Pig and Dogs and Rugs Don't Mix

I am really not sure who is worse - Emma or Winston on the rugs in this house.  Emma does quite a number on looped rugs when she does her nesting/scratching on the carpet.  Winston made some pretty large bald spots on a shag rug the last few days - I think he thinks its like grass and he roots around until all the fibers are pulled out.

The rug in my dining room was beyond repair - that one was pretty much due to Emma and her scratching.  I pitched it and replaced it with - of all things - an outdoor patio mat.  It has been down on the floor for 3 days now and its been scratched on and rooted on with no issues to report.  At this time the rug in the entry has been turned face down in order to attempt to preserve it.  I will be heading to Lowe's for another patio mat for the entry as well.  Silly critters.

Naughtiness and Guests

My brother is in town for a quick visit and is brave enough to stay with us.  Before bedtime the critters are great - charming and friendly and wanting to interface with the new person at our house. After the lights go out - its a whole other story - not charming in the slightest.

Finn is still upset that the guest room is off limits to critters so he woke me around 4 am trying to scratch on the door - brat.  I really could not get him to quit so I brought him in our room and shut the door.  This upset Oliver who proceeded to wail - so I let him in....closed the door behind him - which made him wail even more.  Sigh.

Earlier in the evening piglet was trying to break out of his pen.  He does not normally do this until around 7 am....upon further investigation he was objecting to the fact that there was no water available.  Once I filled up his bowl he got a drink and went to bed.  Emma has been scratching on the carpet on and off...

Needless to say it's not been the most restful night....hopefully my brother is sleeping through it....

What's New @ the Zoo?

How about some general updates - we haven't done that for a bit:

Lets start with miss Emma - she is doing well!!  I think she loves having a pig.  I have noticed that some of her neurotic behaviors have decreased since Winston joined our family.  Even though he annoys her at times I think she loves him and he most definitely loves her.  We are feeling more and more comfortable leaving the two of them alone together.  They are learning each other's boundaries and can often be found playing together.

The Ferrets - in general - they are adjusting quite well to the new routine we have with them being upstairs during their downtime.  No one seems to mind it much and it keeps the boy ferrets from having unpleasant interactions with the piggy.

Violet is just great.  She is by far the most interactive with Winston - I would almost call them friends and while I wouldn't on purpose leave them unattended it would not be a huge issue if it happened.  They have figured each other out for sure. She has found her way into Winston's covers several times - not sure what that's about....  Violet seems quite healthy and happy and is quite playful with her humans....

Finn is my happy and sweet boy and he is doing great.  Things between he and the pig are improving slowly - they are much slower to escalate than Winston and Theo.  He can often interface with Winston now for a good bit of time - 45 mins before he gets so excited that pig rodeo starts.  I have hope that in a few months when Winston is a bit bigger and Finn is more and more used to him they will be all good.

Madison - my sweet, sweet and joyful girl.  As always she is full of cuddles and kisses.  Like Violet - she does well with Winston - they are not quite as friendly but close.  I can let them interface without much risk of escalation.  Maddie is great - happy, healthy and fully engaged.

Theo is my all boy all the time.  He is full of mischief, affection and loves to find trouble.  I think things between he and Winston are improving as well - but we have a long way to go.  With him it totally depends on the day - some days he is not particularly interested and some days it takes him 2 seconds to bite on the pig.  In general he is just great - full of happiness and orneriness and always good for some lovies with his humans.

The Kitties -  in general - the kitties are well!  Everyone seems happy and content.  I am pleased with how they are doing.  Everyone seems to be in good health which is just how I like it.

Oliver - he is trying to figure out the pig - Winston loves him but sometimes the piglet is a bit rougher than Oliver would like.  This results in head bonking and biting.  For the most part they are good though.  Oliver has been less into trouble these days - the orneriness factor has gone down a notch or two.

Zoey - my snarly girl is doing great - her health seems quite good and she has been hanging out with me quite a bit lately.  She has no love for the piglet and pretty much avoids him.  She will tolerate sharing the water dish so long as Winston doesn't get too close.

Phoebe is going through a rebellious phase - pushing the limits and getting into trouble - little turkey. Her health seems to be good and she seems to be a happy.  Not sure what has her pushing my buttons but I hope this phase passes quickly.  She is still BFFs with Oliver and still not BFFs even remotely with Aggie.

Speaking of Aggie - my eldest girl is fab.  She is quite happy and very healthy and in complete denial that we have acquired a pig.  She sure seems content and is engaged with the critters and with the humans.  I am quite pleased.

Which brings us to Winston - that little pig has stolen our hearts.  He is such a great addition to the zoo.  He is doing just great - growing and learning each day.  He is very much a creature of habit - he likes his schedule to be the same each day.  He is good about putting himself to bed and he gets up at the same time every day.  Sadly for me it much earlier than I want to get up...  In the last week he has decided that he likes raisins, that he can do both up and down the stairs, that he is tolerating starting to let me put his harness on and that he has almost completely forgotten where he is supposed to go potty.

And lastly - its been 44 days since my sweet Clooney passed.  I should be receiving his special urn in the next week or two - I can't wait to see it.  I miss him so much still and think of him every day.

So there you have it...

Saturday Stories

Raisins!!  They might be the key to potty training.  We tried raisins before and he didn't care for them but evidently his palate has evolved since then.  Since the raisins came out and they have only ever been given when he is in the litter box - he associates them with going potty I think.  Its good stuff - no misses since that started.  Fingers crossed....

Duct Tape Breech....I couldn't figure out how Violet made it into Winston's pen and bed last night. We had a duct tape breech.  You see - the ferrets were crawling behind the dresser so I covered the space between the wall and the dresser with tape.  Its been about a month and they finally scratched their way through the tape - reinforcements have been added.

Flea and tick - its that time again - Frontline for the ferrets and the kitties.  Made me a tiny bit sad that I have nine vials of medicine and only 8 little furries to apply it to.  I miss you Clooney - more than you could ever know....  Fun Fact - pigs don't typically get fleas so no treatment necessary for Winston.  Emma has her Seresto Collar that lasts for 8 months so she is good to go.

Feeding Cabinets- Today I am on the hunt for feeding cabinets for the kitties and the dog.  If I can find these then I can take the final gates down in the lower level - blocking only the steps.  Woohoo!  I am thinking a feeding cabinet for the dog with doors I can open when its time for her to eat and when Winston is not around and then using the surface of the top of the cabinet for the kitties food. They can easily hop up to get their dinner.  The ferrets will have an upstairs feeder that will sit behind the TV cabinet where they can get to it but the dog and the pig cannot....wish me luck...

Washed Up - Simon's Cat

This one is sooo Zoey - that girl loves to find clean laundry:

Bad Habits

See - my bad habits that started in August with the blog are continuing.  Things are so busy I just can't seem to squish in sitting down to write each day. Bad Bad Bad

Speaking of bad habits - we were doing so great with potty training with Winston and then all of a sudden he has forgotten where he needs to pee.  He is great about the litter box for number 2 but peeing is all of a sudden a challenge - he doesn't want to go in the box or go outside - just on the carpet - oh joy.

Theo still insists on trying to eat the pig - especially his ears and Finn is still trying to ride him so at this point we are keeping the boys separated.  Ferrets have free run of the house from about 5 pm to 8 am.  During the day they are in our room snoozing away while Winston is downstairs.  It's not optimal - not what I want it to be but it works and no one seems terribly unhappy.  The girl ferrets have a bit more freedom as they are not aggressive with Winston so I can let them interact with supervision.  Violet does bite on him but it seems to be a soft playful bite and Winston doesn't cry or try to get away.

Oliver and Zoey have the bad habit of needing to be on me 24 hours a day.  I cannot be stationary for 2 minutes without one of them or both of them trying to get on me.  While I love the affection - and they both get plenty of attention throughout the day - believe me - it makes me insane... they have no regard for personal space.  Phoebe likes to lay on me but she doesn't do it all the time and when she does she is still and not in my face.  Aggie doesn't ever want to lay on me - only next to me - I can deal with that...

Emma is still my carpet scratcher - although - I think its better since the pig came.  I think he keeps her occupied and thinking about other things and she scratches much less than before - this is GOOD!!!

We all have bad habits I guess...hopefully I can get Winston back on track as that is the most messy bad habit on the list....

September Critter Goals

So - here it is - September...ah a shiny new month.  I have set a few critter goals for this month.  They are:

1.  Teach Winston how to lay down as one of his tricks.  Stretch goal of roll over...
2.  Continue to make progress on harness training with a goal of him letting me put it on and snap it by the end of the month.
3.  Continue work on potty training - its going pretty well though.
4.  Continue working with the ferrets so we can get them used to the pig with the ultimate goal of peaceful co-existence - but I think that will take longer than 30 days.
5.  Brushing the kitties 2 - 3 times a week -- the cat hair around here is crazy.

Only 5 goals - could set a giant list but that is just not achievable so I am limiting myself to 5.  I will keep you posted on how it goes....