At 5:30, Grace was back in her bed. At 7:00, Grace went out to the park. No dogs were there. We went for a short walk. Then I realized I had forgotten to bring a ball for her. We went back home, and I picked up two while Grace was leashed on a fire pipe handle.
Morning Play and Wait
When we returned at 7:15, Abby and the Pekingese were already there. I let Grace off the leash once we crossed the road. She ran up and let herself through the unlatched door. Grace and Abby chased and wrestled. Grace got up some speed, but not her fastest as she swiftly evaded Abby. I wondered whether or not she would damage her tissue involved with the limp.
At 9:10, we left Grace home alone as we left for church. When we returned at 12:35, Grace was on her perch. We greeted each other with enthusiasm. At 12:55, Grace had enough waiting. I took her outside for a short walk before lunch.
Food
When we returned fifteen minutes later, Grace had a small amount of cheese while I ate my salad. At 1:30, Grace had her large Kong with Blue Buffalo topped off with peanut butter. As we ate our lunch, Grace sat next to me and waited patiently.
At 2:00, Grace did tricks for fish. She still wanted more. I loaded her small Kong as I did with the large one earlier. That was all she needed. Betsy gave her a dental chew for good measure.
Fresh Air
After she finished it at 2:30, Grace went back to her perch. At 2:55, she went out to the balcony. When she returned inside five minutes later, Grace waited for Betsy to take her out. At 3:05, they headed out to the Grace Beach area.
The water was too cold, but Betsy led her out into the level field. There Grace met up with some Beagle puppies. She enjoyed chasing them in the open field. One had a fish head. Grace tried to get it from him, but as Grace ramped up the intensity, Betsy decided to stop her and put the leash back on her. At 4:00, Grace came home and happily greeted me on the way to the balcony.
At 4:25, Grace spotted Peaches in the park. We raced down to meet her. They played independently — chasing after different balls. When Abby came in and Peaches left, Abby pursued Grace with the ball and tried to engage her in some wrestling. Grace was more interested in hanging on to a ball. When Sadie came in, the usual dynamic emerged. While Abby and Sadie wrestled, Grace chomped the squeaky ball rapidly.
After they wrestled for about fifteen minutes, Abby took the ball and Grace took a turn with Sadie. Grace enjoyed using the hollow log as a barrier between her and Sadie. As Sadie moved toward her, Grace moved to the other side. Then she would dart over to the bench and play the same game there before going back to the log. After some more dodging around the log, suddenly, Grace darted out to attack Sadie and then run. At 5:25, the dogs left. Despite all of the running she did today, Grace showed no evidence of her limp. Five minutes later, Grace returned home and went to the balcony.
Eat and Nap
At 5:35, Grace came inside, ate her supper, and went to the kitchen. At 6:00, Grace had a treat and went down to the table. At 6:45, Grace let out a groan and moved to curl up in her bed. Fifteen minutes later, when Betsy returned, Grace greeted her. Then Grace went out on the balcony for a minute, came inside, and returned to her bed.
At 7:25, Grace lifted her head and let out a few soft groans before putting her head back down and settling back into her nap. Five minutes later, Betsy got some food out of the pantry. The sound of cellophane was enough to stir Grace into action. She got up and went to the kitchen for her obligatory treat. Betsy gave her a single light treat.
Then she brought a bowl of popcorn to me. Grace said she had the munchies and joined me in the chair. When we finished sharing the popcorn, I tested how long she would tolerate us being together. After about five or ten minutes, she gently pushed me off. She said she needed her space and that we need to have a long-distance relationship.
At 7:45, Grace went back to her perch. At 8:50, Grace returned to her living room bed. At 9:15, Grace went out for the last time. When she returned fifteen minutes later, she went straight to her bed. I went to mine a few minutes later.
Monday
At 3:30, I stopped by her bed and softly stroked her a few times before returning to bed. A 6:50, the alarm clock sounded. I got up and began getting dressed. Strangely, Grace remained curled up in her bed nearly motionless.
Morning Greetings
As I continued dressing, Grace perked up her head, then got up and stretched, approached me as I knelt to greet her, and walked right by. She headed to the bedroom and whimpered. As Betsy spoke to her, Grace jumped up on the bed. There she exchanged affections with Betsy with her tail wagging swiftly.
After a minute, she came back into the foyer and gave me her usual warm greeting. After a couple yawn/stretch moves, she gave me a couple of air chomps. We then headed out into the clear, but cold (mid-twenties) morning. As usual, the temperature had no noticeable effect on Grace.
Park Play
As we approached the park, Grace barked. She saw something different inside. A dog-sized piece of black landscaping cloth, routinely torn from beneath the wood chip floor by Abby, had blown against the fence. Once she went inside to investigate, she understood what it was and moved on from it. Since no friends were there, I took Grace out for a walk.
Grace ventured farther away than usual and continued her rather disgusting practice of searching for and eating dog dirt. This has been going on since she had the bad reaction to the pill. I need to break her of this again. After fifteen minutes, we returned to find Sadie in the park. Grace and Sadie wrestled and ran a little but mainly focused on the balls.
When Sadie left at 7:40, Grace played ball with me. I’d been wanting to teach her the left and right commands but hadn’t gotten around to it. Then I realized that I could say the word when I played shortstop with her. We did that repeatedly. That will allow me to work on a command while we play.
Busy Morning
When we returned home at 8:15, Grace had her breakfast. She went on the balcony only long enough to turn around and come back inside. She then jumped up on the chair for her morning nap. At 10:30, we left to take some paperwork to the Town of Cary. The workers there were happy to see her. Grace put her paws up on the counter and they gave her treats. Grace also did tricks for them.
At 11:30, we left and make a couple of quick stops before returning home at noon. Grace went straight to the balcony. While the temperature was still a cold 38 degrees, Grace was able to lie on the lounge chair and soak up some sunshine. At 12:20, she saw a black dog walking below and barked. I calmed her as we watched the dog walk out of view.
Alarming Experience
Grace came inside and curled up in the chair. At 1:10, Grace went with me running around the complex. When we returned at 1:45, Grace went to the living room chair as I showered.
At 2:00, I burned some toast setting off smoke detectors throughout the house. It made my ears ring. The alarm upset Grace. She came into the kitchen and looked at me for help. She tried to avoid the noise. I searched for a room away from the noise, but they all seemed to be sounding. The only refuge was the balcony, but by the time I went there, the alarms had stopped.
Recharging
At 2:15, when I finished my food, I gave Grace Blue Buffalo topped with scrambled eggs. As I cleaned up, Grace wanted a little something else. I gave her a half of a dog cookie. After five minutes Grace was back asking for more. I gave her another half. That satisfied her. When she finished she went to her perch. At 3:10, she came into the living room and got into her bed for a nap.
At 4:00, I made myself a sandwich. Grace came into the kitchen asking for something. I gave her a small Kong with her duck and peanut butter. When she finished, she lay under the dining room table as I finished my sandwich. When I went to the sofa, Grace followed me to lie in her bed at my feet.
Play and Eat
At 4:50, we went to the park. We played ball for ten minutes until Sadie came in. Grace and Sadie wrestled and chased each other with high energy. They enjoyed playing with each other for about a half hour. After Sadie left, Grace played ball. We again practiced left and right commands.
When we came inside at 6:00, Grace greeted Betsy, had her supper, and then curled up in her bed. When I put some cheese on my salad, Grace came by to let me know she would like some too. After I gave her some, we sat down to eat. Grace sat between me and Betsy and watched us as she waited for her scraps.
At 6:30, she did tricks for chicken scraps. When she finished, Grace wanted more. I gave her a doggie treat. She finally gave up in the kitchen at 7:00 and settled back in her bed at my feet. When I left the room, Grace stretched out on the sofa that I had just vacated.
At 9:10, Grace went out for the last time. When she returned at 9:20, she curled up in bed. I finally went to bed at 9:45.
Tuesday
At 4:30, Grace was in her bed. I stroked her softly before returning to bed. When the alarm clock sounded at 7:00, Grace stayed in her bed. Betsy got up and greeted Grace there. I greeted her still in her bed ten minutes later.
Morning Exercise
At 7:15, Grace went outside. Abby was already in the park. She raced to see her. They chased and wrestled for about thirty minutes. Grace especially liked using the hollow log and the bench as obstacles around which to evade her opponent.
When Abby left, Grace played ball for a few minutes. Then we went out for a walk. She found some crushed crackers in the parking lot and ate them. Next, Grace moved to the building. Grace likes to move up against the building and behind the shrubs. I dropped the leash to make this more manageable.
Grace also went to the courtyard and jumped back up on the grille. There she ate morsels from the cleaning brush. Although I did my best to stop her from jumping down on the concrete, she did it anyway. At least this time she didn’t slip and didn’t appear to aggravate the injury associated with the former limp.
At 8:15, we returned to the park. As we passed the door, Grace looked back at me so sweetly, I couldn’t pass it by. We played ball for fifteen minutes before going home.
When we returned, Grace had her breakfast and settled into her bed for a nap. At 9:30, I noticed that rain was on the way. I told Grace we were going for a run. She knows now that until I’m fully dressed, and have her leash, there’s no need for her to rush.
Office Treat and Recharging
She was right. It took me fifteen minutes to load some MP3 files. We left at 9:45. Grace ran with me fairly well but still stopped to chew sticks and to sniff around more than I would have liked. When we returned home, I picked up some package tracking information, and we left for the apartment office. I told Grace we were going to get a treat. She knew all about that. When we arrived, Grace went straight to the treat jar.
After we picked up the package and returned home at 10:40, Grace went to the living room chair and settled down for her morning nap. At 12:15 Betsy came home and greeted Grace with tummy rubs. When I finished my meal at 12:30, Grace had her usual half-cup of Blue Buffalo topped off with scrambled eggs. When she finished, she curled up in her bed for more serious napping.
Banking
At 1:05, as I prepared to go to the bank and the gas station, Grace perked up her head. She acted like she wanted to go with me. I invited her, and she came. Our first stop was a credit union drive-through. The teller saw Grace and asked if she could have a treat. I said yes. When we finished the transaction, they sent Grace her treat which she thoroughly enjoyed.
Our next stop was the gas station. The weather was wet and windy. Grace decided to get out of the car anyway. She mainly just sniffed around looking for something to scavenge. When we finished, Grace got in on the passenger side of the car because her paws were wet. We went on to the next bank. There they had a virtual teller that could not give treats.
Quiet Evening
When we returned home at 1:55, Grace went to her bed. That’s where we left her when Betsy and I left to go to a memorial service. At 6:15, when we returned home, Grace was lying in the chair. She was almost invisible there. Betsy greeted her first. I followed, gave her a light treat and told her “Good bye-bye.” I took her for a walk. Despite the fact that she hadn’t relieved herself since the morning, Grace had no urgency.
When we finished our walk, Grace came inside, stretched out on her sofa, and took a nap. At 9:00, she was dreaming. Ten minutes later, she awakened and shifted positions. At 9:35, we went out for the last time. The rain was a mess. At 9:40, Grace went straight to bed.
Wednesday
Although the alarm clock sounded, Grace did not leave her bed. Betsy finally got up and greeted Grace. Grace responded with wags and kisses. When they finished, I came in. Grace was waiting to greet me good morning too with lavish kisses.
Soggy Morning
It was raining. I had to use the umbrella. We left at 7:00. As we passed the park, it was empty. After a short walk, despite the rain, Grace went to the park. After washing the balls and replacing the water, I joined Grace for some more catch. Because the ground was wet, I tried to keep the game in the catch mode. We continued to practice the use of the left and right commands.
As the rain died down, at about 7:30, Sadie came out. Grace and Sadie played a couple minutes. Then, Abby showed up. That set up the normal arrangement with Grace watching and chomping on a ball. Both Sadie and Abby left after about fifteen minutes. By then, Abby especially looked like a muddy mess — despite the relative care Sadie took to stay out of the mud.
Recovery and Ride
When we returned home at 8:05, Grace had a shower followed by a treat and her breakfast. When she finished, Grace went to her bed for a nap. At 10:00, we left for the Town of Cary to get our building permit. When we returned home at 11:30, Grace settled into her bed. Betsy came home early at 12:20 and greeted Grace. At 1:30, after I finished my meal, Grace had her duck with scrambled eggs luncheon.
When I finished, I went to the bedroom to get some peace. After a few minutes, I noticed that Grace came in and lay in the spot where her bed used to be. I brought her bed in, put it there, and had Grace climb in. After a few minutes though, she moved on to her perch.
Missing Bed
At 3:00, as I headed out the door, Grace came to the foyer. She wanted to go with me. We dropped off a couple of packages at the UPS store. The man behind the counter asked the name of the dog. I told him “Grace.” After a short stop to pick up something, we returned home. When we arrived at 3:40, Grace was disturbed. Her bed was gone. She curled up in a tight ball on her sofa and sulked.
Betsy went to the bedroom, retrieved her bed and moved it back next to the sofa. When I got a light snack, Grace came into the kitchen. I gave her a doggie treat and some light treats as I ate. When she finished, she went to her bed.
Evening Romp
At 5:00, Grace went out to the park. As we approached, Abby entered. Grace and Abby never really mixed it up much. Abby had the prized ball first. Grace acted aloof as Abby taunted her. It turned out Grace was playing a trick on Abby. She was keeping an eye out from afar. When Abby left the ball unattended for a moment. Grace took it. She held it most of the time to Abby’s disgust.
Finally, on a fetch, Abby beat Grace and took the ball back. After a few minutes, I pulled out one of Grace’s balls. She played catch with it until Abby decided that ball was more fun. When Abby took it, Grace took the prized ball back. They played independently until 5:30, then they both went in.
Lazy Night
The wet, cold, messy day required Grace to take another shower to get the mud off of her feet and legs. She followed my voice command to take a bath. When she finished her bath, she had a treat followed by her supper. Grace then settled into her bed. We left Grace home alone at 6:10.
When we returned at 8:45, Betsy greeted Grace who was still in her bed. At 9:05, I took Grace out. When we returned fifteen minutes later, Grace went to her bed. She moved to the chair for a few minutes to get away from the noise in the kitchen, but at 10:15 when I went to bed, Grace was back in her bed.
Thanksgiving Day
When I walked by Grace’s bed at 4:00, Grace stirred. I petted her chest and face softly before returning to bed. At 7:00, Grace was still in her bed. She greeted me from there with wags and kisses. When I dressed, Grace went into the bedroom to greet Betsy. A minute later she returned. We made it out at 7:10. The park was empty, so we went for a short walk.
Frozen Fun
We returned to a still-empty park. The frigid 25-degree air had frozen and frosted the park floor. The balls were stiff. We played ball until about 7:30. Then, Abby joined us. She and Grace had little interaction. Grace held the prized ball, and Abby couldn’t get it.
Ten minutes later, Sadie came in. That set up some wrestling between Sadie and Abby followed by Sadie and Grace, but the action was brief and not particularly spirited. At 7:45, the other dogs left.
Grace played ball in the park until 8:15 and then went for a walk. While we walked in the breezeway closest to the office, Grace found one of the missing park balls. I put it in my pocket. As we walked by the park, I threw it in.
Lost Appetite
When we made it home at 8:30, after sniffing the balcony, Grace came inside and curled up in her bed. Grace then ate her breakfast. You may recall Grace’s appetite appetite waned during her heat cycle. Once she recovered, her appetite returned to normal — cleaning out her bowl as soon as she was fed.
That didn’t happen this time. Although she didn’t go running, I wonder whether this loss of appetite might also be related to her cycle. If she were having puppies, this would have been about the time. I’ll get out her toy puppies and see if that helps.
At 9:40, we left to go to storage. Grace was concerned that we were going to leave her again. I told her we were going for a ride, but until, I grabbed the leash, she wasn’t sure. When I did, she happily pranced over to the foyer. When we arrived, Betsy tied her up to keep her safe. The place was deserted. Grace jumped up on me repeatedly to kiss me. After the third time and a lot of whimpering, I disconnected the leash.
Grace explored the area but stayed within sight. When we left for home at 10:35, Grace got in the back seat and curled up there. When we arrived home, I noticed she still hadn’t eaten her food. She went out on the balcony lounge chair to enjoy the sun and watch the activity below. Although the temperature was still just 38-degrees, Grace was quite contented.
Having a Ball
At 12:15, I called Grace in from the balcony to go running with me. We ran two laps around the complex. Grace made a few more stops than I would have preferred. On the first lap, near the open field across from Grace Beach, Grace saw something and started barking. It was a shiny blue color, round and about ten inches in diameter. I took Grace to it and told her it was just a ball. She then started playfully batting it around and chasing it.
She had to figure out how to carry it. She found that she could puncture through the plastic outer cover and grip the cloth beneath it. She then engaged me to play fetch with her using that ball. Finally, I kicked it over the hill. Grace raced around the steep slope running in the grass to find it. I went down the slope and retrieved it out of the briers. Grace played more fetch with the ball for about ten minutes before I got her to move on.
The next lap around, Grace remembered the soccer ball and led me back down to it. We played more fetch with it for about fifteen minutes before finally moving on. As we finished up our second lap, Grace met a friendly, playful, white toy poodle-like dog. That dog’s owner was so enchanted by Grace and the way she approaches small dogs, she had to take a picture. When she finished, we moved on.
Entertaining Sick
When we returned at 1:15, Grace went to the balcony. At 1:45, Grace came inside. She still did not touch her food. Betsy had earlier put out some chicken broth for her. She and curled up in her bed. At 2:05 our guests arrived. The youngest (four-year-old girl) wanted to pet her. I told her Grace liked to have her chest rubbed. Grace stayed there while we ate our Thanksgiving dinner.
When the little girl finished, she noticed a wet spot on Grace’s bed. Grace had just thrown up. I wiped it up the best that I could. Grace then went to her perch.
Short Evening Play
After the guests left at 5:20, I took Grace out to the park. There were no dogs there. We went in and played ball for about fifteen minutes. After playing, Grace went for a fifteen-minute walk before returning home. She wanted to stop at the park to play more ball, but the sub-thirty degree temperature was a bit much for me.
When we returned home, Grace went to the bedroom jumped up in the bed and went to sleep.
Friday
At midnight, Betsy came to bed, and Grace began whimpering. She went to her perch. I brought her stuffed puppies to her. She carried a small one back to the bed. I decided to take her outside since she continued to whimper.
Midnight Park Play
Strangely, she made a beeline for the park. Then, I noticed that Sadie was there! Grace and Sadie chased and wrestled briefly, but both were content to find a squeaky ball and chew on it.
When Sadie left, Grace was ready to play some more. Grace played catch for a half hour. When we finished, Grace went for a walk. At the end of the walk, Grace had a very loose bowel movement. During the trip out, she urinated four times. Perhaps this was triggered by mixed messages associated with the intestinal upset. When we returned at 1:00, Grace went back in bed. I brought her the other two toy puppies. She seemed content.
Morning Play
At 7:00, Grace whimpered softly. It was time to get up. At 7:15, Grace went out to the park. Abby was already there. I let her loose to run in. The door latch was open, and Grace pushed open the door, but rather than enter, she stood outside. When I caught up with her, I told her it was okay, and she ran inside. Her big focus was squeaky balls. When Abby left at 7:30, Grace played ball a few minutes before going out for a walk.
Grace’s nose led us as she did her usual routine along the building and behind the landscaping. She went up into the courtyard and jumped up on the grille. This time, she jumped down in an and area where the distance down was short and the landing area was soft. After exploring the area, we headed on. Grace met Olivia and Rascal. I mentioned to Olivia’s owner that the American Foxhound won the Westminster dog show. Olivia is a hound mix.
Exploring
We headed down toward Grace Beach. Grace then found a dead fox. The spine was completely clean, but the head was still intact. Grace rolled in her fun discovery covering herself in dead-fox scent. Grace then made a beeline to Grace Beach. There, Grace took a few drinks of water before moving on. She discovered the blue soccer ball that she had left in the field below next to the trash can. I picked it up and took Grace to the field.
As before, I threw the ball over the briar-covered slope, and Grace charged around on the grass to fetch it. This time though, the ball flushed out a White Tail doe. Grace found the deer scent on the way to the ball and apparently was so focused on it, she missed the deer that ran past her. She lost interest in the ball as she continued on the scent.
She went back up on the Greenway. There she met a female brindle mix named Kiko. The owner was interested in socializing her dog. I told her about how Grace is so good at approaching other dogs. Grace did her usual non-threatening approach — tail wagging, curled seating. Kiko, got the message and wanted to play. Kiko’s owner was afraid of that because Kiko could pull out of her collar.
Grace moved on. She circled around the high area and ran up and down the steep slope. Finally, as I tried to head home, Grace turned back into the field. She took me to the ball to play fetch. As we walked through the frost-covered meadow, the morning sun broke over the trees and ignited each frozen stand into an array of sparkling jewels. Grace played fetch with me throwing or kicking the ball. Then I kicked the ball the wrong way and seemed to slightly pull my knee out of joint. I told Grace we had to go. Grace seemed to understand.
Clean-Up and Bed
When we returned at 9:20, Grace had a shower with soap to remove the dead fox smell. When she finished, Betsy gave her a treat. After the treat, Grace looked at the food I had put out for breakfast the day before. At 9:35, Grace went out on the balcony. The combination of the cold air, sunshine, and Grace’s black coat was enough to set off steam rising from her slightly wet body.
Grace watched through the window as Betsy and I reassembled her bed. As we were finishing up at 10:00, Grace came in and settled into it. She buried her head in the side to keep the light out of her eyes. Grace stayed there until we left at 12:15. When we returned at 4:00, Grace was still in her bed.
Appetite Returns
We greeted her and gave her a large Kong loaded with duck and peanut butter. Betsy took her out at 4:15. They mainly walked, but they played ball in the park for a while and played with Abby for a few minutes.
When they returned at 5:15, Grace ate her supper. At 6:00, Grace did tricks for duck. Grace wanted more. Of course, she was hungry because she hadn’t eaten any meals for over a day. At 6:30 Betsy prepared Grace a Kong with turkey followed by a Kong loaded with duck. As Betsy and I sat on the loveseat and ate pie, Grace stared us down. We relented and gave her some. Then, when Betsy got up, Grace came up on the loveseat and stretched out next to me.
At 8:00, Grace got down off of the loveseat and into her bed. At 8:20, she was snoring. While we watched a movie, Grace lay in her bed. At 11:05, Grace went out for the last time. After ten minutes, Grace returned inside to her bed.
Saturday
At 6:00, as I passed by her, Grace lay in her bed. I petted her gently and went back to bed. At 7:25, Grace came into the bedroom and let us know it was time to get up. She greeted me with wags and kisses, but when I got up, she indicated her dismay with about three chomp-chomp gestures. When we left at 7:30, Grace could hear Abby barking in the park.
Park Play and a Long Run
Grace raced down to meet her friend. The usual grab and hold the ball routine ensued. The Pekinese dog was also there but sort of as just a decoration. At 7:45, the dogs left. Grace played catch for a few minutes before heading out for a walk. Grace did her usual routine walking along the building wall behind the shrubs. After fifteen minutes, we returned to the park. We played catch for ten minutes before Grace’s interest waned.
At 8:15, Grace led me off for a major walk and run. The first stop was the field across from Grace Beach. There Grace found a fish head to toss, chew, and roll on. Then she played fetch with the soccer ball. From there, Grace went up on the hill and found something else — another fish head. After more tossing and rolling, she eventually moved on.
I noticed the gate was open down to the lake path. Sure enough, Grace went straight for it. I figured I might as well get in my running for the day. At 9:15, we started around with a run. Grace pulled excitedly and stretched my speed. After we made it to the first dock, I turned her around toward home. Every time lately, the winding paths on the way back seem to take us the wrong direction.
The paths are not particularly well-marked and the leaves add an additional challenge. Lately it seems we end up cutting through the woods on the way back to avoid the inevitable maze sending us away from our destination. We made our way along the lake and up past Grace Beach. We took the first sidewalk back. As we approached the parking lot at 10:05, we met Betsy. She had been looking for us for about a half hour. Apparently, she had just missed us.
At 10:50, they returned home. Grace took Betsy back to the fish head on the hill. At 10:50, when they returned home, Grace took a shower with shampoo to remove the dead fish smell. Betsy gave her a treat followed by a late breakfast. At 11:00, she went out on the balcony, returning five minutes later. At 11:15, Betsy gave Grace turkey scraps, which she thoroughly enjoyed. Five minutes later, she returned to her bed, curled up, and went to sleep.
Time to Eat
At 12:30, I put some scrambled eggs in her dish. Grace slowly got up, went over to her dish, and ate them. After returning to her bed, she saw me getting some graham crackers. That prompted her to march into the kitchen to get a little something. I gave her some lite treats. When she finished them, she returned to her bed.
At 12:50, Betsy brought me some popcorn. Grace watched me eat for a few minutes. Then she got up from her bed and made her move. Grace had the munchies. When we finished, Grace put up with me for about five minutes. Then she gently pushed me off with her hind legs. It was time for me to move as she continued with her afternoon nap on the chair.
Disappointment
At 1:00, Grace went out on the balcony. A few minutes later she came in expecting me to take her to see Miley and Hannah in the park. The sun was bright and the sky clear this 50-degree afternoon. Betsy wanted Grace to stay inside. When I told her we were not going, Grace sadly walked to the office and got up on her perch. At 2:35, she whimpered softly. Perhaps Grace was lamenting missing being out for such a pretty afternoon. I went in, opened her window, and comforted her.
At 3:00, Grace returned to her bed, made a soft groan and lay down for some more napping. I went into the office and shut the window and returned to the sofa next to Grace. At 4:30, I went out to the kitchen. Grace followed and asked for a little something. I gave her a doggie treat. When she finished, she acted like she wanted something else. I told her to wait. She went under the dining room table.
Double Play
At 4:45, Grace left for the park. Shortly after Grace arrived, Abby came in. Grace played fetch some, but protected the ball from Abby. Sadie came at about 5:15. The interaction was pretty subdued. Abby and Sadie wrestled and ran a little and Grace chomped on a ball as she watched the action.
When they left at 5:30, Grace left the park too. As we started out for a walk, Olivia and Rascal approached. Grace returned the park. She and Olivia played fetch with Olivia’s owner. When they left at 6:00, Grace returned home.
Dream Barks
As I ate supper, Grace lay at my feet under the table. When I finished at 6:15, Grace did tricks for chicken scraps. Grace wanted more. At 6:30, Grace did tricks for treats. She wanted more. I gave her a dental chew followed by a loaded Kong.
At 7:10, Grace returned to bed. A half hour later, Grace let out a dream bark. Five minutes later, she awoke and shifted position. By 8:05, Grace was back asleep. Ten minutes later, she let out a loud snore. At 8:30, Grace brought in some crackers to eat. Grace perked up and tried staring some out of Betsy. After seeing that she wasn’t going to get any, Grace returned to bed.
Twenty minutes later, Grace let out a dream bark that was actually a real bark rather than the muffled, cute dream-bark variety. This was a first. I’ll log it as a milestone. Grace went out for the last time at 9:20 and returned at 9:30. When she returned, she went straight to her bed.