Cooling Toys, Boxes Of #Puppy, And Other Random Things

The weather last Tuesday and Wednesday stayed in the comfortable range. It was kind of overcast, and never got higher than 20 degrees C. In fact, in the early morning, when I first woke up, it was cool enough that it was almost chilly with the combination of the temperature, cloud cover, and ocean breeze. I loved it!

Officially Thursday was about the same temperature. In fact, most of the day it didn't go above 19 degrees C on Thursday (it did briefly go up to 20 degrees C, but only for maybe an hour in the afternoon). But it felt like it was much hotter. Even outside it felt hotter on Thursday than it had felt on Tuesday and Wednesday. What a difference less cloud cover makes!

On Friday it was in the low 20s outside, and the high 20s inside. It stayed that way through Saturday. So... Yeah... Definitely warmer than I'd have liked. But at least it didn't hit the 32 degrees C they predicted. That's something to be grateful for, that's for sure, especially since that would have been the outside temperature. I dread to think what it would have been like in our apartment if it had been that hot outside.

Knowing about the predicted heatwave, and the fact they hate the hot weather as much as I do, I ordered a couple of cooling toys for the dogs. I was going to get them a cooling mat, but they spacifically say on them that they aren't recommended for chewers, because of the gel inside them (which is what makes the mats cool themselves). Since Logan is teething right now, and Lilie is known for chewing things - though she does at least generally stick to her own toys and rawhide these days - I figured that wasn't a good idea with my two. So I ordered them something they're actually meant to chew. Apparently, you get them wet, and let them chew on them. I'll give the toys credit: they do stay cool for some time, even on a hot afternoon. Here are a couple of photos of them with the cooling toys, which Kelly took right after I gave them to them Friday afternoon:


They were excited to get a new toy, but lost interest quickly. The extra water bowl I got them held their interest longer initially than the toys did, and I actually commented to my Mam that ice cubes keep them entertained for longer as well. They did go back to them later, and I'd hoped that meant the toys would grow on them. Unfortunately, though they're supposed to be designed for chewers, they aren't made as sturdily as they claim, and it didn't take them long to destroy them. I'd feared that would be the case when I felt them when they arrived, so wasn't surprised when they quickly ended up in pieces once the pups actually decided they were worthy of attention. I'm going to have to try the other option of filling a Kong toy with treats and freezing it. At least I know the Kong toys last... In the two years since we got Lilie, we've only lost one Kong toy to chewing, and it was one she'd been given that belonged to Mam's Cocker Spaniel, Ebonie, before Lilie. Bearing in mind, the treat balls they have every night - and sometimes in the day, if I need to buy myself a few minutes to finish something - are Kong balls, so they get used daily in our place.

Anyway, it rained a bit early Sunday morning. Not much, or for long, and I probably wouldn't have noticed if it hadn't happened during the bit of time I was up with Logan in the night. But it did. As I'd hoped would be the case once I realized it was doing so, this fact, combined with the cloud cover and ocean breeze, helped to cool things down. It got up to 17 degrees C for a while, both inside and outside, but didn't get any warmer than that, which was great as far as I was concerned. I'm pretty sure the furkids were pleased to have a cooler day too.

Monday (yesterday) was slightly warmer than Sunday. It got up to about 18 degrees C outside, and about 19 degrees C inside. So not too bad. Warm, but in the range we don't mind dealing with. Plus, it felt nice after the much hotter days we had recently.

In other news...

We finally got some results back on what could be the cause of the sores on Kelly's legs. Turns out he's got a severe vitamin D deficiency. He's got to have supplements for three months, and then they'll see if anything's changed. Since he's only been having the supplements for a few days, it's too soon to know for sure if they're clearing up the sores on his legs. I hope this is all there is to it, and his legs are able to heal up properly now.

I told Lilie more time outside would help him, so she should make him take her on more walkies - and me and Logan too, when he's cleared for walkies in a couple of days time - and she got excited. I think she's happy to agree to that idea. I expect Logan would be too, if he knew what it meant. LOL!

Anyway...

Last Tuesday, I was breaking up some boxes for recycling, and the pups came to see what I was up to. Logan especially wanted to know what I was doing, and if he could be involved. Of course, I couldn't resist a fun opportunity, so told Kelly to grab the camera, and while he did I put the pups in boxes. Here are their photos:


I don't think Logan minded too much, but Lilie didn't seem too impressed. Either way, they let me put them in the boxes for the photos, and then I helped them when they were ready to get out of their boxes, which was not long after the photos were taken... They didn't stay in them long.

I think Lilie only wanted in the box for a photo to be included in the fun, because Logan was doing it. It doesn't matter though. She wanted to join in, so she got included. I always try to include both dogs, unless one of them isn't interested, or is sleeping, or it's something one can't be included in for some reason, like when Logan was having his vet treatment, and Lilie didn't need anything done. Though she did get to come for the outing to the vet.

Speaking of which, Logan had vet on Thursday. Kelly and Lilie walked to the vet, while Logan and I took a taxi, so they could get that extra bit of walking in, especially since Lilie was eager for a walk. Logan isn't allowed to do the walk yet, so he didn't get a choice. We all rode home in another taxi together. Unlike me and Logan, who would have needed a taxi ride one way anyhow, since we couldn't manage that long of a walk both ways yet, even if Logan was allowed to try, Lilie and Kelly could have done the walk both ways, so Kelly was just going to put me and Logan in our taxi and walk her home, but she really wanted to get in the taxi, and the driver told us he was happy to take them both, so we let her have the car ride after all. She seemed pleased.

I use the same taxi company as a rule, because they're used to me. Mostly I have no complaints about them. I wouldn't keep using them if I did. I have to say though, I was especially impressed with the taxi drivers we had on Thursday, particularly the one Logan and I had on the way to the vet. Kelly and Lilie had gone on ahead, leaving us to wait for our taxi (since it was at home we were waiting) and the driver was great. He asked me how he could best help me before doing anything to help, which is what you actually should do when planning to help a blind person, or a disabled person of any kind. Most drivers just grab my arm and start tugging me towards the car's door, or don't do anything until I prompt them. But this guy asked what kind of help I needed, warned me before he grabbed my arm to lead me to the car's door that he was going to grab my arm, and offered to hold Logan for me so I could do up my seatbelt. I wish they could all be like hthat driver.

I was pleased with something the vet did too: he asked how Lilie was coping now we had Logan. I thought it was great he took the time to see she was doing OK with having a new puppy in the house. We told him how they mostly get on great, and will often play and sleep together, but we do sometimes get a bit of squabbling, especially when Logan jumps on her head, or chews on her ear. He agreed with me that was good - not the fact he jumps on her and chews on her ear, but the fact they get on most of the time - and all we need to do is continue working on teaching Logan that biting - and jumping on your big sister's head - is not good behaviour. I do also have to stay between them for meal times. That's not because of squabbling though. It's because Logan will steal Lilie's food, and she just backs off and lets him eat her dinner, while watching sadly. So I have to keep him back, or she ends up with no dinner.

Anyway, the other thing that happened this week was that the hose for the washing machine somehow got a hole in it, and sprung a leak. Luckily it wasn't in use when it happened, so it didn't cause a problem with a load of laundry. It did cause the utility area to turn in to a paddling pool though, since when those hoses spring leaks, the release of pressure causes the system to think it needs to send water through the pipe. We had to turn off the water supply to the washing machine's pipes until we could get a replacement hose. Thankfully, that's something that doesn't cost too much, can be picked up locally, and we can easily replace ourselves. In all fairness to it, this is the same washing machine, and same hose, we've been using since we got them about a year after we moved down to this area. Since we moved down here from Wales almost eight years ago, that makes it about six and a half years old. Anyway, we got the new hose yesterday, so the washing machine can be used again without our utility area turning in to a paddling pool.

Other than that, the only things that have happened during the past week have been the usual day to day stuff, which seems to involve a lot of cleaning up after the chaos and mess caused by Lilie and Logan playing. I don't mind though, even though it reminds me of the time I babysat for seven kids at once (from the families of three different family friends). All but two of them were under the age of five, and the three between the ages of two and five caused enough mess that I found myself searching the garden for the contents of the toy box for some time after their Mothers picked them up, since I'd had the bright idea to take the toybox outside, so I could have the five youngest out there, since it was a lovely day, and them playing outside meant the older two would play quietly on my playstation in the living room (where I could keep an eye on them, but keep the little ones from bugging them). Hey, it was a good idea, and it did work... The older two played on the games machine quietly, the younger ones stayed playing in the garden with me, and... Well, I'd have had to gather up the toys from the toy box afterwards anyhow, so... *shrugs*