Kansas Crimson

good on you for asking before just petting

An interesting trip to the dog park with someone who seems to have a lot of insight into reading dog behavior.

The title of the video: "Aggressive Pit Bull Attacks Belgian Malinois At Dog Park. Trigger Warning!", while not necessarily inaccurate, is way over stated.

both sad and miraculous

https://www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-a ... a-springs/#

nasty respiratory/pneumonia going around dog communities…antibiotic/antviral-resistant and potentially fatal

apparent cases in Oregon, Colorado, Indiana, Illinois, Washington, Idaho, California, and the Northeast

psa: stay away from dog parks and doggy daycares

on a more positive note, South Korea just announced that they are introducing legislation to ban the eating of dogs

I'm not starting a thread entitled cats, even though this about one of mine. I searched and didn't see one.

Had to euthanize my younger kitty today. Got her in late 2008 as a companion to my then only cat (she's laying directly to the right of the keyboard as I type this).

Calico. Great coloration and a couple little dots on her nose. Incredibly pretty animal. A Hemingway cat, which means, for those that may not know, she was polydachtyl (she had an extra toe on each front foot...aka, a thumb).

She got taken by old age, which, ultimately, is what we all hope for as far as pet ownership goes. I had the last week to say goodbye to her, as she came up lame last Friday. Took her to an emergency vet when I got home from work and they assessed that she had bad arthritis, but should be ok. She wasn't. The anti-inflammatory kept things at bay most of the time, but each of the last 7 days I saw less and less mobility. But again, I got to say goodbye to her for a week, which I'm sure I'll cherish as I reflect on things in the future.

This morning she was in too much pain. I won't give details, but I just knew. So she's gone now. But won't be forgotten, and will be missed despite herself.

She had resting bitch face most of the time, and although never found a lap she didn't absolutely adore (Ousdahl can attest to this), she tolerated pets for a minute or two and then let you know she had enough. She was the alpha in the house between the two cats, and would try to not let the other get any tuna, bacon, cheese, treats, or whatever. Yeah, when they both got to age 13 I started letting them eat whatever I was eating (as long as it wasn't toxic to cats).

I'll miss her sleeping between my legs the most. Her head butts at night had stopped about 6 months ago, as she had been losing weight and a little bit of strength, so that behavior modified. But I missed those when I realized they were gone.

Again, glad I got a lengthy goodbye with her, and if living creatures have souls and move on, I hope she finds all the laps she ever wants.

Bye Emma (AKA- Shithead. Brown Cat, Black Cat, White cat (given by then 2 year old step son). Ole Snaggletooth (she had 4 teeth, including a canine removed at about age 5). Countless other derivations of her name.

Thanks for the almost 16 years you were with me. And thanks to anyone who read this through. I needed a cathartic writing.

My heart goes out to you B2L. I had Miles for 22 years. He fetched, ate ice cream with me, and slept next to me, and usually got his way. He was born in SF and I brought him with me when I moved to Lawrence for grad school. At 20 he was diagnosed with hypo-thyroid. His meds were over $250/mo back in 1996 and I was in grad school. His last three months he was my studying partner, always snuggled up against me. I buried him in our woods, wrapped in his favorite cuddle blanket.

Cats are unique souls. Smokestack is 11 now, my daugter's cat really helped his attitude. She moved back with us for a year.

That sucks B2L. Know that you gave her a good life.