Thanksgiving and then some...

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite times of the year. We all gather together, eat, laugh and enjoy life.  We make a main dishes and a couple of side dishes and everyone brings a couple of side dishes. This year my mom and Aunt Kimiko, Nelson (brother), Jim, Audrey, Neal and Kathy Davis came over for dinner.

 

Kathy came up from Oregon  and spent over 11 hrs in getting here, a normal 8 hr drive. Apparently everyone was on the road on Thanksgiving Eve. Kathy is like my sister and we have been family for over 14 years. It was good to see her again. She came up to stay with me at a couple of trials this year. We used to trial together for many year until she moved to Medford, Or and life got in the way but we kept our deep friendship over the years.

 

As usual the spread was superb, roasted turkey, mashed potatoes/gravy, stuffing, green bean casserole, fruit salad, shrimp tempura and veggies, homemade cranberry sauce, sweet potatoes and yams, asparagus to name a few. Then to top it off we had chocolate pecan pie and Jim's tasty fruit salad (another one!)

 

We laughed and had a blast. It was relaxing and just fun. No cares, just hearing stories of days gone past, hopes for the future and thankful for each other's company.  Life is not about who has the biggest ego, who is better than you, who has more money,  It's about family, friendships, peace and living your life to the fullest. Some people don't realize this and that is so sad.

 

After dinner, we did the traditional feeding of the animals. I had a huge bag of bagels and my Mom, Aunt Kimiko and brother fed the sheep and chickens. The LGDs, Stella and Heidi got their fair share of treats as well.  My mom loves feeding the chickens,  I think I need to take a video sometime of this. The animals all love her and circle her to get fed. Some of the sheep follow her up and down the fenceline, working my mom for extra treats,  They got that and then some more.

 

Of course, the dogs all got goodies as well. Thanksgiving to them means extra turkey and leftovers. But I made sure the leftover were meat and not fried items.  But they managed to do well in the treat department. The girls all love my mom and Aunt Kimiko. I let them get away with a lot but it make me happy to see my mom so joyful.  Beside I don't want to make her mad at me as I don't want to lose my treat source as well!

 

Soon evening began to creep upon the landscape and everyone began the long trek home. Finanly the night belonged to Getty, Kathy and me. We ate more dessert and watched TV. It was nice to catch up and leave the daily work grind behind. 

 

I took Friday off as vacation and worked my dogs. Nikki, my new dog, ran well for me. I will update more on her later. Maid was happy to be the backup dog. I used Nan and Rainey for backup lessons dogs and Emma to do chores. Kathy worked Teyla, Aussie, on the big flock and she did well.  The weather was warm and sunny and in the end, we sat outside and watched the sheep graze on the round bales.

 

In the end, it was a relaxing and well needed holiday with family and good friends. we all need to slow down and relax more and see what really is important. Sometimes we forget about that in out mad rush to get ahead.

 

Hope you had a wonderful holiday with your loved ones.

 

 

Are you normal?

Are you normal? Or what is normal?

 

Happy Thanksgiving

Life on the Range

This is a great site that is sponsored by Idaho Rangeland Resource Commission. 

 

from the site....."Life on the range is an educational project that showcases stories about the ever-changing landscape of ranching, multiple-use management, entrepreneurial spirit, family and stewardship on Idaho's rangelands.

 

The heart-warming stories provide a rare glimpse of how our neighbors in rural Idaho work every day to improve the earth and touch people's lives in positive ways."

LINK

Old Sheep Shearing photos



A compassionate squirrel story

This is a heart warming story....

 

 

A Florida man opened a new bag of mulch and, to his surprise, he found a baby squirrel inside.  We found the man on Reddit, where he is known by the handle “Nadtacular,” but now the Internet is starting to know him because of his compassion.  The baby squirrel appeared to be only days old when he found it.  It was so young, he initially mistook it for a mouse or rat.  But he decided to take care of it, and lucky for us, document his its development.....

When he cut open the bag, this little guy fell out…

 

MORE...

 

 

Don't mess with a dog in the car

Drop by for a short spell - Cow Style

....makes the meaning "stop on by for a visit" to a whole new meaning......

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Article Link:

 

A weaver had the shock of her life when two cows crashed through the roof of her home in Cornwall.

 

Sue Marshall was using her vacuum cleaner when she heard a crash and, on investigation, found an equally surprised cow standing in her workshop, having just missed the loom she had been using only a short while earlier.

 

After some careful manoeuvring, Mrs Marshall managed to get the animal out of her home but then a second cow plunged through the roof.

 

The animals had escaped from their field, situated above Mrs Marshall's converted barn, and walked down onto her house.

 

Mrs Marshall, from Lamorna, near Penzance, said: "I was hoovering at the time and heard an almighty crash.

"I assumed that a tree had come down. I was astonished to find that a cow had fallen through the roof of the workshop, narrowly missing my loom and leaving a huge hole in the roof.

"No sooner had I let the startled animal out than another one fell through another part of the roof! Both cows narrowly missed the loom, which was incredibly fortunate, and neither was injured. I was in absolute shock.

"The two cows were clearly distressed, the first careered out of the yard into an adjacent field, the second decided to hang around and made a bit of mess of the garden. I looked up at the fence and saw the rest of the herd looking on, a helpful neighbour came to our aid and made sure no more came through the fence.

"We had to make the workshop waterproof, but I wasn't able to continue working. It's been quite a stressful experience; the cows clearly thought that there was some good grazing on the other side of the fence.

"The boundary has been repaired now so hopefully we won't be getting any more uninvited guests."

Cornish Mutual, the insurer that is dealing with the claim said: "This very unusual case really does highlight the importance of keeping boundary fences in good condition."

Bees can detect cancer

Portuguese designer Susana Soares has developed a device for detecting cancer and other serious diseases using trained bees. The bees are placed in a glass chamber into which the patient exhales; the bees fly into a smaller secondary chamber if they detect cancer.

 

 

Scientists have found that honey bees – Apis mellifera – have an extraordinary sense of smell that is more acute than that of a sniffer dog and can detect airborne molecules in the parts-per-trillion range.

 

Bees can be trained to detect specific chemical odours, including the biomarkers associated with diseases such as tuberculosis, lung, skin and pancreatic cancer.

 

MORE....

Winter is here

Woke up this morning with frost all over. Had to break out the wool coat and mittens. Guess I gotta dress for winter now. So much for the tan!

One of my favorite meals

I loved this.

Sheep Vaccine for Worms

This is a interesting article and I hope this does work out.....

 

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A world-first vaccine more than 25 years in the making is being developed in Albany and could be available in commercial quantities by the end of next year.

 

The vaccine, created in collaboration between researchers at the Department of Agriculture and Food's Albany district office and the Moredun Research Institute in Edinburgh, Scotland, will guard against the world's most severe sheep and goat parasite–Barbers pole worm (Haemonchus contortus).

 

Barbers pole worm, named after its red and white striped appearance, occurs in the fourth stomach of sheep and goats from Kalbarri to Esperance in WA, as well as other pastoral areas of Australia and overseas.

 

Grazing animals can contract Barbers pole worms by ingesting microscopic larvae that has hatched from eggs laid in the intestinal tract of the host animal by adult worms, which are passed through feces and migrate onto pasture.

REST OF ARTICLE

Morning Workout

My dogs each morning....

Broomfield trial resutls

Someday you are the bug and some days you are the windshield. Yesterday we were the windshield and today we were the bug! Oh well, such is life.

 

The trial was standard and the sheep were super light. The dog had to be way off and neither of mine were. Maid was first and had a brilliant outrun and lift, then the wheels fell off the wagon. She didn't listen and was on the sheep's ass and put them way to the away side and in the bushes so I walked. She had the same issues on this about a year ago and I worked hard to fix it but it reared it's ugly head. So the next trial, I will walk and make her listen and back off at the top.

 

Nan ran out nice, lifted well and was offline. She couldn't hear me to put the sheep back online for the first half but go them back online and settled and made the panels. Nice smooth turn and great first leg with a tidy tight turn. The first turn was tough as the hearing was muted so a lot of dogs had issues. I really had to hit her hard with the comebye whistle but she took it. Nice first half of the drive, then we waggled all over on the second half and missed the panels.  She had snuck up too close to the sheep so they zigged and zagged. The pen was four sided with a small open the sheep had to enter. You had to stand in the shed ring and drive them in but we would get them in the mouth and they would not go in and we ran out of time. So since we missed the pen and single we were out of contention.

 

Bright side is that the girls had perfect outruns and lifts. Got some homework to do soon.

I took Rainey and as soon as I let her out of the truck, she ran towards the post. There was a person at the post so I ran and grabbed her ass. She was miffed that she couldn't run a brace. So she found Vicki's lap and told her all about it. Plus she got part of my lunch as well and I was forgiven.

 

MacDonald's Winter Series #1

Sue and George MacDonald had the first of their winter series today. JB Brick was the judge and she did a fine job. The day was sunny with wind gusts and some misting. Sheep were light and testy!! It was a fine day for a sheepdog trial.

 

Once again, I fell out off bed in complete darkness, fired up Bertha the truck and off we went to our adventure. More like, Nan and Maid passed out as soon as I started to drive so I cranked up the music and drank my coffee.

 

The Open course was a normal outrun, then a short first leg and then an angled cross drive which proved to be quite difficult. The last lag was to the center of the ring and you had to single. The pen had a panel in front of the mouth and the gate was not movable so you had to angle the sheep dead on to get them inside.

 

Nan ran out nice and did great outwork. She was quite pushy though and I had to get her to slow down and feel her sheep. Nice turn at the post and made the first panel and nice turn. A few bobble on the crossdrive as she was really leaning on the sheep and I thought we had the second panel, when to my dismay we slid by them and I was too slow to correct that. Trotted them into the ring for a "Hail Mary Shed" which wasn't the prettiest but sure was super fast and furious and she then stuffed them into the pen.  She was in first for most of the day and towards the end, she was knocked down to second. That will teach me to miss panels! Bad, Diane! 

 

 Nice turn.

 The draw was to the right and she had to really hold it. First panel as a panel and a tree. 

  

 Whew, the super shed.

 

Maid was being the social butterfly before her run so I had to remind her to follow me to the gate. That was fine as she was really relaxed and willing. She looked into my eyes at the post and I saw softness and laughter. I sent her and she had a nice outrun, lift and was pushy on the first half of the fetch. The sheep were offline so it took a bit to get her to push them back online and we did it after the panel.

 

Maid said you are not running to the exhaust.

 

She was very soft and biddable and there was no tension. Nice turn at the post and she really had to hold the draw to make the first drive line. But she did it willingly and held her line. 

 

Nice tight turn.

 

 The turn and she came in nice for a tidy turn. This is were we sometimes struggle as she thinks she knows where the line should be so we fight. However, she did exactly as I asked and walked nicely behind her sheep. The crossdrive she nailed dead on and had a nice pace and distance behind her sheep. Made the second panel and dead on to the ring. I was so happy on the drive as it was so enjoyable. She was bending over backwards to please me and no tension and being super soft.

Superb shedder.

 

Oh yea, the shed. Picked a lamb and she held it like a champion. The sheep where wanted to race out and were squirrely. There were a couple of times I could have called her in and she was leaning to come in but I didn't trust the sheep so waited until I had tiny sliver. The poor lamb had no idea what happened as a dog suddenly appeared in front of her. She really wanted to go back but Maid was firm and calm. She gathered them and walked them into the pen. She placed 5th with a 85 and now has her first points towards the Finals. She was quite happy with herself after her run and leaned into my leg, did a deep sigh while I rubbed her neck and told her she was a star. I loved the fact she had no tension, was soft and biddable and really trying to do as I asked of her.

 

I enjoyed running both girls and it was a nice day. Came home and crashed hard and Maid crawled on the couch with me. She snores but she earned the spot on the couch.

MacDonald Winter #1 run order for Saturday

Dog Books

My dog do read. And they read all of these books.

 

 

 

Ketchum Grill’s Curried Lamb Stew

I saw this recipe on another site. I haven't made it yet but it looks delish! if you make it, let me know how it was.

Curried Lamb Stew

 

Ingredients

2 tablespoons Olive Oil                  

1 pound Lava Lake Lamb Leg meat trimmed and cubed into 3/4″ pieces                  

1 Large yellow Onion- Peeled and Julienne

1 small Carrot – Peeled and Julienne

1/2 cup golden raisins 3 tablespoons

Yellow Curry 1 tablespoon

Anise Seed 2 tablespoon

Fresh Ginger, peeled and Grated

1 tablespoon sesame Seeds                  

1/2 teaspoon ground Cinnamon

 1/4 teaspoon ground clove

1/4 teaspoon cayenne

2 Cups Chicken Stock

1 can Coconut Milk

1/2 bunch cilantro- chopped

 juice from one lime or lemon

Kosher Salt to taste -

Directions

1. In a large sauté pan or wok, brown all of the lamb pieces in the olive oil.
2. Add the carrots and onions and brown each of them together with the lamb.
3. On a plate, measure out all of the dry ingredients and then add to the browned lamb.
4. Cook the spices with the lamb for 1 or 2 minutes until the lamb is thoroughly coated with the spice mixture.
5. Add chicken stock, coconut milk and lime juice.
6. Reduce heat and simmer until thick, about 5 minutes.
7. Check seasoning and serve hot with rice.

Kirchgessner Trial Results

OPEN
1 Erin O Brian         Z.    102
2 Diane Pagel         Nan.  86
3 Brian Ricards.      Doc.  84
4 Brian Ricards.     Cody. 80
5 Tim Ballard.         Nell.    80
6 Diane Pagel.        Maid.   78
7 Dawn Pucci.        Bran.    76
8 Brian Ricards.      Belle.    58
9 T Yamamoto.       Sweep.  52
10 Susan Crocker. Rani.      41
11 Alison Deilke      Sock.    32
12 Heather Haynes Lad.     RT
 
PRO NOVICE
1 Lorri Schubert.     Nell.    81
2 Lynne Green.       Craig.   78
3 Linda Lyttle.         Lark.     74
4 Janet Thorpe       Jude.     71
5 Susan Crocker.     Cedar.   70
6Mary Gutkneck.   Mae.     69
7Lani Dorman.      Owen.    69
8 T Yamamoto.       Jake.     66
9 Janet Thorpe.      Sava.     66
10Liz Stenning.        crick.     65
11Robert SchooleySpike.   58
12 Lori Vanderburg  Trill.       RT
13 Liz Stenning.       Rye.     Rt

 

Novice
1 Sandra hurst        Koda.     66
2 Shari Madamba.  Boomer.  55
3 Tracy Capaduoca Holly.      53
4 mark. Capaduoca Buddy.   DQ

 

Ranch
1 Mark Capduoca.  Buddy.     64
2 Michele Pardee.    Token.     63
3 Sandra hurst          Koda.      61
4 T Yamamoto.          Trout.      56
5 Tracy Capaduoca.   Holly.     42
6 lynn Macaward        Piper.    RT
7. Alison. Deilke          Skye.   DQ

Thanks to the men who served

Thanks to all the men who served so we could have our freedom.

Happy Birthday, Rainey

Six year ago, Tess had her last litter. Rain was the pup we kept from the litter. She is Getty's pup. She was his Christmas Present. Delmar Scott was her sire.

 

As a young pup, rain took her role as a future herder seriously. At a young age, she began to read all about herding.

 

Then she became my partner on the trial field.

 

Running at Palm Cottage and placing high in PN on range sheep.

One of the better fetches at Palm Cottage.

 

 She ran at LaCamas and did quite well.

 

 

 In her last year in PN, she won Reserve Overall for the year for the WASH Club. She ran in Open and quite successful. But she ended up having hearing issue and went deaf in one ear, so she retired. Now she is my work dog on the farm and bed snuggler.

 

She is a wonderful dog and we love her dearly! Happy Birthday to a sweet heart dog, Rainey.

 

Kirchgessner Winter Trial Open results

Well, again, I woke up in darkness, stumbled around in the kitchen, got my coffee ready and then left it. I am so not a morning person. Stumbled out to the truck and did remember Maid and Nan. Open was first and Lorri was the judge. We had four lambs, born this March (?) and no ewes. They were young, foolish and feisty and runners. Great to work.

 

Nan was third up and I went her on the away side and didn't touch her until she had them coming down the field. She was nice, but a little pushy but I got her settled.  Nice turn and first leg, hit the first panels, nice crossdrive then scooped low on the second panel. The second panel was in view of the forest trail and they wanted to bolt down the trail so you had to be aware. We had to stay at the post and take the sheep to the ring which was off to the left. Shed, pen and a single.  we had to finagle and got the shed, finally ending up with the two in front. These lambs did not want to part and would right then to the left. We worked them slowly into the pen of death and that was tough. I called her in for a single and she reached down to grab the ass to move the lamb along so I shouted her out and we got dinged for that. The next call, she flew in and held the lamb. She was first until she was bumped out near the end and landed in second place with a 86.

 

Maid was near the end and ran out well. She was nice on the fetch but the lambs were runners with no leaders  and  the lambs slipped to the side of the fetch panels. We got them back on line and a nice turn. Then they bolted off towards the first panels and Maid was not causing it but I got her in position but they had missed the panels. I gave her a away flank but she took them up the field so I stopped her and she recovered and tucked them back online.  The last half of the crossdrive was nice but we missed the panel. She had a sweet shed and held them tightly before the lamb could figure out what happened. I had them near the mouth of the pen and Maid was covering her side when two burst around me, followed by the last two, to the exhaust. Maid got them back and I told her to ne nice as she was pissed at them but she was well behaved and calmed down. We finally got them in and marched them in the ring to do the single. Maid showed that she was a rock star and got the single and held like a trout on a fishing line, no escape, dance all you want but you are mine. She got a perfect single and a score of 78. The two missed panels and extra bobble at the first panel cost us dearly but she listened well and tried for me. She placed 6th. Each time we just get more connected and trust each other.

 

Unofficial Scores

 

I left and had lunch with Doc (Vet) Bob, He ran Spike in PN and had a smooth sweet run.   They did not have the PN scores up so I don't have those. When I do, I will update this post.

 

Maid taking a dip after her run. She was quite pleased with herself.

My new wheelbarrow

I got a new wheelbarrow. It might have to due to the fact that the old one had hole, a tire that would go flat all the time and the wheel was falling off (when it had air). it came completely assembled which is good as I am not mechanical.

 

I used it today to bring hay to the sheep. On the return trip I found this in the wheelbarrow.

It was Sarah and she got the full ride back to the barn.

 

Who then refused to pay the fare and ran off. I didn't even get a tip.



Throwback Thursday

Guess who?

Dogs Sleeping Positions

Estimated Breeding Values (EBV) in working Dogs

I found this to be a very interesting article. Here is it in its' entirety and a Link at the end.

 

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NEW research values the average working dog at about $40,000 over its life span – a more than five-fold return on investment.

But researchers suggest that return could be even higher if they can develop selection tools like estimated breeding values (EBVs) to help farmers reliably breed even better brown-collar workers.

The University of Sydney’s Farm Dog Survey found about one in five farm dogs failed to make the grade - and researchers tipped the 812 respondents may have even been underplaying it.

These non-performers were normally identified within 12 months but cost the same amount as good workers to develop in that time frame.

Dr Elizabeth Arnott, a vet working on the Farm Dog project, estimated the average dog cost farmers more than $1000 in their first year, regardless of whether they proved to be a good worker or not.

While top working dogs regularly make four figure sums, the survey found about 70 per cent of farmers spent less than $500 to buy a pup and the average cost was about $250.

Routine costs like food and worming averaged about $600 a year while vet expenses averaged about $100 a year.

Add in the cost of the farmer’s time spent training the dog – the survey indicated a reasonable estimate was 15 minutes four times a month in the first 12 months – and the tally jumped another $240.

(Researchers based costs on the assumption training took away from other tasks that might be then done by a farm worker who was paid $20/hour.)

“(In the case of an unsuccessful dog), that’s over $1000 on a dog that won’t ultimately be kept and contribute to the farm,” Dr Arnott told Monday’s Working Dog Alliance conference in Sydney.

She said this "wastage" needed to be factored in to the cost of the average dog that did make the grade.

It added about $273 to the cost of the average dog over its 10 year working life which totaled about $7763.

Assuming that dog might work four to six hours a day five days a week at least eight weeks of the year and was worth the equivalent of at least one human farm worker, the average dog was valued at about $40,000 over its lifetime.

While that was a huge return on investment – about $5.20 for every $1 invested – Dr Arnott said the obvious inefficiency was the cost of the unsuccessful dogs.

It’s why, she said, researchers were keen to work with industry to not only look at how environmental factors could influence performance but to make breeding of working dogs more predictable.

That will likely involve looking at tools like EBVs said fellow researcher Jonathan Early, whose PhD is looking at behavioural genetics in working dogs.

In Sweden, he said, researchers had been able to deliver huge genetic gains in hunting dogs by using EBVs and there was no reason similar gains couldn’t be achieved in working dog breeds in Australia.

“We’d see it as giving farmers and breeders an additional tool to make their decisions,” he said.

But developing such EBVs would take time – and as with any EBV system, initially offer low accuracy until a critical mass of data was achieved.

The more support they had from breeders and the more data was collected, the higher the accuracy would grow.

Key too, Dr Early said, would be designing a straightforward way to measure desirable – and undesirable – traits that made such data easy and quick to collect.

On the plus side, the farm dog survey had provided some solid baseline data on the traits most valued by farmers in dogs depending on their use – for example, the need for “force” in a yard dog.

LINK

 

The Barn - a question

 

Anyone have an answer?

Why did the chicken cross the road?

I've always been worried about our dogs or cats getting hit on our country road. I guess  I should have been worried about my free range chickens as well.

 

But worry no more.....

 

Thanks to OMLET Company, I shall not worry about my free ranging hens anymore.

from their website.........

Yellow High-Vis Chicken Jacket

Worried about your chickens now that the cold, dark nights are drawing in? Don't panic, because the High-Vis Chicken Jacket has arrived. Available in two colours, pink and yellow, or as a twin-pack, this health and safety gilet will make your pets visible on the darkest days, while protecting them from the rain and sleet.

 

The High-Vis Chicken Jacket is easy to use. Just gently put your chicken's wings through the arm holes and fasten at the front. The velcro fastening is adjustable, allowing for the perfect fit so that your hen is comfy, and the jacket contains an inner bodywarmer, lined with NASA-appproved Flectalon, for insulation.

Ok, your chickens may not be planning a space mission anytime soon, but you'll never need to worry about them crossing the road again!

The High-Vis Chicken Jacket:

• Offers excellent comfort and protection in cold weather
• Breathable, showerproof fabric
• Quilted lining featuring Flectalon NASA approved insulating material
• Adjustable velcro fastening, offering comfort and extreme manouverability
• 180 degree, wide reflective strip visible from the air
• Offers protection from dirt

Please note, the High-Vis Chicken Jacket is not suitable as pyjamas - please remove at night.

Due to the high specification of this garment, please pay attention to the prevailing conditions in your garden and remove the jacket if it gets too warm. Made in the UK.

 

Windy Workout Day

It's been a while since I just blogging about just working dogs. Today was not the day to work dogs but I did. It was super windy and to give you an idea of how windy it was, it took two of us to shut the barn door. It was blowing off the rails! Add a little rain and a lot of cold made not for an ideal day but I prevailed and worked the dogs. It was sunny at least.

 

Janet was here so we worked on Jude picked off a setout person. Maid was holding the sheep and we had them on alfalfa. They didn't want to leave the alfalfa and when they tried, I talked to them so they slowed down. I wanted Jude have to really work at lifting sheep off a moving person that was talking. At first, he didn't want to be near me but by the end, we had Janet putting him next to my leg and then walking into the sheep. The sheep were weird about working as well due to the extreme wind. The ones that were not working stayed in the barn and had no desire to leave.

 

In fact, it was so windy that none of the chickens want to leave their coops. The sheep in the other pastured also holed up in shelter. I saw wild ducks trying to fly into the wind and were suspended in the air and they finally gave up trying to fly off and dropped back into the ponds. The other things that were flying about were leaves or branches. We heard a huge tree snap and the horses went crazy at the sound and tore around the pasture.  We never could figure out where the tree that fell was located.

 

Janet and I went out to lunch and then she bolted for home and I went into the house to warm up. Later, I went out and worked dogs. The wind did not abate but I plugged along. The dogs were keen to work but I worked close at hand as you could not hear anything more than five feet away.  The young dogs were very hyped and not prone to downing very well and very edgy. I guess the wind got them all fired up. The seasoned dogs, well, I had them fetch into the wind so they could not hear me and it showed who had the natural fetch and areas where I needed to work on. Nan was dead on while a few times Maid would swing to cover the draw and then forget where I was and drive the sheep to the side. It was strange but I gave her a few corrections (running up the field as she could not hear me) and she was more aware of me and the direction of the sheep. I also worked Rain and she was stop on with her fetch, which is good as she is deaf in one ear.

 

Speaking of deaf, the hearing in my left ear is non existent. I called my doc to make a appt to have it checked. I don't know if it an infection as it does ache off/on or what is wrong. I hope it is fixable. Tis explain why recently I keep asking people to repeat what they said to me.

 

After I got done working the dogs, and letting them play in the pond, I feed the livestock and went inside to a warm house. I didn't realize how cold I was until I got inside. My ear really bean to ache so I took an aspirin and then crashed hard for a nap. Nan, Maid and rain made sure I was extra warm by hogging most of the bed and snuggling next to me.

 

It seems like a lot of places lost power but we didn't. We had the power flick on and off but never lost power for more than a minute or two. They had to close the 520 bridge due to waves crashing over it. I could see mini waves on our marsh and pond. No wild birds were flying at all. Everyone hunkered down for the day. They say it will be just as bad for tomorrow. Oh joy, as I have lessons tomorrow and need to work the Open dog for the upcoming trial. I will think I will dig out my cleats, a sailboat and a fifth of whiskey.

Another dog food treat recall

This time it is by Bailey's Choice Dog Treats......

from their website....I applaud them for doing a voluntary recall.

Bailey's Choice is issuing a voluntary recall of our chicken jerky treats that have two lot dates: June 5, 2013 and August 28, 2013 (Lot #132881). These two lots tested positive for salmonella.  We have had no reports of anyone or any pet becoming sick. These treats will not harm your dog, dogs digestive systems are designed for eating raw food. It is more dangerous to humans. As with all raw foods, after handling jerky products, we recommend washing your hands thoroughly. We are working with the GA Dept of Agriculture closely to recall the effected lots. We will have more details here as they become available.

 

Bailey's