Springtime and Shyla's Diet

I know it's springtime when I see these rascals almost daily.

They like to block roads at this time of year. It's the most enjoyable traffic jam I can imagine.

"Nope, we're not moving", they said to me! In these situations, I can see a herd rule in action that I've read about in wildlife books. Apparently, an older cow elk is the herd leader. In my experience, it is always a cow elk who eventually leads the herd off the road.

With the first true sense of springtime, I've gradually been reintroducing trail riding to my mountain biking (I was mainly riding on dirt roads for quite a while). I am thrilled. With a very slow increase in trail riding, my surgery-addled shoulder is getting stronger rather than more sore.

Shyla is happy about that because she joins me for part of it.  She's saying "I refuse to look at that camera because I want to RUN" in this photo.

I made many mistakes after my shoulder surgery - and one was that I failed to reduce Shyla's food rations to match her reduced exercise. I remembered to limit my own calories but not hers. So, she's on a small diet right now. Here's what she has to say about it!

Shyla gained only a few pounds but that's a fair bit on her frame. She needs to lose one more pound, according to my vet. My vet likes to be able to see the last two ribs in a dog as active as Shyla. Every step Shyla takes when she runs involves more impact if she's a tiny bit too heavy. Over a lifetime of running, that takes a toll on her joints - so I follow my vet's rule.

Shyla says she's going to head for the hills if this diet continues!

Don't worry girl - the diet will be over soon. You're looking good!