After combing through all my pictures of Doris Daylily for the calendar contest, I couldn't decide between two. One was of Doris' formative days, when she sat down in the front yard and chewed on a fallen leaf, and the other came from a day in the park when she thought about chasing something. The photo of her bunny butt really spoke to me,…

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On October 19th, my darlin' Doris Daylily will turn 2. I've never celebrated a dog's birthday before, and we probably won't go to any great lengths this year. Probably. Maybe. We might not go to great lengths. It's hard to say, because I've never had a dog to which I felt such a strong bond before. Sure, she doesn't know it's her birthday, but she does know who her pack is. Doris is very attuned to our state of well-being. So she might know we're happy she was born if I give her some extra… Continue

I took Doris to a groomer for the first time today. Her toenails were hopelessly long; she was shedding; I haven't bathed her in almost two months. Really, the bathing part -- well, she isn't stinky. It's hard to justify wrestling Doris into a bathtub full of water and torturing her if she isn't noticeably dirty.



But I was feeling oodles of guilt about those toenails. Someone needed to trim them! I called the groomer in town, asked how much a good brushing, bathing, and trimming… Continue

We took Doris Daylily with us to Helen, Georgia for our very short vacation earlier this week, and I learned a lot about traveling with a dog.



1. People love dogs. I had no idea! I don't go around chasing other people on the street or in the park when they're walking their dogs, trying to pet their dogs. But when you're in a tourist town with a lot of other tourists, and you have your corgi with you, you get stopped A LOT. Everyone wants to pet the dog. Everyone wants to know what it… Continue

I've hesitated mentioning this because, honestly, I hate listening to myself and I haven't heard the episode in question.



I have been a longtime listener to a podcast called The Petcast, and I sorta know the hosts -- well, sorta, in that if you're a fan of a show for as long as my sister and I have been, the hosts sorta figure out who you are. So, anyhoo, over the years I've called in about my cat's persistent flea problem, my daughter's cockatiel issues, and a year or so ago, I was… Continue