In April, for the first time, we kicked off “Cat Week.” The dogs aren’t in the doghouse, though: We have also profiled Harmon, a dog who likes to make “dog angels’ in the snow, as well as his siblings, a cat named Zoila and a dog named Cleo. They are all rescues. We also introduced you to Peter Rabbit, who hopped along just fine with three legs.
Friday, April 28
“Meet Pip (AKA Piperoni because she’s spicy),” writes Cindy, who lives near Red Wing, Minn. “Pip was rescued last fall as a tiny kitten. We started out feeding her with kitty formula in a syringe, then a bottle, and finally a dish. I love her so much. I always say I’m her favorite toy, since Pip prefers to play with me than any toys.”
Thursday, April 27
“Here’s Max, happy to be back on the screen porch, soaking up the sunshine,” writes Linda.
Wednesday, April 26
“This is Roscoe, my grand dog,” writes Vicky of White Bear Lake. “My daughter and son-in-law adopted him about 10 years ago, and I quickly fell in love with his gentle soul. His two favorite things are going for walks and snuggling-with kitties (if they would just hold still). He is so happy to finally see the snow melting. He has cancer and arthritis and sometimes his meds make him too weak to go the distance, so he gets to ride around the block in his wagon. He loves it!”
Tuesday, April 25
“Good morning,” wrote John on April 15. “Our Morkie, Kirby, has turned 10! Our family has a tradition of celebrating our dogs’ birthdays – party hat, cornbread, candle, and singing Happy Birthday. The cornbread has always been their favorite part. Kirby’s birthday party was last week.”
Monday, April 24
“Maddie Roo — gone but not forgotten,” writes Martha.
Friday, April 21
“This is Emmy,” writes John. “She was found as a crying, abandoned kitten, in an open field as a huge thunderstorm was approaching. We attended a wedding near where she was found, and heard that no one could keep her, so we brought her home as a wedding favor!
“In summer she gets to enjoy going outside at the lake. In winter she stays inside with her brother Baxter, where she chases him around — he needs it.
“Here she is looking from a deck portal, for pesky chipmunks.”
Thursday, April 20
“This is Kublai Khan, living his best life,” writes Victoria of White Bear Lake. “We got this loving boy from Caring For Cats rescue. When he’s not plotting his next escape to destroy his archnemesis, the red squirrel, Kubie can be found enjoying bird videos.”
Wednesday, April 19
“Good Morning!” writes Lisa. “These two handsome gentlemen are Max and Sam. They came from Feline Rescue in St. Paul nine years ago and have gone from hiding in the basement to sleeping on laps. They have both also found their voices over the years, and excel at 2 a.m. concerts and reminding everyone when it’s time for meals and snacks!”
Tuesday, April 18
“This is Spike, he was rescued in Kentucky by Safe Hands Rescue when he was eight weeks old, no momma or siblings were around and he weighed a whopping half pound,” writes Hope. “We adopted him a year ago at 10 weeks old and he has been a source of amusement ever since. He loves to play with his feline sister Pipper and canine sister Iris.”
Monday, April 17 (Memorial Monday)
“For years sweet Mimi tolerated my daughter’s custom of photographing her in festive holiday costumes!” Mary writes. “Her last Easter bonnet photo was a special memory not to be forgotten.”
Friday, April 14
Remember Cali? Cali is a dog who lives in Switzerland.
What a life, eh?
Here is the latest dispatch from our European canine friend, via Cali’s Minnesota grandmother:
“Here is my grand-dog Cali in her Easter photo for this year, ” Linda wrote on April 4. “Spring comes a bit earlier where she lives in
Switzerland — the daffodils were in full bloom already!”
Maybe the Minnesota daffodils will bloom soon, too. Especially after this weekend’s rain …
Thursday, April 13
“My husband and I fostered a dog that came from Missouri,” writes Peg. “She ended up being pregnant. We whelped the puppies — she had eight.
“We kept one of the puppies. His name is Ping.”
Now that’s a happy ending!
Wednesday, April 12
“This is Ray Ray, our flame point Siamese tripod,” writes Michael-jon. “One of his many nicknames is Ray Ray 3.5 for the missing back paw (we were told he was born without it, but we don’t really know). He lollops about quite easily and is a real cuddler. He also likes ottomans and chairs as the perfect place to display his beauty.
“He’s like a puppy in that he follows us from room to room as we go about our day and no height holds him back (that left hind leg is strong!). He does wind up his back right paw to scratch his ear and is frustrated there’s nothing there, so we happily bend down to give him ‘scritches.’ We installed a brush on the wall so he could get his right cheek and ear scratched himself, but he prefers to have us do it. And he’s the rare cat that likes to be held like a human baby and have his tummy rubbed!”
Tuesday, April 11
“This is our dog Tansy, a Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever, rescued from Kentucky by Safe Hands Animal Rescue,” writes Julia. “She’s been known to fall asleep inside her favorite shoe, found on a walk. Her breed is ‘opportunistic’ and she loves stealing reading glasses!”
Is that where our reading glasses went? Tansy??
Monday, April 10
“Ruby is my daughter’s dog and Nolan is her nephew,” writes Mark. “They visit me Thursdays to get some grandpa and dog time.”
Friday, April 7
“Our daughter got Peter Rabbit in 2012 through the Minnesota Companion Rabbit Society,” Theresa writes. “He had been nursed back to health after being found with a very infected hind leg.”
Peter’s leg was amputated, Theresa tells us, but he kept hopping along.
“If you didn’t know he had three legs, you wouldn’t have noticed,” she says. “He could hop up into his hutch without any problem and used his tail for balance. He was the best loved pet our family ever had.”
Thursday, April 6
Good morning, PoPo!
Morning Report subscribers Richard and Barbara recently sent us this photo of their “grandcat.”
“Seven-year-old Dixi says PoPo, her beautiful cat, loves the sun and the sun loves PoPo,” Richard writes.
We hope the sun will be here soon, PoPo.
Wednesday, April 5
“This is my Sophie, who thinks she’s a Labrador and loves to play fetch,” writes Shelly. “She’s a Shih Tzu-Bichon mix.”
Tuesday, April 4
On Monday, we featured Harmon, a dog who loves to make “dog angels” in the snow.
His person, “Zookeeper Ron,” updated us later:
“Harmon’s ‘siblings’ demanded equal time!” he wrote. “Cleo (dog) and Harmon love wet cat food, while Zoila (cat) loves their wet dog food … all are rescues, although not sure who rescued who!
“Harmon came to us from St. Francis Rescue (Red Lake Reservation); Zoila was adopted from Animal Humane Society; and Cleo, from Safe Hands, was transferred up to Minnesota from Kentucky’s prison system.”
Monday, April 3
“This is Harmon, a 10-year old rescue,” writes Ron.
Ron describes himself as Harmon’s “human counterpart” who serves as the dog’s “chef, activities coordinator, sanitation engineer.”
Harmon, Ron says, “loves all the snow we’ve gotten this year: constantly making dog angels, even in below zero temps!”
Well, Harmon, although we still have plenty of snow, at least the temperatures are warmer than January!
