The Ups and Downs of Pet Ownership

Peri the Quaker Parrot has been a part of our family for 4 or 5 years now.  He has always been loud and able to talk, but he started out as such a nice, mild-mannered bird.  Peri would let us all take him out of the cage, hold him, play with him (as much as one can "play" with a bird).  Then, one by one, he decided he didn't like us.  We are down to only Mike being able to take Peri from the cage.  This, of course, has its bonuses - like only Mike can clean the cage!  Though, we do miss the easy-going, laid-back-ish bird we used to know and wonder if he will ever return. 

Then came Belle the poodle/terrier-of-some-sort mix.  She joined us a year and a half ago as a surprise for the kids and has settled into our family quite nicely.  There are down-sides to owning this dog, of course. She has a nervous and excitable bladder so we are frequently cleaning up accidents when guests arrive to our home (Aunt Shannon has lovingly and appropriately dubbed her, "Tinkle Belle").  It is difficult to play games on the floor as Belle wants to be a part of things, too, and tends to run over the game board or pile of cards.  And, she barks at every little noise she hears.  But, there are up-sides as well.  I love having her in the house with me during the day.  Belle is pretty calm most of the time and likes to just curl up beside us (or on us).  She is so much fun when she gets in her "Bullet Belle" mode, as the kids like to call it, running at lightening speed through the house.  And, the kids love to see how high they can get Belle to jump up for her toys.  She can get as high as Seth's head at the moment!! 

Not too long ago, Seth saved up his money to buy a fish tank.  It was a little tank for 1 or 2 fish.  There was joy when Swimmy and Fin came to live with us, but sadness at their sudden...departure.  Then came Swimmy and Fin (yeah...same names) and it seems that one of them is no longer with us, though I could be wrong about that. 

You might think that sounds strange - that I don't know the names of our beloved family pets.  But, Seth and Katey both used Christmas money to buy 10 gallon tanks for their rooms.  We now have somewhere around 15 fish.  The kids can tell you their names, but I have long given up on trying to keep them straight (especially considering Seth likes to name them then change their names a day or so later).  We have lost some along the way.  When any of Seth's die the conversation usually goes something like this:
Me:  Seth, I have some bad news.  One of your fish has died.
Seth:  Awwwww.  I liked him. 
Me:  I know, I'm sorry.
Seth:  Hm.  Can I play the Wii now?

Seth's tank

Katey lost 2 fish for the first time this week.  The first one she had just gotten the day before so she wasn't too upset.  However, "Longy" just passed away on Monday and it was traumatic in the house:

Katey:  LONGY IS DEAD!  (sobbing)

Mike:  What?

Katey:  My fish, Longy, (sob) is stuck to the filter.  He's dead (big sob)

Mike goes to take care of the fish and Katey is upstairs continuing to sob.  I go up to check on her.

Katey:  He was my first fish.  I will miss him so much (sob)
Jen:  I know, I'm sorry
Katey:  Can we go to Petsmart and get another fish like him?  I will pick one out with long fins and stripes that don't quite match up, just like Longy.

Mike had a conversation with Katey about working through grief and not trying to just replace something to make hurt go away.  Though, when all was said and done, Katey ended up with 2 new fish to replace her lost ones.  The next morning:
Jen:  I like the green shirt you picked out to wear today.
Katey:  Yes.  And I have on my black pants today because Longy died and I am sad.

I love that kid!

Katey's tank

Oh, the ups and downs of pet ownership!