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Friday, June 21, 2013

Happy Solstice!

Happy Solstice to everyone. This photo is from sunset last night, which was so very late!
For those of us in the Northern Hemisphere, it means that daylight lasts longer today than any other day of the year. For our friends in the Southern Hemisphere, the tide is turning - your days will now get longer! So, I think it's a good day for all of us.

It's a good day for Shyla, who is feeling better, after her diarrhea stress-reaction to a visit to town earlier this week. She went to my PT clinic with me yesterday, and even though that involved going into town, her tummy is better. Moreover, she seemed very happy at the clinic.
Today, I checked some trail cameras, and I bring good tidings. We have another mother bear in the forest, and this one has two rambunctious cubs.The two cubs were very curious about a bear marking tree that huge males, at least twice as tall as the standing cubs, have marked several times this summer. You can see that the top of the pine sapling is broken off. The adult male bears who mark this tree are taller than the sapling!
The family spent a long time in front of this cam and the one that is pointed at a water hole. I'll have a video of the cuteness soon!

Several of you have asked if I worry about the dogs chasing bears. You might notice in photos that both dogs wear bells. Since we started that tradition almost a decade ago, we've had no close calls with dogs and bears. Even though I am fairly confident that I could call the dogs away from a bear, I'd prefer not to put the bears (and me) through that stress or have the dogs lead a chasing bear back to me. To avoid dog-bear encounters, I also choose the places where I take the dogs very carefully. I've never taken a dog to the place shown in the photos above - I view it as a pristine place for the wildlife.

As I've mentioned in the past, I'm always trying to balance letting my dogs be able to romp with the needs of the wildlife.

Happy Solstice!
P.S. I just learned that today was "Fight like a Frenchie" day for our pal, Benny, a French Bulldog who was just diagnosed with cancer in his liver. We send him and his family the Power of the Paw. To Benny and his family - cherish every day and live it to the fullest - take your inspiration from K, like I did. We're thinking of you.

19 comments:

  1. Happy Solstice to you too. I can't wait to see more of the baby bears.

    Cindy

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  2. I had noticed your bells and I knew what they were for, but I still wondered if the dogs chased things. My dogs will chase deer and fox scent, so actually bumping into them isn't where our problem always is. And the fox in my area delight in being chased....they stay with us on walks, run ahead, sit and watch us coming, run ahead, sit/watch again. It's funny except I don't like my dogs running off. We don't have all the wide open spaces you do. Too many roads!

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  3. Oh this post is the perfect cheery post. I love the bear cubs and can't wait to see the cuteness video.

    Is there a reason one cub is black and one is brown?

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  4. Lovely solstice photos. And I LOVE the bears. Glad Shyla is better as well.

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  5. Wow, those are some beautiful pictures of Shyla. Glad to hear she's feeling better. The mother bear and her two cubs are so amazing. Happy solstice!

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  6. Beautiful. Those bears are ginormous
    Snuggles,
    Benny & Lily

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  7. Happy Solstice to all of you!
    Magnificent photos of the bears!!!
    Beautiful, beautiful photos.
    love
    tweedles

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  8. I also wear a bell when we backpack or take deep woods hikes. At first it drove my MOM crazy, but she said it is all about my safety and the wildlife's, so she got use to it. Looking forward to the video.
    Blessings,
    Goose

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  9. Happy Solstice! Yours is much prettier than ours. We got one stunner of a storm to ring it in here today.

    I love how different the two cubs in that pair are. They are both so darned cute!

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  10. We have an award for you on our blog! :)

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  11. Today is supposed to be a second longer than yesterday. We're finally heading into longer days!

    Love those bear cubs.

    XXXOOO Daisy,Bella & Roxy

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  12. Solstice Greetings, to you all. Lovely photos, two together glowing in sunshine. xxx Jean.

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  13. Happy Solstice, KB! We can't wait to hear more about the bear cubs!

    Love ya lots♥
    Mitch and Molly

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  14. Lovely Mama Bear and cubs! And lovely Shyla, as always.

    We did not get much enjoyment from yesterday's solstice as it was pouring with rain and therefore seemed to get dark early. So far, our summer has been wet and cool.

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  15. Every post is a joy. I love the mama and cubs; looking forward to more cuteness to come!

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  16. Love the cubs, they are so cute!

    The bells are good ideas. Everyone needs to be kept safe!

    Happy summer!

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  17. Hi KB! Read your last posts. THe video of the bears are awsome and very interesting. Great Reading and Lovely pics.
    Now I will have better time to follow then the pups are at their new homes

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