“Remoted” Workday 204 / Day 310 (Wednesday)

Winston and Moose!

On Monday, the Lowell Humane Society had their “Poorly Drawn Pet Portrait” fundraiser and my two little guys had a portrait done from a photo. It’s awesome! It captures their spirit. Or a facet of it, anyway. 

Moose wasn’t limping today. He was also less barky, which is a facet of his personality that is often hidden when he is awake. These are both good situations, yet, worry seeps in that perhaps it’s because he isn’t feeling well and just lacks the energy required to behave in his usual vocally annoying manner.

A translation service for when Barky Bark is earnestly trying to communicate something to me would be helpful. Depending upon the time of day, I’m often reduced to tossing out guesses and comments like “Wanna go out?”, “Is the water bowl empty?”, “No, it’s not time yet,” and “For the love of God, shut the hell up!” Then, when I finally get my wish and he’s unusually quiet, when he actually has indeed shut up, the silence is unnerving and the monologue shifts to “Are you okay, Boo Boo? Does something hurt? What’s the matter baby boy?”

Winston has lately been displaying his more energetic facet, probably because he feels better with the insulin. This morning, for some reason, I forgot to give him his insulin shot while he was eating his breakfast. When he finished eating, he stood at my feet and stared at me until I snapped back to the routine and got him his dose.

Between his usual series of naps, Winston’s favorite game has returned. He stays out for what feels like a long time, and when I go outside to investigate, he is often in the furthest corner of the yard until I whistle and whisper yell for him to come in. Then, he charges at top speed diagonally across the yard and to the door. He is jumping a lot again, which is a sign he feels better, but also a concern since he jacked up his knee a few years ago and needed laser treatments. It triggered on and off problems that sometimes have him limping.

Such is the contradictory state of life and health with the Canine Overlords. Personal history has shown it is okay to act as a neutral observer and acknowledge that things are going better, but rarely safe to actually relax and enjoy it. That’s usually when everything shifts and random and costly vet bills show up.