Fall is just around the corner...

Yes, I know it is still August, the hottest month in Texas, but yesterday morning it was 68! It felt like winter! True, I am desperate for something that feels cool on my skin, but it really did feel like a shift in the weather was coming. That will make today's 96 degree forecast more bearable. Don't worry by next month I will have stopped talking trash about the weather.
This has been a quiet summer by pet sitting standards. A downward shift in the economy always comes later to Texas, it seems, than the rest of the country. However, I have never, in 24 years, experienced a recession in this business until this summer. Business is off about 50 percent. My clients are all still with me, they just aren't going anywhere! Maybe I should get with a travel agent and offer cheap packages to my clients. Does this seem proper-Take A Vacation and keep your pet sitter employed!
  My own dogs and cats, 2 of each, eat a super premium, organic, holistic, human grade, very expensive food. They are high maintenance and would not appreciate, or eat, a lesser quality bag of kibble.
This is already too much ado about nothing, but I just realized I have not written about my own brood. Above from left to right my 2 dogs, Benjy and Charlotte, then my friend Melissa's girl, Penny, and  on top is Nemo, who spends half his week with me giving me 2 1/2 dogs technically. They are all doing what they do best. More about them next time.

A Pet Sitter's Flower Pot Rant

Did I mention it is HOT?(see previous posts). I am a pet sitter and my vocation and dedication is to the welfare of my client's pets. As an additional free service I will try to make sure your plants don't die from neglect while you are gone. In the Texas summer 2 things are a given. People will plant a lot of delicate flowers in pots, and these same people will then take a long trip in the hottest part of the summer.
 For me the most trying part of my job is not to walk dogs in the broiling Texas summer sun, it is watering all those outside plants, in pots mind you, in this heat. Many of my clients leave such detailed instructions for outside plant care that it rivals anything I have to do for their cats and dogs. Example-" In the back -Just water the 5 large pots for 2 minutes each, and the 8 smaller pots for 30 seconds each. The larger pots can be done every other day , but the small pots need to be watered daily, unless it rains. Don't forget to check the hanging baskets by the front door, there is a hose on the side of the house that will reach".  There are 50ft hoses that have to be dragged along and across pools to catch all the pots and hanging baskets, or I can fill the watering can 10 times from those same hoses-whichever is easier! It is miserable work and yes, I do charge extra if it is excessive but frankly, it is subjective, and few clients assume I will charge them for this, or offer to pay for it. The time I spend outside doing this is time I am not with their pets. This is my busiest season and I can't compensate for the time I must spend attending these plants. My little buddies have to get short -changed in the TLC department so that the flowers look good.
My solution- let them die while you are on vacation and go buy some new plants when you get home!

A Wonderful Old Dog!

Sometimes you meet a dog who is so lovely, and loving, that he, or she, will stay with you forever. Every dog lover should have one like that. If lucky, you may get another. Bailey was one of those dogs. This is not about health issues, or training, it is simply that they are so wonderful to be around, you cherish having had them in your life. She was a beautiful Golden Retriever and she loved her family, and me! In tribute to Wonderful Old Dogs, here is a picture of  our Bailey. She was always smiling.

Old Dogs-there is nothing we won't do

When her mother died, a dear client took in the old German Shepherd mix, 'Bella'(name changed) who had been her mother's beloved companion. Bella was about 12 when she came to live in the Turtle Creek high rise. The couple had a little 'Westie' who I had cared for several years. The dogs did well together and Bella had no problem adjusting to the elevator ride down to the parking garage and our walk out to the beautiful landscaped grounds.
When the wife went out of town she still had me come in to care for the dogs so that her husband could go to work without having to attend to them. This was fine, and not unusual.
It became apparent, after about a year, that Bella was going deaf. Not a big deal, it happens. The old dog somehow was always roused by the younger Westie so she came out to me soon after I entered the front door. Upon entering one morning, the younger dog came running, but not Bella. I called softly, but of course she could not hear. As it was quite early, I had the feeling that the husband was home, and probably sleeping. I made my way toward the master bedroom, where I knew Bella slept but she still did not appear. The bedroom was dark and, as I feared, the husband was in bed. There on the floor, near the head of the bed, Bella was sleeping soundly. Thinking about my approach to this 'delicate' problem, I finally got down on the floor and crawled along softly calling Bella-don't ask why- I have no idea. Probably I was hoping she would sense me and get up. The bed was far from the door and I slithered-I could do that then- along the floor until I reached her feet, which I tapped lightly. No response! Not wanting to startle her, as you easily can if they are deaf, I rubbed her feet gently. Still no response, so I moved closer along the side of the bed. In the dark I could tell hubby was turned away from the the dog, but was on that side. Finally coming up next to her, and in a sweat, I patted her shoulders, as I was stretched out next to her now. She finally opened her eyes and, started to get up. As I turned to crawl out of there as quickly and quietly as possible, in the dark I heard, 'Hi, Jeneva".
I never did know how long he was awake enjoying my heroic endeavor to get this old dog out of the bedroom, so I could do what I am paid to do. I think I just mumbled 'Hi John', and continued to crawl out. 
Old dogs are special, and a lot is required of us, after all free years of love and devotion we receive from them.

Summer Vacation

Summer vacation in Texas means get out of town. Head to a place that is cool,Canada, or by a coast (east or west). Since it is a particularly busy time for me, it is apparent that many people take this time of year to split. For me, it means more dogs to walk and more hours outside. Although it sounds tough, I have found ways to get my mind, if not my body, some relief. I have become an 'audiobookaholic'. While most people read a few books during those hazy, crazy days of summer, I am attached to my headset and barrel through 2-3 books a week. All the books by Steig Larsson -Done! Passages, the hit of the summer-34 hours of listening -Done! Numerous James Patterson, Dean Koontz thrillers, usually finished in 2-3 days, unabridged versions only.
Now the drawback is that while I am totally engrossed in the 'book-of-the-moment', a month from now I will have only a vague recollection of it, and three months from now I will be advised by Audible.Com, as I am trying to download a book, that it already exists in my library, and yes, I have heard it! Fortunately, I am not being tested, and it is more a comment on the fact that several authors write books that have very similar plots. Thank God for Audible's computer generated honesty! Well, back to the street and to strap on the old headphones for this afternoon.