The WM Pet Connection

By Heather Chadwick

Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons user Pauline Evans

In the Northeastern United States, residents have had an easier winter season than the last one. At one point last winter the region was averaging about a snowstorm a week. This past Saturday, January 21, saw the first snowstorm of the season (unless you count the storm that happened right before Halloween 2011). It was a much more manageable storm than the first one of the last winter season, and perhaps a bit more welcome. It made taking my dogs out easier and allowed them to enjoy some snow without feeling intimidated by the large masses of snow.

As my dogs get older, I know they can't navigate through snow and slippery ground as much, especially Molly. She's starting to walk slower through the snow, as if she assumes walking even a bit faster will cause her to slip. Her age is creeping up on her, even if she doesn't want to show it. Rosie, on the other hand, will only walk slow to copy Molly. Perhaps her only sign of age is acknowledging Molly's. She still loves to run up the stairs, run away from people she doesn't know, and run to the kitchen whenever I'm headed there. She can still very much catch any treat you throw to her; Molly is slower and sometimes needs a couple of minutes to even see the treat on the floor.

Even though age is creeping up on my girls, snow is still a huge favorite. Taking them out Saturday morning, they both got super excited to see snow on the ground, and made their way down the front steps and drove their noses right into the snow. They walked through every pile of snow they could, tails vigorously wagging, and not wanting to go anywhere close to being inside. Because it was very cold, however, they didn't fight too much about going back inside. I gave them a couple of minutes to enjoy the snow, and then it was right back inside. They are old(-er) ladies after all; I don't need them to get sick with colds!

During the day you could hear snow and sleet hit the window. When it got especially heavy, the cats would sit up in high alert, while the dogs would lounge contentedly, knowing they got to enjoy the snowy weather. Strictly inside cats, my cats' idea of stormy weather is limited to sounds of wet stuff hitting the window. They always look irritated when it gets loud enough to wake them up, but never hesitate to try to inspect it via windows. Fortunately for them, that's their only exposure to weather. Like all cats, they love anything they could see out the windows, even if it's gray skies and pouring rain. Unlike the dogs (and like I'm sure most cats) they hate the idea of being wet and would rather look at it via windows than have anything else to do with it. Whenever the dogs come inside after dealing with rain or snow, they run away as fast as they can, knowing full well the dogs are going to try to shake all the wet stuff off.

At least this winter season is a lot less snowy than the last- for the dogs' sake. Now, if only winter was the shortest season, for the sake of not being freezing when taking them out. What say we switch Spring and Winter for duration of seasons? Why not make Spring longer and Winter feel like the shortest? That way, the girls can spend more time outside and I won't be freezing and annoyed with every step I walk. Anyone agree?

A Less Snow-Filled 2012 (So Far...)