wash your pet pet

It was an exciting night for Vicki when she was picked up outside our building by Sunny from wash your pet pet. He handed me a card and said, "I'll have her back in 1 to 2 hours." Vicki was a little unsure of this set-up but went along with it anyway. A couple of hours later she came back a primped princess.

Our Vicki is not really the little pink bow kind of dog but she looked great. Wash your pet pet is a mobile pet grooming service here in Hong Kong, the land of every convenience known to adults. Of course there's a mobile pet grooming service.

She smells good for the time being. She doesn't look drastically different but her nails are clipped without bleeding (as she did when I attempted it) and her ears and face are impeccably clean.

Every now and then we'll treat Vicki to a visit with Sunny and the pet pet mobile.

Vicki's Internet Friend

Take a close look at the photos of this handsome fella. This is the face of another lucky dog rescued from HKDR shortly after we got Vicki. His name is Duke or affectionately known as "The Duke" by his mom whose name is also Laura.

I wonder if our happy HKDR dogs will meet someday perhaps on a light stroll or even in this year's Peak to Fong fundraiser.

Duke was slightly underweight when he was adopted but that doesn't seem to be an issue for him anymore. He now looks like a happy, healthy and well-fed pooch.

This could be a match made in cyberspace.

Couch Cleaning

Today we have two lovely men in cleaning our couch. It was a three month old piece of furniture when Vicki arrived on the scene and today it looks about 10 years old.

I've said it before and, I'll say it again, she loves company. The poor thing doesn't get much attention from us you know. She shamelessly puts on the full-body tail wag and is just about the right height to lick dangling fingers. I mean most people might pet her just to wipe the saliva from their fingers, for our Vicki this is mission accomplished.

She's in the bedroom now with the door closed and hopefully not causing too much trouble. Once she's released we know the couch won't stay clean for long.

Vicki Screams for Ice Cream

  

Laura doesn't share food or drinks with Vicki and yet the pugnacious one will persist. She sticks her snout in my glass of juice or looks longingly into my eyes as I dip the spoon into a container of Ben & Jerry's to soothe my sore throat and comfort a cold. It is hard to resist her charms but that I do.

Greg is definitely more kind-hearted as he allows her to clear a plate. Hmph, I don't think this indulgent behaviour helps my cause as it rewards Vicki's begging ways.

Admittedly, slurping at a plate preoccupies her for a short while.

Staying a Step Ahead

Sometimes it feels like all we say is "no, Vicki" or "no bark" or "down, girl." She rifles through the garbage in the bathrooms so we must keep the bins up on the counters. She drinks the coffee, juice and wine from our cups so we must keep them out of reach.

Everything must be Vicki-proofed. We must put away our shoes because she''ll chew them and so forth. On a good day none of these situations causes too much of a challenge but some days I think it would be best if she went back to fat and unenergetic.

Adjusting to this fit version of our Vicki is fun. She has a new lease on life and we're happy about that and, well, she keeps us on our toes too.

Counting Our Blessings

Vicki doesn't really know how lucky she is. The world is full of horrible news that sometimes feels like it is getting worse everyday. Dogs need rescuing but much more importantly people need our help. I created this blog to connect with my friends and family. Just a little spot to bring a smile and maybe for us to think it's not all bad.

Some reading this may get offended that it is not high-minded enough. Where is my lofty purpose? My purpose is not lofty but it is nonetheless important to me and the few who follow my blog hopefully got the message long ago.

Please stop and count your blessings. If you haven't done so already. I know people that follow this blog have heart.  Give a little something to the people of Haiti. A simple text will do:

Red Cross: Text HAITI to 90999 ($10 donation)
Yéle Haiti: Text YELE to 501501 ($5 donation)
United Way: Text HAITI to 864833 ($5 donation)
Intl Medical Corps: Text HAITI to 85944 ($10 donation)

Sunny Morning Stroll

We realize that with Vicki, her pace of walking is somewhat related to our enthusiasm or reluctance. However there are times when she must stop and sniff a spot or when she just isn't having fun.

She was raring to go on her walk today but as we approached the sidewalk I realized I had forgotten her poop bag. Looking around for a loose plastic bag, bit of newspaper or anything to scoop with was to no avail. We had to turn around and go back to get a baggie. Vicki was perplexed looking to me for treats on the way back up. I grabbed the bag and off we went.

The bright day, treats and friends along the way helped to make it an all-around pleasant promenade for us both today.