~ THE LAZY VEGAN ~ HOME OF PACO & LUIGI AND FRIENDS: Old Toby Keeps on Keeping on, Another Whole Foods Protest and More at the Lazy Vegan!

It is hard to believe that tomorrow it has been a week since we decided to cancel Toby's "Departure Date" and made some adjustments in the household and with his care to help him get along in his senior years as a canine...and already those changes have made a big difference! The biggest help is the traction socks. With them on, he can manage to get himself back up after he falls. I think he had been really exerting a lot of energy trying to get himself up all the time. He is also eating with gusto and is interested in all the smells on a walk and just generally has perked up. So who knows - unless he continues to lose weight he may very well be hanging out at the Lazy Vegan for some time to come. The vet thinks his mobility issue is more neurological than arthritis which is good news - it means he is likely to be feeling comfortable although he is wobbly.

In other news, it was protest time again at Whole Foods - we again did the Sebastopol store just one week after the hoopla of the arrest of one of our activists for passing out leaflets at the front door. This time, five of us went into the store and one our of group gave a fantastic speech in front of the meat case right where the whole dead rabbits were. It was videotaped and may be made public in the future. I saw as I was filming a group of shoppers gather to listen - and I think it was very effective. Afterwards we went out and spent two hours holding posters and the giant banner and educated people on how Whole Foods is trying to create a demand for rabbit meat. Thank you to my mom (a.k.a. Snap) and to my husband (a.k.a. the foreman) for being there!! This fight may take some time, but we are not backing down!

Getting back to normal after a stressful week with Old Toby (here on out that is his official title). Bravo is back to hogging the bunny bed.

Wasabi is wondering where she can nap!

Toby before I bought the traction socks.

Love the sunrises lately!

Old Toby following the foreman around.

Old Toby headed for the house.

Relaxing!

Pre-traction socks - you can see he cannot get up!

I love it that the turkeys seek out the Lazy Vegan this time of year!

Bunny flying back into the kitchen!

Wasabi checking in on Old Toby.

The amazing traction socks!!

They are a bit hard to get on but really work! The only issue is after a while they tend to slip off. Right now I cannot find one and ordered some back-up pairs!

Here Old Toby is at the vet, showing off how he walks in his new socks!

Bundled up in his car seat on a rainy day on the way to the vet.

It was great to have some rain this week - and rain means mud!!

Old Toby taking an indoor walk in his traction socks.

Silly rabbit!

Bravo's fancy new collar!

Kitchen puppies.

Wasabi comes over for some attention while Old Toby takes a nap in my lap.

Old Toby snags the bunny bed.

Whoops - missing a sock!

I now suspect that Old Toby many have had a doggie virus or something and that is why, along with all the mobility issues, he seemed to have gone downhill so much and so quickly. Whatever the reason, he is back to wagging his tail and is eager to go!

The towel rack is a great place to dry the traction socks! They don't hold up well outside. I find myself putting socks on and off many times during the day. It is a lot like putting socks or shoes on a toddler - no help at all!

The foreman built the first fire of the season and Bravo wasted no time heading to the fireplace room!

More traction sock photos!

He reminds me a bit of Grover from Sesame Street in his blue socks!

Enjoying the sunshine.

The foreman picked up a bunch of new landscaping boulder rocks and has a new project started.

Outside, Old Toby doesn't need traction socks.

Wasabi has been a very good bunny during the stressful week when the focus was all on her canine brother!

Bedroom nap time.

Posing for photos on the water feature!

Watch out! That is a full-speed-ahead donkey wanting dinner!

Birdie ready to fly!

Quality time early in the evening with the donks.

Paco gave me a little nip! I'm sure it is because he has felt neglected this past week!

The following photos are from yesterday's protest. This time - after last week's arrest and yesterday's in-store "demo", the police were present...but I have a feeling that one policeman in particular is sympathetic towards our cause.

Bummed I didn't get better photos of Snap across the street! It takes effort to hold a sign for hours!!

We may be all smiles for the camera but this is serious business - we don't want to be spending every weekend protesting - we want Whole Foods to stop selling bunny meat!!

A client gave us a gift certificate to a fancy restaurant where we worried about being able to find anything vegan...but as fate would have it, our waiter was also vegan! He "veganized" several entrees for us and we had a very nice long lunch with cauliflower soup, salad and a rice dish!