Skip to main content

New Year, New Cat, New Dog

Happy 2016
 

In November of 2015 we lost our two faithful canine companions - Girl and Tiny.  Girl had survived two furloughs without and the loss of two other dogs who had been her pals.   Both from doggie diseases for which there is no real cure or treatment in our part of Brazil.  Tiny had made it through our year in the States in 2014 with flying colors and was in the prime of life at 3 years old.  Both contracted canine calazar which is transmitted by sand flies.  Both had to be put down as the disease has no real viable treatment except for very expensive shots that must be repeated frequently and dogs remain carriers.

Countess the Cat showed up around the time the two dogs were in their last days.  Neither dog cared much because of the weakening effect of the sickness.  One afternoon the cat just walked right in and the dogs just watched and slightly growled.  She stuck around and we decided to keep her.


Wishbone showed up not long after that.  She was a street dog that had been sleeping under the shade of cars on our road.  One day Byron gave her some water and she followed him around all day long after that - just like the lost puppy she was.

Convincing her to stick around has been a little rough after we invited her in because she fit under and through our front fence.  After we had been fairly sure she had no owner, Byron fixed the front fence and she has been "in" and happy ever since.  She's very timid and not super active but she's content and learning our language.

She's already learned to "sit" and we are working on other basic skills.  


I never wanted a cat in Brazil.  There are many strays and I wasn't sure how we could ever keep a cat "in." We had the cat neutered right away and she stays right in our yard most of the day and never roams very far.  We also didn't want to add to the already overflowing population of strays with kittens.

Doggie Woggie is now fenced in with no route of escape so we won't worry about neutering her to the time being as money is low right now and she's safe.  We just wish she was a little more aggressive and would chase the bad cats out of the yard - not the orange cat - just all the others!

With our new pets we enter a new year.  Not sure what it will hold for us.  But God does.  I think He sent the new cat and dog and I know He will show us what and where and when for the days to come.


Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Thank you for stopping by! Leave me a message if you would.

Popular posts from this blog

The Big Orange Cat

Do you boys remember that big orange cat at the mission house in North Carolina?  That was a special day for me.  I don't have a new story for this Friday.  I've had a long week, but my mind kept going back to that cat this week as I thought about what I would post for you boys today.  Click on the link down below to go back to my big people blog and reread the cat story if you like. Oh, by the way, this morning I made a special trip down to the other end of our town to see the guinea pigs being sold at a grocery store.  This particular store sells medicine and feed for all kinds of animals.  This month they are selling guinea pigs, baby chickens, and dachshund puppies!  Their guinea pigs looked very healthy.  They are selling them for BR$10 each or BR$15 for a pair.  Uncle Byron said that he was glad I didn't bring any home with me! One more thing - this week a mama possum came in our yard.  The dogs chased it and Girl Dog let out a squ...
Post a Comment
Read more

On the Road Again

Our first weekend back in Lage was hard. We were jet-lagged and unsure what to expect. Thankfully, the woman helping with the children still had lessons left in the book I’d given her and agreed to finish them, giving me a break for the first few weeks. Byron jumped right into the Friday and Sunday Bible studies. Saturday afternoon, we visited our faithful friend Jué, grandmother of Max, the boy in a wheelchair near Lage. Byron went to soccer, where more boys showed up than ever! An unsaved man helps with the older boys, and a church teenager has been helping with the younger ones. Our second weekend coincided with the first round of presidential elections. Friday attendance was low, and soccer was cancelled because the school served as a polling place. The Sunday street fair was moved to Saturday. We still hadn’t seen the family who had been attending Bible studies at the church, but we visited Jué again. On Sunday, people kept passing the church on their way to vote. Several question...
Post a Comment
Read more

Sabbatical?

Last month we traded the dirt roads of Bahia for the smooth highways of the USA.  We took off four weeks to visit with family, see one son be ordained, visit with another in the new state where he and wife are living and see our youngest grandson turn 4! It was a fast trip, and every day was full to the brim.  So, calling it a "sabbatical" may be a falsehood!  Rest, we did not.  But, refreshed and just a little renewed, I think we are.  Stay tuned over the next week as I finish up a video letter all about our trip. The funny thing about such trips is the desire to plan the next one right way!  Does that take away from my call to missions?  No, not in the least, but it does make me consider how often we need to "go home" and "take a break" from what we do without the need to visit all our churches. Furlough and sabbatical are not synonyms.  Furlough means visiting a different church every week.  Sabbatical is supposed to mean rest.  I hop...
Post a Comment
Read more