Puppy Therapy

Today was rather a hard day around here. Things seemed very quiet and Serena's absence was keenly felt.  Although she hadn't been very active lately, everything had been focused on her -- watching her, trying anything to get her to eat or drink, trying to judge her level of discomfort and quality of life. I may be projecting, but I think Della felt it as much as I did if not more. 

Today's feeding routine was ridiculously fast and easy. We only have five dogs here right now. I realize that may sound like a lot to many if not most, but for us it's unheard of. Only three of those dogs are our own, Max, Maya, and Della. It's been over 20 years since we have owned only three dogs. When Clay and I moved to Palmyra we had only two, a rottweiler named Jack, and Gypsy (GSD), Queen of the Universe. One day we walked past a group of Animal Connections volunteers on our way into PetSuppliesPlus, and ended up adopting Cabell, our third dog. I always like to point out that it was Clay, not me, who first fell for Cabell and insisted that I go back outside to see him. So you see, he's really responsible for the deluge that followed. Once you cross that threshold from two to three, it's an easy slide to five, six, and seven. I think seven is the most we had of our own and we don't need to go back to that number. Having fewer dogs of our own leaves more room for fosters. 

It was a beautiful day and I knew we should get outside and enjoy it even if I didn't feel like it. The puppy, Bonnie, provided the impetus to get me out there. She was oblivious to the change around here, she's a puppy; she just wanted to get out and run and play. And so we did. Della and I may have been doing the "fake it till you make it" thing, but everyone else got into the moment and enjoyed the sunshine and the room to run.

Della, Max, and Bonnie

Bonnie mostly stuck close to me all the time we were out there.

She hasn't quite figured out Max yet.

The fact that he's carrying a ball is not an invitation to play.

Bonnie tried with Della too.

Maya

River spent most of his time along the fence watching neighbors and their dog. 

I'm sure he has marked every fence post on that side of the property.

Della jumped up and sat with me on PlayStation K9 in the dog yard.

This is not Della's happy face. 

Tomorrow I'll try to get her out for a walk after the rain stops.