Comical Cone of Contentment

The first year we had Caleb, I tried putting him in a costume. Even though we assured him that he looked wonderful, he felt embarrassed, shamed, demeaned, mortified, disgraced, and debased. It went downhill from there.

He found it just as humiliating as the medical cone collar he had to wear after a visit to the vet. 

(After taking a photo, of course) I haven't subjected him to attire since.

A few of years later, Zoe joined our family. She's a small breed mix with hair instead of fur, so she needs help to regulate her body temperature in cool weather. She loves her clothes, but I erroneously assumed that was only because they kept her warm.

In the summer, when I put away her little shirts and sweaters, she ended up with a "hot spot" on her belly. The vet gave us some ointment and told us to keep her in a medical collar for at least a week. 

Caleb gave Zoe long, pitying glances when he saw the small, plastic cone in my hand.  

I sorrowed as I placed it around her neck. "Mommy is so sorry, puppy! I know you doggies hate these things, but the mean doctor said you have to wear it until that spot heals. Please don't mope because it will make Mommy so sad," I gushed (along with other idiotic things that one says to a dog when they don't have human children).

Zoe waited patiently until I attached the last snap of the cone.

I pressed my lips together and choked back a sympathetic sob as she adjusted to the new sensation.  

Which was entirely unneeded since she jumped off the bed and pranced around the house, gleefully tossing her head, like, "Look at my modern Elizabethan collar! Finally, I have something really cool to wear."

To this day, it's one of her favorite things.

Verse of the day:  (Philippians 4:11-13) "I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret to be content in every situation...I can do all this through Christ who gives me strength." Contentment is a choice, even in a plastic cone.

For another Zoe story, click here.