This was a quiet and blessedly uneventful Christmas. I spent the day with my 92 year old Mom and since neither one of us felt like a 'big production,' we picked up Chinese take-out and had a small feast while we opened presents. I hope my mom will actually wear that cap with the ear flaps while she is out in the cold weather walking Peanut the chihuahua!
Ellie is still adjusting. Here's what I know about her. She spent most of her life in a rural shelter crammed with noisy dogs which is painfully evident in the way she resists leaving her 'spot.' She's clearly had at least one litter of puppies (which outraged my mom who said if she was in a kennel when she got pregnant it was non consensual). No doubt, she has survived quite a bit of trauma. The vet diagnosed her with heart worms and a systemic infection so she has to get well before she can head to K-9 Professional Solutions where I take all my dogs for training (and no Josephine did not make all "A's" out there but she is a sweet, confident and fantastic pet in large part because of the work the trainers there did with her). Ella's progress is slow. She needs a crash course in self-confidence. In fact, I had to take away her kennel because when she first got here, she went into it, hunkered down and I couldn't physically remove her from it. So, she is now on a new pink dog bed on a pallet beside my bed. She will not leave that spot except once in the morning to go pee-pee, and even then it is a struggle to get her outside. This morning I had to pick her up and physically take her outside and put her down in the grass. She weighs 45 pounds so this is not easy on my back! When I put food in her bowl, she won't touch it until I leave the room. When I come back, the food is gone and she's back in her bed. She likes to have her head rubbed and petted and she likes it when I say her name and tell her I love her. But, she won't come out of the bedroom or follow me around the house or hang out with me in the den while I watch t.v. She just needs some time (maybe a lot of time) and patience. The vet said she might need medication to relax, but I hope she doesn't. I hope she just learns over time that she is safe here, and that she's a member of the pack.
I HAVE NOT COOKED ANY NEW RECIPES LATELY BUT I ENJOYED MY SIGNATURE SIDECAR COCKTAIL, RED ONION MARMALADE ON GOAT CHEESE TOAST APPETIZERS, A GOOD ROAST CHICKEN, FRENCH FRIES, ETC. THE DELIVERY FROM MCDONALD'S WAS FOR THE DOGS - THEY LOVE MCPUP CUPS WITH FOLDED EGGS IN THE MORNING!
