Category Archives: Country Life

Cairns, and Ledges, and Streams, Oh My!

May 2, 2018Country Life, Dogs & Other Animals, Rescue HappeningsCountry Life, Dogs, Hikingcindyhazelett

Spring weather is finally here and that means time for hiking! Actually we have been hiking for the past two months even when it was cold but it is much more fun now. Who knew all these rock walls were at the far end of a trail at West Branch State Park? Actually, probably lots of people knew but I wasn’t one of them.

The trail that we took on Sunday even had streams to ford in two places. Cassius, Baxter, and Shelby all crossed with daddy. Zekie was back with me.

Someone left a rock cairn in the tiny center island of one of the streams. It looks like a miniature temple against the rock cliffs rising up in the background.

We walked through some brush so we could get a better look at a couple of ponds and an old stone foundation. Here is Zekie trying to keep up with the pack but he’s stuck on leash with me.

The ponds drew lots of bird life which was fun to watch. We put in over 6.5 miles which I logged on Wooftrax, an app that will give a few cents to the registered rescue of your choice for every walk that you log. Of course mine go to Northeast Ohio Shetland Sheepdog Rescue. Shelby and Zekie insist!

We had some tired dogs when we got home. After a day that includes frisbeeing and hiking, Cassius is too tired to hold his head up!

Longing

April 25, 2018Country Life, GardensFlowers, Springcindyhazelett

Spring weather is exceedingly slow in arriving this year. Luckily my husband decided to grow this amaryllis so we do have some flowers.

We sit around in the evening admiring the beautiful flowers. We are not used to going so long without them.

They are a feast for the soul!

Cabin Fever

April 17, 2018Country Life, Dogs & Other AnimalsDogs, Fun, Springcindyhazelett

Dogs get cabin fever too. You would think that the later half of April in Ohio would bring spring weather. We are still waiting.

This was the view out my window this afternoon. Not very “springy”. It has been too cold and blustery, or some days too rainy, to go for walks.

The dogs were down in the dumps for a couple of days. Now they are just impatient and looking for something to get into.

So we resorted to playing “The Indoor Game”. This involves kicking a rubber toy down the long central hallway of the house. Much chasing, barking, jumping, and chasing ensues.

Zeke has been here long enough that he joins right in.

No fighting or growling takes place aside from playing. We are blessed with good natured dogs. But nevertheless, we are eagerly awaiting spring!

Morning Sky

April 4, 2018Country Life, Thoughts On LifeCountry Life, Snow, Springcindyhazelett

Ohio is moody. This was my view when I arrived at work on Monday morning. The view was indeed spectacular with the beautiful sky and the cottony, white frosted trees.

Some years it has been 70 and sunny in April. Other years there have been several inches of snow.

Yesterday it rained all day long and was in the fifties. Today it has been high winds and enough snow to pile up on the fence.

We had daffodils last year at this time. Overall, could be better, could be worse. Either way I know that I will be whining by the end of June that it is too hot. This too shall pass.

A Good Boy

March 31, 2018Country Life, Dogs & Other Animals, Rescue HappeningsDogs, Hikingcindyhazelett

A head study of a good boy. Cassius the greyhound is tired.

Everybody knows that a tired dog is a good dog. We hiked the mountain bike trail at a nearby State Park this afternoon. All the dogs are passed out now. Even Nikki who didn’t go with us. She gets a pass though, she is 11 and tiny. She did go outside to romp with the others for an hour this morning.

Zekie is resting as well. He was a good boy on our walk. Mostly. He did some quiet growling at the first walker that went by. Even though I made him sit. He didn’t react too much to the second walker. This was a relief. He had been doing better but yesterday he growled, barked, and lunged at every person that went by. I have no idea what was different.

We will make a dog of him yet.

Signs of Spring

March 19, 2018Country Life, Dogs & Other AnimalsCountry Life, Dogs, Hikingcindyhazelett

What are signs of spring in our family? Lots of hikes! Here we were making our way down to the water at Towner’s Woods near Kent, Ohio.

Zekie, the former foster dog, enjoyed it as much as the rest of us. We discovered that he loves water. We walked down to the edge of the lake and he jumped right in. So did Cassius the greyhound.

The park was full of hikers and Zeke was good! He didn’t growl, bark, or lunge at anyone while I walked him. This is a first! I was so proud. And he seemed intent on paying attention and interacting with me. Let’s hope this was the first of many such peaceful walks.

A Trip to the Vet

February 27, 2018Country Life, Dogs & Other AnimalsCountry Life, Dogscindyhazelett

Shelby gave us a bit of a scare yesterday.

My husband called me at work to report that Shelby was limping and could barely make it across the driveway with the other dogs. After they came back in she was also short tempered and laying in her crate.

So I canceled her biweekly visit to the nursing home and made an appointment with the vet instead. No one wants a crabby dog visiting them anyway.Shelby is a tough girl and has tested positive for exposure to Lyme Disease in the past so we were worried. After an examination and an article from the vet citing that 90% of dogs exposed to Lyme Disease never exhibit any symptoms, I was feeling better. (By the way, I do use flea and tick preventative on my dogs in the warmer months but the ticks are developing a resistance to it.)

Shelby did seem to have a sensitive area along her back that was causing her pain. So the vet is thinking that she may have slipped in the mud or on the ice and hurt herself. She will be taking prescribed pain pills for 10 days in the hope she that she will then feel better.

Shelby is generally a happy girl and we want to see that smile return.

Zekie!

February 20, 2018Country Life, Dogs & Other Animals, Rescue HappeningsDogs, Walks, Wintercindyhazelett

Time for a Zekie update. As long as one of us is home, he is a happy boy. Today was unseasonably warm for February in Ohio, 71 degrees. Of course after the snows melted off and then the rains came, it is quite muddy. See evidence above!

Zeke was quite happy running through the mud and playing with all the dogs on such a fine day.

He even took a turn bringing the frisbee back to daddy. All this running through the mud means that the boys came in the house one by one and got rinsed off in the bathtub and then dried with a towel. Zeke is so good. He jumps in the tub on command and stands while I rinse him off. He then jumps out of the tub and onto a towel on command then waits while I dry him.

It was so nice today and I was off work so we then went for a walk at a nearby state park. The water was still frozen but the weather was warm. It was interesting to see the patterns the ice made as the thawing began.

Zekie got to spend his first time off leash today. And he did great. He was nearly as proud as I was! I thought it unlikely that he would go very far since he becomes traumatized if he is not with one of us at all times. After a bit of freedom I leashed him back up so as not to give him too much temptation on his first time off leash with us. Two of our other dogs can be loose and are very reliable while alas, our greyhound must be leashed always. See how happy this outing made Zeke in the brief video below.