The random quirks of pets......

We take care of so many animals -- but, we also have nine (yes, NINE) of our own to care for at home. If you have pets, you know how different they all are.......how they each are special and have certain quirks. Imagine having nine different animal personalities at home......and if you're not absolutely appalled at that number, read on........

I bought Snoopy, our schnauzer mix, some booties at PetSmart earlier today. One of his quirks is that he likes to dig in the dirt........he's not digging for bones, or bugs........he just kicks his feet around. He must think that this makes him look more macho........he's got two girl dogs as family members, so he has to exert his manliness. ;) As soon as I get a picture of him with the light blue booties on, I'll post it. Trust me, you'll smile.

Snoopy has some other random personality quirks, but I have quite a few (ahem) others to mention, so I'll move on to........Cassie. She's our Heinz 57 girl -- we don't really know what kind of mix she is -- she's black and tan, with a bit of white on her belly and chest. Some jerk abused her when she was a puppy, so she is our timid one. Cassie, if confronted with a firm tone of voice, or too much activity, or even a weird noise, gets this frightened look on her face.......like doggie apocalypse, I swear. When she's scared, out comes the belly. She rolls over, belly up.......and you just can't resist (because all the while, she is also staring at you with the biggest puppy dog eyes known to man).

Mouse Man is one of our cats. He's a handsome fella, and very alpha. I have to say, though, that he has the strangest habit of all. Whenever Karl and I get into bed, Mouse gallops across the bed, settles himself on Karl's left side, and proceeds to suck one of his toes. He prefers that someone hold his leg so that he can reach this toe better........he did this with me once for about 10 minutes straight........needless to say, he reverts back to "womb mode" and kneads on your hand and arm the entire time. Yep, my left arm is still healing from those scratches.......

Rudy, another of our cats, is just rolly polly. Well, okay, he's just fat. Can that be a quirk? He's also a belly cat -- loves to have his tummy rubbed. Every time we come home, he expects a treat and will torment you with a loud MEOW........the fact that we leave and come home various times during the day doesn't matter to Rudy. Just so you know, he does NOT get a treat every time we come home. Please feel free to make comments about how he's too large and should lose weight -- trust me, we know......

Twitchy is just a scaredy cat (literally). Nah, that's too soft a term.......he's just plain horrified. He rarely comes out, unless things are quiet (usually when we're in bed).......he was semi-feral as a kitten but just never completely got over that. So, we hardly see him. If you approach him in a manner he sees as threatening (which is pretty much always), he hisses and growls.......so, not exactly Mr. Lap Cat.

Izzy is our dachshund. To say that she has quirks is a total understatement. She is hyper, silly, needy, and the bark that comes out of her is amazing considering she's so little. She is the princess of the household and totally knows it -- spoiled and sometimes quite bratty. She loves to burrow, plays fetch like there's no tomorrow, licks faces and jumps all over people. Izzy also has a habit of eating her treat first, or her rawhide stick, then coming back and hovering over the other dogs, hoping to catch a random crumb. That girl is all over the place. :)

Carson and Josie were my cats before we got married -- the other four were Karl's (Rudy, Mouse, Twitchy, and Herman). Carson has a dog personality -- and is the ultimate escape artist. Anytime we come home, we have to crack the door and make sure he isn't hovering, waiting to dart between our legs and explore the outdoors. He's succeeded quite a few times. Carson follows me around everywhere and we "talk." Any of you who have cats know about these "conversations." Josie is Carson's sister (from another mother), and she's the only female cat in the house........which means that she's really had to adapt. But, her way of adapting is to torment the other cats, especially Twitchy, who she has backed into a corner more than once. Her other quirk is that she will jump on the bed as we're trying to go to sleep........she proceeds to give herself a bath and make her dough.......which of course makes the bed move (very frustrating when you're trying to drift off into dreamland).

Herman........sweet little Herman. The only thing I can think of is the way that his face looks -- he's a beautiful cat, part Maine Coon, but has this odd line around his mouth.......the only way to describe it is that he looks clownish. It's as if he's escaped from the circus and forgot to take off his lipstick. Oh, and he never meows. Ever.

Let's see.......did I forget anybody? Rudy, Josie, Mouse, Carson, Twitchy, Izzy, Cassie, Herman, Snoopy. Oh, and Karl. I'll blog on his quirks later. ;)

We're so lucky, you know? We have all of these great pets at home, and we love them despite all of their issues and hang ups. Our house is always teeming with activity, and we wouldn't have it any other way. Just imagine when we have kids........