Just wanted to share a new blog that I found today -- for all of you animal crazed people like me who would like to be vets in your next life. Written by a Wasilla vet, this blog is quite humorous and gives a pretty accurate view of the 49th state.
http://vetontheedge.blogspot.com/
Happy reading!
Me operating the backhoe. Ack!
The new, neat yard. Ahhhh. Clean.
We were also hard at work getting the dog truck finished this weekend. Woohoo! It is ready to go. Not only did we make a 3-dog box insert for under the dog box (preventing us from having to put a difficult-to-manage second level of dog boxes) but I also received my personalized magnets for the dog truck. How cute is that?!
The Dog Truck. Matchy-matchy :)
The new dog boxes in the bed of the truck. Doors aren't on just yet (coming soon).
We took the dogs out for their third run of the season last night. I put Zak in lead with Zed and man, am I proud of that dog. I think we have a real leader in the making. He is happy to be up front and he is learning his commands. What's really funny is that he likes to lie down any time we stop, especially if there is water involved. Silly dog!
Stay tuned for more runs -- fall is definitely here. The leaves have changed, there's snow on the mountains, and the rain never seems to stop. Happy mushing!
Last week we took a wild, hare-brained trip down to Colorado to pick up a 1996 Toyota Land Cruiser that Matt bought while down in Colorado Springs on business. It was a one-way flight followed by a few hours of sight-seeing and visiting with some friends of ours. And we took Indi with us! Yes, he flew down in a kennel and accompanied us on the way back. The day after we arrived, we set out on our way back to Alaska. On our one sight-seeing day, we visited the Garden of the Gods near Pike's Peak (it was too cloudy to go up on Pike's.) Indi and I paused for a photo opportunity in front of some of the neatest geology I've ever seen.
On Sunday (the second day of our drive) we drove from Calgary, Alberta to Grand Cache. We made a slight detour through Banff and Jasper parks. Imagine my surprise when we got a little outside of Calgary and found that there was SNOW on the ground -- in August! The snow stuck all the way until we got into the park, when it turned to rain. Seeing snow really lit a fire under Matt and me. We realized how much we needed to get done when we got back home in order to start training the dogs.
We stopped at Lake Louise and walked to the back of the lake, at the terminus of the glacier. Indi accompanied us, of course, and several times he decided to go for a swim in the glacial melt water. It had to be no more than 35 degrees, seriously. Ice water! But he loved it.
Fast forward to Sunday the 7th -- My Dad popped in for a visit at the tail end of a fishing trip. Of course I couldn't let the opportunity to take him for a run with the dogs pass us by. Matt and I put it in high gear and got the dog truck finished and everything ready to go just in the nick of time. On Monday afternoon we took Dad out for a 2 miler -- the first run of the season. I think he had a good time, but he did tell me that I was nuts and that it was too much work. :) I ran the dogs in half-harnesses for the first time. They were a little wild and crazy. I'm not sure if it was due to it being the first run of the season, or due to them not wearing neck lines, but it was a tad nuts. Oh well, they'll get better as the season goes on. Needless to say, they had a BLAST. It was the first time that File' had run with the team, and it was my first time to run Skiff, Zak and Zinger. Everyone was fantastic and pulled. Gotta love those dogs!
On the days like today, when it's tough to get out of the bed and get started with life, sometimes it's nice to think of the blessings that each and every one of us has. The things that I like to think of are the things that make me smile -- my silly ferrets doing their "dook dook dook" noise while they run and act silly in the living room, Guy carrying around a pink and green stuffed elephant the size of a mouse (literally) because it's his "baby doll", or even a just sunny afternoon drive home from work.
I've posted some things that make me smile -- I hope they make you smile, too!
Indi smiles for the camera, mid-walk at Beach Lake
A sunny day drive home from work
As for Lagniappe Kennel news, we're almost done with refinishing the 6 hole dog box. Photos to come (hopefully tonight!) AND -- File' was in harness for the first time last Thursday. I hooked her to my skijor belt and off we went for a 2 mile jog up the road and back. She was all business and put her head down and pulled like she had been doing it all of her life. What a good girl (as I told her repeatedly!) Footage below. Enjoy!
Today we are saddened to say that we lost our very first member of Lagniappe Kennel, Dixie. Dixie was adopted from the animal shelter in Nashville, TN in the fall of 2001. For the last eight years she has graced us with her (sometimes Prima Donna) presence. I have never had a dog who was a bigger pain, yet was so unconditionally cute. She will be missed. See you at the bridge, Dixie-Bear. We love you.
I've had a quiet last few days. I've been shouldering kennel burdens by myself since Friday of last week; frankly, I expected it to be a little trying but I've grown accustomed to the routine again and am able to dispense with the chores pretty quickly. I think that the dogs are happy to see me in the dog lot again -- Matt usually does the evening feedings so they haven't visited with me very much lately. As soon as we go back to feeding twice a day, I'll be doing morning duty before work as well as running them with the ATV some.
My rejuvenating, peaceful weekend consisted of chores, some shopping, laundry and housecleaning, punctuated by lots of napping. In the evenings I was able to take some time out to have a glass of wine and gaze out the window at the dogs playing in the yard. Most of the time watching them makes me smile contentedly. On rare occasions, watching them gives me a heart attack. I've had two such instances within the last few days.
Firstly, last night I peeked out the window to spy on File'. She was having a blast playing with her bone. Or so I though. Upon closer inspection, I saw stuffing all over the ground. WHAT? How had she managed that? Someone had apparently gifted her with the closest dog bed, which she drug to the center of her circle and attempted to shred. Heart attack number one. I slipped on my boots and ran outside to chide her and put it back where it belonged. She didn't do too much damage.
Later on, I heard Zinger barking in the yard. She, her brother Zack, and her kissing cousin Clover have unique barks. They all sound similar but I can tell them apart without looking simply by the tone of their voices. I knew that Zinger was up to something before I even saw the reason for her barking. She only barks when she's playing or when it's feeding time. I had already fed, so I figured she must be playing with something. When I looked out the kitchen window I saw that she was batting a toy around on top of her house, nipping it, throwing it up in the air and swatting at it again. She was busy talking to it while playing with it. What kind of a toy was that? Small...brown...oh NO. It was a POOP! My dog was playing with a poop on top of her house!!!
"ZINGER!" (no response) "ZINGER!!" (still no response) "ZINGERRRRRR!!!!!!!!!" (she pauses) "Don't play with that." (blank stare. swats at the turd again.) I sigh and close the door, shaking my head.
What in the world gets into these critters? I love them with all of my heart and soul and they repay me by doing things like tearing up their dog beds and playing with pieces of poop!! They make me scratch my head day after day. And so, after much Zen meditation and many quiet hours spent contemplating my dear pets and how I much love them, and why they do the things that they do, I have come to a simple conclusion. It all boils down to one thing: Dogs will be dogs. :)
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