Animal Adventures

The past two weeks have been interesting to say the least. As expected, my birthday was unseasonably warm, though a bit foggy. I took the day off from everything, including client work to take a drive to one of my favorite woodland hiking trails by the river. The mist coming off the river shrouded the area with magic, along with a surprise.

As I began my walk along the trail, I came upon a man with a beautiful white bird perched on his arm, talking to a couple on their bikes. The bird said, "Hello" as I passed by and the man holding him beckoned me over to meet Maggie, a 25-year old Cockatoo. Soon Maggie was entertaining us with feather ruffling and a host of tricks. I asked if I could take a picture of Maggie, and the man replied by placing the bird on my head so I could take a selfie with him. I also got to hold the bird like a baby and he happily perched on my arm as well, while the man took our picture. Turns out Maggie is a rescue animal and loves spending time outdoors. Meeting Maggie was a very nice birthday gift, along with the hike on the beautiful wooded trail.

Last week, my animal adventures continued a little closer to home. Bella just turned 6 months old, so I started looking for low-cost spay and neuter clinics in my area a few weeks ago. Initially, it looked like I wasn't going to be able to get an appointment until April, but when I called to set a date and pay the deposit, there was a sudden cancellation and I was asked if I could bring Bella in the following day.

I've had cats spayed or neutered before, so I thought I knew what to expect. I figured Bella would be tired from the anesthesia and would sleep the rest of the day after I picked her up. Instead, Bella seemed wired for sound and was none too happy about the cone the vet placed around her head to prevent her from licking her incision from the surgery. I was assured by the staff at the clinic that it would be difficult, if not impossible, for Bella to remove her E-collar, as they called it.

Well, they were wrong. Bella removed the cone 5 times over the course of that afternoon and evening. I alternated between putting her in the crate cage I'd borrowed from a neighbor and the carrier I'd used to take her to the vet because she just wouldn't stop trying to remove the collar and she was very unsteady on her feet. The carrier seemed to calm her down a bit and she wasn't able to get the collar off as easily, but I didn't want to keep her in there overnight. At one point, she pulled the string out that secured the collar. I wasn't sure how I was going to get through the next 10 days.

I started looking for options online and found surgical onesie suits for cats. I ordered one, but had to wait 2 days for delivery. In the meantime, I managed Bella as best I could, alternating between holding her while she shivered from the after effects of the anesthesia and placing her in a crate by the fire with her favorite blanket to limit her movements.

When the onesie finally arrived, I wasn't able to get it on her by myself. Fortunately, my sister Sara is a former vet tech and very good with animals. She was able to come over to assist. With her help and some yummy chicken treats, Bella was finally in her little suit. While she didn't try to remove it, she did seem to have trouble walking around in it. She would walk a few steps, then flop over on her side. She did manage to get it off overnight, though, and I learned how to distract her with treats so I could put it back on without assistance.

The next 2 days of Bella's recovery were much quieter. I guess the excitement of the first 2 days, along with the diminishing medication in her system finally caught up with her and she spent the majority of the time sleeping.

While the onesie did seem like a better option than the cone, Bella ended up soiling it when visiting the litter box and I had to take it off to wash it. I put the cone back on and to my surprise she didn't freak out or try desperately to remove it. Instead, she toddled around the house like she was wearing a silly party hat. I had planned to put the suit back on her after it was dry, but since she seemed to be doing so well with the cone, I left it on until today.

Things are finally getting back to normal and Bella has bounced back from her experience and is enjoying a nap on her perch near the fire as I write this.

Through all of this, I have kept up with client work and had two phone interviews and an in-person interview for a part time marketing coordinator position in my area, leaving little time for art. I'm hoping to get back to my big project this week and will have more to share on that soon.

I hope February is going well for you, Reader. We're more than half-way through winter and spring will be here before you know it!

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Until next time,
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In the Shop - Cute Birds & Flowers

Speaking of spring, I thought I'd highlight one of my favorite springtime patterns, Cute Birds & Flowers this week. I love how soft pastel colors blend with the birds in this pattern. You can find Cute Birds & Flowers on these products and many more in the shop.

Zipper Pouch (3 sizes) See in Shop

Mug See in Shop

Spiral Notebook See in Shop

Postcard See in Shop

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Inside My Sketchbook:

I've done a bit of sketching and started a new mandala in the last two weeks, but don't have much to show, so instead, I thought I'd share some past drawings from my sketchbook. I particularly like the rabbit sketches.

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Gathering Inspiration:

On the top are two of my favorite birthday presents. The first is an animatronic figure of Grogu, from the Star Wars series on Disney+ called The Mandalorian. My husband and I love the series and Rob knows how much I have missed Grogu now that season 3 is over. As we await season 4, this animated figure is keeping me company in my studio. On the right is a beautiful birthday card from my sister Rachel. This gorgeous scene is now posted on the bulletin board above my desk for inspiration.

On the bottom, another birthday gift, this one from my Mom. I love the adventure of Pooh and his friends as they try to find Christopher Robin's lucky stone, along with insights on appreciating the little things in life, but the sweet illustrations made this book a must-have. And finally, a tribute to one of the sweetest dogs I've ever known, my sister Becky's dog Annabelle. She passed away last week after struggling for several months with a tumor in her heart. She was 9 years old. As my sister likes to say, Annabelle's heart was just too big. I will miss her so much.