Boarding House

This is the third upland retriever we've trained.  And one of the things our doggo really loves is going to doggy daycare.  Better yet; staying there for boarding.  Yes, boarding.  For days and weeks on end.

Early-on we seized-on the opportunity to socialize this dog with other of her species and as a consequence this pooch loves going to Red River Canine LLC to hang with her pack.

Recently,I had to have outpatient eye surgery in Green Bay and as a consequence doggo scored a couple-three days at the Dog Spa to run with her pack.  Topped-off with a pedicure and a coif from the groomer before returning home.

It's a dog's life.... 

 

The Red Rocket

From a recent walk there is Doggo on the trail cameras....

 

The Red Rocket

Semi-obligatory photos of the coming and going of my sidekick.

Ruby - The Red Rocket.....

 

South Dakota Ringnecks

Got back home Monday late afternoon following a trip to South Dakota to chase pheasants with my new dog and nine of my buddies.  Most of the guys are long term hunting and fishing pals along with some new ones.

Here's a handful of photos from the festivities.

Drive west including an unplanned Minnesota blizzard.

 

Some photos from the field.

All the corn was off the fields so we exclusively hunted cattail sloughs, reed canary grass you could barely see over and other natural cover.  Ugh.

Add rain and wind and it was the toughest hunt in memory

A day's tally of dead birds.

Lounging around the house.

The Red Rocket (Ruby) is a natural.  She put-up her share of birds on her own and had several retrieves.  First trip out - I think she's a natural.

She shes got some aches and scrapes so if you're looking for a Pro Tip for a sore schnoz there is this... 

Newton's Law

Newton's First Law of Motion, also known as the Law of Inertia, states that an object at rest stays at rest and an object in motion stays in motion with the same speed and in the same direction unless acted upon by an unbalanced force.

 

Schlafender Hund

The Red Rocket is spent....

Smile For the Trail Camera

Recent trail camera photos include a strutting gobbler, strolling sandhill crane, red fox on the run, robins picking around for breakfast, the family dog, a ditch tiger on the prowl, and a cuddly fox squirrel.

What A Difference A Few Days Make

 

 

Started the day with some snow-covered whitetails and finishing with a photo from last Saturday.

65F on the sunny side of the porch.

What a difference a few days makes..... 

Feels Like Spring Lately

Nevertheless, the astronomical first day of spring here in the northern hemisphere is tomorrow; with the arrival of the spring equinox.

That said, we've scored some spectacularly warm days lately that are mindful of summer weather.  Just the other day I popped-open the windows on the west side of the house so I could watch the news with a glass of Merlot and listen to the finches feeding just the other side of the screen.

There has also been several porch beer days in the 70F sunshine.

And the first patio burger; loaded with Poly-cyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, Hetero-cyclic amines and advanced glycation end products.  All of this notwithstanding; real men grill on charcoal.

I have lived to bear witness….

The Red Rocket

Sporting breeds require daily exercise. 

Recent trail camera action images of the pup on our daily walk run...

 

Daylight In The Swamp

A couple of recent sunrise photos from flyover country.

A cold, wet, foggy, steaming cuppa coffee morning.  And something more typical.  Of course, there's a dog involved.  But not pictured....

Pupper

A couple of recent images of our growing puppy.  We performed a weigh-in yesterday and she's presently at 15.2 pounds and getting some long legs!

When you score a whitetail foreleg on a walk that is a prize.

Here she is on a play date with a neighbor's lab mix and GSP... 

 

Puppy Progress

This pupper landed in our lives exactly a week ago and as it turns-out she is a quick study. 

Potty and crate training is going very well. 

We’re pairing voice commands with hand signals. Sitting is nailed. Come is very good.  And we’re working on down and stay. 

There is the usual stuff: leave it, not yours, give, no biting and blech. 

The daily walk has returned.  She found a prize today. A deer bone. 

Most of what we’re doing on the trail is with a check cord.  

 

This is from last Saturday morning....

 

Routines Are Good

Today marks the anniversary of the loss of our Blonde Lab, Queenie a year ago.  Aside from the loss of a family member I lost the individual most likely to delight in a morning walk when the conditions were good.  And maybe go out with a shotgun to see if we could jump-up some dinner.  Sigh.

Anyway, three days ago a nine-week-old Golden Retriever came into our lives.  Ruby is her name.  And I would be lying if I didn't share with you that raising a puppy is hard work.  It requires patience, routine, correction, redirection and a schedule of feeding, supervised play and exercise, potty training and rest.  Part of the routine includes daily walks.  Yes, I now have a walking partner who would prefer to run not walk.  Hooray!

From our walk this morning there was stiff goldenrod and sneezeweed.   Yup, X marks the spot where life is good...

Welcome To The Family

A year ago on September 1 we said good bye to our blonde Lab, Queenie.  Who was preceded in death by her Auntie, Inky.  Also a Lab.

As a consequence of being dogless we really ramped-up our travel in our post-COVID world.

Nevertheless, it's been lonely as all heck.  Without a dog a house is not a home.

So they say.

Anyway, I want to introduce you to Ruby, a Golden Retriever who comes from a long line of AKC registered hunters.

Her story behind arriving here is long and complicated so I won't bore you with the details.  We're tickled to have her and are working diligently to establish a predictable schedule of structured play and exercise, feeding and rest.

Puppy teeth continue to be as sharp as I remember them...