Adventures with Wally

Next up in my menagerie is Wally.

Eight years ago, when Marin Humane sent me on an errand to the Berkeley animal shelter, little did I know I’d be meeting my next dog. Now don’t get me wrong; I had no intention of looking for nor finding another canine. But as fate would have it…

When I pulled up to the facility, a man passed by walking an adoption dog, a black dachshund-spaniel mix. I’m partial to spaniels so he caught my eye. But I told my eye to quit looking, reminding myself I have more than enough pets. Well, plain and simple, my eye refused to look away.

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Savannah and Dash

So where were we? Ah, yes…continuing the countdown introducing you to my 4-legged menagerie and their various personality traits that either drive me nuts or endear me to them even more. We’ve finished with Skip, Oliver and Fat Jack. So let’s tackle Savannah and Dash next, shall we? (Yes, we shall).

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Wouldn’t Have It Any Other Way

By now you know I live with 10 pets — three dogs and seven cats.

Notice I didn’t say they live with ME because in reality I live with THEM. And boy do they know it. I’m a bit outnumbered, especially with my cats. So consequently, what I want is of no interest to them. My purpose in their eyes? Make sure their bellies are full, and to accommodate them, use no more than the very edge of my king size bed.

Now don’t get me wrong; I’m not complaining. And lest you think otherwise, I’m actually sane (although it may not seem that way to petless people). But that’s fine with me. You’re entitled to your opinion, however erroneous it may be. Fortunately, I don’t fault you for it.

I’ve lived alone now for nearly 15 years, if having a ton of pets can be considered living alone. I guess I should say I’m the only human in my house. It was my first time going solo since I left my parents home to share a rental with Sharon.

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Call Me Insane

Last week I admitted I’ve added yet another cat to my furry four-legged menagerie. Crazy? Let’s go with no. Insane? Possibly. I’ll let you be the judge, even though last week I asked you not to judge me. So I guess what I actually am is a hypocrite.

I had hoped my feeble attempt to tug at your heartstrings would win you over so you’d see I’m a regular person who happens to love animals sometimes more than people. Now don’t get me wrong; mostly I think people are fine and dandy. In fact, I’m quite fond of many of them.

But with my cats and dogs, I love pretty much everything about them — how trusting they are, how excited they get greeting me at the door when I’ve only been gone an hour, how they love me unconditionally and follow me around the house like ducklings trailing their mom. I could go on but I’ll spare you.

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Uh Oh. I Did It Again

Okay, I ask just one thing…

On second thought, you have every right to judge me, or anyone else for that matter. But I hope you’ll be gentle. Just remember, my intentions were good. I had no desire to have a seventh cat. That’s right. I have another cat.

Call me a crazy cat lady because only one part of that sentence is accurate. I AM a cat lady, that’s true. And for that matter, a dog lady with four dogs. But by definition, I’m not actually crazy. Trust me here. But have you noticed people with a bunch of dogs aren’t considered loony?

I’ll get back to you on that. Anyway, as you know, I run a nonprofit feral cat rescue. As you can imagine, we come across a ton of cats needing vet care, fostering, spay/neuter, and on and on. It’s a never ending challenge providing humane care and management for these felines, but it’s also incredibly rewarding to positively impact a life in need.

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