Friday 24 April 2015

It's a World Class Menagerie!

*cue the song 'Prince Ali' from Disney's Aladdin*


It has been a pretty slow week dog training wise. The weather was nasty (first it poured, then it snowed), one of my horses has a tear in one of her butt muscles, and my fibromyalgia has just not wanted me to participate in anything. Maizy has still been getting her walks and play time, but that's about it. The moral of the story? I don't really have much to write about on the "Fit Dog" front.

However, I figured this would be a good time to introduce you to REST of my animals - and while I don't have 75 golden camels (I really love Aladdin, okay?), I do have a fair number of creatures. I've already mentioned the horses a couple of times but that's just the tip of the iceberg...

Tavish and Jeckel are the first two animals my boyfriend and I got. I hated cats, but against my will my boyfriend brought home a wee black and white kitten who I quickly warmed up to. Jeckel soon became the light of our life and we realised we had a problem: There wasn't enough cat to go around! So "we" (aka, I said "Honey, we're going to pick up this cat tonight") adopted Tavish from a wonderful group call The Pride Rescue. Jeckel and Tavish are now five years old and they totally run the show. Jeckel is aptly called "Sir Hissypants" and Tavish is just so large that he doesn't really care about anything. Jeckel absolutely despises Maizy, but it's all bravado - he hisses, puffs up, and swats, but in almost a year he has yet to actually touch Maizy. Tavish, like I said, doesn't really care about much. He and Maizy even snuggle on occasion.

A terrible picture but here's Maizy and Tavish. Tavish is enormous.
Jeckel, aka Sir Hissypants. He is a very little cat.

And then there is cat #3, Bones. We did not want another cat, but he was outside our apartment crying (okay, howling) on a cold, damp November night. "He's not coming in" said the boyfriend, and then 30 minutes later I went and got him. He was hungry and scared, but otherwise in good shape. The original plan was to find a new home for him, but we all know how well that works! It's been almost two years since he joined our family. He and Maizy get along quite well and they love to play together - Bones loves to bite her, very gently, on the tip of her nose.

Bones and baby Maizy - "Can we be friends Mr. Cat?"

But oh no, we're not done yet. I have two "house horses" (rabbits) as well. They really are like having teeny little horses loose in your house. Spock was the original rabbit, and he came before Bones - if any Star Trek fans are reading, they'll get the connection. Spock loves the cats and hangs out with them regularly, just one of the boys. Last Christmas we decided he needed a friend of his own species, and that's where Lola enters. Her owner was no longer able to care for her, so she came home to live with us. Maizy and Lola are totally smitten with one another. Despite being bred as a hunting dog, Maizy is very gentle with the rabbits.

Spock on the left, Lola on the right.

Last but certainly not least, we have the horses. Horses have always been a passion of mine, and in 2011 I was lucky enough to buy my first horse. A few years later, I bought Calla as a "flip" horse - one that I would retrain and then sell. Well Calla is still in the barn and neither horse is going anywhere! Both horses are chestnut, Thoroughbred mares and both were formerly race horses. Due to my fibromyalgia I don't get to ride very often these days, so Calla is ridden and shown by a good friend of mine and my barn owner leases Lilly for her riding lesson program. I get on Lilly once a week or so and play around. Maizy definitely knows which horses are "hers" and it's not unusual to see Calla gently grooming Maizy. Calla loves ruffling Maizy's ears with her lips. Lilly is kind of a bitch, but she is also exceptionally well behaved and calm, so she is the horse that I use when Maizy and I go trail riding.

Lilly on the left, Calla on the right.

And then of course there is Maizy, who will be a year old on Saturday! Time certainly does fly when you are having fun. We'll be doing a birthday photo shoot on Saturday, so look out for that.

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