Crafting Withdrawal!

So, my boyfriend got a job a while ago, and he works night shifts mostly. So because of this, I've slowly shifted over to his schedule in order to spend time with him while he's AWAKE. The problem with this is the fact that we don't live on our own. We are staying at his mothers.Who sleeps most of the time that I am awake.

So because of this, I haven't been crafting very much. I just got a brand new sewing machine, and I want to SEW, however it's loud and I don't have anything over there to cut up and do anything with anyways. Plus, her two dogs are probably going to start barking whenever I touch that foot pedal.

The HUGE downside to this schedule is that I don't do anything while I'm awake. Our gym is closed, it's dark so I'm too afraid to go walking around at night, (this whole 12/21/12 end of the world thing is gotten slightly out of control with all of these shootings, am I right?) and no one has seen fit to hire me on as an employed, civilized and not lazy person. Not for lack of trying on my part, of course, but I am getting more and more annoyed with jobs saying they're entry level and then say that they require 6 mo-1 yr of experience. Another thing that keeps me from getting a job is a bilingual requirement.

We got the dogs new harnesses, so when it gets light enough in the morning, I'll take them on a short walk. One of them is VERY obese, and can't handle a longer walk yet, but the plan is to get him to lose weight. My BFs mother is one of those people who have no energy whatsoever and cannot do the physical tasks required for owning dogs, so as a result neither of them are used to exercise. Or having a clean yard to poop in. My personal plan is also to lose some weight, but I'm happy with having a physical thing to do before I pass out at 8-12 in the morning. I'd rather go back to the gym, though.

AWESOME harness. Ours aren't so pretty though.

For xmas, his father got me a very large bag full of mostly craft feathers, but there are beads, (mostly turquoise and silver colored) sinew, leather lacing, and other natural beading cords, and more feathers. I HAVE been wanting to do stuff with feathers, not that anyone knew that, but I'm a bit overwhelmed. They are slightly Native American, but what's with all this stuff? Do you want me to make you dream catchers? Talking Feathers? Other things I don't know about because I myself am not Native American?

Talking Feather, found on Google

I am excited about making dream catchers though. I did make a talking feather (above, not my picture), which is kind of just a pretty dowel with a feather attached, because there was a kit for it and I was bored. It was a quiet activity, let me assure you. I like it. I don't know why, but I feel like it would be a great activity for elementary students. Plus it's cool looking. Kids would be all like, I got the feather, now shut up dammit. Except they would all make one.

DIY Pet Traveling

With a small animal, a cat carrier can be too big or too open for comfort. Most small animals take rides while wrapped in a towel or in a box.

I created a small travel box for our hedgehog for her comfort, and I'll share the idea with you.

For this project, you'll need:

• A small cardboard box.
• Durable, tightly woven fabric.
• A ruler.
• Scissors/knife.
• Hot glue gun and glue sticks.
• Velcro.

This is my box.

Amiira has already ridden in this box, from the breeders in Spokane to home in Kennewick.
Optional--Cut the top flaps off, so there's only the sides and the bottom.
Measure the bottom of the box.

Cut two pieces of fabric that are a couple of inches bigger than the bottom of the box in both directions. (longer in both length and width)

Sew these together, wrong sides out, and leave a gap in one side.
Turn in right side out, and stuff it like a pillow. Use a ladder stitch to close the remaining gap. I don't recommend topstitching, as this will provide loops of thread that may snag little toes and feet.

Now line the bottom of the box with fabric. I simply hotglued the fabric down, but make sure to fold the edges of the fabric so it's underneath.

Now, attach the SOFT part of the velcro onto the bottom of the pillow. Make sure the velcro is on the very edges of the pillow.

Only do the two long sides of the pillow. Attach velcro to the fabric in the bottom of the box so both sides of the velcro line up.
You're done with the basics! You can place a hand warmer that you "break" and it heats up in between the pillow and the lining fabric to keep your animal warm. The pillow is also removable and washable. You can decorate the outside of the box, or line the inside of the box to your and your pets comfort.

If you have a nocturnal animal, I suggest provided a shirt or a smallish piece of fabric for them to hide and snuggle up underneath with.

Mine isn't very pretty, but hedgehogs are from the mole family and I'm sure she doesn't care much for pretty patterns, although they do like to play with brightly colored things.

Have fun! and please post pictures of finished projects!

Pets Personality

Do you know enough about your pets personality to detect a problem early on?

A pets behavior can tell you a lot about how they are feeling. If your dog comes up to you with a toy often and tries to play with you, she has a lot of energy that she needs to use; in other words, she's bored. If your rat stops eating and loses weight, his teeth may be too long and need to be trimmed.

However, there are plenty of behavior changes that should alarm you. If your pet who prefers not to be touched or engaged with suddenly begins to cuddle you, this may be a sign that she's sick. You should not be happy that it's suddenly warming up to you; be worried. If any animal begins to sleep a lot more than usual, that is a sign that must be taken seriously and should be taken to a vet for a checkup.

Physical changes should also be noted. If you pet your dog and feel bumps on it where there weren't any bumps before, it may be cancer. Cancer can take a pet's life very quickly after you notice anything wrong; even within a week.

Does your dog like snow, or rain? If he doesn't, and one day goes outside in the snow and begins to energetically dig within it, you should be worried and call for help.

Little personality quirks should be noticed and watched for, in case there's a sudden change. It could save your animals life when you see that it's acting abnormally based on it's own self.

What are some things that your animal does that is special?

My cat likes to be around people, even when she doesn't want attention. When there are people in the kitchen, she lays on the counter. If there's people in the living room, she finds a cushion to get comfortable on. However, she does like to find a quiet place to nap, usually in the front window or the window sill in my brothers room. If my brothers are out, she'll sleep on my parents bed, which is her favorite place to sleep.

Pet Owners

What kind of a pet owner are you?

Be honest now, are you a GREAT owner? Or an average owner?

What I want to know even more is: How many owners know how to be a great owner? Do you know that if you own a cat or a dog, you need to brush their teeth? That if you own a rodent, you should provide something hard for them to chew on, otherwise their teeth will get too long, and then they can't eat?

Some animals seem to be easy to care for, but many owners don't even realize the most basic care needs they have. How do you think your gums and teeth would feel if they were never brushed throughout your entire life? Older pets such as cats and dogs have a lot of pain in their mouth because they have acute gingivitis. Their teeth end up falling out. And for some reason, people attribute this to old age!

Most owners will give their pets 3 things:

• Food & water: This is obvious. If you don't give them this, you won't have them for very long.
• Love & attention: Animals need this as much as they need food and water. If they don't receive love and attention, they grow depressed, or they may annoy you until you do give them some sort of attention, whether negative or positive.
• A means to excercise. Such as; taking your dog on a walk, playing with your cat, or giving your hamster a wheel to run in.

The biggest thing that owners skimp on is hygiene. Cats and dogs need their ears cleaned, their fur washed and combed, (especially long-furred ones) and their teeth brushed. Many of them need their nails clipped, unless they walk on hard surfaces often enough to keep them dull.

Another thing that owners skimp on is giving their animal excercise, especially dogs. If you have a dog and cannot or will not take them for walks or play with them, plan on getting another dog. If a dog has someone to actively play with, then it will help them get the excercise they need. It also helps if you do not want to play tug-of-war with your dog; she can play with the other dog. It is still recommended to take your dogs on walks, or go to the dog park for adequate excercise.

Cats usually can get enough excercise on their own; just make sure you're not overfeeding them. They will become overweight, and while overweight they lose the energy to run rapidly from room to room, which in turn makes them obese. Female cats will usually gain a little weight after being spayed.

Another important thing is to make sure your pets aren't bored. A good example of a bored pet is birds. A bird will pluck his feathers off his chest and back if he has nothing to do. Sometimes they'll pluck enough feathers off that the feathers will never grow back. The best way to stop this is to provide their food in small amounts in different places. This is called scavenging, and it's what birds do in the wild; they have to find their food. There are plenty of different toys available that you can place bird food inside. Start small, and when your bird figures it out, start giving him harder toys. There are also handmade toys you can make, like taking a cardboard tube and sealing food inside of it.

Now that you know just a little bit more about taking care of animals, you can answer my initial question a little more accurately: are you a good pet owner, or a GREAT one?