Dog sitting (and trying to learn patience)

"All we need is just a little patience." - Guns N' Roses

We watched the Feipel dog this past weekend. Actually, from Wednesday night until Monday evening. 

It went okay, but maybe lasted a day or three too long for me, and the poor dog. I mean, we got along okay, but, truth be told..... I'm a 'cat person.' It takes a LOT for me to tolerate a dog around me. Not that I don't like them, but they require a lot of attention and I don't have much to spare.

Jane did a good job of taking him for walks (she likes dogs). I would tie him out now and then, although I did take him out to his house a couple times to run around. Unfortunately he must not have understood, because he mostly just wanted back in the car for a ride.

Anyway, things weren't too terrible until the last night. The neighbors decided to light off some fireworks. The dog (Boone is his name) didn't seem too adversely affected by them, but for the rest of the night he was real skittish. He would growl or bark at seemingly nothing.... ALL THROUGH THE FREAKING NIGHT!!! I don't think I got a full hour's sleep the entire night, and at one point I'd had enough and, while he was in our bed and started barking, I went to just smack him, and I hit him pretty hard on the head. He got up and left the room. For the rest of the night. Of course then I felt bad. He avoided me the next morning too. I didn't really mean to hit him that hard, but I was plenty mad when I did it. Hopefully he's forgotten about it.

PATIENCE

The whole time we had him I was trying to be extra patient. I haven't always been aware that dogs have feelings too. I don't want to dislike them - and I don't, really - but I just don't have a great deal of patience. So I was trying. And, as is so often the case, I failed pretty miserably in the end.

I've been working through this 'Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Program' (which I would recommend). One of the '7 Essential Attitudes of Mindfulness Practice' is patience (The 7 are: Non-Judging, Patience, Beginner's Mind, Trust, Non-Striving, Acceptance, and Letting Go). Under Patience it says:

Patience is the ability to bear difficulty with calm and self-control. It requires connection with your core, faith and courage. It also requires kindness and compassion for yourself as you bear the upset of a situation. Impatience often arises when ego, the self-centered part of self, rails against reality, wanting things to be different than they actually are. In contrast, the wise self recognizes the truth that things have a life cycle of their own, separate from your own wants. As you learn to accept this truth, your patience grows. To build patience, you must learn to recognize impatience and the urge to rush through one moment to get to the next.

Yeah, I was pretty convicted by that as I walked through it again the day after the incident. All I can do now is acknowledge it, and move on.

Patience has always been an issue for me. I think largely because of its connection to control. I can't control when things are different than I want them to be, or than they actually are, and I want to!

So, that stuff happened. We watched the dog, I did alright for most of the time, then lost my sh*t. Life goes on. I'm trying to learn, and not be too hard on myself. I hope the dog forgives me.

***

 Proverbs 14:29

"Whoever is patient has great understanding,
but one who is quick-tempered displays folly."

 

A new grandpuppy

A new addition was welcomed into the family yesterday. The Feipel's got a puppy! His name is Boone. They adopted him through a rescue foster family.

We went out to the homestead and helped them welcome him to his new home. He seemed pretty content, and the kids were very excited. I'm not sure the cat knows what to think yet (she never seems too excited about anything).

I doubt anyone really knows exactly what mixture of breeds are present, but he's pretty darn cute right now. :)

Catnip

I like taking catnaps, but our cat LOVES catnip. We got Kitty a small toy animal that has a pouch for catnip as her Christmas present. She found it right away and went into 'crazy mode.' Her eyes got real big with this wild look, she started rubbing against the toy and chewing on it, and drooling all over the floor, and rolling around on the floor. She was kind of berserk for awhile... then she crawled up on the couch between Jane and I and curled into a ball and went to sleep. A couple hours later she repeated the cycle. I didn't realize that only 1/2 to 2/3 of cats even respond to catnip. Kitty is definitely one of them.

Here are some other facts I learned about catnip from the Humane Society, and a few other places:

• Catnip is a member of the mint family. It is officially known as Nepeta Cataria, and for cats who are sensitive to it it will turn even the most sedentary couch potato into a flipped out ball of ecstasy.
• The most intense catnip experience comes through smell. It is believed that it mimics feline "happy" pheromones. When eaten, however, catnip seems to have the opposite effect: the cat may become very mellow.
• Most cats react to catnip by rolling, flipping, rubbing, and eventually zoning out. They may meow or growl at the same time. Other cats become hyperactive, running around like their tails are on fire, and some get downright aggressive, especially if you approach them.
• Usually these sessions last about 10 minutes, after which your cat loses interest. It may take as long as two hours for him to "reset" and become susceptible to catnip again.
• A reaction to catnip is an inherited sensitivity. Again, an estimated 1/3 to 1/2 of cats don't respond or care about it. Also, kittens will have no response until they are between 3 to 6 months old.
• Catnip can also have a sedative effect on humans. Made into tea, it has calming properties similar to chamomile.
• Catnip also makes an excellent mosquito repellent. They say it is 10 times more powerful than DEET (the most widely used chemical repellent). However, it only lasts a few hours.
• You should store catnip in the freezer in an airtight container or bag to keep it fresh.
• Even though it may make your cat seem crazy, it is actually very good for cats. It is a healthy stimulant that helps keep your cat from becoming lazy and fat, and maybe even depressed.

So, there ya go. I think I'll give Kitty a catnip treat, and I will indulge myself with a catnap.