<html><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; ">Yesterday we celebrated our Elsinore's seventh anniversary. It was seven years ago yesterday that we brought her home from Basset Hound Rescue of Alabama (they knew her as Alexis) to be the worthy successor to our late Jane Basset, who died the July before. It's hard to believe we've had Elsinore for seven years. It doesn't feel that long, and then I think of all the things she and I have done together in that time--obedience classes, pet therapy work, dance lessons, waddles, hikes on the Appalachian Trail, wading in the Atlantic..... Elsinore is not a basset to lie around. She's a do-er and likes to be kept active, and she especially likes to keep active with me. Early on she decided she wants to be my heart dog, which is incredibly flattering. <div><br></div><div>We're guessing Elsinore is about ten years old now, though she has the activity level and stamina of a young dog. Until about 8pm. In the last year she's started putting herself to bed in her crate at about 8 at night. We can be sitting on the sofa having a lovely time cuddling, but 8:00 comes, and she gets antsy until I put her down on the floor. If I don't immediately follow her back to her crate and give her a bedtime biscuit (to prevent barfing up stomach acid in the early hours of the morning), she'll leave her crate to come find me and then dance impatiently at my feet, her dance steps subtly moving her back in the direction of her crate. She'll come and tell me she's ready to be in bed several times, with increasing urgency, until I finally give up and get her biscuit and lock her in her crate. The amazing and wonderful thing is that she'll stay quietly in her crate until 7:30 the next morning. When I peek in on her, she's asleep. If that's the only sign of aging she's showing, she's doing very well indeed.</div><div><br></div><div>We celebrated yesterday with extra attention and a dog friendly banana-spice cake. We would have done more, but it was chilly and drizzly all day. Not a great day for a walk. But Elsinore's basset friend Owen was here to help her celebrate, and that made the day just fine for her. Elsinore and Owen first met the day after we brought Elsinore home. The<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; "> two of them hit it off splendidly and have really delighted in each other's company from that day on. Of course the first blush of love doesn't linger long. They've gone from sharing a crate to grumping at each other, but the affection and bond are still very evident. It was good that Owen could be here for Elsinore's special day. </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; "><br></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; ">I wonder what this next year will bring for our Elsinore? Only good things, I hope!</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; "><br></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; ">Elizabeth</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; "><br></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; "><br></span></div></body></html>