Dale Arrives at Golden Pines

We've had a week of internet and phone problems.  Keeping a connection on the internet for any length of time was almost impossible.  Thinking it was just the internet, on Wednesday I realized that our land-line was dead and going straight to voice-mail.  This may not have been a problem if we had voice-mail on our land-line, but we don't. New equipment arrived on Friday and Carl seems to have resolved the internet issues, but fixing our land-line is probably something only our phone company can fix.

~CarrieAnne~

Whatever our internet problems were at home, it didn't stop me from looking at it while at work.  On Tuesday I saw on Facebook a plea from a local rescue that was looking for 'emergency foster homes' for 100 cats in a shelter in Virginia that was closing.  The cats were going to be euthanized if rescues were unable to take them.  So, you can guess what happened next.....I know, I know, we just lost our sweet girl CC and I was really adamant about not getting another cat because of Shadow.  But we would only be fostering the cat, and not keeping it, so that makes it okay, right?

~Cissy~

Right....And that's what I'm going to keep telling myself now that I've met six-month-old "Dale," who arrived today at Golden Pines.  Of course all the dogs were excited to meet him, especially Charlie.

Todd was front and center and kept jumping up to get a better look.

For now, Dale is staying in our spare room, and we've not allowed the dogs to meet him outside of the crate.  Charlie has been sitting outside the bedroom door whining and hoping for a glimpse of the new arrival--I did let him in to get a closer look because for whatever reason Charlie seems to be really taken by him.

I can understand why.  

Good-Bye to CC, an Extraordinary Cat

Yesterday was a sad day for us as we said good-bye to our cat, CC.

We found CC in a commuter parking lot in the fall of 2001 when she was about 6 months old. I had no idea at that time, what an important part of our household she would become.

CC would grow up to become an extremely tolerant, patient and dog savvy cat.  We "used" her to test the reaction of more than 50 foster dogs around cats.  

In the nearly 13 years of her life with us, there's no way to count how many times CC's food was eaten, 

she was chased, pounced upon, 

played with, 

stared at....  

stalked. 

and searched for...

Being a cat, she of course stayed above it all, and there was hardly ever a hair out of place on her soft black and white coat.  

I don't think that CC ever felt like she was a member of the canine-pack, however, she was totally accepted by all of the dogs.

~Sam and CC~

Of all of the dogs that CC knew in her lifetime, there were only two that she had a connection with, one was named Ben who passed in 2003, the other was Lucas.  I don't know what it was about these two in particular and why she allowed them into her very small circle, sometimes licking their faces when she thought we weren't looking.  I think that when Lucas passed last spring, she missed him worshiping her at her feet.

CC was the perfect cat for our big multi-dog household.  I've said for a long time that if there was a Sainthood for cats, CC should be one. I've no doubt that there will not be another cat like her.

CC's passing is the end of our cat ownership for now. I feel that with Shadow, it would be best to wait to add another.  I do not remember a time in my life where I've not had a cat, so CC will missed even more, not just by us, but Todd and the other dogs too. 

 God speed CC.  I have no doubt that there was a huge canine welcome at the Rainbow Bridge, and that Lucas and Ben were especially happy to see you.  We will look forward to seeing you there again one day too.  

The Perfect Snow-Day

 We may have gotten a day off work because of the snowstorm today, but Old Man Winter is working overtime!  Snow has fallen all day, and temperatures are predicted to plummet into the single digits.

~CarrieAnne~

However nothing could stop us from enjoying time outside today.  Several times I bundled up and with my cameras all charged, the dogs and I played outside in the snow.

Josh (left) and Sheba think that a game of frisbee is fun in any weather!  

When we got cold, okay, when "I" got cold, we went inside.

Of course no snow day is complete without the proper snow-day food. We enjoyed biscuits and gravy for breakfast, pizza for lunch, and fresh baked cookies as a snack.  

It was, I think, a perfect snow day!

Whatever your weather was today, I hope it was a perfect day for you too!

**Thank-you all for your kind thoughts and healing vibes for our cat, CC.  Unfortunately she's not any better and is having problems standing.  The snow-covered roads wouldn't allow for a trip to the vet today, but thankfully CC is resting comfortably, and doesn't appear to be in any pain and will even purr when we hold her. ** 
 

CC--The Most Tolerant of Cats

Our little cat CC is probably one of the most neglected things at our house.  Now, don't get me wrong, she's fed a good quality food, has a warm place to sleep, and we make sure she is always kept safe.  But for the past 13 years, CC has pretty much blended into the background and doesn't get the attention that the dogs do--But she's an extremely easy going and laid-back cat and has always seemed okay with that.  All of the dogs, regard her as part of the pack, and for the most part leave her alone -- Yes, there is Todd who thinks she's a good playmate, and of course Shadow thinks she'd make a pretty good meal, but CC is very tolerant and takes all of this in stride, never complaining.  

But even for this mostly ignored cat, it was easy to notice that CC wasn't feeling well last week. A food bowl that usually gets licked clean by one of the dogs, became a little snack instead because she wasn't eating.  Added to that were a few very uncharacteristic "accidents" and CC sleeping in out of the way places.  It all led us to the vet on Saturday and a not so encouraging diagnosis, kidney failure.  We were sent home with an IV to keep her hydrated and the most tempting food we could find to hopefully get her to eat.  So far, it's not working, but we're not giving up, and I hope that this most special and unique cat isn't either.