the lesley osborn blog

I had tropical fish for many years. It began with one beta fish and a suitable bowl. That glass bowl was more expensive than this fish. Like other hobbies, this grew, and before I knew it, I was hooked on fish. One fish led to another, and before long, there were five aquariums of different sizes and shapes with a variety of freshwater fish to care for. I chose the babies. Some were so small they were difficult to see. But that’s me. I spotted an angel fish in a tank with others in a major pet store and chose him. He was the size of a dime. Well, of course, he needed a tank, and he came home with a 45-gallon bow-front aquarium, including its matching wooden base with cabinets for supplies! For the fish enthusiasts reading, meet Noah, the angel fish with 45 gallons all to himself. Why? He wouldn’t let any others share his space. I tried without success. Lucky Noah; poor me. An extra tank to care for. Imagine a fish so small with all this room. And he enjoyed every gallon as he grew! As ...

I grew up with dogs in my family. My mom loved horses and rode an Arabian gelding during her years at Pennsylvania State College. His name was Keb. Her riding clothes still hang in her closet. These were her memories, and she chose to keep them. Sundays were special; my younger brother and I would go to an amusement park, where we could both ride ponies on a carousel under close supervision. After all, we were very young but old enough to sit up straight. The only thing that could go wrong would be a mechanical failure! Several years later, my parents took us for pony rides on Sundays. Now we were on real ponies! The kind that eat, drink, and possibly throw you off! No mechanical failures in this scenario! My love for riding I attribute to my Mom. My brother couldn’t have cared less. By the age of 7, I was riding at a local stable. I began on a lesson horse reserved for beginners (kids and adults), attached to a lunge line, being led around a ring by an adult. This was for safety...

I learned about Melisa from a cross-post on a senior Florida Greyhound site for a Galgo Español in need of a new home. She was adopted by a couple from Spain at the age of two. Her family was relocating to Germany. They decided that at the age of nine, and given the lengthy trip, it was in her best interest to find the perfect forever home locally. Here’s how her story unfolded… Mom and I were volunteers with this Greyhound group and inquired about her. She was living in Florida, but her owners had contacted a Galgo rescue group in Pennsylvania for help. I was familiar with this Pennsylvania rescue; however, they had distance requirements regarding how far their dogs could be relocated. This was completely understandable for the dogs’ welfare should any problems develop. The Florida rescue spoke with the Pennsylvania group, and things progressed quickly. Our information was given to Melisa’s family. Her dad called and spoke with me, explaining that he wanted her to go from their home t...

 It was headed straight for us.  Aunt Lesley and Grandma sat glued to the television day and night, watching the weather reports.  Aunt Lesley began her yearly hurricane preparations. She stocks up on ravioli every year, but this storm was bigger than ravioli.  Yes, every day, for five days (sometimes twice a day as her nerves dictated), she ran to the grocery store to stock up on food and other necessities. For some reason, her purchases included some forty-eight rolls of toilet tissue—just in case. She believes in being prepared.  With each trip to the store, the shelves emptied.  First to go, of course, was the bottled water. Now, we already had forty gallons of Zephyrhills water sitting in the garage. (After all, we had to drink also.) Since there was no water to be had, she stocked up on juice, every kind she could grab off the shelf before the next person.  Aunt Lesley even brought home a supply of Pepsi that could quench the thirst of one hundre...

Arwen joined our family in 2023 when Gala (my senior Galgo Espagnol) was the only dog here. They both used our large, six-foot chain-link fenced yard for exercise. No walks required. After Gala passed on, this yard was too large for Arwen, plus the deck and ramp off the kitchen were going to be replaced.  Weather eventually takes its toll on wood. There was a small yard here when Mom and I purchased this home, but we never used it. It has a three-foot chain link fence. It's been mowed, and Arwen now has another opportunity to explore the outdoors besides our walks. It's taken her time and patience to adjust to something new.  Years back, this yard was a vegetable garden planted with loving care by my mom. Yesterday, during our time in this yard, I found myself sharing the following story with Arwen... "This yard had corn and other vegetables planted. My mom waited patiently, watching for the corn silks to emerge through binoculars from our porch. Once they were visible, sh...

Red was a ten-year-old smooth-coated standard-size red Dachshund. He was offered for free to a good home on Craigslist, of all places. Now I already had several Dachshunds in my family, so why on earth would I even entertain another? This was circa 1980s. There wasn’t the overcrowded shelter situation that exists today, either. But here I was, scrolling through a local newspaper in the canine-advertisement section (anyone remember newspapers?). There wasn’t a photo included, and he wasn’t far from me. I called the number listed, scheduled an appointment with the woman who placed his ad, and went to meet him. I drove into the neighborhood, searching for the address, and parked in front of a two-story townhouse. There stood a woman far younger than me at the top of the stairs with Red by her side. Yep, he was red in color and a standard-size Dachshund, but my immediate observation was the length of his ears. Doxies have long ears, but here was Red with the shortest ears I’ve ever s...

After Hannah joined our family (she was our first treeing walker coonhound), it didn't take my mom very long to say… “Someday, I'd like to add another to our family.” A few months later, at seven AM, I walked into her room. My mom was sound asleep. “Mom, there's an ad for a free litter of treeing walker coonhound pups on Craigslist.” (Of all the places to look, that was me back in 2007.) As she regained consciousness (she hadn’t had her morning coffee yet), the following words flew out of her mouth...“I said Someday , not Sunday .” Oh, did I forget to mention that it was indeed a Sunday? Read on... Before my mother could say another word, there I was with the photos tucked behind my back. If you know me, I believe in being prepared, you know, just in case! One included Sari with her litter of ten-week-old pups still trying to nurse. She was thin and didn't have enough milk to continue being the sole source of nourishment for her babies. Pups should slowly be t...