Does anyone know what the loudest sound on earth is? No, it is not a million jet planes taking off at the same time, right overhead. No, it is not the detonation of the most powerful and devestating bomb invented by man. The loudest sound on earth is Elvis, Molly, and their Dad SNORING at 4 in the morning while I am trying to catch some beauty rest! THAT, my friends, is the loudest sound on earth. In stereo.

S and I went to the windy city for Thanksgiving. We left our tiniest children in the capable hands of our neighbor, George, who fed them lots of good fruity treats, kept their water cool and fresh, and patted their little rodent heads each day. No free range, time, however, because I wanted to come home to as many little critters as I'd left behind.
The dogs I left with Elvis' trainer. "Good," I thought, "She will keep them in line. She'll make Elvis continue with his drills, make him sit before meals, not let him up on the furniture." Oh, how wrong I was. When I went to pick up the kids this morning, the trainer showed me pictures that she'd taken of the beasts - Molly on the couch, Elvis on the couch WITH HIS FOOD BOWL IN FRONT OF HIM....the list of naughty behaviors that those bad trainers encouraged goes on...They let the dogs sit on their laps...When I asked the trainer about it, she said, "You signed up for boarding, not board and train." and "You were on vacation, so they got to go on vacation."
I'm quite happy that the doggies were so well cared for - they hardly knew that they were being "boarded" and in fact were never put in a crate at all - she gave them free roam of her house. But now they are home, with rules and limits, they are feeling quite abused. In fact, Molly keeps asking to go home to her "new Mommy."
Ungrateful!

A SHAWNEE INDIAN TALE

Long ago the Great Spirit came to man and placed him above all the creatures on earth. Man was given the task of protecting these creatures in the absence of the Great Spirit, so he was given the power to talk and understand all the languages of the animals.

After a long absence from earth, the Great Spirit came back to see how man was getting along with the animals and he found that man had begun catching the fish and eating them. The Great Spirit became angry with man and said, "I am angry, but I understand your need for food. I will allow you to eat the fish when you are hungry." So saying this, the Great Spirit went back to the heavens.

Time passed, and the Great Spirit returned a second time only to find that man had begun to hunt deer, and bear, and buffalo to eat, and man was using their hides to make clothing and tents. Again, the Great Spirit became angry with man. "I am unhappy to see that you are killing more of the animls I have given you power over, but I understand your need for food, clothing, and shelter. Never kill more than you can use." Once more, the Great Spirit returned to his home in the clouds.

Several years passed before the Great Spirit returned to earth for the third time, but when he returned this time he found man had taken two fowl and had trained them to fight each other for his amusement. Seeing this, the Great Spirit became very angry and called together man and all the fish, fowl, and animals to hear him speak.

"I have given man the power to understand and talk with you so he could care for you when I am gone. Man has misused this gift by killing you and now he is using you for his amusement. I am removing man's power of talking with you, and from this day forth you shall turn your back on man and you shall be afraid and run from him when you see him in the forest."

As all the animals turned away from man a small voice spoke softly, "I cannot. I need man's touch. I want to be near man...may I stay with him?"

The Great Spirit looked down on the small animal with sorrow and said, "Man will not understand you or return your love and loyalty. He will not always take care of you. The other creatures will no longer trust you if you stay with man, and they will run from you, too. Are you sure you want to stay with him?"

"I am sure," said the little animal. "I will be content to talk at man's side."

.......................And so it was that dog chose man.

Perhaps I should explain the pictures I posted last night. No, Elvis did not break into the ratty condo and eat his sisters. He is only trying to bond with the family - he reads the paper with Dad and then shreds it with his little sisters. Our little barn dog who never lived in a house before is coming around quite nicely. Now...if only I could get him to bond with me while I clean up the house....
After two succesive rounds of basic obedience (for which he won the blue ribbon his last time around) and several months of private sessions with an animal behaviorist (educated at Cornell - only the best for the King) Elvis has been allowed to join "Hound Happy Hour." Hound Happy Hour is a play group for dogs run by said behaviorist. Happy Hour helps Elvis to socialize with dogs and people and will boost his self confidence. After only three happy hours Elvis has gone from standing completely still in front of the door waiting to get out, to zooming around the room, greeting people and running with the other dogs. The people who have been through classes with us and at the first happy hours can't believe his progress. We are really proud of our boy. He is even starting to play at home - he throws his toys around and then jumps after them, play bowing and flopping around like a normal, happy boy. The behaviorist wasn't sure that he would ever play...but he is!!! Now we are going to try to get him to play with us.
Oh! He now eats in front of us and with our other dog, Molly. He used to not eat unless he was alone in a room and in his crate. He is now confident enough to eat his dinner in the kitchen with the rest of us. He has also given Steve several kisses and now, when we lie down on the floor, he comes right over, lies down next to us and rolls over for a belly rub. We even get some nuzzles once in a while.
It is so satisfying to see this dog gain confidence and act like...a dog. He was such a scared mess when we brought him home, and totally mistrustful of us...and so....naughty!
He is still naughty...but now he's blue ribbon naughty.

Yesterday I made a big mistake...a BIG mistake. I washed the ratty linens (you know, the old towels, fleecey sleeping bags, fuzzy hammocks, the little scraps of felt they use to build their nests with...) with a few of my shirts and jeans. PEEEEUUUUUUUU. My clothes came out of the dryer with a less than clothesline fresh scent. I asked my husband to smell my shirt - for confirmation, you know. He innocently sniffed my shoulder and said, "It smells like dryer sheets and....rat bedding." Ugh!
Then, of course, I made ANOTHER mistake and wore the rat poo shirt hiking. I thought that with time the fresh air would take away the smell, but nope. No such luck. I smelled rat poo for miles.

Also, Vivi, Acorn and Mary would like me to officially thank Rats and Cats for introducing me to the idea of feeding the ratties corn on the cob. They loved it.

We have been tagged by Animal Magic (imagine that I know what I'm doing and inserted the link here). Here are the rules: The player of this game starts with "5 wierd things/habits about yourself." In the end you need to choose 5 people to be tagged and list their names. The person who gets tagged must write a blog about their 5 wierd things/habits, as well as state the rules clearly, then tag five more victims. Don't forget to leave your victim a comment that says, "You're tagged," and tell them to read your blog. Since I have five furries, I figured that I would list one wierd thing about each. Here goes!
Molly's eyes are powerful magnets that draw all humans toward her. Once under her spell it is impossible to walk past her without falling to her paws and worshipping her, even if it means that you will be late for work. (Molly will soon be celebrating her 1 year adoption anniversary with us)
Elvis (who just won the BLUE ribbon in his obedience class) has a little problem with substrates. He is fine on a carpeted floor, fine on a hardwood floor, fine on a laminate floor, etc...but...when asked to walk from the carpet to the laminate floor, or from the wood floor to the carpeted floor....he slowly creeps to the doorway, then DASHES back toward the other end of the room...sloooowly creeps to the doorway, then RUNS MANIACALLY to the other end of the room....slooooooooooooooowly creeps to the doorway, tip-toes ever so carefully on to the new surface, then RACES through the new room. What a goof.
Mary DOES NOT STASH FOOD!!!!! That I see. Ace sleeps on her side, in a kidney shape, with her tail curled in front of her. She holds her tail with both hands and rests her chin on her tail's tip. Unfortunately, I have not been able to catch this cuteness on film.

Olive often rests in the position of a sphinx, with her hands clutched in little balls.

I tag Kelsea and Yummy (imagine again that I have inserted their links. Kelsea and Yummy, if you choose to do this, please leave your links in the comments here). All of our other fuzzy friends have been tagged already!