A Spring Tonic

By late winter, I commented on how bad my critters were behaving.

The horses, confined to a paddock area for most of winter, were nipping at each other and, if feeling brave, mouthing at me. Dewey Kitty was shredding books, papers, bags.

So, I did what my mother did to me and my siblings when we were young. I sent them outside.

When the ground finally dried and the grass began growing, the horses returned to pastures. Dewey transitioned from an indoor-only to an indoor and occasionally outdoor cat.

The horses, who now spend hours each day grazing, have stopped picking on each other and stopped trying to mouth me. The cat is sleeping for chunks of the day and night, and is only shredding paper a few times a week.

I, too, am heading outside more... because I'm sure after a long winter, my behavior could also use some improvement through sunshine and the great outdoors.