Looking Forward

I don't do New Year's resolutions anymore.  People almost never keep them anyway.  I set goals, but I don't do that just once a year.  I do it when it seems important to do it.

However, I like taking time to look forward to the coming year.  It's good to have things to look forward to, I think.

In no particular order, things I'm looking forward to in 2016 include:

• Camping with Isaac.  We are planning to camp with a friend and her lab in Delaware, where Isaac will see the ocean for the first time and play on the beach with her lab.  I always want to visit Mammoth Cave in Kentucky, which I had hoped to do in 2015 but it just never happened.  Isaac and I will probably camp in Wayne National Forest again, since we had such a nice time there last fall.  And maybe somewhere else, I don't know.
• Visiting my friend Susan in New Jersey.  I hope to head up there and visit her after camping in Delaware.
• Doing a lot of canning.  I had planned to do that in 2015 but it didn't happen.  I stocked up on canning jars but ended up doing very little canning.  But hopefully in 2016.
• Doing some winter hiking.  If we ever have winter here.  As I write this a few days before the end of the year, it is 50 degrees out and rainy.  It has rained so much lately I feel like I live in a swamp.  But I have lots of winter hiking gear and Isaac and I are going to hike in the snow, if it ever snows.  I want to do some hiking at Cuyahoga Valley National Park this winter, if it ever snows.
• Fixing up my van.  There are a ton of things that need to be done to it.  The windshield needs replaced because it has a crack in it.  The anti-lock brakes need fixed.  The passenger side window won't go down.  I want to put up curtains I can close to separate the front seat from the back.  I plan to build a bed in the back.  Well, I don't plan to build it myself, but I plan to get someone to build it for me. 
• Training Isaac to hunt for shed deer antlers (we got a kit to train him with for the holidays) and then, hopefully, finding some antlers in the woods.

A Chance to Help

A woman I know from an online forum for people interesting in service dogs has a 19-year-old cat named Hobbes.  The cat's owner is disabled and currently lives with a relative who is kicking both owner and cat out of the house soon.  The owner is probably going into a nursing home, which is kind of sad considering she is only 51 years old.  But the relative has been verbally and emotionally abusive for quite a while and it's not a good living situation and the cat's owner needs much more assistance than the relative is able or willing to provide, so...

There's not anything I can do about that.  I believe in helping where I can, and I do help when I can, but I can't fix everything.  None of us can.

But I can help Hobbes.

Her owner has been working frantically to find Hobbes a good home.  Hobbes is 19 years old and while she is healthy, she is a senior kitty and it is hard to find homes for senior kitties.  Her owner is heartbroken over having to rehome Hobbes and I can empathize, because I would have felt the same way about Cayenne.  She wants to make sure her kitty is OK.

Hobbes is probably going to either Best Friends Animal Sanctuary in Utah (are you familiar with them?  It is such a awesome place) or The Cat House in Nebraska.  Hopefully we will know for sure in a few days.

My job?  To transport Hobbes from her current home in Florida to her new home.  Because that it what I can do.

If you'd like to help, you can donate to cover the transportation costs.  Thank you for whatever you can do.

Being Disabled is Expensive

I first discovered this when I was 18 and still in high school.  I got a job as a live-in home health aide for a man that was quadriplegic, paralyzed from the neck down.

He'd fallen off a railing around a deck when he was 18 and just out of high school, just getting ready to enter the army.  The deck wasn't high, it wasn't a far fall, but he landed in such a way as to break his neck.  Instead of entering the service, he entered intensive care and then a rehab center, where he learned to live with paralysis.

When I met him, he was in his early 40's, divorced with two children, a teenage son that lived with him and a  younger daughter that lived with his ex-wife.  He had a nice home and good job as a computer programmer for the city.

I earned something like $4.80 per hour and worked about 30 hours a week, bathing him, feeding him, doing light housekeeping and meal preparation, taking him grocery shopping on the weekends and picking him up after work (someone else drove him to work on days I was in school).  I got up at 4:30 AM to bathe and dress him and feed him breakfast before showing and getting ready for school, then driving almost an hour to the vocational school I attended.  In addition to my hourly wage, I got room and board.

The state paid most of my wages, out of some program designed to keep severely disabled people out of nursing homes and off Medicaid and welfare.  He paid the rest, as well as paying for my room and board.  I was surprised to find out that although he had a good job and good health insurance (provided through his job), he had to pay out of pocket for a lot of his medical supplies, like catheters and dressings.  He also had to buy a wheelchair accessible van and a home that was wheelchair accessible.  I remember thinking then how expensive it was for him to afford his disability (not that he had a choice about it) and that he was lucky he had such a good job.  I remember wondering what happened to people that couldn't afford their disabilities.

Well, I am not in my 40's and I have learned that most people with serious disabilities don't have good jobs and can't afford nice homes.  I knew the man I worked for was lucky even back then, even when I was just 18 and still in high school, but I know it even more now.  And I know what happens to people that can't afford their disabilities. 

According to one source I found, Americans spend an average of 17.6% of their income on health care.  That's a lot, I think.  Some sources say it's less, more like 11%.  I had trouble figuring out which number might be most accurate.

But this year I think I spent a little over 25% of my income on health care, much of that related to my disability.   And my income is low.  I am above the poverty level, about 200% of the federal poverty level, in fact, by income, but geez.  Have you looked at the poverty level guidelines?  They are low.

Service dogs are expensive.  Isaac is a big part of my health care expenditure.  But he's not the only cost, not at all.  I don't understand how our country expects people with low incomes to pay so much out of pocket for health care.  It shouldn't be this expensive to be disabled.

Please Microchip Your Pets

I so wish people would microchip their pets.

I just picked up a dog on the side of the road. He was soaking wet, very dirty and his fur was very matted. He was very friendly, though, came right to me when I called him and was happy to hop in my van.

He had on a collar but no tags. I drove to the nearest house to see if he lived there or if they knew where he belonged, but no one was home.

We were about half a mile from the county animal shelter, so I drove over there so they could scan him for a chip but of course he didn't have one. So I left him there and they will try to find his owner or else to find him a home. 

It seems obvious he belongs somewhere because he is so friendly and is used to riding in a car and also walks nicely on a leash. If only he had a microchip, he might be back home already instead of at the shelter. 

Microchips are not expensive and it is a simple procedure.  They are injected, like giving a vaccine.  I saw Whiskers get hers and it didn't appear painful at all.  They are the best way to make sure a lost pet gets back home.  Of course a dog should have tags, too, but those can get lost.  A microchip can't.

Christmas Eve Service

Isaac and I ended up going to a candle light service at 11 pm last night at a nondenominational church with Mike and his mom.  It's the church Mike usually attends and he asked the pastor if it was OK for me to bring Isaac and the pastor said it was.

Isaac and I went for a walk in the morning and he took a dip in a lake and got all wet and muddy and smelly, so he had to get a bath.  I also brushed him well because he has been shedding like crazy lately and I brushed his teeth.  He was all prettied up.

He was snoozing when I announced it was time to leave for church because he tends to go to bed early, but he was happy to get up and go somewhere, anywhere, so off we went.  We got to the church a little early and I chose to sit near the back, at the end of a pew near the wall.  But there was room to get in and out of the pew by the wall.  I just didn't want to sit on the center aisle.

Isaac lay down by  my feet, partway under the pew in front of mine.  It didn't take long before he was sprawled out on his side, snoozing away.  When the service started and everyone stood up to sing, he lifted his head and started to get up, but I gave him the hand signal for "lie down" and he went back to sleep. 

At one point during the service, he moved closer to me and rested his head against my leg.  But he was quiet and unobtrusive and the people in the pews in front of and behind mine didn't even know he was there.

At the end of the service, a few people noticed him as we were exiting the pew and the leaving the church.  But I think most of the people in the church never even knew there was a dog there. 

I'm not positive the pastor even realized Isaac was there, even though he'd told Mike it was OK for me to bring my service dog.  Before the service started, the pastor was going around shaking hands with people and he reached around Mike to shake hands with me, but I'm not sure he noticed Isaac lying on the floor at my feet.  If he did, he didn't mention the dog at all.

The music was nice and candle light was lovely.  It's a really beautiful, ornate church, with stained glass and stuff.  It was gorgeous in the candle light.

There was no need to be in special seat or anything like that. 

Isaac was very, very tired when we got home.  He went directly to bed and actually let me sleep until 7:30 this morning, which is most unusual for him.

Christmas Breakfast

Scrambled eggs with minced hot dog, cheddar cheese and a pinch of catnip.

Man with Service Dog Denied Access at Gym

When the owners of the gym said he could not come in with his service dog, the man handed them a card explaining the Americans with Disabilities Act and suggested they call the ADA Info Line, the number of which was on the card, if they had any questions.  The owners refused to call the number and refused to allow him into the gym

So the man called the police.  This happened in Michigan and in just a few weeks a law goes into effect in the state of Michigan making it a misdemeanor to deny access to someone with a service dog.  The man wanted to office that responded to explain the ADA and the new state law to the owners of the gym. Instead, the office said he didn't know anything about the new state law (which goes into effect in about three weeks, mind you, which he will be responsible for upholding and enforcing) and instead suggested the man just find a new gym to go to.

The owner of the gym now says she and her husband are "getting up to speed" on the laws.  Well, the ADA has been in effect for 25 years, so they've had ample time to get up to speed.  She also says they just did not know what to do.   Well, how about complying with the law and not discriminating against people with disabilities, to start with?  Or maybe calling the ADA Info Line, the number of which was given to her, and asking what to do?

But she says she mean no harm.  She violated the federal law and discriminated against a disabled veteran.  Well, I'd say that's harmful.

Here's the article if you want to read it.

Merry Christmas, Whiskers

Whiskers got a crinkly tunnel for Christmas.

Recal Level: Master and Recall Level: Fail

A few days ago, Isaac and I were hiking in a local park with a friend.  Isaac was off leash and he really needed to run.  We'd gone on walks the previous two days, but not anywhere he could run off leash.  He was racing around super fast.  You could just see he really, really needed to run.

Then, off in the distance, we saw a couple other hikers, with a dog.  Isaac saw them and started off in their direction.  I got out my whistle, which is what I use to recall him, and blew.  I wasn't very confident he was going to come.  Another dog is about the greatest distraction ever, except maybe food.  Or deer poop to roll in.  Anyway, I thought there was a good chance it was going to take some doing to get him to come back to me, or else maybe I'd have to go get him.

And then Isaac stopped.  He stood still for a second.  And then he turned around and raced back to me at top speed.

Isaac got a whole handful of treats for that.

Recall Level: Master

But then there was today.

It rained all day yesterday.  It was raining this morning, too, but by afternoon, the sun was out.  I knew it would be all muddy but I also knew Isaac really wanted a walk.  I decided to go to a small park with a lake where he could swim, because it is so warm.  60 degrees here, three days before Christmas.

So I let him off the leash.  He ran around, sniffed things, peed on things.  He started getting farther away from me than I liked, as well as closer to the road than I liked.  So I blew the whistle to recall him.

He ignored me.  Kept running.  Got father away.

I blew the whistle again.  He stopped running, sniffed and peed on some stuff, but didn't come to me.

I got close to him.  Pulled the leash out of my pocket.

He looked at me and then loped off in the direction from which I'd come.  At least he was no longer heading toward the road, but still.

I was pissed.

He didn't go too far and then he stopped to sniff and pee some more and then I caught up to him and snapped his leash back on.

I informed him that our walk was over.  Don't come when you're called or even worse, run away, and it is time to go home.

Recall Level: Fail

Discrimination Is Not Helpful

Quite a few people have suggested to me that the first church I called, the one that said I could bring Isaac but we would have to sit in a special reserved seat, was not trying to discriminate or make me uncomfortable but was trying to be helpful.  Well, I don't know what their intentions were.  You would assume a church would want to be helpful and welcoming, but then, many churches refuse to allow people with service dogs to attend at all, so those churches do not intend to be helpful or welcoming.  So that is not the intention of all churches.

But maybe it was the intention of this church.  I don't know.  I didn't ask them.

The bottom line is, no matter what their intentions, discrimination is not helpful.  Discrimination is not welcoming.

And yes, segregating a person because they have a disability, insisting they must sit in a special reserved seat when everyone else gets to choose any seat they like, is discrimination.  Offering to reserve a seat or asking if I would need a special seat, that would be offering to be helpful.  But insisting I sit in a special seat when I do not need or want a special seat?  That is discrimination.

The U.S. Department of Justice even says it is discrimination.  Under the Americans with Disabilities Act, it is illegal for a business to do that.  But of course, churches are exempt from the ADA, so they are allowed to discriminate.  The fact that it is legal doesn't make it helpful, though.

The thing that surprised me is that many of the people suggesting the church just wanted to be helpful and that I was being unreasonable have disabilities.  I've written before about how bigotry can be internalized and this is yet another example.  I am unreasonable for objecting to discrimination.  The people discriminating against me are not unreasonable.  I should appreciate them just allowing me to attend their church and not expect to receive equal treatment. 

Well, no.  I don't appreciate discrimination and I don't find it helpful.  Not at all.

Midnight Mass, Round Two

Last year I posted about how I was thinking of going to midnight mass on Christmas Eve but was unable to find a church where I could take Isaac.  It wasn't that I found a bunch of churches that said no service dogs allowed, it's that I wanted until the last minute to call and then either no one answered the phone in the church office or the person that answered didn't know if they allowed service dogs or not and the person that would know was not available to ask.  I called six different churches and then gave up. 

I live in a pretty rural area and there are only so many Catholic churches within a reasonable driving distance.  There is actually only one Catholic church in my entire county, and of course, not all Catholic churches have midnight mass and I really wanted to go to midnight mass, not an earlier service. 

I don't want this post to be about religion, but I will say that I am not Catholic, I am not even Christian, but I have always thought it would be interesting to go to midnight mass on Christmas eve.  I just wanted to see it.  And I've heard the music is lovely.  I do not support the Catholic church for many reasons and certainly would not donate any money to them.  But I'd like to go to midnight mass one time.

So anyway.  I decided to plan ahead this year.  I started making phone calls today to find out where I might be able to attend midnight mass with my service dog.

And no, churches are not required by law to admit service dogs.  They are exempt from the Americans with Disabilities Act, which means they are permitted by law to discriminate against people with disabilities.  Some churches welcome people with disabilities, including those with service dogs, but they are not required to by law.  It is up to each church.  If you want to read what the U.S. Department of Justice says about why that, you can read it here.

A Catholic acquaintance tells me that the American Council of Catholic Bishops has made some sort of statement that service dogs should be welcomed in all Catholic churches, but I don't have a link to that statement so I can't verify it.  It's probably true, though.  But probably not all Catholic church employees or volunteers are aware of it.  So some would probably tell me I couldn't bring my service dog and maybe I'd have to produce the statement from the Council of Catholic Bishops and try to convince them they are wrong.  And this is not a battle I want to fight since I'm not Catholic and do not want to attend church on any kind of regular basis.

So anyway.  I decided to plan ahead this year and started making phone calls  to find out where I might be able to attend midnight mass.

I called the first church on my list, whose website stated they have midnight mass on Christmas Eve.   The women that answered the phone did not know if I could bring my service dog or not and put  me on hold.  When she finally returned, she said I could, but she needed my name so that they could reserve a special seat for me.  I asked why they needed to reserve a special seat and said I did not need a special seat.  She said they had to reserve a special seat up front since I would have my service dog with me.  I told her I was uncomfortable with that, that I did not need or want a special seat up front, and that if they would insist I sit in a special seat, that I would just check with another church.  She said OK.  Apparently it was just fine with her if I did not attend.

So I called the next church on my list.  They do not actually have a midnight mass but one at 10 pm.  Which Isaac would actually prefer, because he does not like staying up late.  The woman that answered the phone said she was pretty sure it would be OK but asked me to hold on while she checked to make sure.  She came back and said it was fine.  She said she hoped she'd see me there.

Cat on a Shelf

Had a Tooth Pulled Today

I had a tooth pulled today and I got the dentist to prescribe me some Tylenol with codeine. I'm not sure why I have been having such good luck with doctors lately. Usually around here it is extremely difficult to get any type of pain meds. But a few days ago I got a muscle relaxer and now I have Tylenol 3.

And it is working wonderfully. Unlike last time I had a tooth pulled, I am having no pain at all. I'm sleepy and getting ready to lie down for another nap. Whiskers is pleased with all day napping. But my mouth does not hurt one bit.

Isaac was great during the appointment.  I had to have an x-ray taken and he did a perfect down stay in the hall outside the door (which was left open), even though there were people walking around in the hallway.

It was a lovely day today and I am sure Isaac would have enjoyed a walk.  But I gave him a new beef knuckle bone to entertain him.  Whiskers finds napping on the couch with me entertainment enough.

I Wish I Had a Picture

When I saw the audiologist about my dizziness, I had a hearing test.  I was informed my hearing is excellent, no hearing loss at all in either ear.  I didn't realize I was worried about my hearing until I got that news and discovered I was re. lieved.

If you've never had a hearing test (this was my first), it is usually done with the patient in a little booth, about the size of a phone booth (remember those?), which is soundproof.  The audiologist sits right outside the booth and there is a window so you can see out and you wear headphones and can hear the audiologist and she can hear you.  Without the window, it would have felt claustrophobic to me but since there was the window, it felt OK.

I planned to have Isaac in a down stay in the exam room near the audiologist while I was in the soundproof booth.  When I sat down in the booth, however, Isaac got up and walked over to the door of the booth and looked in at me.  He looked worried.  I told him it was OK and to go lie down. 

Instead, he came into the booth with me.  I don't know why he didn't want me in the booth without him.  He does not have separation anxiety.  Once recently he was happy to have my acupuncturist take him outside to go potty (because he waited until she was almost done putting needles in me to announce that he had to poop right away and she generously offered to take him out).  He was also happy to lie in the hallway outside the little x-ray room at the dentist office recently.  The door was open but he was not in the room and couldn't easily see me.  He was fine with that.

So I don't know what it was about the booth for the hearing test that worried him.  But he looked worried.

The audiologist said it would be all right for him to be in the booth with me so I had him lie down at my feet.  It was crowded.  He didn't care and neither did I.

I wish I had a picture of him in that booth with me, though.

And, even with a snoring dog in the booth, my hearing still tested excellent.

Been a Rough Few Days

I don't think I ever posted about the outcome of my visit to the ENT and the audiologist, but I was diagnosed with something call benign paroxysmal positional vertigo, or BPPV, which is apparently a very common cause of dizziness and usually very easy to treat.  And sure enough, the treatment seemed to help.  For a couple of weeks, I was dizziness-free and loving it.

Friday evening I had a severe episode of dizziness, but thought it was probably due to low blood sugar because I ate a bunch of crackers, which tends to make my sugar crash.  Luckily a friend was here and he got me something to drink and something to eat and eventually it went away.

Also, Friday I had a horrible muscle spasm in my neck.  There was this giant knot on the right side of my neck and I could hardly turn my head.  I tried heat, my TENS unit, stretches, everything I could think of, and nothing helped.  Saturday morning, I was miserable and desperate.  I decided to go to urgent care.  The physician's assistant touched the knot, said "Wow!" and seemed most impressed, and prescribed 20 tablets of a muscle relaxer. 

I was amazed she gave me that many.  Apparently she thought my knot was really, really something.

It was huge.  I mean, you could feel it.  Maybe even see it.  Like having an egg-shaped lump on the side of my neck, made of muscle.

I took one tablet and by the next morning, the knot was almost gone.  It was a normal muscle knot, anyway.  The kind I get in my neck and shoulders all the time.  My neck hurt, but it was a normal pain for me, not something I felt I needed urgent care or prescription medication for.

I am guarding the rest of those muscle relaxers like they are gold, let me tell you.

Isaac was great at urgent care, by the way.  Snoozed the whole time.

Then Sunday night, I had another really bad dizziness episode.  Couldn't stand up.  I took my blood pressure and it was 79/49.  Tried it again a bit later and it was 78/48.  I debated going to the ER.  Finally decided not to, partly because I thought they would just give me IV fluids and I didn't think I was dehydrated and just didn't think they would be able to do anything to really help, and partly because going to the ER would have meant walking out to the car, driving to the hospital, walking from the car to the ER, etc.  And I couldn't really stand up.  Definitely not long enough to do all that walking, and I wasn't sure it was a good idea to drive when I felt like that.

And then I had an anxiety attack.  I think the anxiety was about feeling anxious and guilty and stuff I needed to get done, including some articles I was already late finishing, and feeling anxious and scared about how dizzy and sick I was feeling, and feeling depressed and alone about not being able to go to the ER because I was too sick to drive myself there. 

And yeah, I could have called 911 and gone by ambulance.  I didn't want to.  How would I get home if I did that?

Anyway.  I ended up crying, and Isaac brought me my medication, and I took some, and then I got down on the floor with him and lay down with him and he rolled over for me to rub his belly.  And then Whiskers came over and licked tears off my face and curled up next to me and purred for a while.  And after a while, I felt better.

So it's been a rough few days.

I need to call the audiologist back because I probably need another treatment for the BPPV (I'll have to explain what that is later).   Wednesday I have to have tooth pulled and I'm trying to get prepared for that.  So it's also been busy.

Isaac and I did get to go for not one but two walks Sunday, one in the morning and another in the afternoon, before the dizziness hit me.

It was very  nice.  We both enjoyed it.

Interesting Aromas

Isaac and I met the nicest little boy at the library today. He was about five. We were leaving at the same time he and his mother were leaving, and he hurried to hold open the door for us.

He asked if he could pet Isaac and his mom told him no, because that is a service dog, and I said it would be OK to pet Isaac if it was OK with his mom, and thanked him for asking. So Isaac and the little boy said hello very nicely.

Then Isaac wanted to stop to sniff a brick column and the boy told him, "That's just a load of bricks."

I said, "Apparently it smells very interesting."

So the little boy bent down next to Isaac so he could smell the bricks, too. And he agreed it did in fact have an interesting smell.

Isaac's Holiday Gift

Here's what Isaac is getting for the holidays.

It's a training kit to teach dogs to hunt for shed antlers.  I dunno if he'll learn to do it or not.  I hope so.  I think it would be fun.  He really likes finding bones when we go hiking.  Why not antlers?

He is not actually a big fan of antlers for chewing.  Apparently he is one of the few dogs in the world that doesn't like to chew on them.  But he could still hunt for them and enjoy finding them.  Then I can give them to friends that have dogs that actually like to chew on them.

Are Emotional Support Animals Tax Deductible?

I get asked a lot if service dogs are tax deductible and sometimes I get asked if emotional support animals are, as well.

The answer is that service dogs can be tax deductible, if you itemize and deduct medical expenses.  You can read more about that here, in an article written by my accountant.

Emotional support animals are not tax deductible under the current IRS rules.  The IRS basically uses the ADA definition of a service dog, and that does not include emotional support animals.

He Knows Better

A couple weeks ago I was at the Medicaid office, standing at the window waiting for my gas voucher.  A family with a mom, a dad and a little boy about three or four came in and the little boy made a beeline for my service dog.  He ran right up to Isaac and was nose-to-nose with him, hugging his head, before I realized what was going on.

I was talking to the employee at the window about my gas voucher but I stopped whatever it was that I was saying, bent down to look the little boy in the eye, and began giving him my standard lecture for kids that pet or hug or otherwise touch Isaac without asking.  It's a lecture I've given maybe a dozen times since I've had him.  I've given my adult version of the lecture many more times.

The little kid version of the lecture goes something like this.  "It is not OK to pet a doggie you don't know without asking first.  It is never OK to touch a doggie you don't know without asking because you don't know if he is a nice doggie or not."  I don't get into the issue of distracting a service dog because the most important thing for little kids is not to touch any dog without asking.

So I give the little boy the lecture and his father, who is standing right there, says, "He knows that.  He knows better than to do that."

I was thinking, umm, yeah, apparently he doesn't.

Run, Kitty, Run

And there she goes!

Just When I Think I've Heard It All

Every time I think I've seen or heard it all, someone proves me wrong.

Today I was at Rural King with Isaac, buying dog food (good sale, by the way). A woman stopped to tell me she has a dog just like Isaac at home and and she got out her phone to show me a picture.

Then her husband reached into their cart and pulled out a squeaky toy, which they must have been buying for their lab. It was a toy Isaac would destroy in about 30 seconds. He waved the toy in front of Isaac's face and started squeaking it!

I started picturing Isaac lunging for it, grabbing the toy and ripping it to pieces. I started trying to figure out how to get away fast but their cart was blocking my path.

Isaac, the good boy, just stood there, showing no interest in the squeaky toy. He was so good.

Sharing

Isaac got a beef hock today and there were all these little bits of crunchy smelly stuff in the package, which he likes. Apparently Whiskers likes that stuff, too. They shared.

Yesterday's Walk

Isaac was delighted to be able to run again.

And after a good run, you need to take a rest.

Cat Scratcher

I hung one of those cardboard cat scratcher things on the wall for Whiskers.

I'm hoping it will discourage her from scratching the molding around my bathroom door.  It seems she likes it.