[speaker001:] Okay.
[speaker002:] Yes.
[speaker001:] Uh, well, right now we have one dog inside.
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] She goes out but I mean she's an indoor dog.
[speaker002:] Yes.
[speaker001:] And two outside cats.
[speaker002:] Oh, gosh.
[speaker001:] Male and female.
[speaker002:] And how long have you had them?
[speaker001:] The ma-, the dog is probably about, about thirteen, fourteen years old.
[speaker002:] Yes.
[speaker001:] And the cats are, they might be as old. I'm not sure [LAUGHTER].
[speaker002:] [LAUGHTER] Kind of lose track [LAUGHTER].
[speaker001:] Yeah.
[speaker002:] Well, that's interesting because we have a simi-, we don't have cats but we do have a dog,
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] who is an indoor dog,
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] and she is going to be thirteen this summer so,
[speaker001:] Oh, is that right?
[speaker002:] Yes, uh-huh.
[speaker001:] What kind of dog do you have?
[speaker002:] Um, she's, um, a mix of Cockapoo, Cock-, Cocker Spaniel and Poodle.
[speaker001:] Oh, that's what ours is [LAUGHTER].
[speaker002:] Is that right?
[speaker001:] Yes.
[speaker002:] Isn't that interesting [LAUGHTER]?
[speaker001:] [LAUGHTER].
[speaker002:] What color is your dog?
[speaker001:] White.
[speaker002:] Oh, well, ours is black, so [LAUGHTER],
[speaker001:] Oh, uh-huh.
[speaker002:] definitely different [LAUGHTER].
[speaker001:] I'll be darned.
[speaker002:] Yes, she's a female and she's, um, been, she's been a really, a really good companion for me. Um,
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] she's like a little shadow, you know, kind of,
[speaker001:] Oh.
[speaker002:] follows me around all the time,
[speaker001:] Yeah.
[speaker002:] and, and, um, she's slowing down considerably. She doesn't hear very well and,
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] she doesn't see very well but she's,
[speaker001:] Well, that's to be expected at,
[speaker002:] Yeah,
[speaker001:] their age.
[speaker002:] at this age, I guess so.
[speaker001:] Yeah.
[speaker002:] But, um, she's been a good dog to have, and I don't know, once she's gone, I'm not sure if I'll get another animal or not [LAUGHTER].
[speaker001:] Well, everybody always says no more [LAUGHTER].
[speaker002:] Yeah, yeah.
[speaker001:] But I, I think animals are really important in the family. I,
[speaker002:] I agree, yes. Um, did you get yours as a pet for your chil-, do you have children?
[speaker001:] Uh, yeah, we,
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] have five.
[speaker002:] Uh-huh. Oh. Well, I was wondering if you got your dog originally as a pet for them or just because you'd had dogs before or,
[speaker001:] Well, we have had, we had had, a, a dog before. She was fifteen when she died.
[speaker002:] My goodness.
[speaker001:] And, uh, this one, we bought by accident,
[speaker002:] Uh.
[speaker001:] a farmer called us and wanted us to call the animal shelter to co-, or the dog catcher or somebody to come and get this puppy that,
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] somebody, people drop things like that off,
[speaker002:] Yeah.
[speaker001:] up [lipsmack] there,
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] and I said, "Gee, she sounds like a cute little dog." I told the kids, "Let's go look at her" [LAUGHTER].
[speaker002:] Oh, yeah.
[speaker001:] Go get her. So that's how we got her,
[speaker002:] Isn't that,
[speaker001:] quite by accident.
[speaker002:] Yes. So that often happens that way. Well, we had, um, intentionally, um, planned to get a dog. We had just moved into this house and, um, decided to wait about a year and then went,
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] then we went out then, and found one, she was in the litter,
[speaker001:] Uh-huh, uh-huh.
[speaker002:] and, um, she was so cute because [LAUGHTER] all the other little puppies in that litter were just crazy. I mean, they were all over the place,
[speaker001:] [LAUGHTER].
[speaker002:] and she was real docile and,
[speaker001:] Oh.
[speaker002:] came over and just kind of sat next to us, and I thought,
[speaker001:] Oh.
[speaker002:] that's the dog for me [LAUGHTER].
[speaker001:] She picked us [LAUGHTER].
[speaker002:] Yeah, so she, and it, what was funny was that, um, our daughter must have been, let's see, she must have been about eight at the time, I guess,
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] and, um, she just loved this little dog,
[speaker001:] Oh.
[speaker002:] to pieces but I think she loved her too much because the dog has never been real comfortable with her. I think,
[speaker001:] Oh.
[speaker002:] she was always a little bit leery of her.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] Our son, on the other hand, who was about eleven at the time, was, um, not very interested in pets, but as it turned out, he and this dog have gotten to be really good pals.
[speaker001:] Oh, for heaven's sake.
[speaker002:] So you just never know how that works out [LAUGHTER].
[speaker001:] No. But they say it's real important for children to have pets because, uh, [lipsmack] well, they can go and talk to them any time,
[speaker002:] Uh-huh, yes.
[speaker001:] they want to and tell them anything they want to and,
[speaker002:] Yeah.
[speaker001:] nobody is going to, you know, reprimand them or,
[speaker002:] That's right.
[speaker001:] know their secrets or [LAUGHTER],
[speaker002:] That, yes, they're very,
[speaker001:] Yeah.
[speaker002:] unjudgmental [LAUGHTER].
[speaker001:] Yes [LAUGHTER].
[speaker002:] Oh, dear [breathing].
[speaker001:] And the nursing homes now, they're finding that it's real important to take a pet into a nursing home.
[speaker002:] Yes, I have been, I have been reading and seeing about that on television.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] Uh-huh, and how,
[speaker001:] Our one, our one nursing home in has one.
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] Permanent [LAUGHTER].
[speaker002:] Is that right?
[speaker001:] He, he kind of has free run of the place, and there is some-, or somebody takes care of him.
[speaker002:] Isn't that amazing?
[speaker001:] But he goes out people, and real nice dog, uh, and, uh,
[speaker002:] Uh-huh, yes. It's funny how, um, how pets can kind of, um, oh, take on a certain status in certain areas.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] I mean, um, that made me think of, uh, when our daughter was looking at colleges, we visited a campus in, um, Saint Louis and,
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] um, there were several dogs on the campus and,
[speaker001:] Oh, really?
[speaker002:] and, the, what was interesting about it was that they were very friendly, but they didn't appear to belong to anyone. And, um,
[speaker001:] Oh.
[speaker002:] I'm sure someone, you know, fed them. They were healthy,
[speaker001:] Yeah.
[speaker002:] looking dogs. But, um, our guide that day said that the la-, one woman many, many years ago had given a huge sum of money to, to the university, on the condition that there be, um, dogs just kind of left to roam aro-, around the campus.
[speaker001:] Is that right?
[speaker002:] Which is the strangest thing I had ever heard [LAUGHTER].
[speaker001:] Yeah because most campuses don't allow pets,
[speaker002:] I know.
[speaker001:] you know, they just do not allow them.
[speaker002:] Yes, I know.
[speaker001:] That's, that's kind of great.
[speaker002:] Yes, it really was. It was just a nice touch,
[speaker001:] Yeah.
[speaker002:] and it kind of made it seem more homey too [LAUGHTER].
[speaker001:] Yes, yeah.
[speaker002:] But, um, th-, I thought that was most unique. And it just, you know, kind of goes along with what you were saying,
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] about the dog having sort of free run of the, the nursing home.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] So, um, but, uh, I, this is the only pet we've had sin-,
[speaker001:] Um.
[speaker002:] you know, in all our years of marriage, um, and it's been, uh, sort of a, a change for my husband because as a, a, a boy growing up, his father had dogs but they were always hunting dogs,
[speaker001:] Oh, uh-huh.
[speaker002:] and so they were never allowed in the house, you know,
[speaker001:] Uh-huh, uh-huh.
[speaker002:] they were always kind of,
[speaker001:] Yeah, we've ruined them [LAUGHTER].
[speaker002:] Yeah, right. [LAUGHTER] That's what he said.
[speaker001:] They say ruined them [LAUGHTER].
[speaker002:] Yes.
[speaker001:] .
[speaker002:] So having a pet was a little bit different for him.
[speaker001:] Well, we've had a lot of different pets. We had, the kids had rabbits for pets,
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] and we also raised them for food,
[speaker002:] Yeah,
[speaker001:] at one time.
[speaker002:] Oh, yes.
[speaker001:] And we've had it. We've had a skunk for a pet.
[speaker002:] Oh, my golly.
[speaker001:] For more years than I want to think about [LAUGHTER].
[speaker002:] [LAUGHTER].
[speaker001:] She was in the house [LAUGHTER].
[speaker002:] Oh, gosh. Isn't that interesting? I don't think I've ever talked to anyone who's actually had a skunk for a pet.
[speaker001:] [LAUGHTER] Well, do-, don't ever get one for a pet.
[speaker002:] [LAUGHTER] Oh.
[speaker001:] [LAUGHTER] They're okay, but like she, uh, they don't ever learn their name.
[speaker002:] Oh.
[speaker001:] Uh, you can't, you could never call her and she would come to you,
[speaker002:] Yeah.
[speaker001:] you had to go chase her down.
[speaker002:] I'll be darned. How interesting.
[speaker001:] And, uh, their eyesight, they can't see very far either. But,
[speaker002:] Uh-huh. I guess I've heard that, uh-huh.
[speaker001:] They, be-, before we got her, everybody said, "Oh, they're just like a cat," you know.
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] And, uh, they're not [LAUGHTER].
[speaker002:] [LAUGHTER].
[speaker001:] I mean, they use the litter box. That's about it.
[speaker002:] Isn't that interesting? That's, that's really something. Um, how long did you have that?
[speaker001:] Oh, my, how, how long? [lipsmack] [sigh] Probably seven or eight years.
[speaker002:] Goodness sake.
[speaker001:] And finally, my children are the ones who said, "Mom, you've put up with that skunk long enough," so,
[speaker002:] [LAUGHTER].
[speaker001:] [LAUGHTER] we moved her to the basement, and I don't think she was there a week till the men moved her, buil-, built her a pen outside [LAUGHTER].
[speaker002:] Oh, my gosh. Isn't that funny?
[speaker001:] And I thought, I put up with that all those years [LAUGHTER].
[speaker002:] Yes, and this is what it took finally [LAUGHTER].
[speaker001:] And,
[speaker002:] That is,
[speaker001:] we've had, we've had cats,
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] stay in the house.
[speaker002:] Yeah.
[speaker001:] We had, we had two Siamese cats.
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] Different times.
[speaker002:] Right.
[speaker001:] Uh, one of them ran off. She ran off once, or he, I guess it was a male, he ran off twice, and the second time he never came back.
[speaker002:] My goodness.
[speaker001:] And we would see him, uh, several miles from our house,
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] he kind of moved into a woods down there.
[speaker002:] I'll be.
[speaker001:] And he got huge down there.
[speaker002:] [Lipsmack] My goodness.
[speaker001:] He really grew but he,
[speaker002:] That's in-,
[speaker001:] he never came back.
[speaker002:] That's interesting. I, I wouldn't picture a Siamese as being an outdoor cat.
[speaker001:] Well, he wasn't a whole lot.
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] He was in the house most the time,
[speaker002:] Yeah.
[speaker001:] but, uh, he did go out sometimes and, uh, they ma-, it makes a much nicer cat if they're outside.
[speaker002:] Is that right?
[speaker001:] Yeah. The, the cats, my son has a cat, and the vet had told us they get strange,
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] if they're kept in the house all the time. And their cat was not a friendly cat, it was,
[speaker002:] Well.
[speaker001:] it was not a good, I don't know, it got, it was just, did get strange [LAUGHTER].
[speaker002:] Yeah, so that that was right.
[speaker001:] And since they've moved to where they are, they let the cat out.
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] And it has improved the personality.