My deadline-soaked and worry-filled pace continues, but two days last week I felt less like my head would explode. Decent weather meant I could write outside, so I ran up and grabbed Katie (Lilly’s best, best friend — the borzoi) to visit. I got a remarkable amount done those days, despite having three goofball dogs racing around all … day … long. …
Remember me mentioning that I got to interview Temple Grandin, Nicholas Dodman, and Jean Donaldson for a magazine article a while back? Well, the story is through editing and is set to run in July. (I promise, I’ll be able to tell you soon what it’s about.) The editors had one photo of me and Lilly, but they wanted one of me with both dogs in a more spring-like setting for the magazine contributors’ page. The old photo was taken in winter. So, one day last week, I actually did my hair and put …
Lilly agrees that Happiness is a Warm Puppy … even when that puppy is much, much bigger than you. …
We went to a really neat farm/ranch sale up the road many years ago. I don’t remember all the rural do-dads that Tom bought, but I do recall getting this sign. We thought it was funny on the dog house because it doesn’t say exactly what the guard is armed with. In my mind, it’s usually a ferocious weapon like very bad gas. Considering Lilly’s recent, prolonged tummy upset, likely from hunting and eating voles, it seemed appropriate to show you this now. …
We have NOT gotten nearly enough snow this winter, so it’s very, very dry as we head into what will be a scary fire season. Our current struggle, however, is getting all the dead grass off of the dogs after they’ve wriggled on the tiny patch of real lawn we have. Case in point. …
In our continuing efforts to notice dog language based on what we learned from Canine Body Language: A Photographic Guide by Brenda Aloff, I shot these two photos of the dogs sitting inside one of our sliding doors in the sun. Both looked at me, then looked away in unison. I love these pics of my golden-eyed pair, sharing a dog bed in the sun.
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Earlier this week, Lilly’s friend the Boer goat spent a lot of time in the pasture behind our house. We’ll go a whole week without seeing her, then she’ll be back, grazing with the horses. Tom and I each left the dogs inside and went to smooch on her at the fence. (We think its a her.) And, she loved the attention. Do you think a raised paw means the same thing in Goat-Speak as it does with dogs? …
Keeping with yoga poses named for things our dogs do, here is Ginko showing the classic Half Dog (with toy). …
I’ve mentioned before that Ginko “blew out” both knees when he was 3 years old. The official name of the injury is a cranial cruciate ligament (CCL) rupture. Often dogs also tear their cartilage (or meniscus) too, which complicates things. For those who aren’t too squeamish, here are details (including photos). Fair warning. …
Sometimes we catch a glimpse of a rare arctic ice bat in our very own backyard. Ooooh, scary! …
