And Now, For the Rest of the Story...

I couldn't write this in my last post, 'cause I was still a bit teary-eyed about it. I know, I know it's the best for all concerned, but that doesn't mean that my heart didn't crumble when we made the decision. Elmo (in the photo, left), our sweet, shy "puppy" member of the Drool Gang, has moved back to KY...this time, permanently, so that he and Ella Rae can play, play, play to their hearts' content.


Ella is a lovable, active, cutie-pie, who needs a constant playmate to keep her from becoming Wild Woman Evil Ella and destroying the whole house. Elmo, who had a rough life before he was rescued by the Guardian Angel Basset Rescue organization (GABR) and adopted by Missy M in 2005, needs to live in a household with another "active" roomy, and he has bonded with Ella over the past 8 months that they've been together...and so, a plan was hatched. The Two E's would live with Missy M, while Gus and Duchess (the Senior Citizens of the group) would make the move to NC. Looks great in print...still hard to bear in reality.


I'm not sure that any one of the 4-legged family members is the wiser yet, since there has been so much confusion in living arrangements in the past week, and that's probably a good thing. I did notice that the W-a-l-k last night seemed easier for Mr. T, with two dogs instead of four. Everyone returned to the house in much better temperment than usual when: Elmo tries to drag everyone else around the block (think: mush, mush dogsled team); Ella Rae runs over, under, around and through everyone else, getting the leashes all tangled and braided; Grumpy Gus (the oldest of the bunch) barking his head off the whole time because HE'S NOT HAPPY; and Duchess...ever the Anchor-Weight of the group...dragging up the rear, or trying to go the other way, or just stopping mid-walk and refusing to go any farther/faster. Still, today I have noticed that Gus is a bit more anxious, shall we say, than usual. We'll see...


Meanwhile, it appears that the Backyard Boyz (and Girlz) have spread the word that Ella has left the building. Look at what has been rattling at my window feeder the whole time I've been typing this post! I thought it was the batty blue bird who periodically flies into the reflection he sees in the window, so I was ignoring the thump, thump, thumping noises. When I did finally look to see whether the silly bird was ever going to give it up, I saw instead Sheena the Squirrel Queen...rapidly depleting the sunflower seeds. She finally just removed the tray, set it on the sill, and continued her feast uninterrupted. Snapping the photo (right) didn't phase her. Tapping on the window didn't do anything either. Siccing Duchess on her finally got her to depart, but I'll just bet the squirrels have noticed that D isn't going to set any squirrel-chasing speed record anymore. Question: where's my Ella-Bella Squirrel Chasing Girl when I need her? Answer: probably playing WWW Smackdown with Elmo on Missy M's bed. And they both are just loving it. Smile. Sigh. Wipe the tear from my eye.