I’ve got an appointment to get the dog spayed in two weeks. I’ve noticed her mounting once or twice in a minimal way recently and figured the appointment was going to be just in time. Tonight, on our bed my son was piled under a blanket, playing a game with Matisse and she decided that this time she was serious. She really wanted to have a date with my son.
I told my son what was happening and that we were going to have an operation on her soon and that the behavior would stop. He didn’t really understand so I explained in more detail. We don’t use euphemisms, there’s no reason to. It’s just a natural thing. I told him when a dog becomes mature, she will go into “heat” which means her body is ready to get pregnant from a boy dog. She doesn’t know what that means, she’s just acting on instinct with the mounting behavior. She has no idea what being pregnant is and wouldn’t even realize she was pregnant possibly until she actually gave birth.
I explained that since we had no plans on having any little baby Matisses, we were going to spay her. What was that? It was an operation where they removed the uterus from her body, which is the place where babies grow. That I have a uterus he and his sister grew in inside me.
I told him the operation was done on humans too, all the time. Sometimes when a mother didn’t want to have more children or when they were having other issues that would have a surgery that removed the uterus called a hysterectomy. And guess who does those surgeries? His best buddy and my best friend’s husband, Matt (or "G-Money” as he likes to call him). And Matt had even done the surgery to moms in our neighborhood and some of our friends.
I had a similar discussion with my daughter the other day. She was more interested in how the surgery was performed, how they would put Matisse to sleep, who would be with her and how Matisse would feel afterwards. I told her she would be sore for a while and we’d have to keep her in her cage more than normal so she could heal where the stitches would be.
Both children were interested in the whole thing sort of in the same way they were interested with her baby teeth coming out. They don’t really understand the topic as “sex” at this age. It’s just a part of a dog’s life and care they’re interested in understanding.
I think my daughter is going to be super motherly after the surgery, taking care of her every need. It’s so my daughter.
Sickness Update: I feel awful, my husband is still recovering, my children’s ear infections aren’t bothering them much now that they’re on antibiotics, my daughter is tired all the time from the flu and possibly the Tamiflu. I’m okay if I’m lying down most of the day but I get light headed if I stand up for too long. And while that sounds all kinds of bad, I think we’re on an upswing overall.
The Big Boy Update: My son loves documentaries. He and I watched ten short segments on Chaoshan cuisine with the Netflix series Flavorful Origins. He and I both kept saying, “I’d eat that.” My son wants to go to the Chinese Provence and try the foods directly. His idea was for us to boat our way there from St. Thomas on our ten-day trip this summer. We had to get Google Earth out and show him just how far away it was. He still wants to go. Most recent plans are for him and me to go while my husband and daughter go and do something they want to do—unless they want to join us. Only mature tongues and taste buds allowed, though.
The Tiny Girl Chronicles: My daughter asks for new apps from time to time. I go out to the App Store, download a collection of free apps, try them out and then delete two-thirds of them because of popup ads she won’t know how to close, small buttons or confusing layout, or other reason that would cause the app to not work for her with her vision impairment. Today’s request? Painting apps and popcorn machine apps. I found some of both.
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