Summer Vacation

 

 

The rabbit family that was living in our new yard seems to have gone undercover for the last couple of weeks. I hope they didn't turn into a buffet dinner for some passing hawk or fox but I wouldn't be surprised. They have to eat too I suppose. Part of the big Hackberry tree in the meadow fell down last week which was a terrible shame. On the upside, I got four more windows unstuck. Stella is no help at all. She can't even make coffee. It's bunny patrol or nothing as far as she's concerned.

Chigger Patrol

Also known as "bunny patrol" for Stella. This is a little corner of our new meadow in which I am dutifully working on a non-toxic solution for chiggers and mosquitoes. Seriously, if I'm to keep on blogging I'm afraid it'll be all gardening all the time. Regular readers say post it here but I'm not sure how a blog about carnival dogs and/or my own canine relates. Anyway, according to Google University, the organic answer (for the bugs) lies in two other critters: beneficial nematodes (250 million of them to be exact) and bats. Who knew right? Some of you may think (as I did) that Purple Martins might play a role in mosquito consumption but apparently that is a myth created by people who sell Purple Martin bird houses.

So bats it is. This leads me to wonder if my new next door neighbors wouldn't be frightfully concerned were I to show up one weekend and erect a twenty foot tall bat house in the yard. I suppose it would address their mosquito problem as well (bats eat a thousand mosquitoes an hour) but I'm just not positive they'll think of it in the same environmentally sound terms I do so for now, the plan is still in the early stages. They have big dogs too and Stella already sees it as her job to tease the three of them relentlessly through the fence whenever possible. Imagine.

New territory

Gosh, how long has it been? It seems like an entire summer's passed by us since we posted about I heart Guts! Thanks for the funny comments on that btw. Things have been happening here that prevented all recent posting. Big things. I no sooner promised you all a new adventure than the adventure turned on its heels and tried to hijack me into a whole new blog. I'm trying so hard to resist it too because as you all are aware - I have a few too many in the wings already. The original story was this: Stella and Gigi (the tail-free cat) and I went house sitting this summer. In the middle of May we moved into a house in east Nashville that was built in the late 1800's. It is a grand place and we love having all of this extra room not to mention the amenities of a top-notch bed and breakfast. I'm doing the cooking and cleaning of course but it far exceeds our former crib. When we moved here I put all of my things in storage and the plan was that I would look for a house to buy over the summer and move out when my friends return at the end of October. Thanks to my dear mom, who decided I should inherit something of hers without her having to die for it (brilliant) I'd been looking online at houses for almost a year. At the beginning of June she gave me the go ahead to look seriously and not realizing what was about to happen I called a super smart real estate guy named Roger and gave him a short list of things I wanted. It went something like this: screened-in porch, fence, lots of light and maybe a little garden I could reinvent or tend to. No knotty pine. Then I said a little prayer that made reference both to an "oasis" and the "Garden of Eden."

And you know what happened after that, right?

I bought a garden. It came with a house. 

It's a cool house but the garden is mind boggling. In fact, if I had a couple of hens and a little goat I might never have to leave there again. In the photo just above -  those are raspberries. There's an herb garden, fruit trees, a family of state-fair-sized bunnies and a Wisteria draped carport that may actually have me for dinner some dusky evening. What a way to go though. I'd die a happy woman, especially if that broad was in full bloom. 

We haven't actually moved in yet but Stella seems to love it over there. I promise we'll return shortly with some more relevant d.o.g. type stuff. Hope you all have some wild excitement in your life as well.

New Beginnings

  

  So we have acres of new places to walk Stella and I. We've mostly stuck around the neighborhood which goes on for blocks and blocks - to the park if you're traveling east and if you're headed west, you cross the river to downtown. One great new thing which I forgot all about is that there are sidewalks to walk on. It may seem silly but it's a nice change if you've been traipsing up and down suburban streets for four years. It isn't without challenges but I so far I love it and Stella seems to like it too. 

  One challenge is that there isn't grass just anywhere Stella decides to relieve herself. Sometimes there are hybrid rose bushes bordering fantastic gardens and other times there are crushed beer bottles or other unspeakable litter. There are also tons of  little picket fences right on the street, with variety packs of dogs behind them barking right at you, as you pass. We played that game yesterday with an audience of neighbors sitting on the porch. One of their three dogs turned into the Sherriff, jumping viciously up against the thigh-high fence. Naturally, Stella went after the dog. I didn't really blame her (too much). It did seem as if the dog was going to get us but she was set to drag me over the fence with her. It's fine, I usually try to work 6-8 seconds of complete chaos in a few times each day. The more embarrassing, the better.

  The photos below have nothing to do with this post. They came out of our new (temporary) garden in the back yard which is also fenced but thankfully ours is a lot more private at six feet. This mama Robin was teaching her chicks the basics yesterday, inside the fence, which I thought was truly brilliant since they were like bunch of toddlers, heaving around and flying into things. Today they're strong enough to fly to the top of the fence so they probably won't be here that much longer. I didn't realize any of this was happening until the chick in the lower photo hopped right up to Stella and started a conversation. I wish we had a picture of that. Mama bird put a stop to it rather quickly and basically ordered us into the house.

Reunion

I got up last Friday and told Stella it was her lucky day. If she were a teenager, I'm certain I would've gotten the full blown eye roll right then and there. It was a long busy day and she was surprised when I produced her leash again at 5:30. We drove for a little while and then turned onto a winding road bordered at the back by a creek. I turned the rear view mirror in her direction. She was about to scratch off a ticket worth more than five dollars, I wanted to see her face if I could. Her nose went straight out the window. A minute later we pulled into a driveway we hadn't been in since early January. A familiar black dog headed up to the gate toward us. He blinked, looked behind him and again at us, as if he couldn't believe his eyes.

I waved at him. He knew then, who and what he was looking at. As did his former girlfriend, Stella. She jumped into the front seat, which she never does, and then back to the backseat again as I slowly drove down the driveway and into the parking spot. Now if this were a movie, we'd be at the part where we're all running toward each other through a field of daisies in slow motion. The love fest that followed was so sweet it would rot your teeth. Diesel jumped into the back seat of my car and sat down facing forward, like it was yesterday and when I told him to get out he simply moved over to the other seat and sat down again. It was hysterical. There's no question he's having the time of his life at the farm. He has all he needs there to fill up his days with the things dogs love most. Toys, treats, canine friends, feline friends, love and attention, livestock, a horse trough filled with water. He's still the same lover boy that he always was and although we probably overstayed our welcome (having too much fun - you understand) I still hope we get to do it again sometime. Many thanks to Diesel's mom for the invitation and great DINNER.

Happy Good Friday

I can't begin to understand what dogs think but I know this for sure.
Stella has ideas about the Easter Bunny that aren't what we humans would consider sweet. In fact, I suspect they lean more toward the diabolical.

white eyelashes

She knows where he lives. 
He's been weed eating the back yard
for a couple of weeks now.   

She texted him:
STBY Bugz

He wasn't provoked.
 
No sign of Sunny the turtle.
She normally comes for Memorial Day but
I'm hoping she'll show up a little early this year. 
More on that later.

MTFBWY

Diesel update

Here is a great update from Diesel's new mom Debbie (who we're officially crazy about): 

Diesel and Maggie are good friends now – Maggie’s still the boss but they do play together.  He’s used to the routine now, he goes out in the morning and stays out until night unless the weather is bad…Maggie is scared of lightning and thunder so I always bring her in and it’s not fair to leave him outside so he comes in also.  He’s very good about going to his bed and laying down when he’s in the house although sometimes he gets very excited and runs around like a goofball. [ed. note: I find this incomprehensible.]

I got Diesel a toy that he’s absolutely gaga over – it’s just a squeaky ball wrapped in canvas with several canvas tails so you can play tug of war.  He’s so obsessive about it and it just cracks me up when he squeaks it – he’s loves it.  I have discovered that he keeps it safe by burying it then digging it back up so it’s always muddy and nasty but he will carry it around for hours and hours.

He’s laying out on the deck in the sun right now next to Maggie.  He won’t go near the horses and when I let them in the front yard, he stays under the carport and watches to make sure they don’t come anywhere near him (they couldn’t really care less about where he is anyway).  I’ll be interested to see how he handles the farrier when he comes to do my horses because I bring them under the carport for the farrier so Diesel’s  safe place will be penetrated by those evil horses – what will he do?  So far, he’s a pretty happy guy.

I wonder if you trained Diesel to run on a treadmill.  The first nasty day that he was here and I couldn’t play ball with him to spill some of his energy – I put him on the treadmill and he immediately knew what to do.  It’s wonderful because now if he’s too full of himself and I don’t have the time or inclination to go outside and work it out of him, I just stick him on the treadmill and let him go for a mile or more and then he’s just fine.

He’s a good dog and I’m glad to have him.

How does it feel to only have one dog to contend with? I bet you find you have a lot of extra time on your hands and a lot calmer life.

First, thanks to Debbie for the update. We really appreciate it. Second, as I told her in a return e-mail, I did (in a fit of exhaustion) teach Diesel to run on the treadmill. I hadn't mentioned it here until this very minute because I wanted a good video of it which necessitated moving furniture and setting up a light, but I ran out of time over the holidays. It was a lot of fun and to be honest, I didn't have to do that much teaching. I just had to figure out the logistics of it and say "good boy" a few times and he understood. I held the leash and pretended to walk or jog along next to him.  He did it without second guessing me, without an explanation and with zero experience. It was beautiful. 

Stella, on the other hand..did not master the treadmill. Stella analyzes everything and she thinks way too much. She'll walk up onto anything I ask her to but you let the floor start moving and Stella is going to pick up her marbles and go straight home.

Lastly, life is definitely more calm with just one dog. Especially since the two of them used to play the canine version of Smackdown in my office twice a day. Initially, I encouraged this behavior - in order to teach them  to "stop" on command but they burned some good energy that way too and never once broke anything or turned over a piece of furniture - which I still find amazing. 

Mill Creek Greenway

I guess this would qualify as a favorite walk despite the fact that Stella once found a snake there and the only reason it didn't bite her was because I was standing on it's tail. No small drama there. I liked it better before the flood (you can't see the trash in the trees in this photo but trust me, it's all over the place) it's still a nice view though and a big creek to be where it is.  Stella likes it because it ends at the soccer fields and she gets to run (mostly) free when we get there. I think her canvas frisbee is still out there somewhere.

We got a nice report on Diesel the other day, think I'll just post it in it's entirety. Also, we finally got new neighbors in Diesel's old house. They have two dogs, one of whom is named Cactus. That's almost as good as Bacon, the white Lab who lives down the street.

Friend Beverly sent us a video about tagging bears in Canada. It has nothing to do with dogs but it's hilarious. Check it out here.

Giddyup

Stella and I have had a little bit of extra fun this last week. I know she misses her playmate - mostly because about once a day she leaps up in the air and does the play bow to me followed by some basketball-type moves. She watches my eyes and if she sees anything that resembles adventure in them, the chase is on. We race through the house for a couple of minutes then I catch her and then she doubles back and catches me. I start laughing and fall down in the floor. It's a game she and Diesel played twice a day for the last six months. A game Diesel apparently tried to play some variation of with a horse recently.

What Diesel saw in the horse's eyes however was not adventure. It was more like a sign that read: Prepare to meet your God - little man. There with the blur of horses hooves and possibly some earth rattling.

Then, according to new mom "Debbie" there was "rolling on the ground, staggering like a drunk, screeching like a girl and running for the hills". At first she thought he might have been clipped in the mouth by the horse but further investigation determined that the only thing fractured in the melee was Diesel's ego which we know from experience, can be repaired. In any case, it was high drama but he's fine. Let's hope he remembers it for a long, long time. Anybody have a dog/horse story?


Dogs and Humans, A Love Story by Lee Charles Kelley.

Newsflash

So, there's a little fox in my neighborhood.
I suspect he's the one looting my tomato plants.
Both dogs spotted him this morning on our walk
at about the same time he spotted us.
It's a wonder there's any skin left on my elbows at all.

The Visitor

This creature has been tracked extensively on my old blog. She makes an appearance each year (with the exception of last year) right around Memorial Day. I try to be in possession of a fresh peach when she shows up. This year it happened Sunday. She ate a couple of bites from a slice in my hand before settling into the plants for a much needed rest. Now we've moved on to blueberries. She shares something with Domino during this regular visit. Assuming things have gone well in her love life, one night this week at dark, Sunny the turtle will dig a hole in some unassuming place in my backyard and drop 4-5 eggs in it. It takes about four hours and when she's finished you can't tell anything was ever touched. She will then hang around here for a couple of weeks, eating strawberries and other delicacies like earthworms and voles (everybody say Amen) before moving on. I'd love to know where she spends the rest of the summer, maybe back at the creek where she comes from.

Then, at the very end of August, just when I think those eggs must be hard boiled, a thunderstorm comes along to soak the ground overnight. The next morning there will be a pristine little hole in the ground with baby turtles the size of quarters spilling out of it. It's like God stopped by for dinner and decided to spend the night.

Notes

1. Whiskey Nick has a crush on Stella. She was lying on her side the other day and he squeezed his whole body into that little triangle between her front paws and her chest and went immediately to sleep. Not sure who had the biggest cartoon eyes. Me or her. I laid my hand on her hip and told her to stay, which she did. For the better part of three minutes. He did the same thing against her butt a little while later and she dealt with that pretty well until he rolled over and clutched her back leg with his front paws. You could almost see the shivers roll down her back. I wasn't able to get to the camera either time but it was pretty sweet.

2. I've probably said this before but it bears repeating. Rabbit is the new squirrel. There are two adult rabbits living behind our house. They're huge. I've refused to get too used to them being here though since (so far) I have a nice patch of Arugula growing back there and we're also a training ground for young hawks.

3. The cicada population dimmed considerably over the last few days (since it got cold) but not before Stella learned how to snatch those things out of the air in one fluid motion. That actually took a little training on my part too seeing as she's sailing around on a four foot leash like some sort of wild pony.

4. Proving once again that you get what you pay for, my $25. video camera no longer works or this kitten thing would be as fun for you folks as it is for me. Better actually, since you all could enjoy the show without the shredded curtains or the aroma.


Janet

Tastes like chicken

You might know that if it's really loud, looks like something from a science fiction novel and it sleeps in the ground for thirteen years her inclination would be to eat it. Right? I loved the look on her face the first time she picked it up and it started buzzing in her mouth. Three or four more times and she finally got the nerve to bite down a little. Then, all bets were off. It was officially a sport.

She snapped up the next seven without looking up or missing a single step. Then one of them landed right on her nose and she launched off bucking like a little pony. (Note to self: Get a camera phone) That was apparently her limit.

The cicadas were strangely quiet this morning. Their smashed bodies lined the streets as if overnight there had been some massive gun fight. It ended up being a good walk though, which is saying something when it's nearly four miles. Not all of our walks are that distance but Stella has taken to lying or sitting down in the middle of the sidewalk or street whenever the mood strikes her. I don't know if it's the humidity or her knees bothering her, only that it disappears magically if another dog or a squirrel happen to walk by. Little boys hanging out of car windows - that's a surefire cure too.

I say it was a good walk because it had all the elements of a good training walk rolled up into it and Stella, despite the breakfast buffet, let all of that stimulation roll right off. It was seven-thirty in the morning so we had: school buses, speeders, speeding school busses, school kids waiting on the speeding bus, man with stroller passing by on the sidewalk, big mean dog barking from across the busy street, charging Chihuahua, lady with a big yellow dog, lady with a garden hose, Bacon and Hombre running us up the fence, construction workers, and last but by no means least, the Great Southern Brood.

It was also a good walk because she is now asleep in the same room with four kittens, all of which are doing great, even the smallest of the bunch which I've suspected for a week would be blind in one eye - but isn't. The litter is eight weeks old today and the other two are 2-3 wks. They're pretty much having their way with Stella. Last night Domino was nuzzling one of her paw pads and finally bit it. She barely raised her head. Whiskey Nick pinned her tail on the ground and then ran out of the room. This morning after the walk her and Gypsy were trading bunny hops through my office. It's pretty easy to get high on kittens. Maybe on cicadas too.

Kong ball sharing. Who knew?

Bunny Eater

We got to the ball park and there were kids hitting softballs on the field. I put Stella on the long leash thinking we'd play some fetch outside the fence and she immediately glued her nose to a telephone pole. Eventually, I got bored and walked away still holding onto the handle of the leash. Once Stella realizes she's free to run, that first move is always a joyous one. It reminds me of a little gazelle leaping off the ground. She finally made that move and took off across the way but pulled up short after about thirty feet, her nose fully engaged again. That's when I saw the blood.

A hawk must have dropped it. Young hawks in training need practice. They get distracted, interrupted, they fly away, and drop their kill. The rabbit lay quietly in the grass, recently separated from it's internal organs. In the blink of an eye, Stella chose the carcass. I wasn't positive that it was a rabbit until she turned around and looked at me with those little back feet sticking out of her mouth. She saw my face and tried to run. I stepped on the leash at which point she tried swallowing the entire thing. Thankfully it was too big or we would've gotten to revisit the entire event a little while later. I took a deep breath and relaxed. Realizing I was going to let her keep the prize, Stella did too. Then there was a lot of crunching while I lectured her about how the Easter Bunny wasn't coming to our house this year or maybe ever again and it was probably going to be all her fault. I feel reasonably sure she didn't care.

Kitten Watch: still no kittens (Domino didn't eat today - which is supposedly a sign of approaching labor but we're not holding our breath)