Cy Cy’s Day Off
There’s this weird balancing game that I’m playing now between maintaining Cy’s health and just going crazy with adventures. I constantly have to remind myself that I have to be the mindful one, aware of his well being. He can’t tell me when he’s in pain and he can’t tell me what he’s feeling. I have to keep looking for the signs, the symptoms.
So, after giving him his first IV, I felt rather relieved to have done something that directly impacts his health. Now, time for a reward.
I’ve been meaning to check out this not-so-local, local pet store about 15-20 minutes from our house. During his hospitalization, I had been researching and chatting up Facebook groups to arm myself with as much knowledge as possible, preparing for whatever the outcome might be. I looked up phosphate binders, slippery elm, Answers Pet Food and natural treats.
I decided, when Cy got home before his weekly training, I would take him to meander the shop and see what natural treats we could find… and who knows maybe make some knowledgeable friends.
As we were driving to the pet shop, we passed a stretch of greenery with a nicely paved trail. Mental note.
The shop was small, filled with loyal customers. The employees quickly took to Cy asking us tons of questions about where he came from, why his stomach and arm were shaved and remarking on how sweet he was as he nuzzled his way into their hearts. We picked out a couple sweet potato treats and promised we would come back.
One hour to spare before training.
I decided to figure out where this paved trail was and where it led. We drove through a fancy neighborhood and parallel parked on an empty street that lacked what looked like there should have been a number of “no parking” or “fire lane” signs.
Cy immediately jumped out of the car. This was a well-developed neighborhood park, complete with a couple bridge overpasses and grassy fields. We took a brief walk, making lots of cool down stops. Cy was too excited to drink his water, essential to maintaining his health. So I made him take pictures with me until he was calm enough to drink his entire water bottle.
Training time.
This class was his last class before graduation, and an important one. On the lesson plan, one of Cy’s toughest tricks: lay or down or lay down dammit. He can do so many things but this was not one of them. Cy quickly gave in. He stopped listening to me, peed during his walking review and fell asleep in class.
The signs were all there. This was Cy’s day off.
