for a total of an hour and a half.

I am so grateful to have my little kitten back, and truly appreciate the kindness of the people at the Guelph Humane Society and Microchip Solutions. And I will definitely be more careful closing my door from now on!

archie the cat

I've been told I don't talk about my cat often enough. Probably because although I love my cat, I'm not really a cat person. However when I had been out of my parent's house for about a year and a half, I just could not stand being without a pet. Longest year and a half of my life! I decided to volunteer at the local humane society, obviously that didn't last long. I was a horrible volunteer who adopted after a few months and stopped volunteering. Anyways, here is Archie's story.

Archie looking pretty for the camera

I adopted Archie 4 years ago from the Kitchener Humane Society. He was 4 1/2 at the time, and had been dropped off in an outdoor bin during the night. He was neutered, clean, and a little overweight; clearly a house cat! I've always wondered where he came from. My best guess is that he was probably owned by a little old lady who either passed away, or moved into a nursing home. If the family didn't want to keep him, they could have dropped him off at the shelter overnight to avoid paying the surrender fee.

I faced quite a bit of discrimination adopting Archie. Even though I was a volunteer, the first person I spoke to said they would not adopt him to me because I was a student and had never had a cat before. I continued to go back on different days, hoping to talk to someone else who would consider me. I eventually found someone who agreed, but required letters from my landlord, parents, and all my roommates to go meet him. I know other students who went in to look around and came out with a cat, so all this hoop-jumping pissed me off quite a bit. But I persevered, and ended up with a great cat!
 

Archie sleeping on an abandoned dog bed, beside some dog toys

I do admit, adopting Archibald was a big risk - many cats despise change and I have a very mobile lifestyle. However Archie has successfully moved with me nine times in those four years. He loves visiting with people, so going to my parent's house or the cottage for the weekend is an adventure to him! He is an indoor cat - with all the moving I do, I'm not comfortable letting him roam around outside.

And I admit, I am a control freak. I would worry about him the whole time he was outside.

He is a pretty funny fellow. Some days he follows me around and won't stay out of my lap. Other days I only see him at meal times (his favourite time of day). He is very skilled at breaking into food containers, breaking curtains, stealing food, terrorizing my fish, and getting into various other types of mischief.

Another admission: dog behaviour I understand, but Archie continues to boggle my mind, even after sharing my life with him for so long. Cats are crazy.

Archie snuggling on my lap

Sleeping in his hideous cat-house

I could never give him though, because although he's pretty wacky, he's my kitten. I love his little purr and dirty nose, and have learned to deal with his many misadventures. And honestly? My favourite time of day is right before bed, with Ace sprawled across my legs and Archie curled up on my chest. I love my beasties to death, and am so grateful for all the things they have done for me.
 
I know I would not be the same without Archie.  

are rescues too tough on potential adopters?

Here's a link to a great post by Retrieverman:
http://retrieverman.wordpress.com/2012/01/27/some-dog-rescue-organizations-have-too-many-quibbling-requirements-for-their-adopters/

I think it can go both ways... rescues can be very tough on potential adopters, and needlessly exclude many great families. In fact I was turned down twice by my local humane society before I finally was able to adopt Archie. There was a huge process of getting my landlords permission, having all my roommates meet him, and getting a letter from my parents (even though I was 19), all because I was a student. However a friend of mine (also a student, living in a rental with roommates) went to the same institution, picked out and adopted a cat in one day. It all depends on who you talk to, I suppose.

However, I do agree with the pet always going back to the rescue, if it doesn't work out with the original adoptive family. Although you may be able to find another home for your pet, who is to say they will not turn around and give the pet to someone else? And then that person does the same thing? An animal could easily end up in a bad situation... rescuers love their fosters and just want to ensure they are well taken care of.

Thoughts?

the littlest thief

I don't discuss my cat very much, and if fact he goes through affectionate phases and independent phases. Some days he follows me around and crawls into my lap at every opportunity, other times I won't see him (except at meal time) for several days. He is my first cat, and I love him to death, but Archie has a problem. He is a food-hound.

He generally makes a fuss at meal times, meowing and running back and forth as if it might make me feed him faster. He opens my cupboards and drawers, licks my dishes, and tries to break into the dog food containers. Very annoying.

I have a metal (impenetrable) container for Ace's kibble, and a plastic one for Willow's kibble. When I moved to Guelph, I kept both containers side by side. However, one afternoon I found Archie half inside the plastic container - he had lifted the lid and had almost succeeded in climbing completely inside.

Archie making himself comfortable on a different plastic container.

New plan: stack the containers. With the metal kibble container on top of the plastic one, there was too much weight for Archie to pry open Willow's food container.

Problem: Ace's container was almost empty. I'd been meaning to refill it, but just had not gotten around to it yet. So yesterday morning as I was brushing my teeth, I hear a scratching noise and look around the corner. Low and behold, Archie was trying to break into the plastic kibble container. I watch him for a moment, thinking he'll never be able to lift the lid with the metal container on top, even if it is empty.

Obviously I was wrong, or this would be a really crappy story. Archie manages to squeeze a paw under the lid, and promptly gets stuck. He let out this horrible yowl, all quavery with fear. I lifted the lid so he could get out, and he promptly ran away. I thought: serves him right, at least I won't have to  worry about him breaking into the container again.

If only. After I finished brushing my teeth and came out of the bathroom, I found Archie half inside the plastic container. Little bugger! I couldn't believe he had the guts to try another attempt, just a few minutes after he'd been stuck! I shouted and he wiggled out, then ran out of the room.

I ended up stacking not only the metal container, but also an old 5 gallon fish tank on top of the plastic container. Apparently brute strength is the only way to keep my cat out of a food source.