I have been awake since 2:30 in the morning, my back complained when I tried to sleep. I declared this a Total Fuck-Off Day; I am watching movies and crocheting, and I may have opened a beer already. (Since I've been awake since 2:30, it's evening for me.) And then I think the dogs and I shall go take a nap. We have had a full day already.
Murphy went to the groomer today. The background story is that I had a wild idea of growing out his coat. In his youth he had a really nice silky coat that rarely matted. I started cutting it short when Dudley came to live with us, because as a puppy he would win toy battles by grabbing a mouthful of Murphy's hair and pulling until he surrendered, and that was an unfair advantage. Murphy did start his life with the perfect silk coat, but those days are gone, it seems. I don't know if this coat change is due to age or some other factor. He's very healthy and eats premium food, so I'm thinking it's just due to "maturity." I'm going to add some nutritional supplements like fish oil to his diet to see if we can get that lovely coat of his youth back, but if not, he'll be kept clipped short. Because today, for the first time in his nearly 8 years, the groomer had to give up trying to de-tangle him and shave him. I'd just spent an entire evening brushing out tangles and bathing him and brushing him again, just a few days ago. He looked like a neglected mess in 48 hours, and by the time he got to the groomer's today, he was a disaster.
I swear he knew his coat was a mess and it was depressing to him. He seems to LOVE his new haircut, and I will respect him by keeping him scissored short (though not THIS short, he looks a bit like a bobblehead from some angles) from now on. Even the groomers remarked that he was lively and happy after his buzz cut, and he came home and ran around with Dudley like a crazy puppy instead of a mature gentleman of 8.
I've been saying all along that the dog was all hair and was actually tiny, here's proof: Look how small he is next to a 22 lb. Boston Terrier:
So much for those who mocked my dog and called him a fat little Butterball. When I said it was really all hair, certain people (my darling children) called me delusional. Well, there's proof that a little bitty dog was under all that hair.
I think I like him better like this. I know he likes himself better this way.
Oh he is just a wee bit of a thing. But beautiful just the same. Lovely conformation.
ReplyDeleteCan you believe it? I forgot to check my horoscope for March! Ah well. I'll take a peek right now.
cheers
He's actually a tad larger than breed standard, which tops at 7 lbs., which is why he is mine. His grandparents were champions, but somehow the breeder held him up when he was about the size of a hamster and decided he wasn't destined to be show material. And she was right - his mature coat is not as silky as it should be, and he's a tad large. But yeah, nice body, great head, perfect breed personality, excellent health - so I'm not complaining!
ReplyDeleteDude- you felted him!
ReplyDeleteYeah, it IS like he's felted - he's smaller and has a velvety soft surface.:-)
ReplyDeleteThis comment isn't so much about this post, but about previous posts. We just sold our house in Ohio in less than 90 days... even with OHs crappy foreclosure rate and halted real estate market. The caveat is that we didn't make one dime off the sale, and in fact lost a few thousand bucks. But it sold and not at a totally unreasonable price, so if you really want to do it you can...but if you want/need to make money on it you are most likely in for a LONG wait. We know someone here in the Cleveland area (our new home) who's house has been on the market for 13 months with several price drops. He is now at his rock bottom and hasn't had an offer in over 6 months, but with all the foreclosures priced at like $60-100k around here he's not very hopeful.
ReplyDeleteOur first offer was $40k below a very underpriced list. Yikes! Anyway, we were running on two mortgages so we felt like it was better to just cut our loss and move on. Luckily my new job (reason for the move) came with an enormous raise so we could afford to do it this way. It's not at all what we had hoped would happen, but we are no longer paying two mortgages and will recover our loss quickly. Hopefully it all works out for you, too.
I've been watching the market and I am prepared to start low, and can afford to go a bit lower, but not THAT much lower. I need to walk away with a bit of start-over money, particularly if I'm facing an uncertain job market wherever I go. I've owned this place for 12 years, so even though the market is rough I should still be able to walk away with a few bucks. Not enough for a downpayment on something else, but a few bucks.
ReplyDeleteCatherine, I hope March treats you well.
ReplyDeleteThose fuzzy little dogs are mostly hair. Even at seven pounds he's pretty little.
ReplyDeleteMay Spring be a nice big turn around for you.