At 4:50, as I passed by, I saw Grace in her bed meticulously working on keeping herself clean. The diaper was out on the balcony. I greeted her briefly before returning to bed.
Morning Greetings
When I got up at 8:05, Grace was lying on the floor next to her bed. We did tummy rubs and kisses. As I dressed to face the overcast morning in the mid-fifties, Grace tried on her own to greet Betsy. She walked into the master bedroom and made some soft whines a few times. When Betsy didn’t stir, Grace gave up and returned to the foyer.
Excitement on a Different Path
At 8:10, we left for Borador Park. Grace didn’t stay long there. She moved on to the Greenway via the gate to Grace Woods. This time though, Grace took a different path. She went down to the gate that takes us around the lake. She took me all the way to the first lookout deck by the water. At that point, I had to turn her around and head home.
Then we saw it. A deer about fifty yards away and up from us. Grace took off with me trying to keep up with her. Perhaps that deer was what brought her on the path that we took.
Quiet Morning and Afternoon Air
When we made it home at 9:35, Grace went to the balcony, came in for her breakfast, and went to her chair for her nap. Grace knew the Sunday morning routine. At 10:10, Grace was left home alone.
When we returned, I greeted Grace on her perch and gave her a doggie cookie. Grace was ready to go. After I changed clothes, we went out for some afternoon fresh air.
Grace took me to the meadow. There we played fetch mainly with the large fetch toy with a rope on the end of it that belongs to Kaiser. After about two hours, I called, and Grace ran to me. I leashed her and we headed home.
Alone Again and Chomp-Chomp
When Grace returned home at 3:05, she went directly to the chair for her nap. There she slept for two hours. I gave her supper and left her home alone at 5:10. When we returned home two hours later, I gave Grace another doggie cookie.
Grace started sundowning. She came to me to practice chomp-chomp her newest trick. At 7:30 as I ate my supper, Grace sat next to me to have some saltines and pieces of fish.
When I finished eating, Grace did tricks for duck food. When she finished, she returned to the chomp-chomp trick. After I told her we were done with that, she went to the balcony to sniff around but returned shortly thereafter.
Unwinding
Grace continued sundowning for about a half hour. At 8:35, I finally took her out for her last walk of the night. Ten minutes later, she returned and curled up in her sofa for the night.
At 9:25, Betsy came into the room and sat down on the loveseat with a piece of cake. That was enough to get Grace’s attention. She went over to Betsy and did her best to pry a piece of cake out of her. After getting a small piece, Grace lay at the foot of the sofa. Fifteen minutes later, she went to her perch. At 10:00, I closed the blinds and went to bed.
Monday
At 5:20, I saw Grace lying awake on floor next to her bed. There I stroked her face briefly and gently before returning to bed. At 7:00, the alarm clock sounded. I got up to find Grace still on the living room floor. We did tummy rubs and kisses. Grace was ready to start her day.
Park, Tracking, and Play
Twenty minutes later, we went out. As usual, Grace’s first stop was the park. The stay was brief as no friends were there. She moved on through the main breezeway, past the pool, and down toward the Greenway. Along the fence, Grace excitedly picked up a scent and tried to go under the fence. Instead I directed her down to the walk and around to the meadow.
Once there, Grace forgot about the scent and switched into play mode. We played first with a ChuckIt! ball. Then she found the mangled Frisbee and played with that. The fetch game often includes a round or two of grab it where the fastest hand (or mouth) grabs the object. If both get it, we have to play tug.
Bird Chase, Bolt, Victim Found
After nearly two hours, Grace finally was ready to go. I leashed her and we headed toward the lake. She saw a Gray Heron. I removed the leash. She took off after it. Then she went to the lake for a short drink. As I started down the Greenway, I called her. Grace came but kept running!
Grace had bolted and may still have been in the danger zone with respect to her fertility. She went past the first walk. I followed, called and whistled as she kept a close eye out for squirrels in the woods on both sides.
Then she went past the second walk. I got her attention and tried running up the walk. Grace had other ideas. She ran back toward the meadow. As she past the walk heading up, I again got her attention and ran up that way. Grace followed, but bolted past me and out of sight on the path that we took going down.
As I headed up that way, I heard her barking. Perhaps this was in part what prompted her frantic bolting. About twenty feet up a mature loblolly pine, was the hated white cat — hanging on for dear life. Grace stood below — barking furiously and stretching up as high as she could reach.
Morning Nap and Little Clip
There I leashed her and led her home. After we were about 200 yards away, we could see the hated white cat back on the ground heading for the Greenway. When Grace returned home at 9:20, she went to the balcony, came inside, ate her breakfast, and curled up in her chair for her morning nap.
At 11:50, Grace stretched off of the chair, lay by the balcony door, and whined softly. I went down to comfort her. First thing in the morning, Grace had punctured my skin with one of her claws. While I was down there with her, I clipped about an eighth inch from the two middle claws on her front paws. She resisted only a little.
Knock, Snack, Perch
When I finished, Grace returned to her chair for more napping. At 1:20, there was a knock on the door. Grace got up, barked, and followed me there. It was the UPS man delivering a package. Grace sized him up, judged that he was no threat, and backed off.
I had prepared her duck food and scrambled eggs. When it was cool enough for her to eat, I put it out. Grace enjoyed her afternoon snack. From there, she primped herself for a few minutes before retreating to her perch.
Cold Afternoon Outing
At 3:10, I heard the familiar helicopter ears sound. Grace was ready to go for an afternoon run. She came into the living room and looked at me. Then she lay on the floor and whined as I told her to wait. At 3:20, I took her out for a run.
We went west on the Greenway. After going under the first bridge, I spotted the soccer ball that Grace enjoyed playing with in the meadow lying in the Greenway. I tucked it away between two trees to retrieve it on the way back. Grace followed along better this time as the weather was kind of messy. The temperature was just above freezing, the path was wet, and small ice pellets were falling.
The ball was still there on the way back. When I picked it up, Grace perked up. I took it to the meadow and dropped it in our play area. When I turned to go home, Grace talked a bit to voice her protest. She wanted to play with it I suppose. I was tired and wet and wanted to go home.
Finding Our Way Home
Grace came along obediently. She ducked into the hallway of the nearest building to the walk by the meadow. When we went in, I saw a lady waiting at the elevator on the first floor. We went up there and got in. I went to the door of 3305 to find my key didn’t work. Of course, I was at the wrong apartment.
As always in these situations, Grace was a good sport. She took it in stride. We finished our trip home and went inside at 4:10. Grace went out on the balcony, and I took a shower. When I finished, I let Grace in and gave her the remains from and ice cream container. When she finished it, Grace had a dental chew to clean her teeth. After she completed that, Grace went to her perch to curl up for a nap.
Fill Up, Play, and Sleep
At 5:25, Grace came down, shook her helicopter ears, and came to the kitchen. Betsy gave her supper. Grace ate it heartily and licked the bowl. When she finished, she took a long drink of water, made one more pass around her bowl, and lay by the balcony door.
When we ate our supper a few minutes later, Grace came marching over. I gave her a small loaded Kong. As I cleaned up, she threw the Kong she had just emptied on the floor to request another. I gave her a second one and retreated to the bedroom.
Grace grouched. Betsy played fetch with her. At 6:40, Grace brought her fox into the bedroom play with me. After about ten minutes of tug, she gave up, went over by the window on the floor and took a nap there. I suppose she wanted to keep an eye on me.
At 7:45, Grace started to whine. I paid attention to her for a few minutes and stopped. At 7:55, Grace got up and started whining again. I took her out at 8:10. When she returned ten minutes later, I told her it was time for bed. Grace jumped up on the sofa as I shut the blinds.
Tuesday
At 4:50, Grace was still on the sofa. Betsy had wrapped her in a towel the night before because she came in with a wet coat. She was no longer wrapped in it but was still lying on it. I pulled it onto the floor and quickly greeted her before returning to bed.
Chilly Morning
At 7:00, the alarm clock sounded, and I got up. Grace was lying on the floor next to her bed — awaiting our usual greeting. We did tummy rubs and kisses for a few minutes. The 30-degree wet morning meant another challenging outing awaited me. I did my best to dress for it.
Grace was happy to finally leave at 7:15. Once we made it to the ground, I could see that the car windows had a thick coat of ice on them. After letting Grace relieve herself, I turned back to get the car keys. As always, Grace followed me back up to the apartment cheerfully.
I picked up the keys, and we headed out for a second time. Betsy’s car was out back. We had decided she would take that one to allow me to take mine in to get it serviced. The ice was even worse out back since it was closer to the lake. After firing up the car and turning on the defrosters, I led Grace to the dog park.
While we were there, Grace played ball for about ten minutes. Abby came outside but did not come to the park. At 7:30, we returned to the car to turn it off and complete cleaning the windows.
Checking the Perimeter
When I finished, Grace led me on her morning adventure. Not surprisingly, Grace was very interested in going back to the area where she had chased the hated white cat up the tree the day before. Also not surprisingly, Grace seemed to be particularly interested in following scents as the ground was wet.
When she went to the edge of a high retaining wall, I told her “Danger.” She understood and backed away. Grace headed down the walk nearest the meadow and turned that direction onto the Greenway. I forgotten to remove her leash and harness until we were at the meadow. I removed them then.
Grace went to Grace Beach and Grace Thicket rather than the wet meadow. She had a great time following scents. I tried to just keep her in my view. There were a lot of thorns in the thicket, so it’s hard to move through quickly. At one point, I lost track of Grace. As I headed for her last known location, Grace, as she often does, came up behind me. That’s always fun and reassuring to know that she’s on the lookout for me also.
Deer Carcass Snack
When she finished there, Grace went to the dam area. After exploring the river at its source, she went to the upper field, snacked on the the deer carcass there, and went to the lower filed by the river. There she worked on the other carcass.
At 9:00, I whistled. Grace immediately, stopped her chewing and looked up. I called her. She came running. When she made it to the upper field, Grace had a deer pelt in her mouth. I let her work on that for five minutes before attaching her leash and leading her home.
Napping Weather
When Grace arrived home, she went to the balcony. She didn’t stay long out there. I can’t say I blame her. It was a mess. She came in and looked at her empty bowls. Not only was her food bowl empty, her water bowl was dry. I fixed both of those problems, and Grace polished off her breakfast. When she finished, she curled up in the chair for her morning nap.
At around 11:00, Grace started to whine softly. I went over and comforted her twice. She wasn’t happy with the nasty weather. At 11:20, she finally decided to move on to her perch.
Snack Time
At 12:10, I started making a meal. Grace kept a close eye on me. As I readied her duck food and egg snack, she stayed put. When the eggs had cooled enough, I called her, and Grace jumped into action. I told her to be careful because it was a little hot. She understood.
After she finished, she came beside me and waited patiently for a small piece of toast. After enjoying that, she watched from the dining room while she observed me getting ready. I told her we were going for a ride.
Charming Customer
At 12:40 we left to get the oil changed. Shortly after we arrived at 1:00, Grace stood up and placed both paws on the counter. She was expecting or hoping for some doggie treats. The manager said he didn’t have any, but would get some for his customers who bring their dogs.
A couple came in carrying some large, colorful knapsacks. They spooked her, prompting Grace to bark. The lady with the bags was a dog lover and understood. Grace stopped barking and the couple petted her. Later, Grace saw a man open the hatch-back of an SUV in the parking lot about fifty yards away. That too spooked her. She barked at that. I again calmed her and let her outside to look at it.
We left at 1:40 and headed for the grocery store. I was inside for about fifteen minutes, so when I returned, I gave Grace a couple of soda crackers as a treat. I stopped briefly at two more grocery stores before stopping for gas. Grace got out at the gas station and looked around as I filled the tank.
Lots of Napping
When we returned home at 3:10, I wiped off the small amount of discharge from the seat where Grace sat. She continues to clean up discharge spots on the sheet that we have placed on her sofa. She’s a very clean animal.
When we entered the apartment, Grace went to the balcony. It was still pretty nasty outside. When she came in at 3:50, she curled up in the chair. Her coat was wet, so I used the towel that Betsy had brought out yesterday and dried her off. She kissed me and then took a nap.
At 5:15, Grace perked up as she heard a strange sound in the hallway. It stopped and she went back to nap mode. When Betsy came home at 5:25, Grace came over to her sofa and sat next to me as she greeted Betsy. Ten minutes later, she had her supper and followed it with a long drink. As she looked out the balcony window, she barked when she saw a violent dog. I comforted her. When it walked out of sight, she settled down next to the door for more napping.
I left at 5:45 to go to a meeting. At 8:20, I returned home and gave Grace a doggie cookie, a doggie treat, a half cup of duck food and a dental chew. Grace went out for her last walk at 8:40, returned at 8:50, and went to bed. Betsy asked me to call her off of her bed so she could put a towel down on it to catch any discharge. Grace came, and I gave her a treat. Grace then returned to her bed when Betsy called her back to it.
Wednesday
At 2:55, I passed by Grace lying in her bed and gently stroked her face a few times before going back to bed. At 7:00, when the alarm clock sounded, I got up. Grace was still in her bed. I think Grace was trying to stay there on the towel since Betsy had a concern about her leaving any discharge.
High Fiber Diet
When we left at 7:20, the temperature was 35 degrees, it was overcast, and there was a light rain. Grace went to the park. I replaced the water in the bucket and washed it out. Grace was disappointed as I left to do it. When I returned, she played ball.
As was the case the day before, we could see Abby come out for a short walk, but she didn’t come in because it was too muddy. At that point, Grace was ready to leave. On this outing she did one of four bowel movements. She had so many because of the he fur she ate the day before from deer pelts.
Hairy Surprise
Grace took me along the fence that goes down to Grace Woods. As we approached below the small dog park, I grabbed a tree to steady myself on the steep ground. I felt something hairy. It was a poison ivy vine. I immediately told Grace we had to return. I’m highly sensitive to poison ivy, so this was an urgent matter.
I kept my hand isolated and led Grace back quickly. She followed without protest. Unfortunately, she did stop for her second bowel movement. Getting the bag from the pocket on the wrong side was the biggest challenge. When we returned home, I brought Grace inside and went to the bathroom to wash my exposed hand.
Morning Adventure Resumed
When I finished, I took Grace back out for her morning adventure. She went to Grace Beach and through Grace Thicket. Along the lake shore on the other side, she found a very cheap mini football. We played with it for about twenty minutes. I used it to move her to Grace hill.
Then we played with the ChuckIt! ball that I had in my pocket. We worked our way around to the meadow. There Grace played with the soccer ball and the highly mangled Frisbee. At 9:00, the weather had deteriorated to a harder rain and colder temperature. My hand was getting cold. I told Grace it was time to go. She understood.
Clean Up and Rest
When we returned home at 9:15, I gave Grace a shower. This time I had to use soap; because she had rolled in something dead. It took a fair amount of scrubbing to get rid of the dead fish smell. When I finished, I gave Grace a doggie treat. She ate it and went to her perch.
At 11:00, Grace came in the living room and got into her bed. While there, she found a discharge spot on the bed and cleaned it. At 12:50, Grace moved to the floor near balcony door. Fifteen minutes later, she moved to the chair and curled up there.
Snacking
I prepared some food in the kitchen. Grace waited patiently. At 1:30, she enjoyed her duck food and egg snack. When she finished, she immediately came to my side. I fed her a piece of my toast. When I finished my meal, she wanted more. I gave her some light treats. That satisfied her, and she went back to her perch.
At 2:50, I got a snack. Grace jumped down from her watch and marched into the kitchen. I loaded the small Kong for her and gave it to her. When she finished, she came to me and whined. I told her to wait. She curled up at my feet while I finished up on the computer.
Exercise and Extended Sundowning
At 3:10, we we left for our run. By then, the rain had stopped and the temperature had risen to 45 degrees. The overcast sky remained. Grace did fairly well but did make frequent stops along the way. When we returned at 3:55, Grace went straight to the balcony. The outing was enough to satisfy her need for more exercise and fresh air.
At 5:30, after enduring about five minutes of harassment from the children on the balcony above, Grace came in. She ate her supper, stretched, looked at me, whined softly, groomed herself, got up, grabbed her small Kong, threw it down, and grouched.
I reloaded it and gave it to her. When she finished it at 5:45, she shredded a box from her toy box, grouched at me, grabbed her Kong and threw it at my feet. I reloaded it and gave it to her. She came back for a third. When she finished at 6:00, I gave her three corn chips. After that, she came after me again. I told her she wasn’t getting any more.
At 6:15, Grace went outside. She returned inside five minutes later. When I ate my soup, I shared three saltines with her. At 7:00, Grace did tricks for duck food. When she finished, she went to her perch. From there, she can keep an eye on activity outside as well as in the kitchen.
At 7:30, I grabbed a snack. Old eagle eye, jumped down and presented herself in the kitchen. I gave her a dental chew. When she finished, she really didn’t know what to do with herself. She went out on the balcony and back inside a couple of times before finally giving up and lying on the floor by my feet at the sofa.
At 8:15, Grace went out for her last walk of the day. The harsh weather seemed to have finally broken. Things were drying out and 47-degree temperature was not particularly cold feeling. When we returned home ten minutes later, Grace went to her sofa and settled in for the night.
Thursday
At 3:20, Grace was awake on the floor next to her bed. We had forgotten to close the blinds in the office, but Grace didn’t bother with it or realize that they were open. I shut them, stroked Grace briefly, and then returned to bed. At 6:30 the alarm clock sounded. I got up about five minutes later and did tummy rubs and kisses with Grace still next to her bed on the floor.
Puppy Play, Charmer
When we left at 6:45, the temperature was 41 degrees. I convinced Grace to do a short walk before going into the empty dog park. When we returned to Borador Park, we played ball for about ten minutes. Then Abby came in. She was very interested in sniffing for about five minutes or so. Grace was ready to go, but Abby lingered. Finally, they got into it for about twenty minutes. At 7:40, they were ready to move on for the day, and we all left the park.
Grace went to Clump Grass Hill and then to the dog run. She saw another dog in Grace Woods. After a few minutes she decided to join him there. As we entered the gate, he was coming out. He was very excited to meet the lovely and charming Grace, but his owner gave him little time to socialize.
Running Free
I latched the gate, released Grace, and headed down to the bridge. Grace raced ahead. Once she was three quarters the way across, she ran up the hill and into the Greenway. From there, she ran down to the lake. By the time I entered, Grace had come back up.
Grace tracked the scents. She explored the field on the left, the lower field by the river, and the area across the Greenway by the flow-control platform. Down there, Grace found some balls. She looked at me and gave me the chomp-chomp. She wanted me to come down and play ball with her.
The grass was wet, but I went down anyway. We played for about ten minutes. Then Grace spotted a bird and chased it. I went back up to the Greenway. There I found a decent inflatable-style mini football. Grace came up and played ball with it on Grace Hill for about twenty minutes. Kiko came by. Grace engaged her friend with a bit of leash play. When they left, I leashed Grace, and we headed home.
Rest and Ride
At 9:05, when we came home, Grace went to the balcony. I put out her breakfast. She came in, ate it, and settled in to the balcony lounge chair. The increasing intensity of the sun coaxed Grace to move inside to the chair at 10:00. She relaxed and napped for an hour an a half.
Grace went with me for a ride to the credit union to meet Betsy. We arrived first and tried to walk over to where Betsy might be. After a short walk, we returned to the car where I left Grace while I went inside.
We returned ten minutes later and drove across the street to the art museum. There Betsy ate her lunch and Grace snacked on some treats. When she finished, we went for a walk in the pleasant, 63-degree, midday sun. Grace met one dog along the way and found lots of great scents. After about a half-hour walk, we said good-bye to Betsy and drove home.
Snack Time
When we arrived at the apartment at 1:00, Grace found a shady spot on the balcony where she could watch the action and hung out there. At 2:10, as I poured some of her duck food into her bowl, Grace heard it and asked to come in. She waited patiently at the balcony door (near where her bowl is placed). When I finished eating, I gave Grace her duck food and scrambled egg snack.
When she finished her snack, Grace lay on the living room floor, close enough to observe me cleaning up. I finished and sat down on her sofa. Grace got up and went to her perch.
Go for Ride
At 2:45, we left to check out construction progress at the land. I kept Grace on the leash. She would have been happy to find the cat and chase it up the tree, but instead,we just walked around the house and then around the property border.
I made a stop at the grocery store. When I returned ten minutes later, I gave Grace a treat. On the way back, we stopped at the office to pick up a package. I told Grace we were going to get a treat. I pulled up, parked the car, and went to the door. It was locked! I felt bad that I had built her up only to have to let her down.
Refill Fun
When we came home at 4:00, I gave Grace a doggie treat to make good on my promise. After finishing her treat, Grace went to the balcony to watch and enjoy the pleasant evening air. At 5:30, I emptied her food bag into her dish. Grace saw me and came in. I needed to get her more food for supper.
We went to the closet to refill her smaller food bag. As I scooped food from the large bag to the small one, Grace waited and watched patiently. I gave her a few pieces as I scooped. When I finished, I gave her a small portion in the bowl that served as the scoop. Then I finished filling her bowl and gave Grace her supper.
Turkey and New Friend
When she finished, Grace went to the balcony. Betsy and I ate our supper. I saved back a piece of turkey for her. Grace came inside at 5:50, and she did tricks for turkey. After she finished, she went to her perch. The blinds were open but not up. I raised them and opened the window. Grace relaxed and watched.
At 6:15, Grace went to the dog park. There she met a new friend that was at the apartment just a few weeks. The owners were told he was a Labrador Retriever / Shepherd mix. He was ten pounds lighter than Grace. They enjoyed mixing it up together.
Evening Munchies
When she returned home at 7:00, Grace went to the balcony. At 8:30, Grace came inside. I took her out for her last walk of the night. When she returned home ten minutes later, she got up on her sofa for the night. Then Betsy sat down across from her and started eating corn chips. Grace went over to Betsy and had the munchies. Betsy shared some with her.
At 9:10, Betsy gave her a doggie treat followed by a dental chew. When Grace finished, she returned to Betsy for more chips. At 9:20, Grace returned to the balcony. At 9:40, she came in and settled in on her sofa for the night. This time I turned out the lamp at the other end of the sofa to make it easier for her to sleep.
Friday
At 3:00, as I passed by her, Grace was lying awake on living room floor. I greeted her gently as I returned to bed. At 7:00, the alarm clock sounded. Betsy got up first. I lingered. Grace came in to investigate the cause of my delay. There we did standing tummy rubs and kisses.
Cold Start
At 7:15, I took Grace out into the clear, 34-degree, morning. I didn’t realize it, but some car windows (including ours) had a thin layer of frost on their windshields. We went to the park. Grace played ball with limited enthusiasm for fifteen minutes.
Next Grace headed for Grace Woods. On the way, she spent about ten minutes sniffing around Clump Grass Hill. Once we made it to the gate at the woods, we went through, and I removed Grace’s leash. She lingered sniffing in the woods. I lingered also to not rush her.
Danger Averted
She arrived at the bridge just ahead of me. I could hear a car approaching from behind. It was moving pretty fast. I called Grace urgently. She turned and came to me. I held her collar until the car passed and then released her. I’ll mark this as a milestone for her coming immediately when called away from danger.
Shortly after we entered the Greenway, I saw a Huskie approaching. I called Grace again. Again, she allowed me to leash her before the approaching dog drew close. It turned out the dog was fairly aggressive as it passed. I kept Grace leashed a few minutes longer until the dog passed.
Grace went down to the lake briefly, over to Grace Thicket, and then came up to me at Grace Hill. There she retrieved the football that we played with the day before. After playing ball for five minutes or so, Grace moved on to exploring and sniffing the weeded slope that went down to the meadow.
Grace Missing
I allowed myself to be distracted by tuning in audio devices. When I looked up, Grace was gone! I looked further, but there was still no Grace. I headed the direction I had last seen her, moving toward the river. After five minutes, there came Grace running excitedly toward me from behind. It’s always fun to see that, but it’s most fun when I have started to be concerned that she could have run off.
Grace went down the slope and into the meadow. She looked up at me as if to say she wanted me to come down and join her. Grace continued her sniffing as I tried to get some pictures of her.
Spooky Stuff
She led me to Grace Beach. There she was spooked by a limb stump on a tree down in the water. The stump had about two inches popping up above the water. The slightest disturbance of the water or the log brought ripples radiating from it. Grace barked at it repeatedly. She would not accept my assurances that it was nothing.
A photographer walked by in a long dark coat with his camera and tripod over his shoulder. He looked a bit like a specter as he stood motionless watching Grace. Grace barked at him as well. After ten minutes, I leashed her and took her home.
Eating and Napping
When she returned at 9:15, Grace went straight to the balcony. Five minutes later she came inside, looked at her empty dish, and jumped up on the chair. I immediately filled it, and Grace ate her breakfast. After finishing, Grace got up in the chair for her morning nap.
At 10:20, Grace heard a dog bark in the distance. She perked up, got down from the chair, and went out on the patio through the open patio door. She decided to settle in there on the deck for a while.
When I left 10:40 to attend a meeting, Grace was lying on the balcony lounge chair with the balcony door propped open. At noon, I returned home to find Grace on her sofa. I gave her a treat. After finishing her treat, Grace went to the balcony.
A few minutes later, I grabbed a spoonful of sherbet in the kitchen, Grace came marching in wanting a little something. I gave her a small loaded Kong. When she finished, Grace lay on the living room floor for ten minutes and then moved to her perch.
From there, she watched me prepare my meal. By 1:20, her snack of duck food and scrambled eggs was ready and cooled. Grace happily consumed it and then came to my side to get a small piece of toast to top it off. She took a short siesta on the living room floor before I called her to go out with me for a walk at 1:35.
Treat and Home Alone
This time I hoped to find the office open rather than a locked door. Thankfully, the door was open and the office staff present. Grace sat obediently to receive her treat. She enjoyed the dog biscuit and carefully cleaned up every crumb. After I received the packages, we headed home.
When Grace returned home, she went straight to the balcony. I left the door propped open for her and left her home alone at 2:00 as I went to get a haircut. I returned forty-five minutes later to find Grace still on the balcony.
Running, Socializing, Cleanup, and Rest
I quickly dressed for a run, called Grace inside, and left with her to go for a run. Grace came immediately and enjoyed the outing. She did a fair amount of marking and sniffing for other dog’s marks. She passed a Labrador Retriever mix named Zoe who normally does not socialize. Strangely, she was interested in taking some time to greet and sniff Grace as Grace sniffed her. Grace also calmly passed a squealing Beagle and an aggressive lap dog.
We returned at 3:40. Grace had a shower, followed by a doggie treat. When she finished, she lay on the balcony deck to rest and relax in the pleasant fresh air. An hour later, she got up on the lounge chair to watch activity below.
Good Eater
Betsy showed up at 5:00. Grace greeted her with tail wags and was happy to find she had some hot french fries to share. Grace had the munchies. As she devoured every one she could get. After shredding a couple of her boxes, Grace went back out to the balcony deck to watch for friends.
At 5:20, Grace came in grouching about supper. I fed her. As we ate, Grace sat next to me. When I finished, I gave her a small piece of my toasted cheese sandwich. Grace wanted more. I gave her a loaded Kong as I cleaned up. When she finished, Grace walked around played, a little ball with me, and tried to relax.
Around 7:00, Grace didn’t know what to do with herself but eventually lay at my feet. At 7:20, she was dream-barking. At 7:30, Grace awoke and started whining persistently. I could hold her off no longer. She did her tricks for duck food and followed it up with a nice long drink of water.
At 8:05, Grace went out for her last walk of the night. When she returned ten minutes later, she was not ready to pack it in. Instead, she opted for the balcony. After all, it was Friday night! Betsy let her in some time after I went to bed at 9:00.
Saturday
At 5:00, I walked by Grace. She was lying next to her bed on the floor. I petted her gently and returned to bed. At 7:05, I got up to find Grace in the middle of the living room floor. We did tummy rubs and kisses. Grace was particularly talkative. Five minutes later, we left for the park.
Rude Awakening, Fun, and Run
The 47-degree temperature felt much warmer. I took the large fetch toy attached to a rope. As we exited the elevator on the first floor, Grace met the black dog that spooks her. They both reacted and barked loudly. Grace followed the dog as its owner went to the trash bin, and we went to the dog park. I’m pretty sure if they were given some time together, they would be fine, but that dog’s owner would rather just avoid Grace.
Grace enjoyed fetching and tugging the fetch toy. After about twenty minutes at the park, we moved on. Grace made a beeline for Grace Woods with a brief sniffing time at Clump Grass Hill. Despite the traffic on Old Reedy Creek Road, I let Grace run free once we passed through the gate to Grace Woods.
Grace made it to the bridge ahead of me. She crossed at a time when there was no traffic. She also made a couple passes at the deer paths to the right of the road. Thankfully, no cars were going by then either. As I approached the gate to the Greenway, Grace noticed me, and ran in ahead of me.
Her first stop was the lake by the flow-control platform. She ran along the shore and searched for treasure. At one point, she found something particularly interesting beneath a rock at the lake’s edge. She even moved a rock about the size of a large grapefruit.
Eventually she made it back up to Grace Hill. There, Grace played fetch with the toy. With the weekend traffic on the Greenway and some dogs out, I was a bit concerned about her annoying someone. That didn’t happen. When I saw a few suspicious dogs, I leashed her until they passed. Then I let her run free again.
Goin’ Home
On the way home, Grace stopped briefly at Grace Beach. We made it back home at 9:10. I opened the balcony door. Grace went out on the balcony, came in and ate her breakfast when I put it out for her, and returned to the balcony. After about a half hour, Grace came in and curled up on the loveseat.
At 9:40, we left to meet a contractor at the land. Grace rode in the front seat as usual with a harness and seat belt. When we arrived at 10:00, Betsy wanted to tie her up. Grace didn’t appreciate that kind of treatment and barked to indicate her disapproval. Grace played on the leash with Snoopy for a few minutes and walked around with us.
DNA Registration
At 11:10, Grace returned home. She went to the balcony and did her best to find some shade there. She came in at noon and climbed up on her sofa. There she slept and rested next to me until 2:20 when we left for the office to give a DNA sample.
Grace did very well as they swabbed her gums for a couple of minutes. When she finished, they gave Grace a treat. I picked up a package at the office, and we returned home. Grace went to the balcony while I dressed for exercise.
Run, Stop, and Chasing
At 2:55, we left to go running west on the Greenway. Grace stopped an excessive number of times. At one point, she latched on to a teenager who was running. The pace was a little fast for me, but I pushed it in order to cover some ground.
As we approached the end of our run, Grace stopped and looked longingly at a vulnerable squirrel not near a large tree. I freed her. Grace took off after it, but it evaded her and ran up a tree. That was just the start though.
Squirrel Chasing Fun
Grace had been dreaming of running through that part of the woods for weeks as we ran past many squirrels. Now she had her chance. She raced through the woods terrorizing every squirrel in sight. Then, she headed down the Greenway toward the meadow. I knew if I could get her into our familiar territory, she would be safe and not run far off.
Grace went past the two walks that lead to the apartment and through the gate by the meadow. She went to the lake, waded, and took a drink. After a minute or so, she came out, shook off, and rolled in the grass. I leashed her there and we headed home.
When she arrived at the apartment at 4:30, Grace went straight to the balcony and collapsed there on the floor. A half hour later, Betsy took her out to the meadow to play with her new ChuckIt! squirrel toy.
When they returned home forty-five minutes later, Grace went to the balcony. Betsy said that although Grace was a bit stiff getting up to leave for the outing, she could have played all night with that toy. It was great fun!
Good Eater, Missing Daddy, Midnight Snack
I called Grace in and gave her a shower. When she finished and I dried her off, I sat down. Grace came to me but didn’t complain. Then I remembered, I had forgotten her treat! Immediately, I went to the kitchen and pulled out a doggie treat. As I fumbled with the box, Grace drooled freely.
At 6:00, Grace had her supper. While we ate ours, Grace brought her new toy to us to play tug and fetch. I left to go to storage at 6:45. Grace watched me leave from the balcony. I shouted “Bye-bye” to her. Betsy said when she saw a car approach that looked like the one I drove, Grace became excited, only to be disappointed that it wasn’t me.
I returned an hour later. Grace greeted me enthusiastically with wags and kisses. While I cleaned up in the kitchen, Grace slept on the floor. At 8:30, as I finished up, Grace came in to tell me it was time for that last walk. We went out and did our usual walk around the building. We returned ten minutes later. I turned out the living room lights, and Grace got up on her sofa for the night.
At 9:15, Betsy got out some corn chips and a cheese sandwich. Grace went over to get a little something. I went to bed.