i am feeling better but sleeping is proving to be problematic. my chest hugely protests laying down for any extended period of time..an hour or so is all i can manage before with coughing and gasping, i am being forced upright again.
this sucks but it too shall one day pass.
how about a rambling, what the heck post to pass this night away?
life? death? politics? rescue? oh what can i blab about to keep myself occupied while i can't sleep or do anything of much use?
how about i tell a few stories..parts of which you know but parts you might not know like who are they now?
shyla...
shyla a 10 yr old white shep/husky cross ended up at saints because she was at the vets to be euthanized. she had some anxiety issues, a bad skin infection and wonky back legs.
her skin infection is gone, her legs are still wonky but not now giving her any pain. and her anxiety? she for sure has packed all of her anxiousness into a no return address envelop and mailed it far away.
this dog is a husky..this means when she is feeling good, the whole world is hers to enjoy. and a husky's enjoyment of life in general is slightly twisted...they like to live big and they like to bug and they like to own it all. and a truly happy husky likes to bug big in their very own kingdom.
do you remember an older brother or sister that liked to torment you relentlessly? that is shyla...everything she does with the others is usually one very small but good natured step from actual bullying. altho, once in a while she does cross that fine bitchy dog line but having power takes learning and this is new to her.
her sense of humor borders on politically incorrect but because she is cheerful in it, she pretty much gets away with it. nothing like getting your ass mildly kicked by a happy dog who is just out for an exciting, quick rough and tumble party on the fly by.
this is a highly intelligent dog. she likes to push the envelop..boundaries are for lesser beings. and interestingly enough, after mika died..shyla took over stealing my ice caps!
she watched, she waited, the ruling husky queen passed away and shyla sat down on the throne.
now all she needs is the crown..but mika took that with her. shyla will never have that wise and regal royalty of her predecessor but she does have the brawling good nature of a drunken viking queen.
whoever adopts shyla is adopting a handful...a handful of husky as they are meant to be.
stella
stella came in as an unclaimed stray from animal control. at some point in her distant life, she sustained a pretty horrific injury. we can see the old and terrible scars but they don't trouble her altho the damage to her mid to upper spine does sometimes cause her great pain. it took a while to find the right balance for her comfort without overly sedating her but we made it.
i think stella is hilarious..everyone else thinks she is poor dear old thing. i call her the ghost because i watch her as she ensures she gets exactly what she wants without anyone else knowing what she is doing. stella isn't greedy by any stretch of the imagination but she has determined what is critical to her simple needs. it is that bed in the entranceway. stella literally plots how to keep it passively without any fuss. there is not a single mean or fighting bone in this very sweet dog's body but she has decided that bed suits her best and so she makes sure she gets to keep it. so she watches and waits until she is sure that she can safely leave it and have it still free for her when she comes back. she is not going to argue over it and she is not going to sulk, she is too much of a lady for that so she needs to plot the most advantageous times for her to get up and go out. stella is a pretty cool dog and she is pretty smart too. she knows that i am on to her game and 100% support her. so i don't have any trouble getting her out, she'll even happily wander around for awhile outside with the barn guys. all i do is close all the doors, make sure her entranceway is free of bed thieves and invite her out for a change in scenery..a bit adventure is good for her as long as she doesn't physically over do it.
in stella's mind, possession is 99% of the law and the other 1% is the responsibility of the person watching her back (and her bed.) at night when i am passing out treats like yummy cheese..stella lays there and watches me intently, waiting for me to make the cheese to bed delivery. bed is slightly more critical than cheese but both together are even better.
i love dogs who are silently deep and still manage to get what they want...they almost do it telepathically.
well, its almost 3..maybe i can lay down for an hour or two and actually sleep?
its a fine line cathy...the article is actually correct..they are deemed unadoptable before the shelters send them to us, we as a rule do not take in adoptable animals. and yes some of our animals do get adopted because they are adopted by folks willing to adopt an unadoptable...but those are few and far between. most of those that go out actually end up in permanent foster homes with saints retaining ownership and decision making because we pay for their medical bills. sometimes people assume every animal that goes out is lucky enough to be adopted but most of them are not adopted, most of them remain permanent saints animals at our expense but are out in foster care. i think we currently have somewhere around 50 unadoptable animals out in permanent foster care plus the 110+ still living at the shelter.