Here are my Friday Five

1. What's your favorite animal? I'd have to say that my favorite domestic animal is a dog, and more specifically, my dog, Lucky. Dogs are my kind of beings because they do depend on people. As far as non-domestic animals, I would have to say that I favor the wombat. After my time in Australia, I must say that the animal that made the biggest impression on me was that furry and sloth-like wombat. They brought out the maternal instinct in me!

2. What pets have you had in your lifetime? Let's see... There have been quite a few, but I'll try to list the ones that I remember. When I was very young, I remember my sister wanting and getting a cat. I can't remember its name, and interestingly, I don't ever remember it being at our house. Strange. We also had a pet guinea pig named Sylvester - who, we later found out, was a Sylvia. I remember him having a congunctivitus problem. (Is that in the eye?) He died. *sniff* Then there was Blackie, my little toy poodle. We got him from my Aunt Esther, and he was mine, all mine! The poor thing grew to be fairly old, and in his last months (or was it years) he had seizures that turned into something that was too heartbreaking; he was put to sleep, I believe. A few years later, we got a schnauzer (sp?) puppy, and we named him Boots. I didn't realize at the time, but apparently my father's first marriage, which lasted about five minutes, was to a woman whose nickname was Boots. Now I understand my mother's abhorrence of the name. A couple years later, my sister, Toni, was gifted with a German Shepard puppy named Winnie. She was given to us by one of Dad's customers (he was a professional aerial photographer) who lived in Winnebago County, Wisconsin. Hence the name Winnie. She was a GREAT dog. However, we figured she must have been the runt of the litter or something because she never grew to be very large. She was about a foot-and-a-half tall (at the head) or so and very very slender. She was the offspring of a papered white german shepherd and another pure bred show dog (german shepherd, as well.) Go figure. When she was about four or five, my brother came home with a little white ball of fur. Her name was Micky. She was Donn's, but she soon became mine. My brother moved out of the house (and state) and she became legitimately mine. We had bonded from the first moment anyway! When she was about three years old, she became pregnant. We'd always had male dogs, so we didn't even realize she was pregnant until days before she gave birth to five little pups. It happened in the middle of the night... on my bed... next to me. Yep, I woke up with a wet feeling against my legs. No matter how disgusting it seemed, I thought it was great! We gave the puppies away, even though I really really wanted to keep the last one left. While I was at school, my parents gave Micky away. I knew it was coming, but hello!!! I was devistated. A few days later, I watched Nancy McKeon in This Child Is Mine, where she gave up a child for adoption, then wanted it back. I remember falling apart in the kitchen, bawling, crying out, "I want my babies back!" Errr... *chuckling* Winnie and Micky got along fabulously, and we could tell that Winnie missed Micky just as much as I did! While I was in New Jersey as a nanny, Mom and Dad had Winnie put to sleep. She was about ten years old and was suffering considerably from congestive heart disease (I think) and some kidney problems. It was very sad. I never got to say goodbye to her either. She would be the last pet in our family for a very long time. I had some goldfish while I was in college - Procras and Tination. Tination died, and you can't have Procras without Tination, so I renamed the fish Morty. (If you've seen Undercover Blues, you'd know why - Muerte=Morty.) I brought Morty out to California with me in the car. He made it here, but died the first day in 29Palms. Poor Morty. We also have had some various fish as class pets, one of whom was named after good ol' Morty. I still have Goldy. He is the sole survivor. In July, I searched and searched through many animal shelters, and I finally found my sweet little pooch, Lucky. He's a five-year-old black cocker spaniel, and he has the sweetest disposition. I can't get enough of him. I hope I have him for a good long time!!!

and finally on to.........

3. Is there any specific pet that you've wanted but never had? Why? I'm sure that there have been times when I've wanted some other kind of pet, but it's always been fleeting. I am really really really a dog person. I just always want a dog!!! I remember going through a stage when I wanted a horse. We lived in town, but we lived on 2.5 acres and I kept trying to talk Mom and Dad into building a corral and getting me a horse. Thank you, Mom and Dad, for not giving in to that one!! *hehe*

4. Are you allergic to any animals? Thank goodness I have no allergies at all. I feel blessed. ;-)