With the time change Frances’ schedule is all out of whack today. When she started to cry at 4:00 this afternoon I couldn’t figure out why and then I realized that her internal clock was telling her it was dinner time. I decided to distract her a bit and I took her for a walk for as long and far as she would let me. As she approaches 15 years of age her walks are getting shorter all the time.
Puppy FrancesTeenager FrancesFrances and her oldest friend, LucySenior Frances, still enjoying the waterNewest friend, Olive as a puppyOlive at the cottage with Frances
My favourite photos of birds
Blue Heron. at High ParkEmu at High Park ZooSparrow in the parkMy owl watercolourSwan at Col. Sam Smith ParkBaby Robin
Gaelan and her family left on September 3rd to drive from Sparrow Lake, ON to Moncton, New Brunswick where their first home awaited them. The trip itself was pretty uneventful but they enjoyed the scenery and eating in parking lots. On day three arrived safe and sound. The moving van arrived the next day but they had Winnie’s bed and a mattress delivered earlier in the week.
On the last leg of the their trip. Winnie and Lucy are exhausted.
After checking out the new house the family took a 20 drive to the ocean where Winnie was in fine form.
Immersing herself in the culture of the east coast
On their first day in the new home Winnie lost another tooth.
She can’t wait for the tooth fairy to visit
On Wednesday Winnie started her first day of school in a new school in grade one.
After a wonderful first day of meeting new kids Winnie came home and promptly fell off a bed and bit through her upper lip. Another first was the trip to the hospital where luckily it was determined that she wouldn’t need stitches, just a steri-strip.
Winnie returned to school on Thursday and had quite the story to tell her new classmates. A special thanks to Winnie’s parents for the wonderful photographs.
….on this day, August 26, International Dog Day I am dedicating this page to Frances
Frances came into our lives over 14 years ago when she was only two months old. My husband has always said the she is the best dog he’s ever owned. I say he because Frances is truly my husband’s dog but in the last few years when her energy levels dropped and she was only interested in short walks I’ve become the dog walker in the family.
20072012….she loves the waterShe also loves the snowFrances’ best friend, Lucy…and then along came this young whipper snapper about 4 1/2 years ago, Olive2019 ….she still loves the water2021 …. still loving the water2021 …. a little greyer around the muzzle…..chilling on the deck at the cottage
After doing a little research I did discover that today, April 26th is recognized as National Pets and Kids Day in the U.S. It is intended to raise awareness of the importance of picking the right pet for children at the right time. It’s an important decision that can lead to a lifetime of bonding between pet and child.
We have been pet owners for over 30 years. Our first pet, other than gold fish, was a golden retriever followed by a second golden. They were great dogs to have around children. When the kids grew up we adopted a mutt who instantly became my husband’s dog. Our daughters both became dog owners when they set up their own homes and our son who has moved about Europe for the last 15 years is sans a pet.
Lucy – Our daughter, Gaelan’s dogFrances and Lucy – best friends for 14 yearsI have to admit that I was nervous when I first saw this photo but over the years these two have always gotten alongOur eldest daughter, Andrea with OliveFrances loving the snowWhen Olive and Winnie first metMy cousin’s little boy and dogWinnie and Lucy five years onOlive loving the water
In our extended family we have three special pUPs. You’ve seen all of them at one time or another on my blog. Recently I posted a photo of Olive jumping up on the beach and I explained to some of you that Olive needed surgery. Well here she is back from the vet hospital. She ruptured a disc in her neck and after the surgery her prognosis is good. No jumping or running for awhile. That will be hard for this little girl.
The other two dogs are Frances who is 14 and Lucy who is 12 1/2. Their days consist of sleeping, sleeping, sleeping and eating and then sleeping some more.
Today’s dog is Lucy. She is a Bassett hound and belongs to our daughter in Hamilton. She’s getting on in years and she howls when she forgets where she is.
I thought we were never going to need the snow shovel this year but a big storm has moved into the northeast of the U.S. and southern Ontario. Here in Toronto it’s been snowing all day but very lightly. I did sweep the snow off the porch and did one pass with the snow shovel over the sidewalk this afternoon.
Forty kilometres west of here in Hamilton it’s been quite a different story. Lucy, our daughter’s dog, had to make a path through about 10 to 20 cm of snow to find a place to pee. This photo was taken about six hours ago. I’m sure the amount of snow has doubled since then.
Hopefully I can get out tomorrow and get some of my own ‘snow’ photos. They’ll be the first this season but Toronto often gets bypassed by the bigger storms.