New 2013 Budweiser SuperBowl Ad

Be sure to have your tissue ready as you will have a tear or two slide down your face. A lovely, heartwarmer ad...I think one of their better ones.

Adorable!!

The Barn and Physics

I love the Barn and I love Physics....and then I saw this. This is hilarious

Motherly Love

Tess is a grand mom. She loves her puppies, no matter how old they are. Rainey is 5.5 years old and from her last litter. She lets her eat from her food dish and take food out of her mouth. She really loves Rainey and Rainey lets her still "take care" of her.

 

Rain had just come in from outside where she was soaking wet. Tess walked over to Rainey and licked her head dry.  Tess is 14.5 years old and still loves her daughter. She licks her dry the time.

 

 

Isn't Motherly Love grand?

 

 

Starling flock arial dance in Israel

 

This is so cool!

 

 

Link to Article

 

 

Maran Chickens

I just got the two coolest Blue Marans hens. They are about 15 months old. They lay a very dark brown egg. Apparently, they are a rare breed and getting to be  quite popular. My two hens are quiet and very friendly. Both are laying, not all the time.

 

I am looking to expand my flock to get Black Copper Marans and Blue Marans. This way I will have four major breeds of chickens at the farm. I have Rhode Island Reds, Black and White Silkes and the Black and Blue Marans.

 

So do any of you folks know about a good, reputation sources for Marans? I have found out there are crosssbreeds Marans but it is hard to find purebreeds.

 

eggs from Bev Davis  Marans website

 

 

Young Deer has a new sheep flock

LINK TO ARTICLE 

A confused young red deer which thinks he's a lamb has joined a flock of sheep.

 

Shepherd Andrew Capell was shocked when he was counting his sheep and noticed the male red deer had joined his flock on Dunwich Heath in Suffolk.

 

Mr Capell, who looks after the sheep which maintain the National Trust land, said the lost deer became separated from its herd and attached itself to the flock.

 

He has been living, eating and sleeping with his 100 new friends for about two weeks now and shows no sign of leaving.

 

"I was counting the sheep when I spotted this little deer amongst the flock," said Mr Capell. "I've never known of this happening before.

 

"I think what's happened is that the main herd of deer have come through the field, jumped over the fence and then jumped out again and he's not gone with them.

 

"He seems to have adopted the flock and stayed with them and the flock have taken to him really well.

 

"There's a bit of a pecking order in the flock so he's finding his place within it. He seems to be the bottom of the ladder."

 

At the end of the winter the sheep will be taken back to their summer home, but the deer will have to stay behind on Dunwich Heath.

 

A spokesman for the National Trust added: "It is hoped the young deer will rejoin his herd if they roam past the flock over the coming weeks."

New Knees for me

My knees have been hurting me for a very long time. But since I had the heart surgeries, that pain was small compared to the busted sternum. Finally after four plus years, my sternum quit hurting. Now I notice the pain in my knees. It's on both of the knees and I am on meds to help with the pain. I went to the same Ortho  Doc that worked my busted elbow to see what he could do. Dr Todd is quite cool and knows his stuff. He took x-rays of my knees and it turns out that I have arthritis in my knee caps. But the bones look in good shape, plenty of spacing and no damage. So he injected my knees with cortisone. Hopefully this will work for a while. So far, so good. I actually sleep all last night (aside form the 2:00 get up to give Tess a rub and a pain pill) and my knees didn't hurt when I woke up. Usually I toss and turn from the pain and do get sleep but it is restless. He said that I will know for sure on Monday on how well this injection will work. I still feel some irritation in my right knee but no pain. I sure hope this will work and I will be pain free (relatively). Getting up without knee pain is quite nice too. I hope this will be successful and soon I can only whine about my "pain to my pride" when I miss another panel at the trial.

 

 

Tess went to the Vet today

The last couple of weeks, Tess has had some major bad episodes and around Jan 6th and a few days, after we weren't too sure if it was time. It has been hard for us with the ups and downs.  But the Vet adjusted the meds, and also she has two Vets look at three-four times a week and she is finally stable. It took a while. One of the Vet put her on herbal supplement to inhibit/slow down  the metastasis of the cancer. Her heart still is enlarged and presses on her trachea and when she lies down for a while, she get her coughing fits.  Hence, the 2:00 a.m.  in the middle of the night, fits of coughing and has been keeping me up for the last couple of weeks. It explains that now so I don't have to get all freaked out but I  now know it is the trachea issue. I rub her sides and sometimes talk her for a short walk around the house and that helps.

 

Seven weeks ago, the Vet Specialist gave her about eight weeks with the cancer diagnosis. But we put her on the cancer herbal supplements and they have worked great. We just had her x-rays done today and the cancer is the same size. The "divot" is still in the elbow area and holding. We have no idea when the cancer will override the supplements but we are happy to know where we stand now. Her heart still is enlarged and she still has congestive heart failure.  So who really know, what will get in the end but we are so grateful that the cancer has not gone wild and is in a holding pattern. It may go nuts tomorrow but today she is holding her own.

 

Tess still gets spoiled, walks, herds her ducks and several checks by the vets a week. They come here for herding lessons so they check up on her. She gets her weekly sushi and car rides. Nightly snuggles between us on her pillow. Extra attention. Whatever. But we are living for her now and loving every minute of it.

 

 

Sheep Caption Contest

The first of many caption contests for the year.

Rules:

1. Laura Carson (previous winner) will pick the winner in best choice draw.
2. Enter as many times as you want. Each caption will count as an entry.  Put your caption in the comment section.
3. I will pay for shipping to USA and Canada
4. No rude captions and I will delete if needed.
5. Contests ends in two weeks. (midnight  Feb 6th)
6. After winner is announced, winner must contact me in one week or prize will go to second choice.

Photo: 2012 USBCHA National Sheepdog Finals.

 

Prize:

 

American Lamb Spice Tin. Filled wth 3 oz. of Rosemary, Mint, Mustard Seed, Salt, Garlic

 

 

Naughty town names

OK, I could live in ONE of these towns. But none of the others. What were they thinking when they came up with these names?

 

This is the town I would live in!  

 

What if I had to go pee?

 

Not going to comment!

 

 Why do you have to drive carefully? I am so not going to go there!

Why not Assville?

 Why is this so Boring?



Rainey and the pink pig

Typical night at our place. This is one of the pink pigs that Tess got for Christmas.  Rainey steals all of Tess's toy and put them in her bed. Tess doesn't mind. A few days after this was taken, I got an email from a farmer that wanted a pig dog. Maybe I should have sent him Rainey? I am sure he would have been impressed. He ended up getting a black mouth cur for the pig work. The only pig work that my dogs do, are either playing with the pink pigs or eating part of my ham sandwich.  

Look pretty tough, doesn't she?

Great Signs

This is non dog related but I've been busy and trying to play catch-up.

Describes a vacuum. It sucks.

Is this at the front door of a bank?

Are they talking about low fat, 2% or whole milk?

OUCH!!

How many calories?

Obviously, someone made this a drive through at one point.

I love this? Wonder how many children got the glitter and glue gun.

Tess Report

Tess got to visit the vet this morning whom she adores. The cancer is aggressive now and her elbow is being affected. She is dead lame. It probably dissolved most of the radius (head of the elbow). She has been licking her leg this week so she is in pain. Her heart sounds fine but still is very enlarged and pressing on her trachea. We increased her Lasix for the heart issue about 10 days to help with her coughing and it had reduced it some, but she still wakes me up at 2ish with her coughing. I get up and rub her sides and cuddle her for an hour, until she settles down, then nap for a couple hrs before I go to work. As for the cancer, it is a day by day situation. We thought the heart would get her first but when cancer decides to be aggressive, there is no stopping it. The Tramadol has been increased to one every 5/6 hrs and she is still lame. She has been on Metacam since mid week when this all came about but it hasn't helped much. So needless to say, per the vet, when she quits eating or we see pain in her eyes when the pain pills are no longer effective, she will cross the bridge. Thanks to everyone who has been supportive in the last couple of weeks. We've been totally distraught the last week.

Who Am I? Border Collie History.

Who is this Border Collie? What is his significance?

Put your answers in the comments section.

Tess update

I've been under the radar for a bit. Work has been busy to say the least.  Farm has been fine. Tess has been getting worse and very, very clingly. She has been dead lame and no amount of pain pills has helped. She keeps me up at night, coughing at 2ish, so I get up and massage her and then she seems better. Don't know what means but the vets will look at her and make the call.

Tess on Sushi, aka Asian Dog

Tess loves sushi. We have never given her any before but now, since her days are shortly numbered, we are breaking a lot of rules for her. One is sushi. The other is more treats. Sleeping where she wants. Letting her decide if she wants to herd. More car rides. Farting in bed, to name a few. 

Last week, I gave her some of my Spider Roll (deep friend soft shelled crab with rice). She loved and it got a few pieces. Tonight we got some more sushi. She raced over and began to beg.....a lot more than normal. Like BIG TIME.

It was obvious she wanted sushi. First piece offered was the"Shrimp Tempura" . I had four pieces on my plate and somehow two of them ended in her mouth.

Freshly made, not more than 5 minutes prior and the shrimp was still warm.

Tess can eat using chopsticks. Bet, you didn't know she was such a clever dog.

I was trying to get her to pose while I held the sushi, and took a photo with my iPhone. But it is hard to take a photo of a piranha moving in for the kill. Several tries later, this was the best I could do. Finally, I gave up and she got some of my "Spider Roll". I sure didn't know that I had an Asian Dog......Tess, the Sushi Lover. I hope she doesn't expect sushi every night, as it is a treat for us. 

note: we do limit the people food feeding but mainly give her dog treats or fresh vegetables from my dinner plate.

Shirt tags

 Ever read the tags in your shirts? Perhaps, you should....

Love the humor

Warped!

With Dove soap

That is what Moms are for!

I love the other "For not good results"

remember that saying from your childhood?

What type of animals?

 

I always wanted to be "manly"

Sign Time

Another fun blog of funny signs from all over.

Well, Put.

Only in Australia!

Outside of a pub.

Putting this plainly.

Ever have one of those days? 

Graphic speaks volumes over words. 

I guess this is the way.

Sunday Trial results Rocky Ewe

 Luckily for me, this trial didn't start until 9:00 so I got to sleep in a whopping 30 minutes. I left early which was a good thing as there was a good traffic accident on the way and we had to sit and wait until the police cleared the scene. From what I could tell, two cars slid on black ice and hit each other. They were in the middle of the road and refused to move so a bunch of us had to wait. As soon as the police got there, they made them move asap. So by putting this buffer in, I just made it to the trial in time, which was good as Rainey was second.

Dave Imas was the judge. The fetch was a L dog fetch, around a shed and then a set of panels. Most of the dogs brought the sheep straight or semi straight down, mine included. Then a standard drive, a pen and a single from the four ewes.

Rainey was first and had a nice outrun but crawled in at the top and refused to listen to a single flank, this making a spectacular offline fetch. Nice turn and halfway on the cross drive, decided down was not in her vocabulary so I left the post. Her  eyes got really wide when she saw me approaching. 

Nan was the second of my dogs up and true to form, heeded no flanks on the fetch and we lost most of the points. She usually is very obedient but not on the fetch today. Nice turn and nice drive but she was pushy. Nice pen and we had to work the sheep about to get the single but she got it. 

Maid was last and keyed up as she had heard me run the other two dogs earlier. She ran out nice and totally forgot the down and flanks until the sheep had passed the fetch panels, then suddenly began to be good. She was very pushy and her downs were short but she listened very well on the drive, although I had to stay on top of her. Nice pen and a  wonderful single. She came in like a rocket and held the single like a champ. She actually beat Nan for the first time. Both girls were very pushy today. But aside from the horrible fetches and slow to down, I was happy with them on the other phases of the work. It's a work in progress and the journey with Maid is getting much better.

I hopped in my truck and headed home as Tess was coughing for most of the night. She has had more down days than good and a lot more coughing, which is not a good sign. Getty stayed home to babysit her and then went to work after I got home. Once of us stays home with her as we needs a lot of attention now.

I didn't see the rest of the run but here are the scores.

Cynthia Mills is the vet who helped Tess when she had her vestibular attack in August. I will always root for her!

There aren't any more trials in Jan so I will focus on fine tuning me and the dogs. Plus spend the last weeks/days with Tess.

Kirchgessner Trial Results

Nan, Maid and I headed out early on this crisp, frozen morning to Smokey Point for the Kirchgessner Trial, hosted by Lynne and Erin. The Judge was Jack Knox. Open was first, then PN, Ranch and Novice. Two Scottie ewes and two lambs. Standard outrun and first leg of drive was long as well as crossdrive and short third leg. Spilt of last two, pen and single.

 

 

It was bitterly cold but the sun came out but a small wind kept it cool all day. The warmth was nice and I was happy that is wasn't raining, snowing or super windy. I wore my Gerbing jacket and it keep my upper torso warm so it was wonderful!

 

Maid was the first of my dogs to run. She ran out nice to the away side and downed at the top, and came hard on the lift but stopped when I asked her. She was forward on he fetch but manageable and began to get softer for me.  We got offline for a little bit and had a nice turn at the post.

 

The sheep were light on her drive and we were a bit off but I am working on not over commanding her and having her listen to me on the drive, than take her version of the drive.  I had them near the panels but they scooted around them at the last minute. This is where I usually have an issue with Maid taking her own crossdrive line and ignoring me. I have been working on some exercise to fix this. I gave her a wide flank then a down. She did and waited for me to give her a command. I gave her a walkup when the sheep were lined up proper on the drive and she held the line nicely. She began to push so we wavered back and forth and they broke once and she cut them off and I shouted her out of a grip. She settled down and we lined them up for the second panels and I misjudged the flanks and we skimmed low. She gave me a nice flank and they bolted up the hill, a bit offline. I was ok with the offline as she did as I asked and I didn't want to nitpick her. She was soft but pushy and listened very well for me.

 

The sheep were a real booger to shed but she gave in like a Lear jet and parted them and marched two off. She tucked them into the pen and we got them out to do the single.  we timed out on the single and she got a 72. She placed third with no single. I was very happy with her run but I have less commanding, have her in more control of the sheep but we are really getting each other figured out. I really enjoyed running her and she was all happy and waggy after her run.

Nan ran towards the end of the Open runs. She was all excited form being cooped up all day and shot off like a missile. Nice deep outrun, nice lift the conveniently forgot her stop until the fetch panels where I dropped the whistle then scolded her. She looked at me as if to say, "Oh where did YOU come from?" Two sheep slid to one side and the rest of the fetch was nice and tidy turn. Part of the first leg was offline but we got the panels, then offline wavy on the crossdrive where she decided to be very pushy on the light sheep. made the second panels and nice turn to the ring. I had to slow he way down as I didn't want her to rush the sheep. It took a bit to get the split and I helped open the hole and she came in and drove them off. Nice pen and one thought about slipping to the side but saw the fire in Nan's eye and they went in. The single was all but impossible and I had her come in on the first ewe for the single as time was running out. I got docked for both the spilt and single but I took what was offered. I was happy with her but she was a powerhouse to run. I was so excited to see that we won and danced with joy. We certainly have grown together as a team and we just bond well. She has been a real joy in my life.
 

We had a special guest handler from the East, Donald McCaig and his stylish Fly, She is a beautiful dog and very responsive to him. He will be at the trial that is on Sunday.
 

 

I watched some of the runs in PN. Kathleen had a nice run with Josh. She has been working on his push on the drive and he was pushy on the drive.  Her homework has paid off!  She is going to be a force in Open with Gael in Open. It was good to Lani and Jayne run. She is fun to talk to and we got caught up on life.  Liz and Crick had a  nice drive but she retired at the pen.  

I got home and Rainey and Tess greeted me. Both were suspicious that I went to a sheepdog trial without them. I have them some beef jerky and I was forgiven.
 

It was a nice day for trialing and I really enjoyed running my dogs.

Running Order for January 12th Kirchgessner Trial

	OPEN
1.	Erin O'Brien	Z
2.	Brian Ricards	Cody
3.	Diane Pagel	Maid
4.	Joe Haynes	Spot
5.	Ernesta Ballard	Floss
6.	Cheryl Munson	Cooper
7.	Fran Macpherson	Mirk
8.	Donald McCaig	Fly
9.	Brian Ricards	Doc
10.	Dawn Pucci	Bran
11.	Susan Crocker	Rani
12.	Hope Harris	Tiff
13.	Tim Ballard	Nell
14.	Diane Pagel	Nan
15.	T Yamamoto	Sweep
16.	Cheryl Munson	Flint
17.	Brian Ricards	Belle
18.	Joe Haynes	Keally
19.	Lynda Lyttle	Lark - N/C
20.	Lynne Green	Lexie - N/C
21.	Kathleen Torkelson	Gael - N/C
	PRO NOVICE
1.	Lani Dorman	Jayne
2.	Kathleen Torkelson	Josh
3.	T Yamamoto	Taw
4.	Susan Crocker	Cedar
5.	Nora Linbo	Joe
6.	Cheryl Munson	Mirk
7.	Liz Stenning	Crick
8.	Erin O'Brien	Hank
9.	Judy Snell	Sky
10.	Hope Harris	Dutch
11.	Nora Linbo	Gin
12.	Kathleen Torkelson	Emma
13.	Liz Stenning	Sage
14.	Lynda Lyttle	Try - N/C
15.	Audrey	Dan - N/A
	NovNov & Ranch
1.	Sally Tibbits	Shay - NN
2.	Sara Christensen	Mica - NN
3.	Paulette Smith	Ali - NN
4.	Audrey	K - R
5.	T Yamamoto	Trout - R
6.	Sally Tibbits	Shay - R
7.	Judy Snell	Sky-R-N/C
8.