Oddly Glad of Early Snow Back in October
Woke up this morning to find a dusting of snow on the ground -- not a lot, but its cold enough that it won't melt away by noon. And I find myself oddly glad that we had that early snow before Halloween, because Bel got to play in the snow one last time. Not that she actually *played*, per se, but she rooted around in the accumulation, such as it was, and came back in the house with snow on her nose. Bel always loved the snow. The first winter we were in the house, there were a couple of heavy snowfalls and lots of drifts -- Bel would eagerly launch herself from the mudroom steps into the drifts, almost submerging into the snow before popping up again.... she had so much fun that winter! When the spring thaw started, we stopped letting her out the mudroom for a while because we were afraid she wouldn't realize the snow was gone and hurt herself by landing on the concrete sidewalk. Like most of our other Chows, she liked to lay outside on the porch in the falling snow until her fur was covered in white and we teased her by calling her an Abominable Snow Chow (Jethro doesn't have the thick undercoat common to Chows and Chow mixes; he's not fond of the cold!)...
Having Jethro DOES help; the daily routine hasn't changed too much. Except for the lack of 1:30 a.m excursions. I treasure the memory of Bel's last fully mobile trip outside; she was still able to get to her feet by herself (though it was such an effort for her, I usually helped her if I saw it), and she came to the bedroom door at around 1:30/1:45 a.m. (pretty sure that was Saturday morning) and 'Boofed' at me; so I put her out the back door briefly, then she wanted in and got a drink of water. Next she wandered into the living room and wanted out onto the front porch -- okay, and by that time Jethro was awake and they both went out for a few minutes. It was chilly, but not cold, and we didn't have the furnace going yet, so why not? While they were out there, I sliced up the last bit of the week-old pot roast leftovers with a little gravy and potatoes -- there was enough that both of them would get about half a cup. Bel and Jethro both wandered back into the kitchen, so I went to close the front door and tune off the porch lights before giving them their 'midnight' snack -- Jethro's went into the communal kibble dish, and I hand-fed Bel hers. Then it was time for another drink of water, and I asked Bel if I could go back to bed now....Nope, it was time to go out the mudroom....
Usually, I'd put her out on the tie-out, and wait until she made it safely down the steps before going back into the house to clean up. That night, I remember she stumbled a bit, and I had to go down and untangle the tie-out; but she was on her feet again (with a little help), and going out into the side yard to piddle and maybe poop. She did seem a little unsteady; so I hurried my kitchen clean-up and put on my hoodie (was already wearing my Crocs) and went back outside to bring Bel back in.... she was looking at the mudroom steps, like she was considering an attempt to climb, but then she noticed me and turned around. But she didn't want to go up the ramp just yet. I figured it would would be safe enough to unhook her and walk her around the side-yard a little so we did that for a few minutes; Bel wasn't moving very fast, and after a bit she decided to sit, then lay down in the leaves under the Wildlife Refuge tree.
I took a chance: fetched the back porch tie-out, and hooked it together with the mudroom tie-out to make an extra long tie-out -- I was thinking Bel might want to wander around the back yard, too, when she got up. But she seemed content there in the leaves, so I sat down on the hunk of tree that was left from 2019's 'tree-fall' and we sat there quietly for about 5 minutes together. I made a comment about how Mars was bright tonight and hummed a bit of tune from Jeffrey Wayne's "War of the Worlds" musical which has always been a favorite of Husband and I, which we had just recently seen (again) on "The Shows Must Go On!"; and I think I spotted Jupiter, as well.... Like I said, it was chilly, but not cold. So after a bit, Bel started scrambling in the leaves with her front paws which meant she was ready to try standing up, so I helped her up, and hooked her up to the tie-out in case she wanted to walk a bit more. But no, she headed for the ramp so I followed her up and back into the house, then while she got a drink of water (again), I replaced all the tie-outs, gave Jethro a treat and a quick trip out the back, gave Bel a treat, let Jethro back in --- and went back to bed, finally at 2:45-ish. Good thing it was the weekend!
Like I said, I treasure the memory of that quiet early morning with Bel. She was still (mostly) mobile, still eating (small amounts, true) and wasn't in pain or distress; she even gave me a bit of sass, and grumbled at Jethro like always. And even though I'm crying a little right now, I'm quietly happy that I was able to indulge her even just a little, before things went downhill so fast.
Having Jethro DOES help; the daily routine hasn't changed too much. Except for the lack of 1:30 a.m excursions. I treasure the memory of Bel's last fully mobile trip outside; she was still able to get to her feet by herself (though it was such an effort for her, I usually helped her if I saw it), and she came to the bedroom door at around 1:30/1:45 a.m. (pretty sure that was Saturday morning) and 'Boofed' at me; so I put her out the back door briefly, then she wanted in and got a drink of water. Next she wandered into the living room and wanted out onto the front porch -- okay, and by that time Jethro was awake and they both went out for a few minutes. It was chilly, but not cold, and we didn't have the furnace going yet, so why not? While they were out there, I sliced up the last bit of the week-old pot roast leftovers with a little gravy and potatoes -- there was enough that both of them would get about half a cup. Bel and Jethro both wandered back into the kitchen, so I went to close the front door and tune off the porch lights before giving them their 'midnight' snack -- Jethro's went into the communal kibble dish, and I hand-fed Bel hers. Then it was time for another drink of water, and I asked Bel if I could go back to bed now....Nope, it was time to go out the mudroom....
Usually, I'd put her out on the tie-out, and wait until she made it safely down the steps before going back into the house to clean up. That night, I remember she stumbled a bit, and I had to go down and untangle the tie-out; but she was on her feet again (with a little help), and going out into the side yard to piddle and maybe poop. She did seem a little unsteady; so I hurried my kitchen clean-up and put on my hoodie (was already wearing my Crocs) and went back outside to bring Bel back in.... she was looking at the mudroom steps, like she was considering an attempt to climb, but then she noticed me and turned around. But she didn't want to go up the ramp just yet. I figured it would would be safe enough to unhook her and walk her around the side-yard a little so we did that for a few minutes; Bel wasn't moving very fast, and after a bit she decided to sit, then lay down in the leaves under the Wildlife Refuge tree.
I took a chance: fetched the back porch tie-out, and hooked it together with the mudroom tie-out to make an extra long tie-out -- I was thinking Bel might want to wander around the back yard, too, when she got up. But she seemed content there in the leaves, so I sat down on the hunk of tree that was left from 2019's 'tree-fall' and we sat there quietly for about 5 minutes together. I made a comment about how Mars was bright tonight and hummed a bit of tune from Jeffrey Wayne's "War of the Worlds" musical which has always been a favorite of Husband and I, which we had just recently seen (again) on "The Shows Must Go On!"; and I think I spotted Jupiter, as well.... Like I said, it was chilly, but not cold. So after a bit, Bel started scrambling in the leaves with her front paws which meant she was ready to try standing up, so I helped her up, and hooked her up to the tie-out in case she wanted to walk a bit more. But no, she headed for the ramp so I followed her up and back into the house, then while she got a drink of water (again), I replaced all the tie-outs, gave Jethro a treat and a quick trip out the back, gave Bel a treat, let Jethro back in --- and went back to bed, finally at 2:45-ish. Good thing it was the weekend!
Like I said, I treasure the memory of that quiet early morning with Bel. She was still (mostly) mobile, still eating (small amounts, true) and wasn't in pain or distress; she even gave me a bit of sass, and grumbled at Jethro like always. And even though I'm crying a little right now, I'm quietly happy that I was able to indulge her even just a little, before things went downhill so fast.