Mira the Dog

02/15/2021

Lizzie took this picture of Mira letting Minnie snuggle up to her today. They had both been outside a little longer than they should have been (given the frigid cold today) and they were both all too happy to share a little warmth under a blanket. This is about the cutest they've ever been (at least in stillness).

01/26/2021

Our friends Jamie and Alice (and now their little sister Nancy) are from the same lineage as a couple of Sammies we've come to know through Facebook only named Levon and Noodles. They also got a little brother when Nancy came along -- she and Strummer are from the same litter, and now Doug and Megan live in Montana, close enough to the other family to see them regularly and let the dogs remain close. Word came today that Levon, who had been battling kidney problems for a while, has died.

I feel like I knew him and Noodles a little bit because of all the Facebook posts, so I'm sad for his family on that front. But I know Jamie and Alice very well (and hope to know Nancy similarly well someday) and I know how much they're going to miss him. They went through a real mourning process when their buddies Ike and Fish (two of the most badass cats in the history of feline badassery) died, and I'm sure they're going to miss Levon in the same sad, puzzled way.

It's times like these that make me wish you could flip a switch and buy yourself even just five minutes of real conversation with your pet so you could explain this kind of thing when it happens. It has to be so confusing and perplexing and troubling to not understand why their buddy isn't there when they visit next time. It's just not something that really jibes with their universal view.

I'm sure I'm overthinking it, but I don't know many dogs as well as I know Jamie and Alice, or many dog owners who love their dogs as much as Doug and Megan do. Okay, that's not fair -- everyone loves their dog 100, but not many families put their dogs so seamlessly and centrally into all aspects of their lives. As a result, their dogs have the happiest, richest lives of any dogs I know. And, of course, Doug and Megan (and occasionally we Keplers) reap the bounty of their presence in ways that just wouldn't happen without them.

Even from a couple of thousand miles away, I'm wishing with all my heart that they didn't have to hurt as much as they're going to because of the Levon-shaped hole that they'll find when they go to see Noodles and Strummer next time.

You'll be missed, Levon -- hell, I miss you and I never even got to meet you.

01/21/2021

06/21/2020

Not for anything, but if we had a Corgi, I don’t think we’d spend hours upon hours doing THIS. Still pretty cool, though.

06/20/2020

A level of grubby to which all white dogs should aspire. Hey, Jamie Samoyed and Megan, maybe a goal for Nancy?

Freshly cut grass and a white dog rolling... what could possibly go wrong 🤷🏼‍♀️

05/25/2020

05/23/2020

It's not that hard, humans.

Reminder on the correct way to wear a mask!

05/21/2020

Smile, Miralovers! It's almost Friday! (For whatever THAT'S worth these days.)

05/16/2020

All right, Mira, time to get a job!

More seriously, though, this is great. I didn't know universities were doing this -- it's a very, very good idea, a total win/win. Mira would be awesome at it with a little training. Minnie would totally suck at it, though maybe in a few years after she gets all her puppying done.

The pup came to Virginia Tech in 2014 and is one of four dogs who serve as therapy animals and ambassadors for mental health awareness at the Cook Counseling Center.

04/20/2020

Walks are kind of a treat/terror in Mira's life. She really doesn't feel comfortable out in the world, so we walk a fine line between giving her a treat or terrorizing her when we take her out. Minnie is still a pup and learning the ways of the walk and will hopefully learn skills independent of Mira, lest we have two anxious dogs on our hands. But for all her fretting, Mira does enjoy herself and is clearly stimulated -- she naps HARD for a couple of hours after a short, 20-minute walk.

04/17/2020

Mira would drop a bunny for some Reddi-Wip.