Whaddya do on a rainy day?

Well, groom dogs [grin].

Usually I like to take the weekends off from heavy-duty work (okay... truth be told, I like to take everyday off from heavy-duty work, lol), but it's a miserable, cold, wet day outside and I had a four-legged guest dropped off for grooming this morning.

Casey's family has gone to Montreal for the day so it was a perfect time to see if I could look after her for the day and maybe give her the full "salon" treatment. No biggie. Huh... if I'd stuck to the plan and done only one dog...

Casey is a dream to groom. Like most of my visiting dogs, she's used to me and the "whole deal" (or ordeal as some of the critters think). So... up she went on the workbench in the basement, desk light on and I got to work. Lots of music on the radio so singing along and prattling to her as we go along. An hour and a half or so later, and I had morphed her from big furball to svelte little sheltie. Darn I have to start remembering to do before and after pictures, lol.

So... hubby is busy elsewhere and planning to go out and I'm on a roll. Getting tired of the dogs going out in the damp and then bringing in all kinds of yard refuse (leaves, twigs, grass... sometimes even larger branches [grimace]). They're way past their tune-up. I've been very negligent.

So... corral them one at a time and up they go on the bench (oh... why the bench? It's the perfect height and darned if I can get to my grooming tables in the far corner of the basement, lol). A couple hours later my tummy is protesting for lack of food. No more furry slipper feet and extra flyaway ear hair. I'm pleased as it will cut down on our housekeeping, lol. Haven't given them a full, to-the-skin grooming but a lick and a promise and at least trimmed the errant fur. Four more dogs completed and just have to hunt down the fifth holdout (Whisper of course... say grooming or car ride and she dives under the kitchen table into the far corner of the nook).

Need sustenance first. Cabbage rolls purchased as a treat for me. Yummy. Okay... time to get to work, but dang, there's Casey in the corner of the kitchen looking so adorable (she's in the corner because she can see everything from there... food dropping, dogs moving...). She's not got the prettiest mouth but dang she's an exquisite little thing, a sweetie and dang photogenic (unlike her mother. Her mother, Hunter, is really the prettiest and most structurally sound of my bunch, but she sees that camera coming and she gets hang dog and "Hunchback of Notre Dame look", lol). So out comes the camera for the photo op and take some great ones of Casey that her family will love. Need a group shot. Too mucky outside so I point to the couch in the familyroom. Up everybody goes except Casey (Whisper and Hunter need a bit of help - they're getting a little less agile with age). She's interested in what's happening but when she realizes my intent to put her with, well, "those" dogs, she hightails it [chuckle]. I nab her and take a few quick shots 'cause she's so outta there, lol. One decent one. Her family will be happy.

Off to give Whisper a quick trim and then rest my sore joints and muscles. Get to go to the Sens hockey game with my wonderful hubby tonight, courtesy of my awesome Dad and Mom. Boston's playing. The hubby's favourite team. Will be a great night. He'll cheer for Boston; me for the Sens, lol.

~ Shelley