Why Cats Shouldn't Nap on Windowsills...

... at least not when Darcy is around!

Baby Bunnies

Wheatens may look cute and cuddly. But they've actually been bred for centuries to hunt down vermin. Admittedly, the unfortunate incident where Kerry met a mouse in the house and wagged her tail at it may not have been the ideal example of their ferocity. But in theory at least, they are mighty hunters.

So it must have been a not-too-bright mother rabbit who decided to make a nest and raise her babies in a yard that contains, not one, but TWO wheatens. Yup. We have tiny newborn baby bunnies in a cozy little hole in the garden right under the bedroom window. Just a few feet away from Duncan's favourite pooping area. You'd think that would have tipped her off...

Still, despite the fact that rabbits ate almost all the veggies I planted last year, it didn't seem right to leave them exposed to Duncan and Darcy just because their mother didn't think things through. So we have sacrificed a laundry basket to protect the nest, while still allowing Mom in to feed them. Darcy is quite intrigued, and keeps sticking her nose into the holes, but since the rest of her doesn't fit we hope the babies will be be safe.

For now, at least. But once they reach veggie stealing size, they're on their own!

S is for Surgery

Life Chez D&D is a bit chaotic this morning. 

Darcy was spayed yesterday. She is doing very well, and seems to be feeling almost her usual self already. Which means she wants to run and jump, doesn't want to pee on leash, can't understand why she's stuck in a penned-off end of the family room, and hates her "cone of shame" with a passion!

Here's a photo of her waking up from her surgery, in a nice cozy nest of blankies:

And here she is last evening, still feeling a bit sorry for herself:

But what of Duncan, you ask? Well, yesterday he was torn between enjoying the peace and quiet while she was gone - he slept most of the day - and worrying about her disappearance. After all, who knew who might disappear next? He kept a close eye on me all day, and even napped in front of the garage door for a while:

He has been very stressed since she got home - part worried about her, and part jealous of the attention she's getting - but, after a roughish sort of night, he's beginning to adjust, I think. By the way, three years ago, almost to the day, was Duncan's surgery.

Darcy's Leg Game

Darcy has a new game, and I'm wondering if I should schedule a preemptive vet appointment – for when she breaks her leg!

We've never been sure exactly what Duncan was doing when he broke his leg, but it was some kind of twisting or spinning movement. Possibly tail-chasing, which he quite enjoyed. Well, Darcy feels that if she's going to equal or surpass him (which seems to be her goal in most things), she might as well be a bit more direct about it: skip the tail (hers is longer than his anyway, so not really a challenge to catch) and chase the leg itself:

I'm trying to convince her that this game is not a great idea.

O Frabjous Day!

Remember Bumble, from Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer? (You should; Wikipedia tells me it's the longest-running Christmas TV special, having been broadcast every year since 1964.) Remember how he went from this:

to this?:

It's all about the teeth. Hermey pulled Bumble's teeth, and he turned into a kinder, gentler monster.

Our own little fanged monster has – FINALLY! – lost all four of those sharp little puppy canine teeth in the last few days. The pain and bloodshed have come to an end.

As Lewis Carroll so aptly put it, "Callooh! Callay! "

Two of them just disappeared, probably swallowed. Two were found on the floor. They're such tiny things to cause so much pain:

Our next Darcy-problem is also tooth-related. Her lower jaw is a bit narrow compared to her upper jaw, so the canines tend to poke into the roof of her mouth, which must hurt! Our vet consulted a doggy-dentist (aka a board-certified specialist in veterinary dentistry) who recommended a "removable orthodontic device" - aka braces. Much simpler and less expensive than the braces the kids needed, fortunately:

She's supposed to hold a ball as much as possible while the adult canines come in, to try to push them into position. (For the vet-ishly inclined, here is a summary of the journal article.) So a lot of her toys have been disappearing over the last couple of weeks, and being replaced by road hockey balls, Kong squeaky-tennis balls, and other spherical toys. We'll be playing a lot of Fetch in the next few weeks – Darcy will chase and retrieve anything that is thrown (and sometimes she even brings it back). We really hope it works, because if not it'll likely cost a whole lot more than $1.99 for a road hockey ball at Canadian Tire!

Bed Privileges

It all began one morning a week or so ago. The humans were getting dressed to start their day, and Duncan was snoozing determinedly on the bed (he disapproves of early mornings, and tries hard to ignore them). Darcy, who was not allowed on the bed due to imperfect potty performance, casually hopped up onto it, strolled over next to the pillows, and peed. A girl's gotta go when a girl's gotta go, she thought.

Commotion ensued. The humans ran about bleating "No!" and "Outside!", as humans do. Duncan, who takes his puppy-raising responsibilities very seriously, was appalled – and he made sure everyone, especially Darcy, knew it.

And a small light bulb seemed to go off in Darcy's mind: peeing outside = good, peeing inside = bad. She's done so well ever since that she has now officially been given limited, supervised bed privileges:

This means that our early morning coffee can once again be enjoyed while reading the news in bed. Except now we share the space with two dogs instead of one. And a new question is beginning to be asked:

Is it time to get a king-sized bed?

Graduation!

Tonight was graduation night at Darcy's grade 1 class. She is now Darcy Sparks, PHD (Puppy Has Diploma)

They started off with a regular class, with sit-stays:

down-stays:

and heeling practice:

Finally, the big moment came. One by one, to the stirring strains of Pomp and Circumstance (played by a musical stuffed dog, naturally) the students were called up to the front of the class to receive their diploma, a big dog biscuit, and small chocolate bars for their humans. Darcy made it look easy! Be sure to crank up the volume on your computer and watch it full-screen!