Our kitten's Cooter than your kitten

We have so much stinkin' fun with this cat.

Our kitten's "Cooter" than your kitten.

Crazy Cooter: My personal memoirs Chapter three - Bonding with the "Roscoe"

Early in my life I was separated from my loving mother and my many brothers and sisters. It was a difficult transition - I lost a nurturer and provider who had been there since my birth, kept me warm and fed and gave an unending love I have rarely known since. I lost the litter that taught me about family and sharing and cooperation. It was a traumatic time.

But from the shadows came my lifeline: a large, black friend that the giants called "Roscoe". He was my light when the world seemed cold and frightening. At the beginning Roscoe was fascinated with me. He would lick me at every opportunity, even helping with the task my mother used to do: encouraging my bladder to release. That first time was the moment I knew for certain that I had a friend in the house.


When the giants finally accepted my independence and allowed me to roam freely through the house at night, I would crawl closer to him and snuggle into his fur, feeling the warmth and comfort that only he could provide. (The giants were relatively hairless -the female more than the male.) Normally, I would have suckled my mother in those moments, but try as I might, I could never locate the source of any food Roscoe could offer. Usually the best I could get out of him was a yelp.

Roscoe was usually quite patient with me in those early days. I could crawl across his body over and over, slumber against his belly, follow him throughout the house and still he would not protest. After several weeks, though, he seemed to grow impatient with the activities that once brought me such joy. When I crawled up next to him on the couch, he would move to the other chair. When I playfully batted and nipped at his face, he bared his teeth at me and opened his mouth as if to devour me whole. When I tried to share the toys in the house, I was met with barking. It was unsettling that my attempts at friendship were so ill-received, but it did not deter me from continuing. If nothing else, it made me more determined than ever to share my life with him.

I decided to increase my efforts and show Roscoe how much he meant to me. On many days, the giants would say the word "kennel" and Roscoe would go willingly into a metal holding area until they returned in the evening. I don't know what kind of mind control tricks they used, but it seemed to involve a carrot. My friend needed me. I couldn't break the code to release him, but after the giants left the house, I would use my new-found mobility to crawl up the sides of the container and keep him company. I would stick my paws through the slats and offer him my support, but he always seemed just out of reach. I think he really appreciated my efforts in spite of our limitations and I certainly relished the time we spent together, separated by just a grid of metal and our differing species.

Weekend of Whiskey (Creek).

Whiskey Creek Sep 2007

Britt's entry -

Sean and I packed up our gear and Roscoe on Friday afternoon and headed to wait in line at the Edmonds Kingston ferry. While sitting in line, we saw a huge van creep up near the beginning and nose its way in. Not a minute later, a Sheriff's car pulls up, talks to the driver, and the van pulls out of line and makes a U-turn to go back to the end! The remaining cars started honking and cheering! It was like a tailgate party to see someone finally get caught! (We think someone must have called it in and the officer just happened to be very close.)

Another 5 hours and a car-sick dog later, we pulled in to the campgrounds and up to the cabin. It was very dark and since it’s a rustic cabin, only our flashlights lit up the path while we unloaded. Teri and Bud had their camper, Tanya and Darian used one cabin, and Sean and I got the loft (with a VERY comfortable bed) in the second cabin. Roscoe raced right up the steep stairs, but getting him to come down was a different story. We were only about 5 yards from the beach, so we went to sleep with the sound of the surf crashing right outside our window - very relaxing.
When we woke up, I got to see Whiskey Creek for the first time and it was beautiful! The two cabins were side by side with a small courtyard in between where we could set up our chairs and relax together.

Tanya, Teri, Sean, Curtis, Roscoe and I spent the morning heading down the beach looking for "round rocks" - rocks that had been rolled around so much that they were nearly perfect spheres. The guys found a shale hillside and completely exhausted Roscoe running up and down, while Curtis did flips (intentionally) on the way down.

When we got back, the rest of the family had pulled up! Everyone settled in and had some lunch, then the kids went to another beach and gave themselves "mud baths". Competitions for who can get the dirtiest seem to be a theme when these little guys get together!

Sean and I had also brought some party "clickers" for the kids to play with - and by kids I mean Bud, Sean and Curtis. : ) They clicked those suckers at every opportunity and attached them to earlobes, eyebrows, nostrils, you name it.

For dinner, Tanya cooked up some delicious smelling salmon that Sean had brought, and everyone else pitched in a dish or two, like corn or noodle salad, and we were all quickly stuffed.
Everyone was pretty worn out by the time the sun went down, so Teri, Tanya, Scott, Sean and I sat by the fire keeping warm and chatting. Pretty soon we looked down at a watch and realized it was… 9:30. Hmmmm. But Tanya, Sean and I got a second wind and finished the night talking and gigling (me) in the cabin until about midnight. Hope we didn't keep Marcus and Zoe awake in their tent!

We had a slight rain shower first thing in the morning, but we powered through and had everyone pitching in with cleaning the cabins before we headed home. Another great trip!

A short-term love affair

Britt's entry -

Driving home from the mall on Wednesday night, I came to a 4-way stop and noticed a medium sized terrier trying to climb up on a motorcycle at the stop to my right. The biker took off and the dog ran alongside for a few blocks. The whole time the biker kept looking down until she (that's right, she!) finally pulled on to a side street. I pulled alongside, thinking that if it was her dog, I, having a car, might be able to help get the pooch home. But it wasn't hers. No collar or tags. No one in the area looking for her. So sad!


We held the dog by the scruff of the neck and she didn't struggle or bark, she just sat there smiling up at us. She was being a very sweet dog! After 7 phone calls to various places, I finally had a Sheriff's deputy pull up. (We're in an unincorporated area.)

The officer said that Animal Control closes at 4, PAWS at 6, and he couldn't transport any animals, which left me with three choices: I could take her and try to find her owner myself, take her and drop her off at a shelter the next day, or leaver her to wander the streets. I called Sean and he was great about going along with whatever I decided - to take her back to our place for the night. Of course I wasn't going to allow her to run back into traffic!!

I put her in the backyard and she and Roscoe carvorted, frolicked and ran circles around each other. (You read that right. How often do you get to use the words cavort and frolic?) They went into playful stance - front elbows on the ground, butt raised in the air - and tumbled across the lawn. It was adorable! Then Cooter came out and joined the fun. The new dog was fascinated yet gentle with the kitten, which was very encouraging.

Since she was smelly and wet when I found her, we gave her a garden hose bath with shampoo, and she took it patiently; pretty surprising considering we were two strangers soaking and scrubbing her!

We gave her treats and she "sat" for us, no food issues when Roscoe tried to steal them! All in all she's a pretty great little dog! Oh, and in keeping with the Dukes of Hazard theme, we gave her the name "Lulu", Boss Hogg's wife. We may use that one again at a later date, though!

We put flyers up at the intersection where I first saw her, and posted Found ads on Craigslist. Luckily, the daughter's owner is a savvy young lady and went online this morning and saw their dog! They gave me a call and I took "Missy" home. Apparently she is quite the escape artist. She had jumped off the back deck and on to the roof of a nearby shed and then took off for an adventure!

Oddly enough, I got a call a few hours later from a man who said he had "rescued" Missy a few weeks ago and had the impression it was far from her first time. He actually told me that if the owners hadn't called, he was going to offer to take her because she was such a great dog and didn't deserve to keep having this happen to her. Well, hopefully they'll get the message this time, because next time she might not run into someone who wants to help!