Nutcase?

I will be the first to admit that I am overprotective with all of my animals. It comes from a good place, though. I am so attached that it is almost unbearable to lose one. And to see them hurting makes me physically ill. So what do I do that makes me a little bit of a crazy person?

I do not leave my dogs outside while I am gone. There is no fence that will keep them 100% safe. Scruffy can climb anything. If he gets out and heads to the neighbors where there are birds he will be shot and the birds will be lunch. Not good. As a result, my furniture and walls pay a price. Scruff vindictively pisses when he's left alone. He waits until he sees me come home to do it. If I sneak in and he doesn't see me he does not leave a mess. I've been told countless times that dogs do not have the capacity to be vindictive. I disagree. This dog is smart. He is also disturbed. He has major separation issues. And, because he makes messes and does not come when called unless it suits him I cannot take him with me. I miss having dog buddies that go-go. I also get majorly annoyed by the fact that my couch now stinks. I clean and clean and clean. It still has that distinctive odor.

The cats are now held captive in the house, too. Of course, most of the time they are perfectly happy with this. I do let them out during the day sometimes. Takes Blue about 5 minutes to howl to come in. Pumpkin will go exploring but will be at the door at dusk as if she knows how dangerous it is out there.

As for the horses, I rarely take them anywhere because I do not have a decent trailer. Mine has rusted to the point that I consider it dangerous. The frame is good but there are too many sharp edges up high. I put off taking the horses in for their annual as long as I could. Finally, a few weeks ago, my vet actually picked them up in his trailer and took them to the office for a float. Diesel's teeth were awful. I may get a much better result riding now that it is fixed. I feel bad that I let it go so long. The trip to the vet was successful with only a minor scrape on Becca from a little freak out when loaded.

I also have left Diesel out in the big pasture alone since Priss bowed tendons last winter. He is too rough and too playful and he kept pestering her. This means on nights like this where it is cold, wet, and windy he is miserable out without any shelter. I hope to build a shed for him next year. This year the priority is replacing the last section of fence. This will happen in the next month. But, tonight I caved. I let him in with the girls. Priss is in her stall and they all have a ton of hay to keep them occupied. This is a test to see if he can behave enough to let him into the barn in the future. As I type I hear the clang of his feet kicking at the stall. In addition to picking on Prissy, he bullies Becca out of the barn. Of course, everyone bullies Becca out of the barn. She is completely submissive.

Do I take it too far? My "rules" keep me grounded and unable to take off and go for fun. On holidays I have to leave early and get home to tend to my crew. I never get to have a weekend away. But, all these little friends are what makes my life blessed :)