Monthly Archives: March 2021

Rocky Trail Hike: Are You Up for It?

Country Life, Dogs & Other Animals, , ,
Rock Face
Rock Face from our hike.

We took a hike on the Rock Face Trail at West Branch last week. We had put this one off at my request because I didn’t want to undertake it when it was snowy and possibly slippery. It turned out that the biggest challenge was the rocks used in paving the trail. This is also a mountain bike trail and marked for experts only. We took this warning to apply to mountain bikes and thought hiking would be no problem. And the trail is definitely hikeable, although the going is slow. I had to stop once and get Shelby out from between two rocks. She could have done it, but I knew she was tired by then and at eleven years old, I didn’t want her straining herself.

What I can’t figure out is why someone would want to ride their bicycle over all those rocks. The trails generally go back and forth over a small area distance-wise. What you could walk quickly as the crow flies, becomes a ribbon maze to create more distance. And of course, the up and down and bumping and jarring from riding over the rocks. I’m thinking it must be a young person’s activity. Something to be pursued before you have achy joints and you still have more cushioning left between your bones.

Hiking
Hiking beside a rock formation.

Of course, hubby and the bigger dogs always fare better than me and the shorter dogs. For some reason I am also the only one who seems to have problems keeping my footing and not sliding in the mud.

Rock formation
Another rock formation.

Mercifully, for these types of formations, the trail goes around the rock face and not up and over, or down. I don’t think I could handle that. It is always exciting to see new things along the trails. The trees are starting to bud out and new green shoots are springing forth from the soil.

By the time we get back home, I am ready for a cup of tea and a bit of reading. The dogs are ready for a nap.

Baxter having a nap.

This Is My Bag Check!

Country Life, Thoughts On Life, ,

Bag Check
Hiking Bag and Contents

Have you seen those photo ops called “this is my bag check”? Since I rarely go away these days, there is little point in doing my purse. Maybe it will be more exciting post-Covid.

But I do use this belt bag or fanny pack every day. I strap it on for hiking, to carry all my essentials. I used to keep these items in the many pockets of my parka, but with the changing seasons I kept changing coats and forgetting something.

So what do I take with me?

  • Poop bags-important on every outing!
  • House and car keys.
  • Face mask-a Covid essential.
  • Pepper spray-I never go on a hike without it since our scary run in with loose dogs. Encounter With Loose Dogs, Gone Bad
  • Tissues-I spared you those in the photo. Good to have when applying pressure to a wound, as well as the usual uses.
  • Cell phone-not pictured because I was using it to take the photo. Also useful for accessing maps, tracking distance, and as a compass.

Is there something unusual you never leave home without? Inquiring minds want to know.

A Working Dog!

Country Life, Dogs & Other Animals, , ,
Dog chasing geese.
Zekie chasing geese off our neighbor’s pond.

Spring is officially here! And with it comes geese trying to make a home by our neighbor’s pond. The goal is to keep them away and prevent them from laying eggs nearby. Once they have a nest with eggs, there is no getting rid of them for quite some time.

Why wouldn’t you want the geese to stay? Two words. Goose poop. They leave it every where and all around the pond. These are Canada Geese and they are large birds. With correspondingly large poop. Walking in the area can become like looking out for land mines. And once the eggs are laid and hatch, the geese may become aggressive trying to protect their eggs and young.

I recently learned that when the goslings are about two weeks old, the parents lose their long wing and tail feathers and cannot fly until they grow in again. This takes about three to four weeks. The young geese stop growing in size and are able to fly when they are just over two months old. The goose family is likely to stay until the end of summer when they move on to look for other food sources. So, you can see why the earlier you get the geese to move on, the better. Otherwise you will have them around for a long time and your pond will not be usable.

This is Zekie’s second year as a goose chaser. Geese stopped at the pond several times last spring as well. Our neighbor bought a couple of large plastic swan decoys and put them on her pond. Swans are supposed to trick the geese and keep them away. The geese did not fall for it. They are apparently smarter than us, as we did. For a couple days I discussed the nice swans over at the neighbor’s with my husband. It took that long for me to notice the swans were not moving. They did bob on the water and move a few inches, but they were always in the same general locale. Upon getting closer, I could see there was a thin rope keeping them in place. Mystery solved. But, I was disappointed not to have beautiful swans living nearby.

Last spring, after the faux swan caper failed, the neighbor called and asked if we could walk some of our dogs around her pond to get a predator smell in the area and see if that would keep the geese away. That’s when my husband offered the services of our dogs to see if the geese could be chased away. The first time I took Baxter and Zekie. The dogs chased the geese around the pond until they went into the water and floated towards the center. At that point Baxter was done. No water for him. Zekie waded in the water a few inches and stared intently at the geese. The geese didn’t leave until after we did.

When the geese showed up, our neighbor would call on the phone and ask for the dogs. After a couple times, I started taking only Zekie, because he would jump in the water and head towards the geese. On his last visit to the pond last year, he swam towards the geese and followed them even after they were airborne. Zekie was giving chase to those geese and barking at them, telling them off as he ran. He chased them to the next property which was a few acres away and finally returned to my callings. His tongue was hanging down to his knees but he had an enormous grin.

Today was Zekie’s first encounter with geese this spring. I had to tell him a couple times to “get those geese”. It still only took him about 30 seconds to get the couple airborne and flying away. Zekie is so proud to have a job to do. I imagine he’ll get to “work” a few more times before the pond stays clear. Below, you can see how happy he is to have done his job and be running back to me!

Dog returning
Zekie returning after getting rid of the geese.

Please note, no geese were harmed in the clearing of the pond. They always fly away well before he reaches them.

Zekie’s Big Stick

Country Life, Dogs & Other Animals, , , ,
Dog fetching
Zekie retrieving his big stick.

We were back hiking at West Branch State Park yesterday. We combined two trails for a total of 3.81 miles. A portion of the walk was along the edge of the Reservoir. It is so nice to hike near the water and listen to waves splashing as the water rolls in and out. Although I am not the biggest fan of swimming, I do love to be near the water for its beauty.

Some of our dogs enjoy getting in the water and some do not. Zekie LOVES the water. In fact, when we are hiking and use a foot bridge to cross over small streams, Zekie always tries to jump off the bridge so he can wade through the water. I often let him. He gets such a kick out of it that he turns around and smiles at me with a mischievous grin.

Yesterday, my husband threw a stick in the water and told Baxter to go get it. Baxter just gave him the “surely you jest” look as he turned his head and walked away. My husband said to Baxter, “Zekie will get the stick. Get it Zekie”. And he did.

Dog retrieving stick
Zekie carrying his stick out of the water.

Zekie was so proud about retrieving the stick. We were proud of him too. He is a pretty good fetch dog. He will bring things back, but it is difficult to get him to relinquish them. He always brings them to within a few feet of us and lays them down though. He just can’t make the final step of putting them into our hands.

Three Dogs
Zekie, Claire, and Cassius.

You can see in this photo that Zekie has a sense of humor and a bond with his fellow pack members. Here he is smiling at Cassius. Probably telling him, “Hey, I went and got that stick and brought it back. Did you see me, huh, huh!” Cassius likes to wade into the water. He just stands there enjoying it.

State Park
Southern shoreline of West Branch Reservoir.

This is the beach area we hiked down an incline to reach so the dogs could play in the water. The level of the Reservoir is low now, so the beach area is bigger than it often is. You can see how shallow the water. This makes it easy for the dogs to walk into the water and back out to the shore line.

WBSP little bit of land
Tiny island in the Reservoir.

Above, you can see a tiny island in the distance. During the summer when the water level is raised in the Reservoir, this little bit of land is probably submerged. Levels are kept lower during the winter off-season months. If you look closely, you can see some birds on the edge of the little island. Most of them were seagulls. As you drive over the bridge to reach the parking lot for this area of the park, you can often see Canada Geese, sea gulls, and an assortment of ducks bobbing on the water. The park is home to various wildlife. Two times within the past week we have seen mink crossing our path. The animals have learned to cohabitate with all the park goers who frequent the area.

We are blessed to live in such a beautiful area.

You Have Survived!

Dogs & Other Animals, Thoughts On Life, , ,
Self-portrait
Me after my first shot today.

 

I got the first dose of my Covid vaccine yesterday. This is so exciting. It’s the first step toward freedom! I have to wait a month for the second dose and then two weeks more for full immunity, but the process has begun. We won’t return to life as we knew it before any time soon, but will feel safer going in some places while wearing masks and adding a few activities back into our lives.

The act of getting vaccinated seems so simple, but it has momentous results, for us and for our country. Things that we took for granted pre-Covid will be special treats now. For me, going to the library is one thing I am looking forward to.

If you had told me last March that a year later, we would still be isolating and wearing masks, I would have been hard pressed to believe it. Yet, here we are. It was actually a blessing that we didn’t have the foresight to know this would still be going on. I don’t think I could have done it, if I had known at the outset, just how long this would last. I would have been lost in despair. But we did do it. All of us. We have survived.

I can’t imagine forgetting this feeling and enjoying so many freedoms without appreciation again. Time will tell. It’s easy to think that you will never forget while in the moment. But life has a way of moving on and dulling memories.

Knowing that I am going through the vaccination process, changes my outlook and gives me new hope. It renews my appreciation of life in so many ways. I came home from getting my shot and it was nearly 70 degrees outside in mid-March. I took some time to sit outdoors on the steps by the side door to read the current issue of Yankee magazine and enjoy the weather. (I couldn’t sit on the patio because Zekie was in the pasture and that would have put me out of his sight kicking in his separation anxiety. Much barking would have ensued.)

Mama and Zekie
A girl and her dog, Zekie.

While I was sitting there I noticed so much life. The spring peepers were singing on our neighbors pond. I love the sound of the peepers. I could listen to them all year. They are the sound of the spring thaw and a return to the growing season to me. Soon there will be daffodils, followed by budding trees. I heard birds chirping all around me. One was even rustling in the rhododendron next to me. Or it could have been a resident chipmunk.

I imagine I will forever tie the memory of my first Covid shot with signs of spring. In our state of Ohio, every adult is eligible to receive the vaccine starting on March 29, so I am not in an elite group and any can join me on this journey. I hope it means as much to you as it does to me.

Remember, you are a survivor!

Brighter Days

Dogs & Other Animals, ,
Shetland Sheepdog

Claire this evening.

Claire is the only dog who’s still awake at our house this evening. This is typical of most evenings. Our other dogs are passed out in various places around the house.

Claire is our youngest dog, but still, she’s six years old. She is not a young dog. We wonder if she spent a lot of time in her crate in her previous life. Everything seems new and exciting to her. She acts like she’s afraid she will miss something if she falls asleep.

When bedtime comes, she is eager to go in her crate. This is partially due to the fact that she receives a treat before bed. Once she finishes the treat, she quickly lays down and curls up in a ball with her tail over her nose. That is the last we hear out of her until morning light. We are thankful for this because in general, the girl likes to bark.

Sheltie

Claire’s happy face.

This is Claire’s typical look throughout the day. The first photo is her slowed down evening face. She still spends time jumping on and off the couches and chewing bones.

She is so full of life. She brightens our days and makes us smile frequently.

How Do Your Dogs Get Exercise?

Country Life, Dogs & Other Animals, , ,
Five Dogs
Hubby waiting with five of our dogs.

We took our daily hike yesterday at Shaw Woods, one of the newer Portage County Parks. We like to go here because there usually aren’t many other people around. Yesterday there were four other cars in the parking lot which is quite a lot for this location. Here, my husband is waiting with our five dogs we take hiking while I run a poop bag back to the trash can. We didn’t even make it into the woods before one of them went. I do greatly appreciate the parks that supply trash cans!

We encountered two others out hiking with their dogs. And while we dearly love dogs, obviously, I always pull out my pepper spray whenever any approach now, in case one is loose. This is my reaction ever since we had a run in with loose dogs that attacked a while back. Encounter With Loose Dogs, Gone Bad. It is my job to keep my dogs safe and I take it seriously.

Walking around yesterday, I could see the beginnings of signs of spring. The leaf buds are visible on some of the trees, the birds are more active, and my favorite, the peepers were singing. Some other type of frog was singing too. If you stood still, you could hear one group of frogs croaking and off in the distance another group would answer their calls. The spring peepers are my favorite though. If I stand at our back door in the evening, I can hear them singing from our neighbor’s pond. Sometimes I stand outside our back door just to listen to the performance.

Sleeping greyhound
Cassius after a hike.

The benefits of hiking or walking are many. We humans enjoy better health and reduced anxiety. For many reasons. Not the least of which is, if we don’t take the dogs for their daily outing, they make us pay. Without a chance to expend energy they get into trouble. They know when it is around the time we head out. About ten minutes before hand they start pacing. If we haven’t changed our shoes by then, they begin coming up to us and staring in our faces. If we still haven’t responded, a few of them will come up and poke us repeatedly with their pointy noses. Can you say spoiled?

They give us the incentive we need to keep walking even on days when we don’t feel like it. If we want an easy day, we hike up the road to the township park and back. The footing on the roadway is level and the round trip is only two miles. Once the weather warms up we will switch to going in the morning, leaving earlier and earlier, the hotter it gets. We’ll see how long I make it as I don’t do well with heat.

How do you get your dogs exercise? Remember, a tired dog is a good dog!

Exploring on a Hike

Country Life, Dogs & Other Animals, , ,
Dogs on the lake
Zekie and Claire posing during a hike.

We went for a hike a few days ago when it was still cold and there was ice in the reservoir water at West Branch State Park in Portage County, Ohio. Our walk took us down an abandoned road and since hunting season is over, we took some of the side trails off the road to see where they went. One took us to a property that was abandoned when the land became property of the the State Parks system. You could still see the old, paved driveway and various detritus from the long gone house and garage. I love looking at old, forgotten sites and thinking about the people who once lived there.

The next side trail we tried took us down an old grassy, farm-type driveway. At the end of a very long drive, there was a row of large trees all planted in a line. No evidence of any farmstead remained but after a short jaunt through the woods, we came out on the water at the edge of the reservoir. Zekie and Claire (above) held a sit-stay just long enough for me to get a nice photo. I drop the dogs’ leashes once I give them the command, so I can back far enough away to get them in the lens. Once I get the shot, I grab the leashes again. Sit-stays are awesome!

Sheltie holding a sit command
Shelby sitting near the shore line.

After getting the photo of Zekie and Claire, I turned around and Shelby was also doing a sit-stay behind me. She heard me give the other dogs the commands and she obeyed them as well. She is such a good girl. That’s why she gets to go so many more places than the other dogs do.

Ice at West Brach State Park, Ravenna, Ohio
Ice still on the water at West Branch State Park.

Here is the view that was just beyond Zekie and Claire. The ice was just starting to melt, but farther around the bend, it was still thick enough that someone was ice fishing that day. The patterns that the ice made in the water were a beautiful sight to behold.

From there I hiked around to the other side of this outcropping to look at the water from there. As I was in route, I was surprised by a large tree branch a few inches off the ground and caught the toe of my hiking boot on it. I recovered enough that I was starting to regain my balance. At the same moment Zekie decided to give an extra tug on the leash, because he wanted to see where daddy had gone. This was all it took for me to continue my downward tumble and fall down. I landed in a pile of dead leaves so it was a pretty cushy impact. And, dedicated dog owner that I am, I did not lose my grip on the leashes as I fell! Zekie did turn around and seem to want to know what I was doing down there on the ground and why I was slowing his progress. Still, I’m claiming an Olympic type score of 10 out of 10 for maintaining control of the dogs!

Ice on Reservoir
Ice on the reservoir, visible from 15 foot cliff.

Once I picked myself up and got on my way, here is the view I saw once I made it the other side of the outcropping. There is a sharp drop of 15 feet. At the bottom is a small beach and you can see a number of teeny-tiny icebergs floating out in the water. There was more melting here because the water is so shallow. Looks like the perfect place for a picnic when it warms up a little more! We’ll have to take a longer way around with a more gradual incline.

How Can One Little Dog Cause So Much Trouble?

Dogs & Other Animals, , ,
Shetland Sheepdog after a bath
Claire-damp from her bath.

It’s been one of those days. Things were going great, and then…they weren’t. How many things can you need to wash in one afternoon? Lots!

This afternoon was worse than the day I was babysitting and the baby had diarrhea. What happened that day? The diarrhea came up and out the back of the diaper. It got on the onesie when I was trying to do a diaper change. So, I took the onesie off and in the process, the diarrhea got in her hair. This necessitated a bath. At least that day, that was the end of it.

Today’s escapade started while we were on a walk at a local park the next town over from us, near Kent, Ohio. We were having a nice walk through the woods and enjoying the scenery. All five dogs were relatively well behaved and the weather was beautiful. It was a fine day. As we were nearing the end of our walk, Claire suddenly had to poop. It was a little loose which is unusual in itself. Claire is a walking pooper as are many shelties. I think it helps to keep things from getting stuck in their fur. As she’s doing her business, she walks over top of her leash. So, she now has poop on her leash. She also manages to get her legs tangled up in the leash. I pull on the leash to extricate her and she flips over and rolls through some poop on the ground and comes up with it smeared across her shoulder. Now I have a poopy leash AND a poopy dog.

Thank goodness for that towel back in the car. I just have to walk Claire and Shelby back to the car without either of them running into the leash with poop on it as they walk on the trail. It sounds so easy. We did make it to the car with little more trouble. I wrapped the towel, that I keep in the car for wiping dog feet, around Claire and she wore it for the ride home like a cape. It actually seemed to calm her down and keep her still. Maybe it worked similar to a thunder shirt. My husband drove and I held Claire.

We made it across town and were nearing home in an otherwise uneventful trip. Until we got on our road about half a mile from home. Where Claire had explosive vomiting. Did I mention that Claire is our worst poop eater? And that all the dogs had been out in our fenced pasture this morning? The vomit was quite odiferous. My husband made disgusted sounds and immediately put the windows down. When Claire was sick, it bounced back off the window and went everywhere. Down the inside of the car and into the map pocket of the car door, on the seat cover, and on the floor. That wasn’t the worst of it. It also went on my coat sleeve and shirt sleeve, through my pants, and some bounced back and splashed me in the face and glasses. Fun times! I felt like I was in some sick Warner Brothers cartoon and at any moment the roadrunner was going to come zipping by with a “Beep, beep” because some other humorously, awful thing happened.

We got home and the first order of business was to give Claire a bath. My husband tried to help, but I told him, “Just let me handle it, I’m already covered in it”. No reason for both of us to suffer. After giving Claire a bath, the car needed a good scrubbing and wiping down, after which I put the seat cover, towels, leash, and my clothes and coat into the washing machine. Then I showered and washed my hair. Three hours later everything was as good as before we left for our walk. Whew!!!

How can one little girl cause so much work? I always thought that dogs were much easier than kids. I may have to rethink this!

Books I Read in February 2021

Books & Reading, ,
I liked this one!

I didn’t do much better at reading in February than I did in January. In my defense, February is a short month.

1. Beaglemania-Linda O. Johnston

Adoption manager Lauren becomes the prime murder suspect after a dog abuser and puppy mill worker dies. Lauren spends all her time taking care of her shelter charges and looking for the real killer. Keeping herself safe becomes harder and harder. The first in a new series. A worthwhile read.

2. Christmas At the Island Hotel-Jenny Colgan

This story takes place on one of the far north islands of Scotland. It has an enjoyable cast of characters who all play a part in bringing off the success of the new hotel on the island. A nice slice of life in another land.

3. Rescue You-Elysia Whisler

Sunny and her sister Constance are involved in running a dog rescue. I grew really attached to all the characters in this book as I read about them working out problems in their personal lives and for the dogs. A very enjoyable book.

4. The Lending Library-Aliza Fogelson

When the local library closes for long term repairs, the main character Dodie, feels lost. She opens a library in her home with donated books and gets to know many people in her community. She also struggles with how to handle her desire to have a child while she still has time. I found this book to be ok, not the most exciting thing I’ve ever read, but not bad.

5. Return to Virgin River-Robyn Carr

This is one of the books on which the television series is based. If the show is anything like the book, I can see why it is popular. Kaylee is dealing with the death of her mother and moves to the town of Virgin River for a few months to finish her next book. She finds lots of people in town who become like family.

If I had to pick just one book for you to read from this list I would recommend Return to Virgin River, although Rescue You is a close second. Why wonder what you’re missing? Read them both!