For the first time I hiked ALL the way up the hill to the point in the Glen Cove neighborhood of Vallejo where pme cam look down on the Carquinez Bridge and back at the toll plaza with Napa, Sonoma and Marin counties in one direction and Contra Costa in the other. Snoopy and Bonnie kept up incredibly well while tethered to each other on the tandem leash.
Somebody is afraid I’m going out for errands without her in a little while.
Snoopy and Bonnie freshly bathed. Nails clipped. Fur from the bottom of feet trimmed. Hair brushed. There was pretty extensive grooming of Bonnie, who has a very different hair texture. Ears are much shorter today for a fresh start, but they’ll grow back. Obviously, with her vision impairment, I try to keep her eyes as unobstructed as possible by maintaining it more than with most dogs I groom. Snoopy is very easy to maintain with his tuxedo coloring exposing his brown highlight undercoat.
Forgive the use of my baby voice in this video to go with this morning’s pictures, but look what a ham Bonnie is in particular. It’s like she knows she was posing for a portrait.
More family portraits from today:
The love fest between Bonnie and Snoopy continues indoors and outdoors daily. I’ve never seen a dog remove burs from another dog, but I witnessed Snoopy literally assisting to get them out of Bonnie’s fur after a walk. It makes me wonder if he understand she’s blind and needs the extra assistance, or if it’s just pure love.
Everyone should have one of these.
Today I officially adopted my Bon-bon. Bonnie joins Snoopy and me to become a part of my little family. She brings great joy to Snoopy and me and I’m happy I can take her on, give her the 14 eye drops (which aren’t free!) to help her with her limited vision every day for the rest of her life, and rehabilitate her little problem with growling at humans she is startled by when she first encounters them (unless they are right there with a treat, of course).
Months ago I had overheard something about her in an animal shelter board meeting shortly after losing my five beloved dogs in a fire in January. Two of them were also blind, as many of you know. She piqued my interest and when the dust sort of settled, I asked if I could at least foster her.
I must have done something right because she loves me so much. She is very affectionate and is very protective of me (perhaps too much). I cannot imagine life without her. She is almost always perfectly behaved when I take her places. Now I just have to work on her staying calm when we’re snuggled up at the house.
Another walk around the Westpointe development of the Glen Cove neighborhood in Vallejo, California. I love being able to see Mount Diablo from the top of the street and having such a safe path along the eucalyptus forest for the dogs to walk off-leash for a while.
Wonderful reunion with my friend and former co-worker Debra Dixon Anderson, who was pretty much my “work wife” for at least a year. I hung out with her and my friend James (aka Buck) and Debra’s REAL husband, Rick. Brought Snoopy and Bonnie to Montara beach (very dog-friendly) . I suspect it was Bonnie’s first time ever at the beach. She and Snoopy were perfectly behaved and stuck close to me even off-leash. I so enjoy showing people from the East Coast and other places who appreciate the beauty of where we live, and this was just a small sampling of one of my happy places. More pictures and edited video to come!
If I had been thinking correctly, I would have brought the beach chairs and waterproof folding blanket from my car, but still a wonderful memory that I will cherish.
