Hot-Diggiddy-Dog

We had such a lovely drive yesterday. The countryside is so beautiful this time of year. The fields are a patchwork of greens and yellows as the different crops mature. There were some fields that were such a dark green they looked like deep green velvet. And then there’s the corn. Field after field of corn line the roads. It hasn’t tasselled yet, it had a late start with our cold wet spring – I hope there is a chance for it to mature before fall cuts the days short. I love driving through the countryside – it can brighten all but the darkest mood.

This morning I made the dogs “hotdog” treats to bring on our next camping trip (just 5 days away). Now those who know me know that I feed a RAW diet and am a bit picky about what I feed them. So why the hotdogs? They make cheap, easy to carry treats that the dogs consider very high value, perfect for those leash-training opportunities that are sure to present themselves at Presqu’ile. I make them by cutting the hotdogs up into bits and then blasting them for 4 or more minutes in the microwave. The house still stinks of hotdog … but better than the stench from making liver treats.

Carm has been working away with the whipper-snipper and lawn mower to battle back the overgrown patch between our “lawn” and the pond. He finally finished a good part of it today – it looks great! The bad side to this though is now the dogs have really easy access to the pond and all the stinky stuff around it. Already this afternoon Spike found a particularly smelly bit to roll in – peeeuuu.

We haven’t cut down the dead tree in the middle of the photo as it is a favourite perch for the birds. Sometimes the Kingfisher even hangs out there.

Grace got a new addition to her outside cage today. Carm was trimming up some trees (the job that never ends) so I grabbed a big branch and shoved it into the cage, leaves and all. It took Grace a few minutes to get used to them after which she happily stripped bark from some branches. African Grey Congo's are notoriously known for betting skittish and neurotic. Grace is neither. It usually takes her no time at all to accept a new toy or branch, she’ll eat just about anything (the junkier the better), and she enjoys going to new places (she LOVES camping). She is an atypical Congo and we love her :-)

Begin at once to live, and count each separate day as a separate life.
Seneca