Thursday, September 10, 2015
While Larry Fornari Sr. Park is not the substitute for Doris Leeper, we felt like we should give a proper name to the place where we take Henry to enjoy the smells of the people beach. This is the little area where the spot stealers were. The park is named after a former Daytona Beach Shores Mayor.
This little area is a great place for Henry since there are many sniffortunities, an area that is shady, and if we are lucky the area is quite enough that we can sneak him on the people beach. Fortunately we have had a good gut instinct with regards to the beach PO PO. We have not yet been popped by them. We are shooting for a clean record.
Henry did not really want to pose for a photo with the sign so we are using this photo where one can interpret that he is reading the sign for himself. Henry used to be a master poser but that is one of things that has gone away over the last year. He's still #HenryStrong to us, though even if he doesn't sit for photos anymore.
Wednesday, September 9, 2015
Sorry, Doris Leeper, we are done with you for a while. The last few walks at Doris Leeper park (one of our former faves) has been dropped from our rotation until winter. We were overlooking the tall grasses that started to grow in the center of the path, the possible homeless camp that seemed to be forming and whatever critters were digging holes all over. However, our LAST trip to Leeper will be our last for until we get a freeze around here (which could mean not until January 2020).
Here is the reason: bugs. Many many bugs. Swarming bugs. We are not even sure what kind of bugs they were. They seemed like a tiny moth. They definitely were not mosquitoes or flies. Who knows? They could have been termites in the pre-lose their wings phase. I kid you not, though, they were ALL OVER everything. Including us! And even Henry who tends to be oblivious to most things seemed downright annoyed. So, for now, Doris Leeper park is off the schedule.
#OBPOnTheHuntForNewPark #LeeperWasTooBuggy #IfThisWasAnElectionDorisTheIncumbentWouldBeVotedOutOfOffice
Tuesday, September 8, 2015
About a week ago we shared that Henry's protein levels had dropped and that we were working on tweaking his diet and meds to get him back on the right track. We are happy to share that his protein levels are on the rise. His poops have been better (still not ideal but good enough to be sure that he's building his protein intake). We will continue to stay on our current plan (which is easy to digest kibble and oily fish) and recheck his blood in 4 weeks. He had a decent jump in the 2 week time span so given 4 weeks, we expect him to be "normal" by next month. Paws crossed.
#HenryStrong #HenryYou'veGotThis #KeepBuildingYourProteinLevels #OurPlanIsWorking
Monday, September 7, 2015
Well, so far, so good. Your questions have given us ample subjects to cover! Keep the questions coming! And thank you!
Today's question is from Christine. She asked about our pugs' ability to go airborne. She indicated that some little puggy had stolen her cheese right off the counter top! Naughty naughty puggy! Now that is a pug with some spectacular jumping ability!
Christine, your little Vito has mad skills! Our Benny also had quite a proficiency for jumping! Actually, in a different post, I am now sadly regretful that I forgot to include an old favorite nickname we had given Baby Benny as a young pup. That nickname was Mexican Jumping Bean. Benny was quite the jumper! Whenever we were prepping in the kitchen he would just jump and jump and jump so that he could see what it was. He would get enough clearance to see it but he would not have the flexibility to grab anything (plus we would place it far enough back that there would be no way he could reach it). But he was quite the jumper! So, yes, Christine, we had one acrobat among them. The others would leap onto the sofa, but nothing like Benny would.
There was one time that Luna made a leap that almost gave the boys a heart attack. When I worked from home, my daily routine was to eat lunch in front of the television on the coffee table while watching SportsCenter. Since food was involved, the boys and Luna would happily sit next to me on the floor hoping to get any little bite they could. On this day I was eating a hot pocket and a salad (super healthy, I know). In the middle of lunch, the doorbell rang. I got up to get the door not thinking anything about leaving food on the coffee table. The boys would never dare to take food without permission and I assumed that newly adopted Luna would follow their lead. When I returned from the door I turned around to find lettuce all over the living room floor and Luna standing in the middle of the table just wagging her tail. Benjamin and Henry, were sitting nicely next to the table with terrified looks on their faces as they knew their sister was in a world of trouble. Knowing it was all my fault for leaving the food in such an easy to reach spot, I playfully fussed at Luna and put on her the floor. In a matter of minutes she managed to scarf down the last few bites of my hot pocket (the very best part, I might add) and rummage through my salad to eat all the bacon bits. She was so proud of herself!
Its not quite the same as counter surfing, but I have posted my all time favorite photo of the boys. Benny clearly catches good wind in this photo and this was typical Benjamin. He would fly through the air whether it be getting height off a sliding board or taking flight off the sofa or trying to jump on the counter tops. All of this seems so long ago since in his elder years he could no longer get up on or down from the sofa without assistance. #sigh
OBP signing off for week 7 of Ask OBP!
Sunday, September 6, 2015
Happy Labor Day everyone! Hopefully you all are celebrating the same way we are....by doing NO LABOR! Team OBP is taking a much needed long weekend this weekend! Enjoy!
Thursday, September 3, 2015
There was another question asked in a separate email by Martha and it came in a little late (insomnia anyone?). Martha asked if it is a pool table that is seen in the background of photos at the OBP home. And yes, Martha, it is! Sadly, it has barely been used and is probably the one and only true regret that we have about our home. This would be the formal dining room according to the blue print. We did not expect to "entertain" as much as we do and a dining room table, in hindsight, would be way more practical. If you all know anyone in the market that wants to buy it, tell them to email us. 
Now, you all have had a week long of lengthy blogs to read. So, I hope this short and sweet Friday was a relief! Monday is Labor Day and we will still have a post that day (but it will be short, too). So, for now, just have a great 3 day weekend!
Wednesday, September 2, 2015
Sue (Pen & Lucy's mom) asked about how Cupid's behavior has changed since Henry went blind and what she does during Henry's meltdowns. I have made this a full post since there is history that also needs to be told. So pull up a chair and get comfortable as the long windedness is about to begin.
I will actually answer the last question first since that is short. Cupid really just looks at Henry with cat disgust when he gets all anxious and melty. Sometimes she will go outside and as long as he does not invade her space during his tantrums she pretty much just rolls her eyes and ignores him.
Explaining Cupid's behavior, however, does require going back in time. When we first got Cupid it was just Cupid. She was the lone cat in the pre OBP household. Then a little while later she became a sister to Lou, a boy bunny. This did not thrill Cupid, but eventually she grew to be ok with him. When it was just Cupid and even when it was Cupid & Lou, Cupid was an extremely affectionate cat. Very loving. Very lap cat-ish. She was playful and friendly, welcomed guests and if you were allergic to her then she was even more attentive to you. And when we say playful, it did not take us long to realize that when the tag on her door at the pound read "plays with anything" it did not lie. We would have to tie our shoes in secret just so that we could get them tied at all. The laces were a thrill for her! But the coolest thing about Cupid that you don't see in most cats is that she played fetch! She didn't just fetch small toys, she fetched a full sized feather duster. It was crazy. She was 2 years old when we got her in 2000 and she was still such a kitten! For the best part of 2 years, Cupid and Lou alone ran the show. They were HAPPY! I have had many people tell me that they would get a cat IF they could be guaranteed it would be like Cupid. Cupid is truly awesome.
Enter Benjamin one day and Henry the next. Two small puppies full of energy and draining of a human's time and attention. This does not make for happy kitty. The rabbit was a bit better about this as he had been around quite diverse surroundings most of his life. Cupid was still sweet and loving but she stopped sleeping on our bed (since now the boys were there and dare they touch her!). We had to move her food bowl to a higher level otherwise THOSE DOGS would eat her food. So, she slowly started to resent them. The pugs took away her happy home as she saw it. Cupid was still a great cat but she is not so great that she's one of "those" cats that cozies up to dogs and hugs up to other "animals", as if! As the boys (and Cupid) aged she realized that Benny was really her problem. He was kind of a cat chaser (eh, he didn't so much chase her as he just wanted an uninterrupted opportunity to sniff her butt; really that is all he wanted, just a sniff and the sniff was never to be had). Poor Cupid. Poor Benny. And then poor Henry was guilty by default. He came along with Ben, looked just like him, smelled mostly like him, so from Cupid's vantage point, Henry was the same as Ben just minus the sniffs. Cupid would give the boys a whack or two, a moderate hiss, turn tail and run away. This left Cupid viewing her old favorite peeps as traitors. She would forgive us if we could give her some alone time. And she did get some when the boys slept (not on our laps).
Then we moved to Florida. Cupid was in hog heaven! In Maryland, Cupid was a house cat but sometimes went out on a leash. In Florida she now had a much bigger house, a screened in lanai where she could see stuff but the stuff couldn't get to her and then a fenced in back yard where she was pretty safe from most stuff. And she knew that if she needed to get away, she would run in through the pet door to get the lanai and if she needed to get safer, again, pet door to house. So, Florida has really agreed with her. The boys were less puppy like and mostly kept to themselves but she still never really came back to our laps or bed with us, though. But then we brought home Luna! Oh, this was about all she could take. She just constantly looked at us with an expression on her face that read "Seriously? ANOTHER one?" Yeah, sorry Cupid. Cupid really did not like Luna's bark. And in Cupid's defense, Luna's bark could be shrill. But for the most part, Luna didn't "bother" Cupid. Yet still, one more dog to take a lap and thus Cupid gets no lap.
We are up to Cupid, Ben, Henry and Luna. Enter Sol. That is really when the cat's head just started spinning. (Oh and Sol WAS a total cat chaser!) With the 3 she could not believe it and now this 4th one. She thought we not only plum lost our minds but that she was never getting a lap back. All she wanted was a lap. A lap. A simple lap. A dogless lap. A lap without dogs nearby even. But that was probably not going to happen again any time soon. So Cupid became a little standoffish. She was still friendly and loving but she was not always "on you" like she used to be. You could tell that she missed us though.
Ah, take a deep breath, go potty, get a drink of water. Do what you need to do and come on back because now we are getting into how Cupid's behavior has changed.
You see for the most part Cupid has ignored the pugs. Sure, every once in while they cross paths and someone runs the stop sign but for the most part it has been peaceful. But now, Cupid kind of picks on Henry. I am not sure if picks on him is quite the right term but she does instigate him. We are not entirely convinced that Cupid is fully aware that Henry is blind. For Cupid, the biggest change came when we uncrated Henry. Now that he has free roam of the house when we are gone means that she has to share her roaming space with an uncrated dog. The biggest thing that this means is that she has kind of turned into Ben! All's Cupid wants is to sniff Henry! Cupid will use Henry's sleeping time while we are gone to get in free sniffs. What happens, however is that this tends to do the worst thing! It wakes the sleeping dog! (Hasn't she ever heard the phrase, let sleeping dogs lie?) Here is the full scene: Henry is sleeping, Cupid gets up in Henry's face or ears and just starts sniffing him, Henry wakes up startled since Cupid's whiskers are tickling his whiskers and boom, he's awake! He wakes up with a jerk and this spooks Cupid who then baps at and hisses at Henry (who really is oblivious EXCEPT that he knows he's been awakened by something tickly). So, Cupid literally fusses at Henry for HER waking him up! It makes no sense. And it is not like she has only done this once or twice. She does this regularly. I watch her on the camera. She totally disturbs him with the intent on waking him up. But consistently she is surprised that she slyly awoke him and is MAD that he woke up and scared her. I have not pegged the reason for this. We have talked about this often. But we are just not sure of her motives. Does she want him to be awake? Is she just messing with him? Why would she do this so often? She has never seemed like a trouble maker before. And she has never really had anything against Henry. I am pretty sure she is not unhappy that B&L are gone. Henry only sometimes enjoys couch time so she is back to having a free lap and will even stay there if Henry is there. So it really truly is a mystery to us what her motivation is to wake him and ultimately scare her own self in the process. This is the way that she has changed the most. She's kind of a little troublemaker. And she's 17! That's like 96 in people years! How many 96 year old trouble makers do you know?! The only thing that we can consider is that she's just making up for all the years when she was so outnumbered. And it really has nothing to do with him being blind. If he bumps into something she just looks at him as if he is a stupid klutz not as a dog with a disability. But who knows? Maybe just him being blind makes her stomach churn.
I have often wanted to fuss at her over the camera (since the camera has 2 way sound) but in the off chance that Henry hears me fussing at her pre-waking him up then I am the one that has awoken the sleeping dog. He occasionally will sleep through her sniffs but it is rare. But if she gets fussed at she does head the warning. She is probably just bored. Grr.
Lastly, Cupid does not cut Henry ANY slack. If he bumps into her or steps on her tail or even gets in her path she will totally give him the cat business. Between bapping him when he runs into her and spitting at him when he steps on her tail, Henry really cannot catch a break in Cupid's world.#badkitty
#IsItTomorrowYet? #ThatWasLong #WhatWasTheOriginalQuestion? #MakeTomorrow'sPostShort
