Other Pet Activities

Animal massage is still pretty new in the greater Spokane area so as I build up knowledge, reputation and clients, I am doing some pet sitting & visits as well. The bonus with me? Your animal also gets free massages!

Recently I spent four nights with a couple of Treeing Walker Coonhounds. This is an interesting breed. They are VERY intense in just about every activity - eating, napping, walking, scenting, etc. They are scent hounds so when some critter wandered through their yard one evening - it made them crazy with excitement - baying, howling and racing back and forth. Sure, the critter had been long gone, but they didn't care - to them that scent was fresh and they were determined to find it! Sadly, it was also 11pm and all the neighbors - I am sure - were not thrilled with being jolted from their slumber! Sorry about that!

They also nap and sleep very hard. Of course, they sleep right with me on the overnights - not that I mind, this is what I do with my own pups. But my pups are a little more understanding shall we say. Like when I need to get out of the bed. The hounds just look at me as if to say - nice try human, were sleeping in this morning. I could not get them to move and had to squiggle my way towards the head of the bed to get up!

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Another home has a lovely sweet retriever and a very stubborn little Chihuahua. Granted, I am there for the big guy but I feel bad that the little one just barks and growls at me. On my last visit I had a plan. Maybe not the best plan, but I thought it had some validity. I took with me some winter gloves. When the growling and barking started I just reached down to scoop her up. But before the scooping could take place, there was growling and attacking and biting! Luckily she is old and small and the gloves were thick.

After the scoop, I carried her outside and set her down - hoping she would do her business. She stood there for a minute, looked around, looked up at me, harrumphed, then turned around and stomped - as much as a little dog can - into the house, throwing a look of complete disgust back at me. So, not the exact outcome I was hoping for but, she didn't bark or growl at me for the rest of the visit!