Thank you all for asking about Boots and Speck and Rita and the chickens. Here’s a quick update about them all.
The Chickens – They’re all fine. We still have too many. I’d love to get down to having less than 20. The Ancona (Italian leghorns) finally started laying. All the other chickens the same age had been laying for months. I told Vince I was giving them til spring and if they didn’t start laying, they were going in the gumbo pot but they’ve saved themselves. They lay kinda smallish white eggs that are pointed on the end. The Ancona egg is the middle one. They may get larger after the hens have been laying for a while, but I don’t know if the shape will change or not. There are three hens and they are all laying and all the eggs are smallish and pointed.
Eggs
Some folks will tell you that an egg that is more pointed than round will hatch out roosters and the eggs with more rounded ends will hatch out hens. I’ve never tested that theory but I don’t think it would be true when a certain breed of chickens is laying all pointed eggs. Maybe, if ever we want more chickens, I’ll check out that theory.
Speck
Speck
Old Speck . . bless his heart! He’ll be 15 in June. He’s totally deaf and it’s comical to watch because he’s learned to depend on Rita to give him clues as to what’s going on. When she gets excited, he gets excited .. he doesn’t have a clue why but if she’s excited, he thinks something good must be fixing to happen. When Rita wants to play, she gets right in his face and barks at him and he never realizes she’s barking. It’s weird that Speck still acts like a puppy in so many ways. He loves my neighbor and when she’s over, even before Rita showed up, Speck gets so excited. She will always say “Speck, you act just like a puppy!”
Speck is always by my side but the minute I walk out the door, he goes into his crate. I think he feels safe in there. I have no idea if he realizes he’s deaf or if he’s just enjoying the quiet.
He’s such a funny dog . . I guess like older humans, he’s really set in his ways. Because he’s trustworthy and Rita isn’t when it comes to going to the bathroom, I almost always take Rita out first and let Speck wait til Rita is done before I take him out. Every now and then Speck goes out first and then I take Rita but then, Speck is waiting at the door to go again because he thinks he goes out after Rita comes in. It’s easier to take him out again than convince him he’s already had his turn.
Boots – Everyone thinks their kitty is the most beautiful kitty around but honestly . . you have to admit . . Boots is the most beautiful kitty ever!
Boots
I am so happy to have these deep windows. Boots loves sleeping in those windows. There are three of them and he will move from one to the other, wherever there’s the most sunshine. He has such long hair . . silky, furry like hair, and it’s very thick. He’s always happy when I’m in the sewing room with him but I think he’s happy to see me go too.
Boots
I tried to take a closeup to show you the orange tones in his fur. The other kitty that showed up here with him, which I assumed was his brother, was an orange cat. As Boots gets older, I see more and more orange tones. Do you think he’ll ever be an orange cat?
Lastly, there is Rita. Oh, my .. Rita is a challenge. At least once a week Vince will say “I see why your previous owners dumped you!”
Rita
It’s been several weeks since she’s had an accident but it’s simply because I watch her like a hawk. I’m anxious to see how she and Vince do when I go to MO next. It’s a good thing it was his idea to keep her. If he had not wanted to keep her and I insisted, I would be in hot water. As far as chihuahuas go, I think she’s a good dog. She’s friendly and has never indicated a desire to bite or snap at anyone.
If I could remember to slide my chair under the table and never leave anything . . not even a stick of butter or a glass of anything . . on the table, and if she can prove trustworthy about holding it and not having accidents in the house, I think we’ll all make it together.
Boots
I’m sure our time is short with Speck. Dachshunds don’t generally live much past 15 years but, based on the vet’s estimate, Rita is about 1-1/2 years old now and since Boots came here as a little kitten in July, 2013, he’s coming up on 2 years old so those two should be around for a while.
Dottie N. says
Thanks for the critter update……We’re down to 1 kitty now (almost 17 – her brother (littermate) went to the rainbow bridge in December. She missed him as much or more than us but seems to have accepted that she’s an only child now, LOL. From having up to 4 greyhounds and 3 cats at one time, it’s quiet with just one.
Erin says
???? very happy to get an update! Speck is awesome! To adapt like he did to Rita is quite a blessing! Then Boots, boy, he is quite content as well as Rita! Great pictures! Thanks for sharing Judy!!!
Joyce says
It’s so good that Boots and Rita are healthy and happy now. You never know what kind of health issues a dumped animal might have. Boots looks so content in the window, and I love the picture of Rita snuggled in under the blankets. I’ll bet you are happy the two dogs made peace with each other too.
glen in louisiana says
Our animals have always lived long long lives. My lab Maxie was 14 when he had his stroke and he lived two years after that. He was totally deaf from the stroke and adjusted beautifully! He was my demo dog at my dog classes and he was trained in hand signals and voice, which came in handy after he went deaf.
He also had dementia in his last year. He would ask to go out, then wonder what he was out there for and come in. Then he would remember what he wanted to do and ask to go out, only to forget that fast again. Never ending circle!
god I miss that dog!
Sherrill says
I don’t remember Boots coming with a brother..what happened to him? Just never chose to be a part of the family? Will Vince put Rita in a crate each day when he leaves for work and you’re out of town? Or will she stay in the kitchen area? I love all your animal stories (well, most all–not worm stories! LOL).
Bev in Colo says
I love the pet stories, but honestly, I enjoy reading whatever you choose to write – except for the “worms”. If I realize that’s the topic, I’ll skim very lightly through it – just in case. Quilting, knitting, gardening, food prep, all the rest are all so enjoyable to read, and often you challenge me to try new things. You are such a “busy” lady and interested in doing and learning new things, makes for a fun read. That’s the best way to be! I have all your books and love the ideas with the border book. I’m planning to make one of your quilts this spring, will let you know.
Diana says
What precious babies! My oldest daughter just adopted a husky and of course he is named after our football team (Bronco). Bronco is just 8 weeks old and Denverdog (their yellow lab) is just not sure about this critter that has invaded her space in their pack. Its funny to watch them interact, as I saw a video of them today. Too cute!
Glad all your babies are all doing good and out of the stew pot at least for now. LOL
Tam says
So glad all the pets are content and you guys are happy with them. Warms my heart!
Susan says
I like the energy Boots displays, too.
Susan says
Love the pet stories. I lost my beloved kitty Manny a year ago. Our then 6 yo Fox terrier (Lexie) didn’t know what to do. We adopted a goldendoodle (Luna) in August – she’s now 7 months old and I’m thinking Lexie would prefer to be alone again LOL.
Luna has become a terrible counter surfer and just last weekend, I bought a Snappy Trainer…it’s a reconfigured mouse trap with a big plastic paddle that you put on the counter so when Luna “surfs”, she sets it off and it makes a terrible racket. It doesn’t hurt her ( I tried it on myself first), but it sure startled her and the surfing is MUCH better just after a few days. She’s figured out that she can still surf on surfaces where the Snappy Trainer isn’t so I may need to get a few more, but for now, it’s the best money I ever spent.