How is it possible it is already January?!  The holidays were busy this year, visiting my Mom up in the far reaches of Northern Minnesota, Jim visiting his parents in Milwaukee and Seth's family coming here to the farm for a short stay.  It was perfect!  All the stock is thriving this winter, no sudden unfortunate morning surprises -- even the goats are fat and sassy.  We did have an unplanned litter from our Gaelie Girl and Solo - the pups are in the house of course since they're so little and it is so cold, not to mention that Gael is a frivilous kind of gal - but they're quiet and she's keeping them clean so it's good all around.

We're making some plans for a week-long trip to Puerto Rico, hopefully we'll have good weather and a functional camera along!

Here is our new puppy Nola who has come all the way from Alaska.  She and Zelda have been getting along; Zelda is showing her the ropes and she's been learning.

We don't ever leave the two of them unsupervised; even though today Zelda is the bigger of the two, Nola outweighs her already by about 10lbs and could easily injure out little butterfly girl.

Winter is creeping our way, its cold dark tentacles seeking the crevices around the windows and under the doors.  We're heading to Italy come next Friday for some sun and culture!

Here is Gael quietly working sheep as she earns her PT.  She is generally a bouncy Bouvier but is very quiet when she's around the sheep.

She's not ready for more stockwork yet so we'll concentrate on obedience with her this winter.

And here is the new pup Nola and Zelda, playing in the kitchen a few morning ago.  Zelda is fairly certain that Nola will take her pumpkin ducky!

Believe it or not, this is our side pasture back in the 1950's.  How Melvin was able to actually mow it is beyond me.

We shipped off our lambs on Monday and were delighted to get a decent price.  My friend Doreen had shipped hers last week and was appalled to open her check to find that she'd gotten 20 cents a pound.  We shipped to a different site and it made all the difference.

Lots of wind these past few days, leaves skidding across the gravel road, a few snowflakes and cold rain.  We know what the future holds here in northern Wisconsin!

2012  Mr. Roo

Autumn has arrived here in the little valley on Rustic Road 4.  Despite, or maybe due to, the drought, the color on the trees is soft and muted although when the sun lights up behind them, they burst into vibrancy!

I've cut back all the phlox in the little garden next to the shed and have plans for a gourd walk (the beginning of which you can see) - a walk under trellises which will take one to the chicken coop.  Fun!

We are really proud of Briarlea Reina de la Noche' this week as she went High in Trial at an all-breed herding trial, earning a 94 out of 100 possible points from the Started Class.  She's shown here with her trainer/handler Phyllis Clark.

We are also glad to report that our Gael (Briarlea Nightingale of Rustic Road) earned her first beginning herding title - the HT - or "herding tested" from the AKC.

We've had killing frosts here this week, the morning glories are finally done although we were commenting that the petunias still seem to be hanging in there!  Mornings are downright cold, frost layered over the pastures and the skies clear and bright with stars.  Quite lovely if one is sitting in the kitchen with the heater on!

Jim and I took the day off yesterday to drive up to Lake Superior and Duluth.  It was a perfectly gorgeous day, in the mid-70F range with a little breeze.  We took Gael and Solo along with us; they had a grand time chasing sticks, chasing one another, jumping in the lake and rolling in the sand.  We wandered up to the viewing point on Canal Street to watch the ore boats coming in - and spent a certain amount of time looking at real estate ads once home!

Today I hauled in what tomatoes are left; they are seriously blighted and it's forecast to freeze tonight so that's that.  I also brought in houseplants and drove over to look at some oat straw.  It's only $2 bale but the bales are pretty darned small.  Small sometimes is good however - manageable, I'm thinking...

Today is my birthday! So far so good!  Painters showed up at 7:30 to begin the house painting project, my son Miles called from hunting camp in Colorado to report that they'd gotten an elk and Trouble was successful in helping dog break some lambs.  Can't get much better in my small world!  In addition, I froze 10 gallons (yes, gallons) of tomatoes and am now taking a break.  It's very hot out, 91F as I write this at 4 p.m.

Spaying and Neutering

- an article from the Angry Vet website at www.angryvet.com

We need to bring to light the truths behind spaying and neutering your pets.  The big push to spay and neuter our pets, in particular before puberty, was brought about as a response to the explosion of stray animals without homes.  These strays ultimately have to be euthanized at shelters so it was a valiant effort to address a real problem.

The suggestion that dogs and cats should be spayed and neutered over time has evolved into the suggestion that they should be spayed and neutered because it is healthier.  We at Angryvet disagree.  There is a lot of evidence to support the logical claim that your pets may actually be healthier if left intact.

Think rationally.  How would removing a child’s reproductive organs before puberty affect their growth, maturation, and development?  Puberty and sexual maturation is imperative for bone, brain and organ development.  The same is true for your dogs and cats.

The go to argument that veterinarians tell their clients is that neutering eliminates testicular cancer and prostatitis.  Spaying eliminates breast, ovarian and uterine cancer.  What they don’t tell people is that at least one study shows that intact animals live LONGER.   Spaying and neutering not only potentially shortens the lifespan but also has been correlated with various illnesses.  Obesity (sometimes not even responsive to extreme calorie restriction), osteoarthritis, Anterior Cruciate Rupture, diabetes, hypothyroidism, prostatic cancer, hemangiosarcoma, osteosarcoma, urinary incontinence, urinary tract infection, juvenile vulva  are just a few conditions that are overly represented  in spayed and neutered pets.  We will discuss some of these correlations and published findings in our blogs.

In our opinion the healthiest pet is one that keeps its reproductive tract. This does pose challenges. Male cats mark and spray. It can be burdensome to have a non-spayed female dog bleeding in the house. Female cats, when they are in heat, will drive you nuts! Male dogs can become dog aggressive and mark their territory or the house.

The best compromise, if any of these things is too much to deal with, would be to spay and neuter at a minimum of one year if not two years of age. Allow your pet to reach full maturation and reach adulthood before considering surgery. We have seen shelters that spay and neuter at 6 weeks of age!  Clearly, this aggressive a surgery at such an early stage of development is not warranted.
Understand that there are options.  Educate yourself and take the approach that best suits you and your pet.  

Devi

One of the wonderful things about the internet is its immediacy!  Here is a picture of Devi out in California learning to bark on command.  She's 5 months old now and looks very much like Ray and Mabel!  We are so fortunate to have excellent homes for our puppies who will, hopefully,  be the excellent companions we all intend them to be.  The odds are well within their favor with families like Devi's!

Giant Scary Spider

All my family knows that I am terrified of spiders so going out to the barn has become an adventure this past week.  These giant spiders are in evidence in the afternoon - I"m not quite sure where they are during the day, likely lurking and watching from their lair!  This dandy fellow had created a web yesterday which spanned across the gate; the webbing is remarkably strong!

We wish him well but hope he won't jump or fall on me with his giant and scary self.

Betsy and Briarlea Stryker - quite the team!  Stryker is one of the ABdFC's Top 20 Performance Bouviers this year!

Betsy sent a note this morning:

Stryker got his top 20 invite today...he said "Top Twenty...no way, I'm # 1"!!! He for sure is in my heart. He is a most amazing dog and friend...always doing something funny and unexpected...what a great dog thanks!!

We hosted a stockdog clinic at my friend Phyllis's this past weekend.  I provide the stock and do the organizing and she provides the students.  We had Larry Painter fly up from Missouri to conduct the clinic; he's well known up here for his good way with students and upright dogs.  Susan brought along Noche' for the clinic and is shown here working her flanks - Noche' needs to 'go bye' or clockwise .. or 'away' or counterclockwise ... she is a very biddable Bouvier and a great first herding dog for Susan who is a novice handler.  It was a lot of fun for me to watch the two of them progress over the weekend!  Noche' is by Solo out of Ruby so has a lot of potential for work.

Man Ray, en garde!  Keeping his coat cut short for the summer, he is yet a handsome young fellow!

This is Cheezborgah!

 

Mark writes that: "puppy teeth almost gone!!!! she has not been biting as much, it must hurt her-good for us. she still has not wrecked anything but a flip flop

 

I am looking for cart harnesses, easy comfortable for her, maybe borrow/make a puppy one to train with. and an adult later. I'll take a picture of her cart.  It is tied up in the coop. she has the energy and drive to play-train and be fun, she does do well on leash but will pull if you let her. She does want to be dom. attacks from the back, can be very sneaky with a selective memory.

 

She sounds much like Ray!

Solo, Una, Trouble, Gale, Ray, Mabel and Fancy.

Mabel, Trouble's puppy, has been here for a visit.  Here are the current Bouviers living with us, out in the big dog yard this evening.  The fawn puppy is Fancy.

Got lots done today, sold our red saddleback fantails, powerwashed and primed the front of the house, tilled and weeded the lower garden, trained dogs, bathed Mabel for her return home tomorrow, moved the pigs, did some writing and mowed the lawns.  Tomorrow comes early!

Venny's Refrigerator Pickles

Makes 1 gallon.  You can add a 'little' water if you need to top them off but I"ve found that if you leave them be for an hour or so they generate enough liquid on their own.

Put into the jar:
7 c. sliced cucumbers
1.5 cups sliced onions (I omit these if I don't have little ones)

Mix and heat until the sugar is dissolved, simmer a minute or so:
2 T. pickling salt
2 cups sugar
1 cup vinegar
1 tsp celery seed (optional)

Cool down a bit then pour over the cucumbers. Refrigerate.  Ready to eat the next day, they keep nice and crisp for about a week.  They're generally gone well before then at our house.

I have no idea who Venny is but this is where the original recipe came from.  I got it from our Finnish neighbor Elaine Mannikko when we lived in Minnesota.

Where DOES the time go?  Here it is, mid-July already and the house still needs cleaning!  The monarda are particularly robust this year and, miracle of miracles, no mildew on them!  These, next to the barn are actually much darker in real life than it shows on my computer ~ they're quite dark purple/pink and I thought they'd look great with the yellow lilies but that's not quite working -- oh well!  The hollyhocks on the other hand have had a very tough year with fungus; I've cut these pink ones back to the ground.  I brought the seeds for our hollyhocks back with us from our trip to England's Kew Gardens about 12 years or so ago.  Ever since they've delighted us with their vigor and color but this year, well, it's tough.

I'm taking a writing workshop from the U of W this summer - it's fun - and I hope I'll have the inspiration and energy to update this blog more often.

In from mowing our weed....um, hay field, I am a little dizzy from the heat and the black polyester back brace that has rivers of sweat running down my back.  What a delight to see this little face peering out at me!  I can't tell yet if he is a red squirrel or a chipmunk but regardless, he's part of our daily life now as we monitor his progress from just baby to (hopefully) youngster.

It was Jim's birthday yesterday, we celebrated with strawberry shortcake (mostly a vehicle for whipped cream) and I presented him with a new Weather Station.  He thinks its ridiculous, I think it's wise.  Time will tell....!