Baby Josiah

Our newest addition to the COZV family is baby Josiah. He joined us at the end of May when he was 8 days old. He was a preemie 2.3kgs when he came to us and now he’s about 5kgs. He’s quite the cutie and has stolen our hearts.

Where’s Waldo?

Almost two months ago, one of my housemates decided to bring home a chameleon. She had him in a plastic margarine container which he could very easily escape from. He went missing for about two weeks so we thought he had decided to go on his merry way. I was quite surprised to find him living on the back of one of our kitchen chairs. He stayed there for quite awhile before again disappearing. He was next found living in our basil plant on the kitchen table. I think he wanted to feel like he was going on safari. It’s become like a game of “Where’s Waldo?” He was last seen living under the Colgate box on the bathroom sink about two weeks ago. I’m slightly concerned that since he hasn’t been seen he’s become a Scooby-snack for Klepto.

Bonita aka Klepto

I promised pics of Bonita weeks ago. Here she is! Her name has been a bit of a challenge. (Marsha, this one is for you!) A name is a very important thing. When she came to live at the SPCA in Windhoek they didn’t know her name, so they named her Bonita. But it was never really her name. She doesn’t answer to it. When you say, “Bonita” she looks around like you are talking to someone else. Not to mention I feel like Bonita has too much Spanish flair to be an African dog’s name. So we tried to give her a Lozi name: Naleli which means star, but it also didn’t stick.
While we were sorting this whole name thing out, Klepto just sort of stuck. Given her proclivity to steal things it seems fitting (klep·to·ma·ni·ac [klèpt máynee àk]: somebody with an obsessive urge to steal). And she seems to like it. So really there is no argument. Now she’s more X-Men than Hispanic.
Since coming to live with us, when she’s not busy stealing our socks, she is digging to Hawaii in the front yard. I seriously expect her to pop out of her hole wearing a lei and grass skirt one of these days. While she enjoys stealing and digging, her true joy really seems to come from barking at men, especially Namibian men on bicycles or playing soccer. Seeing that’s something we have a lot of around here, we’re trying to break her of that habit. She and Mordecai, the boerboel puppy that guards the school, have become fast friends and joined forces to rid our compound of any suspicious intruders. On the other hand Cassie, the full-grown boerboel that lives on the other end of the compound, has not been so friendly and tried to eat Klepto.
Right now she’s sitting by my feet looking at me with those sad-I’m-dying-of-hunger-from-all-that-digging-so-feed-me eyes. So I’m going to give her a treat before she faints. I’m sure this isn’t the end of Klepto’s adventures in Africa. Stay tuned…