Saturday, March 30, 2013

HAPPY EASTER!

For Easter, I thought I'd see if I could get a picture of a couple of rare New Dayton Bunnies so you could see some of the local wildlife.
They are hard to find so I had my friend Amanda shoot the pictures while I flushed them out. (thanks Amanda)
Here is one who still has her winter white coat to help her blend into the snow.
And this male was harder to find because his coat had already shed out to it's summer brown to blend in with the prairie grasses.
I hope you and all the bunnies around your home, have a very happy Easter!

Monday, March 25, 2013

Happier Than A Pig In Slop

If our puppies look greasy and dirty in their pictures, it's because they are.
Raising a litter of pups indoors in the Winter is difficult, but the pups get a better start than they would if they were born in the barn. So far they have had 3 baths in their short 7 weeks of life and tonight will get a 4th!
As if 6 pups weren't enough, we bought another one!
Nell is a couple of weeks older and leads to some noisy games in their pen in the house.
Fortunately, 4 of the pups will go to their new homes next week and 3 are much easier to entertain and keep clean.
And the really good news is that the weather is nice enough for them to play outside during the day!
And this makes the puppies VERY happy!
Some ring around the little crate is definitely in order!
I think Nell was a barrel racing horse in her last life.
Caughtcha!


Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Rising Stars

You can say you knew them when, but after the commercial the puppies and I filmed today, you'll probably want their autograph too.
They were all wonderful and hopefully, no one gets too big for their britches and will still talk to me when they accept their Patsy's (the animal Oscars).
They had their own dressing room,
 and plenty of fans who wanted to meet them.
Then we got down to work.
While the other pups, took five, Fleece prepared for the starring role with me and talked over her motivation with the director and cameraman.
She was a pro and remembered all of her lines.
 Fleece took a break after that, (child labor laws say kids can only film for a little bit at a time)
and we switched to my Jed dog.
The idea of the commercial was to advertise a method that helps you choose the right puppy, to make the perfect dog for you.
So Fleece was supposed to be my choice, and in the great Lassie tradition, Jed plays the part of a girl (Fleece) grown up.
Jed was then wrapped and the real film making began.
We brought in the WHOLE litter - plus Nell, a new puppy we just bought.
Filming continued, but not everyone was interested in staying in frame.
We had puppies over here,
and a couple over there,
and two runaways behind us,
and then there was this:
which might be considered performance art.
After the melee, Fleece had a couple more shots to finish up,
 where she practiced her method acting.
Then we were finished and we all went home, where the puppies started reading scripts and picking out their next roles.

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Watch out for Leprechauns!

Friday, March 15, 2013

Sunday, March 10, 2013

Party! Party!

I and the dogs of my choice were invited to the 11th birthday of our friend's flatcoat retriever, Kaleb.
Kaleb was a great host and had lots of "retriever games" planned.
 If I wanted to win these games, I would have brought Skid and Lad but it would be rude to show up the host and his retriever relatives, so I brought the kids, Ford and Try.
They had never seen so many different breeds before.
However, some familiar faces were there, including Old Pleat.
His mom couldn't come but that didn't matter - he was happy to have his leash held by anyone who would give him a pat and a treat.
The first game, bobbing for wieners, was beyond Ford's comprehension, so Gyppie showed him how it's done.
Try had the idea that maybe if he drank as much of the water as he could, then he wouldn't have to put his nose under.
Not a bad plan, but it would have taken too long since he'd likely have had to stop and pee the water out a few times.
Pleat didn't even bother trying.
At his age, he figures people should bring the wieners to him.
The next game was an all out retrieving game - go get the bumper.
Ford was very keen to try it.
He was a little confused about going out to get the toy by himself, so I had to help him but he soon got it figured out.
I knew Try wouldn't know what it was about but he isn't named Try for nothing,
and with a little encouragement he did it!
Before we left, all the dogs (more than 15) had a free run together in the field and every one got along, recalled and had a good time.
I know two youngsters who will sleep well tonight!

Wednesday, March 6, 2013

Two Old Farts

Many many years ago, my sister brought home a tiny tiny black kitten from a pet store in Las Vegas.
Although small, as kittens will be, he was busy and full of it.  We thought a big name would suit him so he was christened, Spartacus.
He grew into a beautiful cat.
Eventually, that large name was shortened, to Spart.
Well, ok, Spart the Fart.
It was more fun to irritate my mom by just calling him The Fart.
I moved away and got my own black cat because of the fond memories I had of The Fart.
Many years have now passed.
Every time, I go visit my parents, I'm sure that it will be the last time I see Fart, but he's still there.
He and my Father just shared a birthday and Fart made it to 18 years old!
I won't tell you how old my Father is.
Happy Birthday, Boys!