I mentioned that 7 visits a day was enough for me. That doesn't sound too bad, 7 half hour visits = 3 and 1/2 hours of work. But you have to factor in travel time. And when it snowed 18 inches... well, that was awesome. I get most places on my bike, and luckily the snow melted fast enough to get the roads clear quickly. But it's still cold. In the morning I wear a tee-shirt, sweatshirt, puffy vest, coat, long underwear, jeans, hat, scarf, gloves, and now that I've worked my way through all my long socks, leg warmers to cover the gap between ankle sock and pant. I don't need all these layers for regular dog walking, but I need them for standing at the bus stop for long periods of time before the sun has come up. I rather unthinkingly took a job out in "Fairfax Village" which is impossible to get to easily. I found a bus that will take me there, and another that will take me back (because the first one doesn't go back the same way, apparently). Except for the walking required from bus stop to destination, this system would have worked well if the buses ever came on time. I decided to go 15 minutes before the bus was due (because sometimes they come early) and expect them to be 15 minutes late (because often they're late). But how is it that I sometimes end up waiting 45 minutes for a bus that comes every half hour?! When I agreed to the job in Fairfax Village, I'm not sure I knew it would be in the time slot 7-9 a.m., or that I would have another pair of cats to visit in the same time slot. But it all works out as long as I get up early enough to allow for buses to be ridiculously late.
I was surprised that most of my first jobs were cat visits, and even more surprised when I was assigned... a bird. The bird uses its beak like another limb. He will use it to climb by lightly holding the bar (couch, pants, curtains) in his beak as he grabs higher with his feet. I also think of him as a bit like a baby, in that he puts everything in his mouth to explore (and destroy) it. I met Sidney (that's the bird's name) on a Monday, and my first visit was the next day. On Monday, Sidney's owner introduced me. I held Sidney, he climbed on my arm. The owner told me how to maintain a position of dominance and how to calm Sidney down when he got overworked. On Tuesday, I opened the cage and held out my hand for Sidney to climb on. He bit me. So I tried to calm him by holding him on his back like a baby with my hand over his head, like the owner showed me. DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME. The bird bit me about six times in rapid succession. He was freaked out, and now I was too. I called the owner, who gave me some advice. Sidney and I made out alright for the rest of the visit, until I had to put him back in the cage. I decided to use the towel technique to cover him and put him in the cage. This is not as easy as it sounds. Getting the towel back out of the cage was the tricky part, especially since Sidney was clinging on with his feet. Just as I got the towel out and was closing the door, Sidney bit me, hard. From then on, I wore thick leather gloves to visit Sidney. Do you have a bump on your middle finger, on the side of your top knuckle? I have one on my right hand from writing. And now I have one of those on my left pointer finger, but it's not from writing.
As people come home from vacation, I have fewer cats to visit and more dogs. People take their dogs with them on vacation, and when they come back, our regular dog walks resume. My regular dog walks will be twice a day: Bella, a ridgeback mix, Honey, a toy poodle; and Muffin, a Yorkie (Honey & Muffin are siblings). For the next few weeks I also have 3 of Jessica's dogs (a Pet Peeps coworker who is on vacation). They are a Westie, a Schnauzer, and a German Shepherd. Already I have learned not to leave items (bike helmet, scarf) in people's homes, because I will undoubtedly forget about them and have to go back 3 times. So I stuff unwanted items into my backpack, which also holds my bike tire repair kit, emergency information for the pets, water, visor, etc. The pockets of my coat and jeans are all designated for specific items: cell phone, hanky, keys, gloves. I'm learning to simultaneously keep a tight reign on a German Shepherd while removing a glove and putting it in a pocket in order to dig in another pocket to get my hanky and blow my nose, then put the hanky back and the glove back on. This is necessary about every block if it's windy or if you have a cold, which it is, and I do. (If it's both windy and you have a cold, you have to do it every half block.) I also manage to keep an eye on the clock and try to time it so that we get back in exactly a half hour, which is tricky when you have sniffy dogs. When the dogs like to sniff, it's impossible to predict how long they'll take to walk down a block. They may sniff for 5 minutes in one spot, and then trot along for the next 5. Imagine the people who walk like 5 dogs at once. I see these people, and I cannot imagine how they do it.
Lest you think I don't like my job, be reassured. I am making money. I am getting exercise. I am forced to go outside every day at certain times, and to maintain a schedule (woo hoo!). And the animals are adorable. I have gotten to look after so many sweet, soft, playful cats and dogs. Even the bird is cute when he's not attacking me. Witness:
Oliver's a roller. He especially likes to roll in dirt. I finally got a picture of his face. He's a sniffer too.
This is Sheriff. He's one of my faves.
