Bunny!

We've always wondered how Rio would react to seeing a bunny. I found out the other day when I was taking Rio for a walk with my nephew, Andrew. We were walking by the side of the National Aviary when we saw the little fellow.



I was amazed to watch the bunny hop closer to us. A little voice in my head said to the bunny, "Beware! Greyhounds chase bunnies at the racetrack."

Rio gave the bunny his full attention. He was interested but he didn't tug at the leash. I suspect if he were off leash he would have gone after the bunny.

So bunnies are interesting. Not as interesting as cats, but interesting none the less.

Whew!

Sorry about not posting. The past 2 weeks have been busy with family visits. First my parents visited us then my brother's family visited. Rio calmly watched people flow in and out of the house.

Now the house is quiet and I'm on load 4 of laundry. Rio has a vet visit Wednesday for acupuncture. I'll try to get something posted soon.

Rio v. Cat

Rio is listed as not cat safe by the adoption agency. We've notice he is extremely interested in them whenever we encounter them on our walks. I finally saw how interested he was on Monday when we were coming home from a morning walk.

Next to our house is a community garden that is transected by a path from one side to another. We often use it as a short cut to our back yard. As soon as we entered the garden Rio became very interested in a bush. Since people grow their vegetables in this garden I don't want him doing ANY business here.

He was staring intently at one bush. I though he had gotten a scent of something. Just as I noticed a small gray ball at the base of the bush Rio lunged at the cat. The cat attacked back as it exited and knocked Rio on his rear end in a perfect sit. Rio looked a bit startled. The cat escaped by climbing over the fence into our back yard. Rio, having regained his composure, was ready to take off after the cat and kept looking for him. Normally once I get into the back yard I let Rio off his leash, but because I wasn't sure where the cat was I kept him on leash until we got into the house.

So Rio is definitely NOT cat safe, which means we can't bring him anywhere there is a cat. Either the cat or the bush gave Rio a small cut on his neck which drew some blood. I guess it is a war wound.

Spring is blooming

This post should come with pictures but I haven't downloaded them from my camera yet. Spring is breaking out all over. Rio, Mom and Dad and I went for a neighborhood walk today and saw the following blooming:

forsythia, hyacinth, daffodils, tulips, magnolia, cherry trees, other flowering trees. The grass is emerald green.

We are starting to have daffodils in the back yard. Rio is doing his best to anoint them. Needless to say I won't be bringing any into the house in case they have that certain odor.

Sometimes I wish I was a dog

This is a late post because most of the day I was glued to CNN watching the tragedy of the shooting in my home town of Binghamton, NY. It is hard not to be stressed out by the tragic events.

Rio is blissfully unaware of anything other than his immediate world. Sometimes I wish I were as blissful.

Heartworm & Lyme Disease Test Negative

Since the specialist visit I've been wondering if Rio had been bitten by ticks which may be causing his limp. I put two calls into the specialist but he didn't return them. So I called my vet's office. My vet wasn't in but another vet talked with me. She didn't think his limp was caused by Lyme Disease but said I could come in to get him tested.

I went in this morning and had the test results within 10 minutes. Fortunately they came back negative.

Rio was full of pep this morning. I gave him a 2nd dose of the gabapentin last night and will repeat that tonight. Maybe all he needs is more pain killers.

Rain, Rain, Go Away

Rio really really really doesn't like to go out in the rain. It was raining this morning so I put Rio's coat on him and sent him outside with the instructions "Hurry up" which means do your business.

Rio took two steps into the back yard, paused, spun around and headed back into the house. No way was he going out into the rain. He'd rather hold it than get wet.

Finally at the end of the morning the rain let up and we went for a walk. Wouldn't you know it started to rain again? Poor Rio.