happy holidays

taken Dec.25, Ernie, Sean and Oscar:

fecking blogger

isn't allowing comments
I have wasted too much time on this

they are running

being silly, heading home:

I guess you had to be there

Everyone is off the DL and happy to be back in the game.
Pictures from the walk last night. Blue is in a harness because of a 'barking at a person' incident on an earlier outing.
After a few walks on the leash she has shown herself to be reformed and is now on probation.
Greta (in the rear...big dog with little legs) is in a harness because this is her first day off the leash since surgery (and she's a loon.).














It's a beautiful world; sometimes you have to look out of the corner of your eye to see it.
I've always loved this time of year and I still do, even away from the snow.
I think it's the anticipation of a new year that I like.













Blue! with Zasu behind (taken by Sean):














Tuesday, Filthy G and Blue:














brother Reggie is now twice Gowron's size:














We keep a separate blog of which dogs were walked when, so we can keep track.
It reads like the opus of a madman. ...Sunday, December 14, 2008

morning run:
Gracie
Lucy
Ginger
Shirley
Bette
Frijolita
Osita
(7)
evening walk:
Zasu
Miles
Henry
Reggie
Tuesday
Gowron
Greta
Blue
(8)
Saturday, December 13, 2008
morning run:
George
Chester
Oscar
Otto
Archie
Ernie
Alice
(7) ...

Taken on Sat. evening's walk.
Eve with G wading in the background:














Fluffy G glamor shot:

Introducing Ernie

he's a year or 2 old and sweet as pie:


















We had noticed him in the area for a few weeks.  He must have been raised by someone because he is comfortable with people.  We just had him sterilized.
Ernie, the pups and Henry:














I doubt that he got much exercise in his first year. No wonder he was dumped.
Adolescent, intact and inactive make for a crazy dog!
I predict he will soon be putting on some muscle.
 













obviously, he's fitting in fine:

2 haiku 4 U

Surgeries are done.
Mistakes have been corrected,
new ones avoided.

The last 3 are home.
7-10 days to heal.
Time for something else.

autumn '08

It has been a mellow few weeks. Dogs have been recovering from surgeries, the pack has been remarkably quiet. Muy tranquila. I'd like to think it's improvement, but it's probably a lull. Everyone is enjoying the cooler temperatures.
Eve and Bette relax:














Reggie naps:














Alice and Gowron take a break:














Henry and Reggie (I can't believe how big he is already!) lounge:














It isn't all napping. We still make time for walks.
Miles and Gowron follow Sean:


















Zasu thinks I'm too slow:














Gracie is recovered and feeling fine:














Zasu, Miles and Gowron stroll:














Reggie, getting some air:


















Reggie and his dirty little sister FluffyG:














Gowron, FluffyG, Sweet Pea has many names, but one expression... happy:
















still happy:














this was a fun group, Tuesday, Gowron, Miles and Henry:


















Tuesday and Gowron, a little puppy fu on the way home:

flamingos

Lately flamingos have been in the salt ponds near our house. Maybe the cooler temperature have driven them into more protected waters. We love seeing them on our walks, but it does limit the amount of dogs we can take at once. Some of the dogs go on leashes when there are birds close-by...just in case. We do our best not to disturb them.
flamingos wading:


















landing in front of a salt pile:














Lucy and Al on leashes to avoid any unpleasant incidents:














Yucatecan shire:














my #1 assistant Zasu doesn't want to chase big pink birds:

moving pictures

Time to try out video...from a few recent walks, nothing too exciting.
We call them walks, but they do a fair amount of running.
Oct 13th. Nice day.


Oct 6th. The woods are infested with dogs.


Sept 3rd. I love it when they listen.

wet dog season

You have to keep a good pace to keep ahead of the mosquitoes.
The dogs don't mind.
beautiful Shirley leads some young'ins:














This picture is from the end of September.ten dogs wading where the road used to be:














The 3 newbies are doing great, growing fast. Rumsfeld is handsome, but such a crybaby! He has light colored eyes so we've renamed him Reggie -after Paul Newman's character in Slapshot. Maybe it will toughen him up. The next picture is the only one of him in this post because he doesn't like to go on walks. Once the girls are healed we'll have more time to work with him.
Reggie and Tuesday pose:

















Gowron and Tuesday leave their brother at home:














G and Tuesday race:

















Gowron loves Miles. Little dogs have to stick together.
fording a puddle:














small in stature:














big on enthusiasm:

Tuesday prefers the company of the bigger girls.
Tue, Bette and Greta:


















boundless energy:














she's a sweet, well-built pup:














They get along with everyone but they like each other best.
a pause on the way home:














ready for anything, Tuesday and Fluffy G:

Sunday drive

We're leaving soon to pick up Al, Lucy, Truman and Maldi. Turns out, Maldi is a boy! Alice and Lucy were a mess, full of nicks, Lucy had a hernia and Alice a cyst on an ovary. They both still had 2 ovaries. Grrr.
At any rate, the trip home is going be nerve-wracking. It is a long, often rough, road. Once we're home, I'm moving into the apartment with them until they recover. Doc said no stairs for 2 weeks. Nothing else to be done about it. We still have 4 left to be respayed and, now that we know what a state their insides are probably in, we don't want to wait. Ought to be done by Christmas. No good deed...
Back home and settled in; at least the truck didn't break down this time. Poor Lucy is so tired. Alice faired better. Maldi is already causing havoc. Truman is ok. The next few days are going to be tough with Lucy. Right now is the lull before the storm. I've had enough blood for today. Here's hoping the night is uneventful. There's an impressive lightning storm to the East, I can see it between the slats of the apartment window.

life's a beach

The mosquito season is finally here. That is something that just doesn't come across in pictures. The time to begin the long dreaded RE-spayings has also come. Of six dogs operated on last year, 5 have gone into heat. Despite explicit discussions with the vet about this beforehand...he didn't remove the ovaries. The incisions were too large and the recovery time was messy, sleepless and long. A truly miserable and traumatic time was had by all.
We've found a different vet and she recently and successfully spayed Gracie's seven girls so, we've mustered our courage and scheduled 2 re-dos for this weekend. I'm relieved and dreading it at the same time. Lucy and Alice are going in first because we can't risk another cycle with them. They go from best friends to, well, crazy bitches. They hate the sight of each other...frothing at the mouth, crazy-eyed, hate each other.
Truman Chapotle is going in for a little trim, too. He is Gracie's only boy. He should be feeling ok by their first birthday, on the 7th. We wish it had been done earlier but, there's nothing that can be done about that now. I'm hoping to get a post up about them before then but my external memory is not feeling well so, no pictorial updates until I can access it. Maybe Sean can work his magic on it. If not, I will be sad. Predictably, my preferred camera is fixed (again) just in time for my memory to fail. September was a bad month for hardware.

dog days of summer

This is a strange and beautiful place. A peninsula on a peninsula. Gulf on one side and salt marshes on the other. The landscape and light make it seem unearthly at times. We've been walking in the woods more than on the beach, one of the benefits of a dry rainy season.
Archie races his reflection:

Blue and Bette have room to run. A few good rains and this will be under water:


Lucy, Frijolita and Oscar come when they're called (those are salt piles in the background):


pink water:


Bizarre scenery and high temperatures aside, walks have been wonderfully uneventful.
ye old scenic shot of Chester:


Archie having a romp:


They aren't quite big enough for walks yet but they have mastered the stairs.
Tuesday and Gowron wrestle:

pretty girls:


pretty tolerant:


Maldi, the kitten, is doing great. It may look as though she is being harassed here but in fact she is taunting the dogs.
If she keeps this up I'm sure one of the dogs will learn to climb the ladder:

Maldi also likes the chase me up a tree game! Here she stands her ground to Greta:


I love that tree! Moringa is amazing stuff, high in vitamins, good for nursing moms and the seeds can purify water!
It's loaded with seed pods right now (known as drumsticks).
They look like big green beans:

It is usually covered in fragrant blooms and full of birds, bees and moths.
These moths are huge! I had to take pictures of them to figure out what they were.
They sound like hummingbirds but they look like flying crayfish:

Some evenings, dozens of them swarm the moringa tree:


The hummingbirds love the blooms too. There are almost always a few feeding.
Lots of these little green guys:


and a few of these slightly larger, more aggressive, red hummingbirds:

I can't end a dog blog with a picture of a bird so..
beautiful Lucy with the moringa tree in the background: