Walking With Winston...the saga continues

Over the course of the last week we have been working on putting on piglet's harness and going out side when Emma goes out for a potty break.  He did pretty well all week long - he likes going out.

We decided that today we would take him to my parent's where there are some wide open spaces and see how that went.  Harnessing him was no problem.  Outside for multiple potties was fine - getting in the car - not so great.  He does make a fuss.  Once he is in the car he is okay...today we managed to make it round trip with no accidents in the car so that's good.  Once we got there he was not in a hurry to get out of the car and hubs had to lift him out which was noisy and unpopular.

All the car drama aside Winston loved going to a place where he could root around and play in the dirt. We weren't sure what to expect if we took him off the leash so we strategically positioned ourselves in a triangle with the hopes we could keep him somewhat contained - we totally didn't need to at all.  Piglet was fantastic about staying with us and heading to us whenever he was called....he does way better at that than the dog (don't tell Emma I said that).

Speaking of Emma - we did take her with us but there were hunters shooting in the distance and she didn't like the noise so she opted to go inside and spend some time with Quincy instead of playing outside with us.

We had more car drama getting him in the car to head home and getting out of the car in the driveway.  Since we got home little Mister has been sacked out - he really wore himself out running around like a crazy pig.  If we can figure out a way to make the car part less dramatic we could take him out each weekend to run around and burn off some energy.  Maybe we will try his piggy stairs.....

Here are a few snaps from today:

Rooting in the dirt

Running towards me - he is too cute - he makes excited snorty noises when he runs...

He ate the dirt, rooted in the dirt - had lots of dirty piggy fun

Handsome boy!

Muddy face...

General Updates from the Zoo

 Let's do some general updates about my little furry bunch.  The ferrets all seem to be doing incredibly well.  They are happy and engaged and full of energy.  They seemed to do well while we were gone for the weekend - no issues.  Since we have been back they are very happy to be picked up and loved on which I am loving.  The little ones are getting better about finding me when I call them - they are not perfect but we are getting better and I think they are learning their names.  Kai and Tabby are both beverage freaks - doesn't really matter what the beverage is - they want it.  Theo is a fan of white cheddar popcorn.  I let him have one piece - just the puffy part - not the kernel part and he loves it.  All in all - I am happy with the state of the business.

 The kitties are doing well!!  We had no mishaps while we were gone.  Hairballs are few and far between and I switched the blend of their cat food to an indoor formula which seems to have made the kitty puke fest come to an abrupt end.  I have to call the vet and get them in in the next week or so - I think I will do 2 and 2 - maybe Ollie and Phoebe together and then Aggie and the dreaded Zoey - oh how I hate having to take her in.  I adore her but she is just plain awful at the vet.  Look for those updates in the next week or two.

Piglet and pup are great - both getting back into the groove since they boarded for the weekend. Winston has gotten a bit pushy when it comes to dinner time or any other time associated with the humans eating.  I decided that it was time for us to work on manners a bit and we have really been focusing on that for the last few days.  All in all I am still amazed at how smart pigs are.  They learn things so quickly.  Winston likes to stand on his back feet and rest his front feet on your chair or the couch to put himself in prime position for getting a nibble.  This was fine when he was a bit smaller but now he can be quite a pain in the rump.  Since he came home on Monday we have been working on sitting and waiting politely for a bite.  Its going well and for the most part he gets it - he gets frustrated sometimes and misbehaves but he really is making quick progress.  Emma is her same chilled out self - love her.  She should win some sort of patience award for putting up with pig antics, cat craziness and ferrets crawling all over her every day.

All in all - the gang is good - no complaints....

Baltimore Aquarium

Over the weekend we took our nephew to Baltimore (among other places) and visited the National Aquarium located in the Inner Harbor.  It's a great aquarium with over 17,000 animals.  Here are a few snaps of cool critters and fishes....

Emma and Winston Visit the Vet

As you know we traveled over the weekend - as a result we needed care for both Winston and Emma. Since they both needed some things done at the vet I decided it would be good to kill two birds with one stone.

So - on Friday morning I loaded Miss Emma into the car and took her over to her vet - its right down the street.  I got her dropped off and a few hours later I had the results of her physical.  All in all things are pretty darn good with a couple of exceptions.  First off - she needs her teeth cleaned.  I have been putting it off because I don't like that she has to be put under anesthesia but I think she does really need it so I will likely schedule it in the coming months.  Before that can occur though - we have to have a bile acid profile to try to figure out the continued slight elevation of her liver enzyme numbers.  They are pretty much exactly where they were 8 or so months ago.  I guess the good news is that it hasn't seemed to get worse but we need to figure out what the deal is.  She is completely a-symptomatic for any liver disease I could find online so I hope maybe this is an old age thing?  We will see.  Unfortunately the test requires some fasting which will require some planning on my part....I will keep you posted.

Back to Friday morning - after I dropped off Em I got Winston into his harness.  We have figured out a pretty good way to get him to put it on - I lay it out on the floor and then strategically position the piglet - then scratch his belly which makes him flop on his side.  Then I wrap the harness around him and latch it - and voila he is good to go.  He was very cooperative about going outside and down the stairs.  He went potty on command in the flower bed and then only made a minor ruckus getting in the car.  On the way there he was fantastic - for the first time ever - no accident in the car.  Once we got out of the car at the vet he went potty outside again - hooray!  Then the trouble started - he was very unsure of going into a strange building.  After much trying the hubs just picked him up and carried him in which piglet loudly protested about.  We got him on the scale and wowser - he weighed in at a whopping 47 pounds.  Much heavier than we thought but he is really not much bigger.  I still think he is a great size - not too big - certainly not Esther size (we love you Esther the Wonder Pig)!  His physical went fantastic - here are the notes the vet made in his file:  'Winston looked good at his physical exam! I can still hear a heart murmur, but it is much quieter than it was when I first met him. He is not showing any symptoms of heart disease, and he is obviously thriving! He received his rabies vaccination while he was here as well.'

Monday morning I went to pick the piggy up - he got in his harness with no loud complaining and was very patient while we checked out.  He did great going out of the building and making our way to the car with a potty stop along the way.  Only moderate complaining getting in the car.  Then we headed over to pick up Emma....we got her scooped up and made our way home.  Winston got out of the car by himself - another first and was quite cooperative making his way into the house.  I think he is getting the hang of this whole harness/walking thing....

I am super happy to be home and to have my little gang back together again!

Traveling When You Have a Zoo

It is the question I get asked the most about the critters - what do you do when you travel?

Traveling is probably the most complicated part of having this crazy bunch.  We went away this past weekend and there is a lot involved with getting the troop ready for us to be gone.

First - since both Emma and Winston were due for things at their respective vets we decided to board them. Emma went to our local vet and had her physical ....Winston went to the exotic vet for board and his physical as well -  we will post about their adventures tomorrow.

The kitties and the ferrets get left home alone - if you call being monitored by 11 cameras alone.  Since they are all free feeders you can just fill up the bucket with food and water and go.  The kitties went without a dose of their thyroid medication - I rarely skip but once in a blue moon doesn't seem to have much of an impact.  The baby ferrets had their first home alone experience and they seemed to do just fine.  As always - we have neighbors and family at the ready to come in should we think someone looks ill or is unaccounted for.  If we are going for longer than a weekend I employ a pet sitter to come in each day to look after them, take attendance and administer medications.

While traveling is fun and the break is good - I miss my gang when I am not with them.  When we got home last night it was cuddles, treats and ear meds for the kitties, and playtime and cuddles with the ferrets.  This morning I went on the pig/dog pickup and now my critter menagerie is complete - I do love this crazy bunch....