30 Days of Thanksgiving - Day 10 - Pets

Today I'm thankful for the pets that the Lord has blessed us with over the years. We've never had to go looking for one. They've always just come to us. Every dog we've ever had was either a stray that just showed up or had been abandoned and adopted (by us) or given to us by someone else. The same with every cat and just about every other animal that we've ever had, too. 

Our good ol' Shep died last year and we still miss him. He was full grown when he came to us and we had him for over 17 years.

Shep

At present we're down to two animals...our 18-year-old cat, Stripes. He came to us as a kitten out at the farm. He's old and feeble now, but is still lovable and very much a part of daily life. 

Stripes

And, then, there's Clementine...the Chilean rose-hair tarantula that we adopted when our friends left to go back to Brazil. 

Miss Clementine

We've only had her for a few months, but we love Clementine. For a spider, she is pretty cool and the grandchildren are crazy about her! They love watching her and are always quick to search out crickets to feed her for supper. 💗

Here is a list of a few of the many animals that the Lord has blessed us with over the years and for which I am (we are) very thankful for...

- Frisky - my first dog
- Smokey - my first cat...actually I think there was Smokey 1, Smokey 2, Smokey 3, and Smokey 4...they all looked alike...pretty blue-gray kittens that my dad would bring home from the stove foundry where he worked...something would happen to one and he'd bring me home another...he kept me in a constant supply until he quit the foundry to start his own business at home.💗
- Smiley - another stray...a dog...this one chewed bubble gum!
- Brownie - my "sister"; I had that dog from the time I was 7 until I was 21 and we did EVERYTHING together...she slept with me, I trained her to ride my bicycle, she'd let me dress her up in baby clothes, she went on vacation to Minnesota with us, she'd go out on the lake in the boat fishing with us, and she loved peanut butter kisses and pineapple malts.
- Blackie - Technically, this was my dad's dog, but he was the best hunter and the best guard dog EVER!
- Apollonia - my favorite chicken
- Vanity - my big red doberman...which I loved to pieces! 
-Duffy - my puppy (Blackie was his dad and our neighbor's dog, Punkie, was his mother); he was so sweet!
- Clemenza - my hamster
- Shana - the cRaZy cat of my youth
- Kibbles - my rescued piglet
- Snowball - my oldest daughter's first doggy
- Sparky- the sweet little dog that my mother- and father-in-law game to my oldest daughter. 
- Charlie - our beautiful, golden cocker spaniel. He had been abandoned by neighbors and we took him in. He was the BEST dog EVER! Beautiful! Regal! Prince Charles...the Crown Prince of Tails!
- Mama Cat and her three kittens (also knows as 'the Harmonicats'...they, literally, liked to sing with my cousin's harmonica playing), Clarence B. Tomcat (my beautiful Clare-ba-dee), Catfish (the flat-headed, cross-eyed cat that stuck around for over two decades), and their dainty little sister, Smokey
- Frisco and Felicia - lovebirds
- Clementine (Clemmy) - our son's hamster
...and the list goes on and on...sooo many beloved animals brought into our lives...some for short time...other's longer...but all loved and valued as part of our family. 

Until next time,

~Rebecca

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