So obviously, they require a water bowl.
Years ago I purchased this water bowl for our free ranging animals (which has numbered as high as four - two dogs and two cats, although now the number is down to three. Yes, I know that means I have an opening, but we are not looking to fill it, so please DO NOT send me e-mails about cute little cuddly dogs or cats that need a good home. And dear god, DON'T EXPECT ME TO WATCH THE SARAH MCLAUGHLIN SPCA COMMERCIALS!!!!).
Ahem. I don't really remember what we used before, I just remember getting irritated at having to fill the dern bowl so often so I got the biggest one they sold. Although it's a pain in the rear to clean, it's nice that theoretically we don't have to refill it very often. Two small dogs and one cat that prefers other water sources and will only deign to drink out of the same bowl the DOGS drink out of when other water sources are not available and she is about to drop dead from dehydration (if you're familiar with cat psychology, you understand) should not empty very quickly, right?
You may have noticed the low level of the water. And the fact that the reservoir is COMPLETELY empty. This is not an accident, this is on purpose.
Enter HURRICANE Mellie.....
This picture was taken shortly before her first birthday. See the doll that she is holding? That is SOCK MONKEY. She, has two, this is her first one that generally stays in her crib. The second one is larger and more traditional looking, and his name is Maxx the Sock Monkey. Anyhow, back before Maxx the Sock Monkey joined our family, it was just Sock Monkey. Mellie loves Sock Monkey (BTW, she loves Maxx, too). She will pick Sock Monkey (or Maxx) up and hug him and carry him around the house before dropping him like he's hot when she finds something fresh and interesting.
So, one day, back before Mellie walked, when she only crawled (she got into JUST as much trouble), she was free-ranging in the living room (notice how I tied her back to the pets? Ha ha!) and playing reasonably quietly, so we weren't worried. This, obviously, was before we learned that the quieter she is, the more worried we should be. But don't worry, we HAVE learned that. Now. Anyhow, this was back then. I was sitting on the futon (I mean couch, because I am a home-owner, and no longer in college, and obviously am too established and mature to own a futon like I am still a starving college student. Of course I don't own a futon, much less two. That's just plain crazy.) Anyhow, I was sitting on the COUCH, watching television when Mellie came up to me and wanted me to pick her up. Being the fabulous mother that I am, I scooped her up only to discover that she was SOPPING wet. Literally. Like her clothes were sopping, her diaper was sopping, and upon further review (take in breath - inside joke, Ronnie will get it) I discovered a path of water puddles leading to her current position from -- you guessed it -- the dog's water bowl.
Now, this was not the first encounter she'd had with the water bowl. She had long since decided it was her favorite toy. So, again, being the fabulous mother I am, I grumbled (trying to hold her as far away as possible as to not get myself wet) and carried her upstairs (this was before she started crawling upstairs, or I probably would have made her go up herself). I immediately stripped her, dried her with a towel, and put on a DRY diaper (note: to this day I have NEVER seen a diaper as full as that one was) and dry clothing, and came downstairs to clean up the mess before someone slipped (that tile is extremely slick when wet).
Obviously, I cannot clean up the mess very well while holding Mellie, so I set her down. I SHOULD have been suspicious when I put her down and it did not cause a meltdown. But no, I was distracted. As I am cleaning up the mess, Mellie is crawling by on her way into the laundry room for further trouble when I realize that I have underestimated both the extent of the mess as well as the cause. She wasn't simply splashing in the water as she is prone to done. No, I realized, as I looked at a poor, discolored, and SOGGY Sock Monkey. She had decided SOCK MONKEY NEEDED A BATH! And where else would you give him a bath but the WATER BOWL. So, I picked up poor Sock Monkey, who was looking up at me with beseeching eyes screaming "Why do you hate me? Why did you let her do this to me?"
Fortunately, Sock Monkey is resilient, and washing machine safe. :) Unfortunately, Mellie had crawled through the mess again (hey, the tile is WHITE, how was I supposed to be able to tell?) and I had to take her upstairs and change her. Again. Interestingly, that was not her record for amount of needed clothing changes. That was THIS weekend, but that is a story for another day.
Look forward to Mellie and the Water Bowl (Part 2), where I will explore the purpose of having such a low level of water in the bowl. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but someday.....
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