The Never-ending Song

This is the stray dog I turned in last Sunday.  Had been told the owner redeemed him but apparently something went wrong. He is on the bedford animal shelter site now up for adoption starting today.  They are calling him "Rivers".  They have him listed as Australian shep.  I thought that too but he has something else I believe since he has a tail and his ears look more spaniel.   From the brief time I knew him I thought he was a very nice dog.  He needs some grooming which I guess the shelter is not doing?  If any of you are in or near the Bedford, Lynchburg, Roanoke VA area and looking for a dog, you might want to check this guy out.

Just a note for those who wondered.  The shelter says the owner redeemed the dog which we had taken there by the local police officer on Sunday.  I am glad the dog has gone back to his home. But I do hope the owner takes time to groom him or at least remove those huge mats.  Such a nice dog.

On my property in North Carolina there stood an old tobacco barn.  It was still in very good condition.  It was two story in the central part with two lean-to sections on either side and a one story section on the back.   The right  side lean-to I used as a garage for my SUV.  The back side I made into a hen house.  It was the best hen house I ever had as it was the perfect size for my small flock.  It had electricity so I was able to have a timer on the light as well as a heat lamp over the waterer in winter.  On one wall I  erected a pole roost with a shelf beneath which made it easy to clean up droppings.  Another innovation which made cleaning very easy was a loose board in the floor in one corner which I lifted daily and raked out the soiled shavings.  They fell to the underneath of the barn which was raised on cement blocks.   From outside it was simple to remove the debris to a wheelbarrow and to the compost.   This was a great innovation-until a very large black snake disco

My neighbor woke me early this morning, rapping on my door in a manner that said it was urgent.  Ordinarily I would have been up by then but had not gone to bed until 1:00AM, so was sleeping in. Well trying to! When I opened the door she had a dog with her.  He was a tri-color male -apparently Border Collie & possible Aussie mix. He stood by her quietly and looked up at me with large brown trusting eyes.  His coat, which should have been lush and luxurious was so matted that dreadlocks were hanging from his belly, ears and ruff.   He came in.  Hannah was beside herself with excitement.  They did the dog sniff greeting from nose to tail and decided they were friends.  I put Hannah back in her crate while I offered the dog a cup of kibble and some water, all of which he made short work of.  Then I tried out a couple of commands -Come, Sit, Down--he did the first two-seemed unsure about the down- and despite his hunger, he accepted  a Milkbone biscuit very gently from my hand. Th

Hannah is nearly 12 years old.  She has been with me for almost 2 years.  She had had much training before she came to me.  I worked with her, going through the basic obedience lessons daily for most of the first year.  The only thing she did not know, or do anyway, was to look directly at me.  I taught her to"Watch me".  She watches me faithfully all the time unless sound asleep and even then she "watches" with her ears, knowing immediately if I leave her presence.  She will now  look directly into my eyes when I say "watch me".   She will not go out the door  with someone else holding the leash unless I give her the OK.  I had complete confidence in her reliability. I guess I trusted the training too much.  I let up on the practice sessions--boring to me and I felt,  to her.  One thing I always counted on was that she NEVER went out the door before me.  I am in a wheelchair and it sometimes takes me a few minutes to get it over the threshold and out. 

Much advice  is written about crate training your dog, be it a puppy or an adopted adult. I am a firm believer in the value of the crate.  Handled properly it becomes a safe haven where the dog enjoys his peaceful time. One is usually told to put in a blanket, a toy, and a chew toy. But wait----have you heard about the value of  TV? Photo courtesy of Betsy Leavitt  

Our manager, Kathryn, spoke to Valerie and I on Friday.  She said that we are having an inspection of yards, apartments, etc. the 2nd week of October.  Among the usual things which relate to safety and cleanliness,  they will be checking are that there are no hidden bird feeders, no tall plants in the flower beds, no more than 2 pots on the porches, only the allowed pieces of furniture, no garden tools, no watering cans, and NO CAT.   Seems Patricia, the head female honcho at corporate was here a short time ago (unannounced) and she spotted poor Ginger taking her afternoon nap on my neighbor's porch chair.  Kathryn said Patricia ran at Ginger clapping her hands and saying "Go away--shoo cat".  At first Ginger ignored her but as Patricia got closer Ginger allegedly hissed at her.  Now she is a dangerous cat!  Well I expect that if Patricia was enjoying a nap on a porch chair and someone ran at her in that fashion, she might hiss too!  The only things that need to fear Gin

This morning my friend, Sue, and I were discussing our community.  We spoke of one person who always has plenty to say and usually not complimentary about someone else.  We spoke of some residents who are pretty much hermits and wondered why they did not appear in the community hall when a luncheon or a speaker or a game day was on the calendar. Those of us who do make it a point to attend every function jokingly say "if you are not there, you are the one who gets talked about". Sadly though, that is not a joke.  For some reason the talk is seldom complimentary.  Once it has been determined the absentee is not at the doctor's office, that person's character is dissected. "There must be a reason she is not here."  "I heard she had a fight with --- and won't come to anything that ---attends."  " Well I heard-" and so it goes.  No one really has an idea why Sally didn't come today, yet everyone thinks they know.  Sally is judged.